6-19-19

6/19/19 Imperial Valley Press (El Centro, Cal.) (Pg. Unavail. Online)

2019 WLNR 18833497

Imperial Valley Press (El Centro, CA)

Copyright (c) 2019 Newsbank

June 19, 2019

Section: Local

County overtime expenses far outstrip projections Michael Maresh

EL CENTRO - As of May 31, with one more month to go in the budget cycle, Imperial County spent 82 percent of its revenue budget, which was 3 percent more than at the same time in the 2017-18 fiscal year.

Chief Deputy Officer Mayra Widmann Tuesday afternoon presented the Board of Supervisors a comparison on the budget over the last three years.

Of the $478 million budget in revenue for current fiscal year that ends June 30, the county received $394 million. Of budgeted expenditures of $510 million, $418 million has been spent.

The presentation followed the board of supervisors' request several weeks ago to receive more updates on the budget from the finance department.

In the general fund, the county received 87 percent of the budgeted $198.1 million in revenue. The county for the first 11 months of the year also paid out 85 percent of the $214.2 million budget in expenditures.

Through May over the previous two fiscal years, the county's general fund had received 82 percent and 83 percent in revenue and paid out 80 percent and 85 percent in expenditures.

Salaries and benefits have amounted to almost 85 percent of the nearly $100 million budgeted in the general fund in 2018-19, which is an increase of 4.9 percent over the 2017-18 fiscal year.

Of the $182.9 million already spent from the general fund for the current fiscal year, the county has spent about $8 million more in supplies than during the previous year.

The board was also told capital assets had increased by 33.7 percent, going from $426,000 in 2018 to $648,324 in the current year.

According to Widmann's presentation, the county lost more than $10.2 million year to date in the general fund.

Overtime continues to affect the county as it has already exceeded this budget by $800,757 with one more month to go.

As of May 31, the county's overtime is at 124 percent, where the average at the end of May is 92 percent.

The biggest users of overtime in the general fund is the Sheriff's Office at more than $561,000 and another $105,250 in Social Services.

Overtime in the non-general fund through May is $344,975 above the adjusted budget of a little more than $1.1 million.