Legislation Details

File #: 26-966    Version: 1 Name:
Type: Informational Report Status: Consent Agenda
File created: 9/8/2026 In control: County Administrative Office
On agenda: 9/15/2026 Final action:
Title: Transfer from Contingencies in the Amount of $46,750 for Public Opinion Research on Resident Priorities of County Services in the County Administrative Office Budget 1100-103 (4/5 Vote Required)
Attachments: 1. Staff Report, 2. Appropriation Transfer CAO 1100-103, 3. Humboldt County Budget Survey Proposal

To: Board of Supervisors

From: County Administrative Office

Agenda Section: Consent

Vote Requirement: 4/5th

SUBJECT:
title
Transfer from Contingencies in the Amount of $46,750 for Public Opinion Research on Resident Priorities of County Services in the County Administrative Office Budget 1100-103 (4/5 Vote Required)
end

RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Approve the attached supplemental budget for public opinion research in the amount of $46,750 in County Administrative Office Budget 1100-103 (4/5 Vote Required).

Body
STRATEGIC PLAN:
This action supports the following areas of your Board’s Strategic Plan.

Area of Focus: Core Services/Other
Strategic Plan Category: 9999 - Core Services/Other

DISCUSSION:
During the fiscal year (FY) 2026-27 Budget Hearings, your Board directed staff to study approaches that would lead to closing the General Fund’s structural deficit while causing the least amount of impact to the community. The General Fund’s structural deficit, meaning the difference between estimated ongoing revenues and estimated ongoing expenditures, is nearly $12 million for FY 2026-27. To cover that gap the county relies on use of fund balance, which is comprised of expenditure savings from the prior year, as well as revenues that came in higher than projected, as it has done for many years.

To reiterate the discussion from that meeting, your Board is not using General Fund Reserves to fund operations for the current FY. The General Fund Reserve is covered by policy and receives an annual allocation, and the balance accumulates each year. It is intended to cover one-time emergency expenditures, such as recovery from a natural disaster, as opposed to daily operations.

In response to your Board’s direction, the County Administrative Office (CAO) has been working with each department to better understand the wide variety of programs provided, which programs are mandated and the level of service needed to...

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