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Sonoma County supervisor warns of budget pressure, outlines road investments and urges inclusion in water diversion talks
Summary
Supervisor David Rabbitt told Rohnert Park’s council the county faces fiscal uncertainty from possible state and federal funding cuts and rising liability costs, described $270 million invested in roads over 13 years and urged local participation in negotiations to preserve the Potter Valley diversion as PG&E moves to surrender the hydroelectric project.
Supervisor David Rabbitt told the Rohnert Park City Council on April 8 that Sonoma County’s fiscal outlook is stable but at risk, and that county leaders are focused on balancing competing demands as state and federal funding shifts. "The county budget is approximately $2.5 billion, and the general fund about $550 million," Rabbitt said, adding that uncertainty in state and federal appropriations and rising insurance liabilities are central concerns.
Rabbitt described road maintenance as a top, ongoing expense: Sonoma County has treated about 546 miles of roadway in the last 13 years and will invest another roughly $31 million in the coming cycle. "For the last 13 years we've averaged about 42 miles every cycle," he said, noting that because county allocations split state gas-tax revenues by population and road miles, counties with many miles of road receive less per-mile funding than denser counties.
The supervisor also highlighted specific local projects, including two roundabouts on Old Redwood Highway (at Elias and Railroad) intended to reduce vehicle conflict points and improve pedestrian safety. He said that Sonoma County is working with neighboring jurisdictions and property owners to design the improvements.
On regional water issues, Rabbitt urged continued local engagement with the Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project relicensing and potential decommissioning by Pacific Gas & Electric. PG&E has signaled it will surrender operations at Potter Valley, a move that could lead to removal of the Scott and Cape Horn dams on the Eel River. Rabbitt said local agencies and the Upper Russian River project authority (URPA), a joint powers authority that includes Sonoma Water and other regional partners, are pursuing inclusion in PG&E’s Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) proceedings to preserve the long-standing diversion that supplies part of the Russian River watershed. "The diversion needs to continue," he said, arguing that participation in the surrender/license process is the best chance to protect both instream flows and water supply for hundreds of thousands of residents.
Council members thanked Rabbitt for the briefing and pressed on local impacts: multiple members asked for more detail on the county’s road-miles calculation, the prioritization of specific local pavement, and safety features for planned crossings in Rohnert Park. Rabbitt said staff-level coordination and budget workshops ahead of June hearings will inform final proposals and that the county is planning conservative assumptions about state and federal revenues.
What’s next: Rabbitt said the Board of Supervisors will hold spring budget workshops at the end of April to refine departmental requests before the June hearings. He also flagged ongoing county conversations about liability insurance costs and the long-range consequences of pension funding changes—matters the county will incorporate into upcoming budget deliberations.
