Santa Barbara County budget workshops highlight cuts, public-safety strain and calls for a youth fund from cannabis taxes

Santa Barbara County’s Board of Supervisors spent April 15 hearing department budgets as officials outlined how flat or declining revenues will force program reductions and tightened staffing across county government.

The day, the second of three budget workshop days for fiscal year 2026–27, centered on the county’s largest spending cluster — public safety — and then moved through the county’s administrative departments. Department heads repeatedly described a mismatch between growing demands and constrained dollars: the District Attorney said felony case loads and digital evidence volumes have surged; Probation warned of rising juvenile commitments lasting into young adulthood; the Public Defender said flat funding threatens diversion and holistic defense programs; and the Sheriff said recent budget proposals would force service reductions and risk staff layoffs.

District Attorney John Sabernoth told the board his office has seen a 62% increase in open felony cases since 2019 and a dramatic increase in digital evidence, while revenue losses in key grants have driven position reductions; he asked the board to consider restoring two positions to preserve specialty courts and case-processing capacity. Probation Chief Holly Benton described a $74 million operating budget balanced with a $2 million cut that will reduce some positions and require one-time funds to preserve juvenile supervision; she also said the county’s juvenile justice center now holds a growing share of young adults because state policy lets youth remain in county custody for multi‑year commitments. Public Defender Tracey Muga warned that her office is chronically underfunded and that further cuts would degrade services that keep people out of custody.

Sheriff Bill Brown asked the board to restore roughly $5 million in proposed cuts, arguing they would reduce patrol coverage, lengthen response times and damage jail operations. Sheriff leadership said the agency had lost dozens of sworn positions since the Great Recession and remains chronically reliant on overtime; they also highlighted recent law‑enforcement successes, including large narcotics seizures and a 41% reduction in overdose deaths countywide. Mental‑health advocates and public‑defense leaders urged the board to preserve the sheriff’s behavioral sciences unit and crisis co‑response teams, saying those programs prevent crises and keep people out of jail.

Across the administrative side of the budget, Treasurer/Tax Collector Harry Hagen, the Clerk‑Recorder‑Assessor team, Auditor‑Controller Betsy Schaefer, IT and HR directors, and General Services described largely status‑quo budgets but flagged painful long‑term obligations: deferred maintenance (roughly $170 million), rising capital and technology costs, and the multi‑year Northern Branch Jail construction plan, which carries associated debt service and operating implications. IT officials said they are implementing a three‑year modernization plan and a countywide public‑safety radio upgrade; General Services highlighted recent solar projects and ongoing capital delivery work.

Cannabis tax revenue and a youth‑fund proposal: In public comment, a coalition of young residents and community groups asked the board to reallocate a portion of the county’s unallocated cannabis tax revenue — projected at roughly $780,600 for FY2026–27 — toward a youth fund pilot that would finance prevention, mental‑health services, mentorship, workforce pathways and other youth supports. County staff and board members said the unallocated balance could be used for one‑time spending but emphasized the board’s adopted budget policy discourages new ongoing commitments from cannabis sales taxes. Staff said the FY2026–27 cannabis tax projection (about $4.7 million) is smaller than last year’s $5.3 million, but that prior-year budget tightening left the program largely aligned with projected ongoing uses; the board asked staff to return with focused options so any allocation could be measured and accountable.

What’s next: Supervisors and staff signaled that many details remain to be resolved. The county is monitoring state budget actions, grant availability, and costs tied to jail operations and litigation. The board asked staff to return Friday with more focused options (including clearer proposals for a youth fund pilot), and to provide more detail on existing uses of cannabis tax dollars so the board can assess tradeoffs before final budget decisions in June.

The budget workshops resume Friday, April 17, where the board will hear remaining departments, updated financials and begin formal deliberations on restorations and one‑time allocations.