The following sections provide a narrative description for each of the additional General Fund recommendations included in the 2020-21 Adopted Budget.
 
Assessor/Clerk-Recorder/Elections
The proposed Adopted Budget for Assessor/Clerk-Recorder/Elections (ACE) includes $440,000 in increased expenses related to the 2020 Presidential Election, which will be reimbursed by a State grant following the election.  The Adopted Budget also includes use of $30,000 in available Micrographics Conversion fund balance to begin converting hard paper records into digital images. This is a portion of a larger digitization process, allowing for completely web-based record requests and transactions after completion of the project. A small increase in revenue in the Clerk-Recorder’s budget is also anticipated this fiscal year, due to a continued increase in the number of documents being recorded. The Adopted Budget also includes carry forward expenses related to the State Supplementation for County Assessor’s Program, which grant funds were originally approved in 2019-20.
 
The department submitted a $75,000 augmentation request for Extra Help expenses related to the 2020 Presidential Election which is not recommended for approval at this time. Financial Services will work closely with the Elections Division to monitor staffing expenses. It should be noted that the Elections division is incentivizing employees from other departments through an “Employee Poll Worker Program” to support elections staffing which may reduce this extra-help need.  Should any budget adjustments related to the November Election be required, they will be brought to the BOS as part of the Mid-Year or Third Quarter Monitor processes.
 
District Attorney (DA)
The District Attorney submitted requests for 6 replacement vehicles, various staff promotions and a new DA Investigator II position; however, these requests are not being recommended for funding at this time.  
 
Financial Services
The proposed Adopted Budget for Financial Services includes $58,161 for continuation of a limited term Auditor I position through June 30, 2021 and the promotion of an Accountant II to Accountant III, funded by investment earnings from the Treasury pool. Additionally, the department has reached an agreement with the Health and Human Services Agency to fund a limited term Senior Procurement Specialist who will be dedicated to assisting HHSA in completing various components of procurement, including Requests for Proposals (RFP) to meet the agency’s extensive contracting needs.
 
Staff additionally recommends approval to fund a payment processing machine for Treasury, funded by both Cannabis proceeds and the Cannabis Tax Plan to facilitate tax payment processing. At this time, an augmentation request for improvements to County eCommerce systems is not being recommended for approval.
 
General Services    
The proposed Adopted Budget for General Services, Parks division includes $70,000 for one-time expenditures, including $55,000 for the replacement of a pickup as recommended by the Fleet Manager, $8,000 for the replacement of security cameras at campgrounds to help prevent vandalism, and $7,000 for the replacement of vandalized Park fee collection boxes.
 
Human Resources
The proposed Adopted Budget includes $15,000 to perform the countywide employee engagement survey and analyze its findings to create employee retention strategies.
 
Health & Human Services Agency
The proposed Adopted Budget includes a total of $160,000 for two contracts that were deferred at the Recommended Budget, including $100,000 for Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) administered by the Yolo County Children’s Alliance, and $60,000 for the Eat Well Yolo program administered by the Yolo Food Bank.
 
Probation
The proposed Adopted Budget includes $229,861 in additional general fund for the Adult Services division, due to anticipated revenue reductions from the Community Corrections Partnership.  This funding is necessary to avoid layoffs.
 
The department requested $25,000 in one-time funding for Extra Help at the Juvenile Detention Facility.  This request is not recommended for approval at this time.
 
Public Defender
The Public Defender has not requested any new augmentations for 2020-21, but the entire department has pledged XTO hours as part of department savings.  These savings have offset CCP and Revocation revenue reductions, along with the increase in internal charges for the PD’s share of the Trane debt allocation and Public Liability insurance increases.  As a result, there is no net county cost increase for the Public Defender’s Office.    
 
