“The bottom line is, we'll do fine this next year,” said Public Works Director Brent Siemer.
In the proposed $185 million 2010-11 budget, which the Board of Supervisors gave approval to in its preliminary form last month, Public Works will have about $5 million for operations, a number only about $100,000 different from the 2009-10 budget, Siemer said.
Overall, Siemer said his department's budget hasn't changed much over the past three years.
That's despite extreme strains on the county budget and that of the state, which has borrowed – or, as some county leaders have termed it, “raided” – funds needed at the local level.
Siemer's department oversees the county's roads, which the Save California Streets pavement condition index rated as poor overall – placing in the bottom five of 58 California counties.
As they're trying to address those tough road conditions, the state has continued diverting funds.
The state has borrowed funds from Proposition 42, which requires that the state's share of gas sales tax revenue be directed to transportation projects, Siemer said. Proposition 42 was passed in 2002, according to state records.
The catch for the state, Siemer said, was they have to pay the counties back with interest if they borrow that revenue stream.
Transportation California, the group that took the lead on passing Proposition 42, explains on its Web site that the gas tax that funds Proposition 42 averages about 7.93 percent among all counties, with the state getting 5 percent and the counties the remainder.
In the past, that Proposition 42 money always has been at risk. “So we just didn't count on that money. We didn't rely on it,” Siemer said.
There also are other constitutional protections, including the need to pass Proposition 42 borrowing by a two-thirds vote of the Legislature, according to the League of California Cities.
So, instead, the state is borrowing from the Highway Users Gas Tax – or HUTA – which is 18 cents per gallon, and which requires only a majority Legislature vote, the league reported.
While that has been an important source of funds for road and public works departments, Siemer explained, “The unfortunate thing is, as people become more fuel efficient, that income is continuing to go down, so we're not catching up with inflation. In fact, we're falling behind.”
The state is deferring about 40 percent of HUTA revenues to counties. For Lake County HUTA amounts to about $170,000 a month, Siemer said.
However, this past April, the state paid what it owed the county, he said.
“We were made whole this year,” he said, after about five months of the state withholding all transportation funds.
“The solution is quite stable for us, so no layoffs are necessary,” he said, adding, “For now.”
There also are proposed changes in the mix about how highway funds will be gathered, he said.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's January budget proposed eliminating the 5 percent tax supporting Proposition 42 allocations, and instead raising HUTA from 18 cents per gallon to 28.8 cents in the coming fiscal year, and then up to 33.9 cents per gallon over another 10 years, according to the League of California Cities.
With the changes, the Lake County Public Works Department isn't facing the severe cuts it anticipated, and salaries will still get paid. For the last month, Siemer said he's been able to tell his staff that there is nothing risking maintenance operations.
“However, I won't be able to advance any projects,” Siemer said.
The projects most at risk are maintenance and chip seals. Siemer said his department gets state and federal funds for other projects like bridges, and can use some HUTA funds for the necessary local matches to those state and federal monies.
Another source of funds for local roads comes from the State Transportation Improvement Program, which is supposed to provide the county about $3 million. Unfortunately, Siemer said it has taken the county about nine years to try to get the funds, which the state hasn't had.
“The road falls apart in nine years,” he said.
There also are Proposition 1B funds for local streets and roads projects, which Siemer said he expects to total about $2.5 million for the county. If the state does any other risky maneuvers, Siemer said he'll have three years to spend the money, which can be used for new projects and maintenance.
In May, the Board of Supervisors prioritized a list of projects for the Proposition 1B funds, which included two zones of benefit for road improvements at Riviera Heights and Meadow Estates, work on Gaddy Lane and Main Street in Kelseyville, bridges on Bottle Rock and Big Canyon roads, among a number of other plans.
Siemer said “a big chunk” of the money will be used for chip sealing.
Overall, “We're getting less and less money to do the types of maintenance that is really necessary,” said Siemer.
The county used to do big maintenance projects like miles of chip seals, which Siemer said kept potholes from developing.
“The potholes are coming at us faster than they used to,” and income isn't going up to match the demand, he said.
“Our dollar is not stretching further,” he added.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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