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Supervisors ask for midyear report on $160,000 estimated SYTF savings and how funds will support community-based youth programs
Summary
After public questions about how Secure Youth Treatment Facility (SYTF) funds and ranch camp savings would be used, the board directed a midyear report showing allocation of an estimated $160,000 in FY25-26 savings to community-based organizations.
The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors on June 10 instructed staff to report back at the midyear budget review on how estimated savings tied to the Secure Youth Treatment Facility (SYTF) and camp placements will be allocated to community-based organizations (CBOs).
During public comment multiple community members asked the board to clarify whether savings from SYTF and the county's planned ranch camp would be counted together and how general fund and grant dollars would be identified and spent. In response, county probation fiscal staff described the funding interplay and a revised estimate of potential savings.
Probationdepartment fiscal officer Justin Nunes told the board the two funding streams are separate: SYTF funds come from an SB 823 block grant (a fixed allocation), and ranch-camp placements are paid from the county general fund when placements occur. He said an unanticipated out-of-county youth placement in March increased out-year costs by about $140,000 for FY25-26, reducing the earlier projected $300,000 savings to an estimated $160,000 at this point in time. Nunes emphasized the figure is a point-in-time projection and can change depending on court commitments and placements.
Probation staff also said the county had set aside a contingency for ranch-camp costs of approximately $170,000; after accounting for the SYTF-related commitments that contingency was effectively reduced to about $30,000 in the FY25-26 proposed appropriations.
Supervisor Cummings and other board members said members of the public who asked questions should have an opportunity to hear this explanation without removing the item from consent. The board added direction that the estimated $160,000 in FY25-26 savings be tracked and a midyear report show how those savings are allocated among CBOs for community-based alternatives. The board approved the consent item with that additional direction.
Next steps: Probation will incorporate the board's direction in the budget and report back at the midyear budget review with a line-item report on how the estimated savings are allocated to CBOs for community-based alternatives in FY25-26.
