San Diego County supervisors are scheduled Tuesday to debate an extension of their deadline for adopting a budget, as the Trump administration threatens deep cuts to social services administered by the county government.
County budgets are typically adopted by June 30, though state law allows counties to delay a final budget vote until Oct. 2. Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe is asking her colleagues to support the later deadline so county officials can have more clarity from Washington D.C. as they develop their spending plan.
County-administered programs such as Medi-Cal, which provides health coverage to low-income and disabled people, as well as CalFresh, which provides food assistance, could be impacted by the Trump administration's efforts to slash federal spending.
"All of these are federally funded," said Montgomery Steppe, a Democrat. "We do not know what's going to happen to them, and it is not prudent for us to move forward and adopt a full on budget for a fiscal year that we have no idea what the impacts will be."
Supervisor Joel Anderson, a Republican, is opposing the delay, arguing that budget cuts are necessary and that pushing back a final budget vote will only prolong the inevitable.
"It's always easier for elected officials to kick the can down the road rather than address the rough, tough decisions the government needs to do to work for its citizens," Anderson said.
County officials estimated in December they would have to cut $138.5 million in spending to achieve a structurally balanced budget, meaning they would not have to use reserves to cover ongoing costs. They attributed the deficit to slowing sales tax revenues, inflation and requests for new spending.
Montgomery Steppe added that the District 1 vacancy on the board of supervisors should be filled before a final budget vote. Since the surprise resignation of former Supervisor Nora Vargas in December, the board has been evenly split with two Democrats and two Republicans.
District 1, which covers South Bay communities, is voting in a special election on April 8. If no candidate wins a majority, the race will advance to a runoff and the new supervisor would not be seated until well after June 30.
"We have a pathway forward where all voices will be at the table and will be heard," Montgomery Steppe said. "District 1 has a lot more residents that are recipients of our programs here at the county. And to have a vote and not include those voices — that's not why we're here."
