San Rafael, CA – As County of Marin staff begins finalizing budget plans for the next fiscal year, the Marin County Board of Supervisors heard public feedback and offered its own guidance during three days of informational budget planning sessions that concluded March 24.
The Supervisors received updates on many cross-departmental initiatives, emerging issues and potential one-time budget allocations. Among the emerging issues, County staff reported out on racial equity work, criminal justice, behavioral health, homelessness, and climate change.
The County faces a $6.7 million budget shortfall in the next fiscal year due to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. One-time funds will be available to help address the County’s top priorities, which include the public health emergency, racial equity, and balancing the budget. The final fiscal year 2021-2022 Proposed Budget will be brought before the Board in June.
In their closing remarks, Supervisors voiced their appreciation for the county’s collaborative efforts over the past year, the progress made despite concurrently leading Marin’s pandemic emergency response, and also acknowledged the many challenges that remain. They emphasized the need to prioritize one-time funds and federal stimulus allocations toward enhancing services for vulnerable residents, who have suffered disproportionately during the pandemic, while also supporting economic recovery and long-term strategic investments in disaster preparedness and county infrastructure.
“We’ve learned a lot from this pandemic about how to deliver services to our most vulnerable populations,” Board President Dennis Rodoni said at the conclusion of the budget workshops.
Rodoni also said the County’s pandemic recovery plan must factor in improvements in housing conditions, health care, education, and job training.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has brought us the opportunity to make change, to be smarter, to be more efficient, and to be bolder with our decisions so that we lift up all of our residents,” he said.
The County has created an online form to collect more public comment on the budget. The County’s budget overview webpage allows residents to view interactive charts and graphs through the budget dashboard.