Priority Number One
Supervisor Roberta MacGlashan

Protecting the safety of the citizens it serves it the most basic function of government, especially at the local level. It is the service citizens expect before any other, and should be the top priority of those elected to represent the people.

Law enforcement is my number one priority as a member of the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors.

Times are difficult for everyone right now, and Sacramento County has to live within its means. This year’s budget required that over $180 million be cut from the County budget. Reductions in special funding from State sources forced further cuts in specific areas.

While the need to cut spending is clear, it is also clear that the last place the County should look to make cuts is in law enforcement. Unfortunately, the budget first proposed to the Board of Supervisors called for significant reductions in the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department.

The proposed reductions were unacceptable. First, general fund allocations to the department were proposed to be reduced by $38.2 million. Second, previously negotiated salary increases for Department personnel, including deputies, added $18.3 million in new costs to the Department. And, Proposition 172 revenues – a voter-approved statewide law enforcement sales tax – declined by $18 million over last year. With a few additional cost increases, the total shortfall to the Sheriff’s Department was about $80 million.

This level of reduction in the community’s law enforcement would have been severe, unacceptable, and dangerous.

I took the following steps to address the shortfall:

First, I convened an ad hoc citizens’ budget committee to assist me in identifying cost reducing measures in other areas of the County budget. I included representatives of law enforcement in this committee, as well as business leaders and taxpayer organizations.

Second, after working with my budget committee, I proposed a new budget tool – a spreadsheet that clearly identifies mandated vs. discretionary spending – to assist the Board in prioritizing our discretionary spending.

Third, I identified over $20 million in savings outside of law enforcement available to restore funding to the Sheriff’s Department. I succeeded in persuading a majority of the Board of Supervisors to cut other programs by $12.5 million – saving the jobs of approximately 100 deputies.

More work was needed, though. The Sheriff’s Deputies gave up $10.6 million in salaries and benefits – saving the jobs of an additional 70 deputies.

Recognizing the serious nature of the cuts proposed to the Department and the impacts such cuts would have on public safety, the Board of Supervisors unanimously directed staff to identify an additional $10 million to fund patrol services during a hearing on July 14, 2009. Staff will be reporting back to the Board on July 28.

Significant improvements have been made. Assuming staff presents a viable plan to the Board to restore an additional $10 million to the Department, when added to the $12.5 million I fought to restore and $5 million in savings related to the jail, the Board will have restored $27.5 million of the original $38.2 million in cuts originally proposed by County staff.

Add the $10.6 million that the deputies have given up in salary, and approximately $38.1 million has been restored to the Sheriff’s Department, saving the jobs of 240 deputies and ensuring a basic level of law enforcement for the unincorporated area of the County.

But the work is not done. I am still looking for additional ways to cut costs to restore additional patrols and investigative services to the community. Further, the County is pursuing federal grants, with an application for over $32 million currently pending at the US Department of Justice.

As your Supervisor, I will always put law enforcement first. It is the most basic service that the County provides. In order to get through this difficult time, we all need to feel safe in our communities. The County needs to prioritize its spending. We say law enforcement is our number 1 priority, and I am committed to ensuring that we spend your money on the things that matter most.