Sheriff
The proposed Adopted Budget includes the following:
 
The Sheriff’s Office entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Yolo Superior Court effective July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2022 which requires providing a specific level of staffing at the Yolo County Superior Courthouse as required by State law. There has been a gap in Court Security funding to meet the previous MOU requirements, and as a result staffing was reduced in the new MOU and the division has unfunded a Lieutenant and a Deputy position but will still require an additional $381,000 in general fund. This MOU continues into the next fiscal year and may require additional funding; however, this still reflects a net general fund reduction of $116,000 from the previous $481,000 that was needed to balance the Court Security budget in 2019-20.
 
As part of baseline funding reductions in the Community Corrections Partnership (CCP) fund, the Sheriff’s allocation was reduced by $278,800.  This reduction has been offset by additional General Fund support in order to maintain current staffing as the Recommended Budget already included significant reductions in the detention budget.  The reduction in the Sheriff CCP allocation is equivalent to 2.5 FTE Correctional Officers.  Those positions are filled and without general funds, would have required staff layoffs. 
 
During both the 2020-21 Recommended and Adopted Budget process, the Sheriff’s department requested Body Worn Cameras.  The proposed project was for a two-year implementation.  Year 1 would be the purchase of 108 body worn cameras and the outfitting of all sworn personnel and Animal Service Officers.  Year 2 would be the purchase of an additional 152 body worn cameras for the Correctional Officers in the jail.  Also included for the implementation of all cameras was training costs, overtime, reoccurring subscription services fees and two new positions – a Property & Evidence Technician and a Technical Support Specialist.  The positions would serve as forensic video specialists and dedicated technical support to ensure compliance.  Due to the estimated implementation costs of $1.1 M, in addition to the on-going costs for two full time positions, the County was unable to commit funding for this project at this time.   
 
Other general fund requests that are not recommended for funding include:
 

Requests  Not Funded	Requested Amount
New Positions	$        2,245,641
Re-fund of Positions Held Vacant	$        1,503,565
Replacement Vehicles	$            148,000
New Vehicles	$            266,331
Eliminate Vacancy Savings	$            300,000
Service & Supplies	$            573,919
Total	$        5,037,456

 

 

 

 

*Reflects estimated 2020-21 contributions and balances based on projected department charges and premium payments.
 
Carryforward Appropriations

The 2020-21 Adopted Budget includes $2.0 million in unused appropriations from 2019-20 that will be encumbered and carried forward into 2020-21. These appropriations are for one-time purchases that have been ordered but not yet paid for, or for specific one-time projects or initiatives that were not completed by year-end.  Examples include vehicle purchases that have not yet been invoiced, or contingency funds awarded for a specific project that had not yet been completed. The purpose of carryforward appropriations is to ensure sufficient budgetary authority to meet contractual obligations and to carry out Board directives. A summary of carryforward items and amounts by department is provided in Attachment B. All carryforward appropriations have been incorporated into the 2020-21 Adopted Budget, and are included in the budget totals reflected in Attachment M, Exhibit M1.
 
Looking Ahead

The County had fiscal challenges on the horizon this Budget Year even before the Covid-19. It is increasingly clear that the growth in the general purpose revenues were not keeping up with the expenditures even while economic expansion was occurring. As shown in the table below, increased labor costs are one of the largest area of expenditure growth.
 

			PENSION				COST
	COLA	EQUITY	MISC	SAFETY	SUPP.	OPEB	GROWTH
Attorney	2.00%	1.00%	1.93%		-0.25%	-0.20%	4.48%
Correctional Officer	2.00%	0.00%		3.55%	-0.25%	-0.20%	5.10%
Deputy Sheriff	0.00%	4.00%		3.55%	-0.25%	-0.20%	7.10%
General	2.00%	0.00%	1.93%		-0.25%	-0.20%	3.48%
Management	2.00%	Varies	1.93%		-0.25%	-0.20%	3.48%
Probation	2.00%	0.00%		3.55%	-0.25%	-0.20%	5.10%
Sheriff Management	2.00%	0.00%		3.55%	-0.25%	-0.20%	5.10%
Supervising Attorneys	2.00%	1.00%	1.93%		-0.25%	-0.20%	4.48%
Supervisory & Professional	2.00%	0.00%	1.93%		-0.25%	-0.20%	3.48%
Average w/o Merit							4.64%
Average w/ 5% Merit							9.64%

