Significant uncertainty in federal and state spending on safety net services looms as the Marin County Board of Supervisors considered the adoption of its two-year budget on Monday.
The budget spans July 1 through June 30, 2028, and it outlines $902.6 million in spending on sustained services and one-time projects, a 4.2% increase from last year.
Last week, officials from the California State Treasurer and Controller’s offices warned that sweeping cuts to federal health care spending could have serious economic ripple effects, including job losses and rural hospital closures.
A county report warns that 6,700 Marin residents could lose Medi-Cal coverage due to changes in eligibility and work requirements beginning in 2027, and County Medical Services Program costs could increase by more than $5 million if the state does not step in.
Cuts to CalFresh may also be looming as the federal share of administrative costs have been reduced from 50% to 25%. The non-federal share is shared between state and counties. According to the county, the governor’s January budget did not include funding to cover counties’ increased share.
Marin County staff in a report urged the county to maintain reserves and avoid using one-time funds to cover ongoing expenses. Reserves are currently healthy and the budget is balanced, according to the report, but continued prudence was recommended in the anticipation of slower property tax growth, uncertainty in federal funding, the state’s responses and broader economic changes.
Top six priorities
The supervisors’ six top priorities include housing and homelessness, racial equity, climate resilience, emergency preparedness, infrastructure and economic vitality. Personnel costs dominate spending. Employee compensation and benefits account for about 56% of expenditures, an increase of 6.5% from the prior budget. Rising health care, insurance, utility, fuel, and vehicle costs are creating ongoing pressure on the budget, as well, while the pension system is about 98% funded, and its retiree health care obligations were 78% funded.
The one-time spending budget comes from savings from the previous budget. Those savings allowed the county to dedicate $8.25 million to one-time spending, including responses to the impacts of the federal budget, immigrant community support, infrastructure projects and emergency response planning.
Several projects benefiting West Marin and District 4 communities are included, such as funding for infrastructure, wastewater planning in Woodacre and Marshall, septic policy updates and road improvements. The budget also supports development of a new San Geronimo fire station headquarters, the Point Reyes restroom project and wildfire preparedness efforts.
Additional investments include upgrades to online county services, like permitting systems and a FixItMarin app to improve residents’ ability to communicate with the county on service requests.
The budget also launches Marin County’s first capital improvement program, which will guide more than $200 million in future infrastructure and maintenance projects countywide.
Monday’s budget hearing will pick up on Wednesday, with no hearing scheduled for Tuesday.
