County Board of Supervisors Budget Workshops This Week

Responsible Stewardship Today; Resilient, Sustainable Tomorrow 

The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors will hold budget workshops on April 13, 15, and 17 beginning at 9 a.m. each day in the County Administration Building, Fourth Floor Hearing Room, 105 East Anapamu Street in Santa Barbara.

The budget workshops present the County’s preliminary Fiscal Year (FY) 2026–27 budget to the Board and the public. During the workshops, County departments will provide presentations outlining their proposed budgets, key operational changes, anticipated accomplishments, future goals, and any proposed service level reductions or restoration requests.

The theme for the FY 2026–27 budget is “Responsible Stewardship Today; Resilient, Sustainable Tomorrow,” reflecting the County’s focus on maintaining essential services while addressing financial challenges and planning for long-term stability.

“This year’s budget reflects difficult choices to ensure the County remains financially stable while continuing critical safety-net services,” said County Executive Officer Mona Miyasato. “Through responsible stewardship today, we are positioning the County to be more resilient and sustainable in the years ahead.”

The County’s preliminary operating budget for FY 2026–27 is $1.64 billion, representing a 2.9% decrease from the prior year. The budget incorporates a two-year balancing strategy to address projected General Fund deficits while preserving core services for the community.

“We’ve taken a proactive, two-year approach to stabilize the budget and manage future uncertainty,” said Budget Director Paul Clementi. “This approach allows us to navigate fiscal challenges today while maintaining financial stability by funding ongoing operations with ongoing revenue, preserving our strategic reserve, and setting aside resources for future needs.”

“Our responsibility is to make thoughtful, forward-looking decisions that protect essential services while preparing for future challenges,” said Chair of the Board of Supervisors Bob Nelson. “These workshops are a critical step in aligning our budget with the needs and priorities of our community.”

Key Financial Factors include:

• Reductions in state and federal funding for health and human services
  • Federal policy changes, including H.R. 1, shift significant safety-net costs to states and counties
    • An estimated 1.5 million individuals may lose Medi-Cal coverage, increasing demand for locally funded indigent care
    • New Medi-Cal and CalFresh requirements are expected to increase administrative workload while funding declines
• Ongoing deficits in the General Fund driven by rising operational costs, and limited growth in discretionary revenue
• Jail improvement costs related to the Disability Rights California Settlement

To address these challenges, the preliminary budget proposes over $70 million in reductions across multiple departments, along with targeted investments to sustain critical programs. The proposed reductions will be discussed during budget workshops along with proposed restorations and setting aside funding for projected future deficits.

Focused Priorities Include:

• Protecting Vulnerable Populations: Targeted funding to maintain critical Social Services and County Health programs, including child welfare, food assistance, and clinic access, while continuing investments in behavioral health treatment and housing programs.
• Addressing Homelessness: Continued support for interim and permanent supportive housing, including Hope Village in Santa Maria and La Posada in the Goleta Valley, as well as expanded homelessness prevention efforts.
• Advancing Criminal Justice System Improvements: Expansion of diversion and reentry programs, growth of the Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) program in County jails, and continued progress on facility improvements and ADA compliance.
• Investing in Infrastructure and Capital Projects: Advancement of over $200 million in capital improvement projects, including roads, bridges, parks, flood control, and facility upgrades, while strategically prioritizing funding amid fiscal constraints.
• Promoting Sustainability and Climate Resilience: Continued investment in solar energy projects, electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and energy efficiency upgrades across County facilities.
• Enhancing Organizational Efficiency and Technology: Ongoing implementation of the County’s Workday enterprise system and investments in cybersecurity, cloud technology, and modernization efforts to improve service delivery.

In addition to departmental presentations, the workshops will include special issue discussions on Artificial Intelligence and cannabis revenue (April 15), and the County’s pension fund and jail housing options (April 17).

The submitted department budgets and revenue estimates are available in the Budget Workshop Materials 2026-2027 posted online.  A schedule for the budget workshops can be found here, Budget Workshop Schedule FY 2026-27.

The public is encouraged to follow the proceedings via the County’s website, YouTube, and cable TV channel 20. To watch in Spanish, Cox and Comcast subscribers can enable SAP in their language settings or watch in Spanish via the County’s YouTube en Español.  Remote testimony and public comment will also be available at the Joseph Centeno Betteravia Government Administration Building at 511 East Lakeside Parkway, Santa Maria, and virtually via Zoom by following the instructions found in the agenda.

County budget workshops are held approximately one month before the release of the recommended budget and two months before budget hearings. This provides the Board of Supervisors an opportunity to review and discuss departments’ preliminary budgets and special issues, receive public input on these items, and provide the County Executive Officer direction on policy issues or specific items for consideration prior to completion of the Recommended FY 2026-27 Budget to be released in May.

Final budget decisions will be made on June 16 and 18, 2026 when the Board of Supervisors holds budget adoption hearings.  For information about Santa Barbara County government, go to www.CountyofSB.org.