Board of Supervisors adopts $2.90 billion budget to protect core services amid federal policy changes

The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors today adopted a $2.90 billion budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year that begins July 1, approving a spending plan that protects essential services while preparing for major changes in federal policy and anticipated reductions in state and federal funding.

The budget includes funding to help residents maintain access to health care and food assistance programs, support repairs to roads and bridges damaged by years of disasters and focus limited resources on the County’s highest-priority services.

“This budget reflects our commitment to protecting essential services while preparing for significant financial challenges beyond our control,” said Supervisor Rebecca Hermosillo, chair of the Board of Supervisors. “We worked hard to prioritize essential services, health care, food assistance, public safety, and infrastructure while being responsible with taxpayer dollars. Our goal is to continue to provide core services, and ensure everyone has the opportunity to thrive.”

The adopted budget would increase County spending by 4.3% from the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. It reduces the County workforce by the equivalent of 42 full-time positions, bringing the total workforce to 4,457 FTE positions. The reductions reflect efforts to protect core services while aligning staffing levels with available funding, largely by allowing time-limited positions to expire.

The budget commits more than $70 million over three years to help Sonoma County respond to the impacts of H.R. 1, the federal law that changes eligibility requirements for Medi-Cal and CalFresh while imposing new administrative costs on counties. It allocates $33 million to hire additional eligibility workers, expand employment and training services that help residents meet new federal work requirements, and absorb increased administrative costs created by the law. Another $38 million is reserved to help meet potential future needs related to food insecurity and the County’s responsibility related to uninsured healthcare impacts, to be evaluated pending final State budget and program decisions.

The budget invests in road repairs and pavement preservation projects while Sonoma County continues to await more than $30 million in federal and state reimbursements for completed disaster recovery work. The Board of Supervisors allocated $27 million to maintain critical transportation infrastructure and keep high-priority repair projects on schedule despite ongoing reimbursement delays.

The Board also prioritized the restoration of 2 Crisis Assessment Prevention and Education (CAPE) teams that provide comprehensive behavioral health support directly within schools, bringing the program to a full complement of 5 teams. 

The state budget has not yet been finalized, and the full impacts of H.R. 1 remain uncertain. Rather than build the budget around funding that has not yet been approved, the Board deferred some staffing and funding decisions until later this year. The approach preserves flexibility to address emerging needs as more information becomes available.

As part of the County’s commitment to transparency, open government, and citizen engagement, detailed information on the annual operating budget is available at sonomacounty.budget.socrata.com.

All County of Sonoma budget reports and materials are available at sonomacounty.gov/administrative-support-and-fiscal-services/county-administrators-office/budget-and-operations/budget-reports.

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Media Contact:
Gina Stocker, Communications Specialist
publicaffairs@sonomacounty.gov
(707) 565-3040
575 Administration Drive, Suite 104A
Santa Rosa, CA 95403