Inyo County California

Budget hearings for the Fiscal Year 2024-2025 CAO Recommended Budget will begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, September 10. 

The public is encouraged to take part in the September 10 budget hearings. At the conclusion of the hearings, the Board will be asked to approve the CAO Recommended Budget – with additions, subtractions, or any other changes the Board desires – and direct that a final version be brought forward for approval on September 24 or that a special meeting be scheduled, depending on when Budget Hearings conclude. The Board may continue the hearings for up to 14 days if necessary. 

During the hearing, the Board will discuss and/or solicit feedback on the proposed individual department budgets (in the order prescribed in attached list).  The Board will also provide direction with regard to the use of Fund Balance the Auditor-Controller may certify below or in excess of $4,200,000.

An interactive, digital version of the entire Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Inyo County CAO Recommended Budget is now available online through an interactive, online format at https://bit.ly/Inyo2425CAORecBudget (or see QR Code below). This is the first time Inyo County is making its Budget Book available in this format, and it’s doing so with the intent of making the government budgeting process more transparent and easier to understand – from start to finish.

The book offers a comprehensive breakdown of the proposed $169 million spending plan. The digital budget allows readers to dig deeper into the figures, processes, guidelines, methodology, and department requests that went into crafting the FY 2024-2025 Recommended Budget, as well as learn about past successes, current challenges, and future goals. The digital Budget Book also stands on its own as a general overview of Inyo County’s workforce, organizational structure, fiscal policies, priorities, culture, and values. 

Publication of the Budget Book – as is the case every year – is the culmination of many weeks of analysis, calculation, research, meetings, planning, writing, and review by department heads and staff countywide. Completion of the Recommended Budget is further owed to the painstaking efforts of the Inyo County Budget Team – consisting of Auditor-Controller Amy Shepherd, Assistant County Administrator Denelle Carrington, Deputy County Administrator Meaghan McCamman, and County Administrator Nate Greenberg – with assistance from Administration support staff.

The finished product reflects the Budget Team’s efforts to achieve financial resiliency and stability in the face of fiscal uncertainty and the looming threat of a recession. The budget is balanced, as required by law, and relies on an estimated $4.2 million in Fund Balance (essentially, money unspent in FY 2023-2024) to close budget gaps and avoid reduction of services. Auditor-Controller Shepherd will certify the exact amount of Fund Balance available at the September 10 hearing, at which time the Board will have additional decisions to make if the actual total comes in over or under $4.2 million. In the event of excess Fund Balance, the Budget Team will present recommendations for its use, including placing the money in various “rainy day” funds and trusts, or funding additional priorities not included in the Recommended Budget.

Key areas of focus for the FY 2024-2025 Recommended Budget are highlighted in the Budget Book Executive Summary and, in addition to widespread park improvements, include completion of public safety radio system upgrades and radio replacements; completion of the Small Business Resource Center; bargaining and implementation of Class & Compensation Study aimed at competitively adjusting salaries to the market while also reconciling internal equity, placement, and modernizing position descriptions across the organization; and significant other infrastructure investments throughout the County.

“It is clear that great opportunity abounds for our organization and the Eastern Sierra region as a whole, and there is a significant deal of excitement for what lies ahead,” Greenberg writes in the Budget Book introduction. “Simultaneously, it is recognized that these are complex and challenging times – with uncertainties around the financial stability of the State budget, a number of competing priorities, and never enough resources to go around. That said, Inyo County remains well-positioned fiscally with a stable budget and reserves adequate to weather uncertainties which may lie ahead.”

The Budget Book details the anticipated revenue and proposed expenditures for each of the County’s 19 departments and 130-plus budget units for the 2024-2025 Fiscal Year, which runs from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025. (On June 18, the Board of Supervisors adopted a modified version of the 2023-2024 Board Approved Budget to serve as the Preliminary 2024-2025 Fiscal Year Budget until a final version could be presented and approved this fall.)

This meeting is accessible to the public both in person and, for convenience, via Zoom webinar. The Zoom webinar is accessible to the public at https://zoom.us/j/868254781. The meeting may also be accessed by telephone at the following numbers: (669) 900-6833; (346) 248-7799; (253) 215-8782; (929) 205-6099; (301) 715-8592; (312) 626-6799. Webinar ID: 868 254 781. In the event that the remote participation connection malfunctions for any reason, the Board of Supervisors reserves the right to conduct the meeting without remote access. Regardless of remote access, written public comments, limited to 250 words or fewer, may be emailed to the Assistant Clerk of the Board at boardclerk@inyocounty.us.

In addition to being available online, the proposed budget documents are available for public review at the Clerk of the Board’s Office, 224 N. Edwards St., Independence, during business hours.

For more information, contact the Assistant Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, P.O. Drawer N, Independence, CA 93526, dellis@inyocounty.us, and (760) 878-0373.