COUNTYWIDE : County Budget Cuts Urged in Face of State Fund Deficit

Because of an expected cut in state funding, the Ventura County’s chief administrative officer recommended Tuesday that supervisors direct department heads to make budget cuts totaling $4.5 million, or 3% of this year’s budget.

Richard Wittenberg urged the cuts to the county’s $368-million budget to help offset budget reductions he expects the state will make in next year’s budget. He said the cuts will help the county get a running start on its upcoming budget process.

Wittenberg said the state’s present budget is $1 billion to $2 billion in the red, and next year the deficit is expected to be $8 billion to $10 billion.

“This is a tremendous problem for the county,” Wittenberg said. “The options aren’t good for anyone.”

He said he did not know if the cuts would result in layoffs. It will be up to the department heads to determine where they will be made, he said.

Supervisor Maggie Erickson said there was no opposition from supervisors to Wittenberg’s recommendation, which is expected to be voted on next Tuesday.

Erickson said department heads are worried that the proposed cuts will affect services in departments that already have suffered financially.