Blog 16 [make up]

 Budgets happen to be the talk of the county right now, as the county just passed a 602 page, 9.2 Billion dollar budget. It allocates money for dozens of county agencies, funds, officials. While yes it does give millions of dollars to law enforcement by way of the Sheriffs office, it also gives millions to the county social safety net agencies.

This is perhaps the most fascinating element of my CP is how to County Executive works with the board of supervisors to allocate a budget, based on the advice and requests of the various agencies. Of course in past years the Sheriff has gotten a higher percentage but given the social climate we are in and the unsavory element of scandals surrounding the department it was likely the Sheriffs office would not be prioritized.  District 4 County supervisor Susan Ellenberg highlighted some elements that fit into the Socially empathetic hallmarks we were looking for. 


A community small business grant program was created, which will hopefully assist with recovery from the Pandemic. 

Further an office of Disability Affairs will be established for the county, to better monitor compliance, and assist those with disabilities around the county. The creation of a new office requires both a major time and financial commitment from the county, and should be applauded.

Finally the county approved to extend the eviction moratorium before the state had decided what to do. In all the budget was a major step towards helping our most marginalized communities within the American society, and aiding all residents in the recovery from the Pandemic.

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