Kern County supervisors adopt $4.5 billion FY 2025–26 budget; boosts public safety, parks and homelessness services

The Kern County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday adopted the county'9s fiscal year 2025'26 recommended budget totaling $4,500,000,000, funding public safety, infrastructure projects and expanded homelessness services while adding to county reserves.

The budget passed by unanimous vote after a public hearing and presentations from county budget staff. Alex Alva, the county'9s budget director, told the board, "The county's fiscal year 25 26 recommended budget totals 4,500,000,000," and described it as supporting 8,669 authorized positions and a net staffing increase of 31 positions.

The budget document and presentations show the county will allocate roughly $1.2 billion to public protection (28.3% of the total), $1.03 billion to public assistance, and $955 million to health and sanitation functions. Staffing expenses are estimated at $1.3 billion and operating expenses at $1.9 billion. The general fund total is $1.08 billion.

Why this matters: Kern officials said the package aims to maintain mandated essential services while responding to local priorities, including Measure K-funded public safety and community investments. The budget also adds reserves to address future liabilities and volatility in state and federal funding.

Key allocations and changes - Public safety: Measure K continues to underpin local public-safety investments. The sheriff'9s office budget includes Measure K funding for recruitment and retention; presenters cited approximately $24,700,000 allocated for sheriff priorities. The sheriff-coroner budget totals about $345,100,000. - Fire services: The Kern County Fire Department is fully funded to keep stations open and adds positions. The county will receive an estimated $7.7 million in additional CAL FIRE cooperative funding tied to statewide scheduling and will add personnel including 40 wildland firefighters and 9 positions for a station serving the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. - Homelessness and shelter: The budget includes $7.7 million in ongoing investments for emergency shelter and homeless programs, including support for the M Street Navigation Center (147 beds), a safe parking program, a tiny-home village (Hope on Hart, 50 units) and safe camping spaces. - Capital and maintenance: The recommended budget lists 171 capital and major maintenance projects totaling about $144 million, with roughly 72% managed by General Services. Park improvement allocations include $2.5 million in Measure K for multiple parks and $33 million over time for facilities improvements at more than 20 parks. - Libraries and animal services: Nearly every branch is budgeted to be open five days a week with Measure K and partnerships. The county included $1.6 million for design of a new animal services facility and an ongoing $1 million for spay/neuter programs supported by general fund and Measure K. - Behavioral health and social services: The behavioral health budget contains $15.5 million to implement Senate Bill 43 (effective Jan. 1, 2026) and $66 million for Behavioral Health Services Act transition planning. The Department of Human Services administration budget totals $307.7 million; its direct aid budget totals $394 million. - Revenues and reserves: The recommended budget reflects a $75 million (1.71%) increase over the prior adopted budget and projects tax revenue of $763.4 million (including ~$589 million property-related revenue). Staff said one-time sales-tax adjustments in 2024'25 included a reallocation of more than $20 million that inflated last year'9s collections; county staff said they treat such items as one-time and avoid counting them as ongoing revenue. The budget adds $38.9 million in general fund reserves for liability and Measure K stability.

Board discussion and public input Assistant County Administrative Officer Elsa Martinez framed the budget as a forward-looking policy document and cautioned the board and public about differences between audited financial statements and budgetary carry-forward. Martinez said, "The budget is a plan for the upcoming fiscal year," and explained the county'9s use of designations and carry-forward to manage timing and restricted funds.

Supervisors questioned staff about sales tax volatility and one-time revenues; staff answered that the county'9s sales tax consultant and audits inform projections and that one-time receipts are used conservatively and often placed in reserves or applied to one-time expenses. Supervisor David Couch asked staff to quantify the components of an apparent drop in ongoing sales tax; staff said they would provide a breakdown and noted a misallocation was corrected after audit.

Public commenters addressed multiple budget-related concerns. Charles Shinn, a retired Marine and resident, raised privacy questions about expanded automated license plate readers funded for some East Kern cameras; Supervisor Ken Parlier responded that the sheriff'9s department described the devices as a "force multiplier" that can aid rural investigations and be shared with CHP and local agencies.

Formal action By unanimous vote the board closed the budget hearing and approved the resolutions adopting the fiscal year 2025'26 county budget, approving Employer Training Resource and Community Development budgets, and amending the county salary ordinance as presented. The motion was moved by Supervisor David Couch and seconded by another board member; the final vote was recorded as all ayes (Chair Leticia Perez; Supervisors David Couch, Jeff Peters, Ken Parlier and Zack Flores).

What happens next County staff said departments will continue implementing the plan, with periodic reporting and midyear reviews if changes in state or federal funding occur. The board also asked staff to return with additional detail about one-time revenue components and to coordinate follow-up on referrals, including an audit risk assessment and a constituent-services tracking project.

Ending After the vote, county leaders thanked budget staff for the work that produced the document and closed the budget hearing. The board recessed to handle consent items and other business on the meeting agenda.