County Officials Fear ‘Devastation’ From Plan to Cut Revenue Sharing

Budget cuts proposed by the Reagan Administration will have a “devastating impact” on many public services, including mass transportation, local medical services and road maintenance, a group of California county supervisors predicted Tuesday.

Under the proposed elimination of the federal revenue sharing program, the metropolitan Los Angeles area stands to be hardest hit of the state’s 58 counties. Revenue sharing accounts for more than $73 million annually, as well as financing for a variety of refugee programs totaling more than $20 million.

“It is more important than ever that general revenue sharing be preserved as a vital safety net for the provision of these vital public services,” said Les Brown, president of the County Supervisors Assn. of California.

Other Programs Targeted

An official report on the issue scheduled to be released in the next few weeks cites several other public service programs slated for drastic reductions, said a county official who spoke on condition that he not be named.

One of those programs, Community Development Block Grants, is expected to be reduced from $34.7 million to $23.8 million, forcing county leaders to cut or eliminate a variety of services, including low-interest home improvement loans, funds for improving streets and water lines and money given to community service organizations for senior citizen housing, the official said.

Half of the money would be cut directly from county programs and the other half would be cut from aid to cities, said John Shirey, Los Angeles County deputy chief administrator.

Possible Transfers

To deal with the crisis, officials are studying the possibility of transferring budget responsibility to the state or amending existing state legislation that mandates county financial support for indigent health services, general public assistance, child protective services and court and jail maintenance, said Mark Tajima, legislative assistant to Shirey.

“I think you could count on a variety of cuts in all those areas,” Shirey said.

Under existing state law, the county finances the nation’s second-largest public hospital system, with five major hospitals in the metropolitan area.

“We can’t raise revenue, so we have to cut back services,” Tajima said. “We’re already facing a projected budget shortfall of $180 million for next year.”

Metro Rail Funds

Tajima said that a combination of federal cuts also would result in “basically nothing left to fund Metro Rail,” the county’s mass transportation project. Likewise, cuts would scrap plans to build new sections of San Francisco’s BART subway system.

“There is no way in the world we are going to find funds for public transit,” Santa Clara County Supervisor Rod Diridon said. “There would be major layoffs, with smaller mass transit systems facing the possibility of shutting down.”

The county association’s Brown said, “Population continues to soar . . . transportation needs mount daily . . . but now the Administration would pull the rug out from under concerned counties that have struggled to meet transportation needs.”

County supervisors vowed to mount a statewide campaign, using public pressure in an attempt to block the proposed cuts. California counties will lose more than $250 million in annual revenue sharing appropriations Oct. 1, when the program is scheduled to expire.