|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday will decide whether to approve a spending plan for the county’s Measure X sales tax revenue, which is projected to be more than $238 million through the end of fiscal 2022-23.
County staff is also recommending withholding 25% in a funding reserve in case unforeseen circumstances prompt a drop in county sales tax revenue.
The board will also consider a $20,000 request for a formally-written report on its spending plan.
Measure X is a half-cent sales tax approved by county voters in 2020. The funds started accruing in April, when the county’s Measure X advisory board began meeting.
The ballot measure’s stated purpose was to keep “Contra Costa’s regional hospital open and staffed, fund community health centers, emergency response, support critical safety-net services, invest in early childhood services, protect vulnerable populations, and for other essential county services.”
The 17-member advisory board (with 10 alternates) met 25 times this year. It received more than $350 million in funding requests. After hearing supervisors weigh in at the board’s Oct. 12 meeting, the commission is recommending five general priorities: mental well-being, equity in action, healthy communities, intergenerational thriving, and providing a welcoming and safe community.
More specific recommendations for immediate, one-time funding includes $30 million to add 40,000 square feet of space to Contra Costa County Regional Medical Center’s clinic and office space, plus another $15 million for a new parking structure. The county would also receive $25 million for a new public health laboratory.
Reopening East County fire stations is a priority, with a $17.2 million recommended allotment. $10 million would go to youth centers in east and central counties. $5 million in one-time funding would go toward 3,000 square feet of expansion of the county’s psychiatric emergency services building, and another $5 million toward Contra Costa’s community crisis initiative.
During the first year of ongoing Measure X funding (April 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023) $40 million would go to Contra Costa Regional Medical Center and $10 million for the local housing trust fund, including funding for homeless housing and services. Other priorities would include $6 million toward first responder patrols, $4.5 million for wildfire mitigation, $3.5 million to re-open and staff county fire stations, and $2.5 million for climate sustainability projects.
The advisory board recommends that ongoing funding be allocated in three-to-five-year periods, to sustain ongoing needs in the community.
The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors meets at 9 a.m. Tuesday (Nov. 16), and can be accessed at https://ems8.intellor.com/join/k2VbS7IBIo and at www.contracosta.ca.gov.
