Local Cuts Threaten Public Safety and State Mutual Aid
Budget borrows and spends from funds earmarked for local government
Every year, billions of dollars in state tax money flows directly from the state to local governments to support essential services, including police and fire. Thanks to the state budget shortfall, and the politics at the Capitol, local government's piece of the pie is about to get a lot smaller.
In order to close a cavernous $26 billion budget gap without raising revenue, lawmakers and the governor dipped into local revenue streams, diverting more than $4 billion to state priorities. Some of this money must be repaid to local agencies, but billions more could be gone for good.
WHAT'S BEEN CUT
Proposition 1A Funds: $2 billion. The voter-approved Proposition 1A established local government funding as a state spending priority, but can be suspended upon declaration of a fiscal emergency. The $2 billion in Prop. 1A funds must be paid back within three years.
Local Redevelopment Agency Funds: $2 billion. Local governments will also lose another $2 billion in redevelopment funds, which will be shifted to local schools located in redeveloped areas. Unlike the Prop. 1A funds, this money need not be paid back to local agencies.
In each case, these fund shifts from local governments were originally voted down, but were ultimately made necessary by the inability of the governor and the Legislature to agree on any new revenue sources.
WHAT IT MEANS
Local fire protection: The impact of the $4 billion hit will likely reverberate like a cannon through local public safety. Already cash-strapped localities will likely consider further cuts, forcing another round of station closures, brownouts, layoffs, and more pressure to roll back pay and benefits.
State mutual aid: Perhaps more immediately in light of the fire season, these cuts could produce a potentially crippling reduction in the state's mutual aid response. According to Cal EMA, the fund shift could cost California up to half of its mutual aid capacity - up to 500 engines. This is because local agencies may hold back strike teams to protect their own budget-strapped jurisdictions.
"Local fire departments can't afford to float Sacramento a loan when their own services are being slashed," said CPF President Lou Paulson. "If the money isn't there to pay back mutual aid costs, local agencies will have no choice but to protect their own citizens. And that would be a disaster for California."