Santa Barbara County has sent out layoff notices to 84 employees as it prepares to finalize its annual budget for the next fiscal year.
The county sent out notices last week, and the layoffs will go into effect June 30 — the last day of the current budget year — unless something changes.
The notices affect 47 workers from the County Public Health Department, 31 from Social Services, five from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office and one from the Santa Barbara County Fire Department.
County spokeswoman Kelsey Gerckens Buttitta said the county is not planning to send any more notices before the June deadline.
Gerckens Buttitta said that even though the county is sending out 84 notices, not every recipient will be laid off. While the county is planning to eliminate those positions, some employees may be able to transfer to another open role within the county, she said.
She added that the county will host separate career fairs for those employees in the North County and South County to help them look for other open positions matching their qualifications.
The potential layoffs come as the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors prepares to adopt a $1.64 billion budget for the next year, a 2.9% decrease from last year.
The reduced budget comes as the county prepares for an economic downturn. The county also has seen reduced funding from the state and federal levels.
The cuts will have the largest impact on the county’s Social Services and Public Health departments, according to budget staff. The decrease in services could result in slower responses for child welfare cases, and longer wait times for health services and the CalFresh benefit application process, according to the county.
Social Services informed the board in October that it was facing a $7.4 million shortfall driven by structural issues but made worse by the loss of federal funding.
Public Health is also facing financial issues driven by changes in state and federal Medi-Cal reimbursements and eligibility.
During last week’s meeting of the Board of Supervisors, members of the Service Employees International Union, which represents county employees, spoke out against the cuts during public comment.
Speakers asked the board to stop the layoffs. Some workers said their patients rely on them for their medication, care and other services.
Laura Robinson, executive director of SEIU Local 620, told the board that the layoffs are not merely numbers on a spreadsheet, but represent choices that will affect whether families across the county receive help.
Robinson said the impact of the layoffs will affect the most vulnerable in the county. She added that it will also result in employees who will not be able to provide for their families.
“(Employees) have earned stability, they have earned respect and they have earned better than this,” Robinson said. “Service reductions do not fall evenly; they fall hardest on the most vulnerable, the elderly, the poor, the disabled, the sick, the isolated, and they fall on the workers who are already stretched to their limits trying to hold the safety net together.”
