People living outside city limits could wind up paying a fee for
emergency calls under a plan to save $2.3 million in the county
budget.
San Jose – People living outside city limits could wind up paying a fee for emergency calls under a plan to save $2.3 million in the county budget.
Currently, residents don’t pay for 911 calls. That could change Friday, when Santa Clara County supervisors debate a flat monthly fee of 27.3 cents per phone line – including cell phones – for residents and businesses. If approved, an estimated two million phone lines could be charged the fee beginning Feb. 1, 2008. The fee would generate $6.7 million per year for the county, including $2.3 million for the 2007-08 fiscal year.
Supervisors gave initial approval to the fee Monday to help plug a $227 million deficit in their $3.8 billion fiscal year 2007-08 budget. The board is expected to approve the budget this morning.
Even with additional money from the proposed 911-fee, it’s been a devastating year for supervisors and county departments as they struggled to cut close to $146 million in ongoing services. Up to 500 jobs were scheduled to be eliminated. In some instances, entire programs were slated to be cut.
But the 911-fee may help save some of those threatened jobs and programs, including the county’s rural crimes sheriff’s deputy, the district attorney’s truancy abatement program and two full-time public defenders.
Additionally, supervisors may be able to save the San Martin health clinic on Highland Avenue thanks to an unexpected $9-million boost in state and federal income. The county learned in April it would receive more yearly funding from state and federal sources for mandated social services such as foster care, food stamps and adoption assistance. Supervisors preliminarily approved a plan Monday to apply the additional $9 million to restore health and hospital cuts. The plan includes saving 72 nursing positions as well as the San Martin health clinic, among other things. Roughly $3.4 million of the $9 million is targeted to restore public-health services, such as programs for women, infants and children used by roughly 3,000 South County residents per month. The extra funds also may preserve South County home visits by nurses aimed at helping high-risk, low-income families.
Supervisors also gave initial approval of $4.1 million in relief for mental-health services and $1.4 million for alcohol and drug services. The mental health department will combine these funds with $2.2 million in MediCal revenues to partially restore adult outpatient services provided by county and contract providers. Services to more than 1,600 clients would be restored.
The department Alcohol and Drug Services hopes to use the extra funds to partially restore transitional housing, outpatient and residential services used by roughly 1,400 clients.
Even with these restorations, county officials warn another year of painful cuts lies ahead. Santa Clara County Executive Pete Kutras said in May that deficits will continue into the future until statewide and nationwide solutions to health-care needs are developed. Future deficits are projected for at least the next three years, which means the county will have to make additional reductions or find new revenue sources to balance the budget in years to come.
