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Acting CEO calls county 'in the eye of a hurricane' as board reviews $48.8 billion recommended budget
Summary
Acting CEO Joseph Nikita presented a $48.8 billion recommended FY26–27 budget focused on preserving safety‑net programs amid AB 218 liabilities and federal/state revenue reductions; board members pressed for details and the board approved follow‑up steps and public hearings.
Acting Chief Executive Officer Joseph Nikita presented the Board of Supervisors with a $48.8 billion recommended budget for fiscal year 2026–27, telling the board the plan “is the first phase of a three‑phase budget process” and describing the county as being “in the eye of a hurricane.”
The recommended budget aims to preserve core safety‑net services while contending with mounting liabilities, Nikita said. It includes $63.2 million in new ongoing discretionary locally generated funding and $554 million in one‑time funds — including a $300 million allocation toward payments for AB 218 settlements and about $100 million for affordable‑housing programs.
Why it matters: the budget is phased. Nikita said the county will return to the board in June for a second phase reflecting the state’s May budget revisions and again in the fall to program additional one‑time revenues. He flagged a projected $662.2 million Federal revenue decline for the Department of Health Services and warned that federal and state policy changes to programs such as CalFresh and Medi‑Cal will increase local workload.
Board reaction and priorities: supervisors pressed for clarity on the practical impacts. Supervisor Holly Mitchell told the board she had seen a line of residents waiting at a DPSS office and cautioned that budget shortfalls translate to immediate hardship for families: “People are living in that hurricane today,” she said. Supervisors also urged the administration to pursue state and federal relief, expand public‑health readiness and preserve key Measure A investments for homelessness.
Key commitments in the recommended budget include $40.1 million to maintain CalFresh services, $12 million to support public defender staffing and roughly $10 million to add 44 positions to the Office of Emergency Management following wildfire‑recovery after‑action reviews. Nikita said the recommendation contains virtually no new locally funded program expansions because of fiscal pressure.
Next steps: the board heard extensive public comment and followed the CEO’s presentation with a series of questions; public hearings on the budget were scheduled to begin May 6 and the board is slated to adopt final changes in June. Nikita and supervisors said they expect further adjustments as state and federal budgets evolve.