 
 
The pandemic induced recession has made the uphill battle of keeping up with rising costs more challenging. A portion of the impact of the economic downturn has been offset by the stimulus from the Federal and State government in the form of one-time funding from CARES act and realignment backfill allocations. The help from the Federal and the State government was welcome and much appreciated but are not expected to be sustained. CARES is set to expire December 30, 2020 and the chances of another realignment backfill are unlikely given the condition of state finances.
 
The aftermath of the recession is expected to impact CalPERS returns and may cause further escalation of the required rate of contributions for participating employers. As of the last published actuarial report as of June 30, 2019, the County’s total unfunded liability for miscellaneous and safety plans is $350 million (increase of $15 million from prior valuation) and the funded ratio is approximately 66%. The table below shows Pre-Covid contribution rates for upcoming years.
 

Fiscal Year	Misc	Safety
2019-20	28.4%	40.1%
2020-21	30.4%	43.7%
2021-22	32.2%	45.9%
2022-23	33.6%	47.6%
2023-24	34.2%	48.5%
2024-25	37.7%	49.1%

The County had a supplemental rate being charged to reduce the pension liability which was reduced by 0.5% for the 2020-21 budget. The sustainability for reducing efforts to grapple with this significant liability will need to be revisited in the 2021-22 budget.
 
The OPEB unfunded liability has recently improved due to the implementation of benefits cap however, there are still challenges ahead as the unfunded liability as of June 30, 2019 accounting valuation is $65.9 million and the funded ratio is only 19.5%. The County achieved some temporary budget relief for the 2020-21 fiscal year by reducing the OPEB contribution by 1% however will need to re-evaluate sustainability of this approach with the 2021-22 budget.
 
Beyond, pension and OPEB costs, staffing costs also continue to increase as most of the bargaining units have negotiated a 2% annual cost of living increase.
 
The pandemic continues to affect the economic rebound as there is no official vaccine for the novel Coronavirus and the impacts on the economy are expected for the next few years. The United States Federal Reserve reports, "The COVID-19 pandemic is causing tremendous human and economic hardship across the United States and around the world," the central bank said in a statement. "The ongoing public health crisis will continue to weigh on economic activity, employment, and inflation in the near term, and poses considerable risks to the economic outlook over the medium term."
 
In the light of these fiscal challenges on the horizon for the next few years, it is important to note that the County has exhausted many of the simple budget balancing solutions such as elimination/un-funding of most of the vacant positions during 20-21 budget development. The 21-22 budget is expected to be particularly challenging to balance should stimulus from the state and federal governments not reoccur and if the economy does not quickly rebound to pre-pandemic levels. Thus County staff are expecting that there may be the need to activate the “Mandatory/Discretionary” service review that was postponed in August  2020 to coincide with 2021-22 budget development.
 
Additional Board Requests
 
Animal Services

As part of the recommended budget, there was a request to explore whether to separate Animal Services into a separate fund from the general fund and this concept was previously discussed with the Sheriff and participating cities. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, staff from financial services have not implemented this concept in this adopted budget however plan to perform this segregation effective January 1, 2021 (and perform any budget or financial adjustments needed with mid-year). This is a critical step as part of the exploratory efforts of an Animal Services JPA. It will assist in ensuring that the finances of the animal services function are transparent and that all costs are known and a general fund subsidy does not exist (beyond its proportional contribution).

District Attorney-Budget Analysis

The Board had asked a few budget questions to the District Attorney’s Office, to which the department responded via a 29-page document published on the web on August 31. The board directed Financial Services staff to review the department’s response.  Staff has reviewed and notes the information generally (with minor discrepancies) matches budget information from the Department of Financial Services.  Staff feels it necessary to highlight a few items that came out of the review: