Lake County administrators recommend hiring freeze and 5–10% cuts to avoid near‑term deficit

Deputy CAO Moreno presented three modeled scenarios to address Lake County’s projected general‑fund deficit: a 5% reduction in general‑fund budgets with a hiring freeze (extends runway about one year); a 10% reduction scenario that extends reserves to FY28–29; and a recommended configuration intended to balance through FY30–31 that combines a 10% reduction in operating expenditures, retention of approved COLA for MOUs, and a hiring freeze.

Moreno said the scenarios assume no change in revenue and stressed that payroll and benefits drive the expenditure growth. The administration recommended a hiring freeze effective July 1, allowing attrition to reduce positions rather than immediate layoffs, and advised departments to seek grants and outside funding rather than relying on general‑fund support.

Board members pressed for clarity on scope (general fund vs. all funds) and asked for further detail on recurring software licensing costs. Supervisor Sabatier urged a mandatory survey of department heads (to be issued/refined by Mr. Carter) to produce a county‑wide list of software subscriptions and annual licensing fees; the board gave consensus to pause new software purchases pending consolidated data but allowed Workday phase‑1 implementation to continue.

Administration also presented a series of budget technical adjustments: recommended denial of four DA position requests; adding sheriff admin and jail positions that were inadvertently omitted (budgeted); a probation limited‑term Staff Services Analyst funded by Prop 64 reimbursement; a recommended removal of certain mental‑health outreach positions; and multiple capital requests (Socrates Mine Road repairs, probation capital asset, ERP/Workday transfers). The board discussed reallocating $50,000 from a discretionary '1 Team 1 Dream' line to cover a Watershed PG&E design need or return to general fund if unused.

What’s next: the board approved the county’s recommended budget as amended (voice vote) and directed staff to return with software inventory results, updated reserve analyses and a December reevaluation of budget options if needed.