Proposed city budget sparks debate on use of PSVS money

Yahoo

29-05-2025

A presentation over the city's proposed budget turned into a debate about the use of Measure N funds Wednesday, as Bakersfield City Council members alternately decried or defended how the city spends the tax dollars.
Council members were presented with a proposed budget of $850.2 million for the 2025-26 fiscal year, a $46.4 million reduction from the previous year. City Manager Christian Clegg attributed the reduction to minimal or no growth in tax revenues amid a larger economic slowdown.
The proposed budget includes a $5 million reduction in operations and hiring freezes for most vacant positions for the first quarter of the fiscal year.
'The city has taken a much closer look at discretionary operational expenses with many departments reducing those budget line items with the understanding that more challenging financial circumstances lie ahead,' Clegg wrote in his introduction to the proposed budget.
But the city's budget was only balanced using a $12 million allocation from the city's Public Safety and Vital Services fund, a 1% sales tax narrowly approved by voters in 2017 as Measure N.
That was never the intended purpose of the money, according to Ward 3 Councilman Ken Weir, who said voters approved the measure with the understanding that the funds would be put toward new expenditures with a focus on public safety.
'Voters approved PSVS on the condition that we would not spend money that has already been on our books; it would be allocated to new things,' Weir said. 'The public was told we won't use the money for the expenses in the original general fund.'
Ward 6 Councilman Zack Bashirtash was similarly critical of how PSVS funds were being spent, particularly on services for the homeless.
"I don't believe that homelessness has gotten better or stayed the same. In my opinion, it's getting worse," Bashirtash said, noting the substantial amount of money the city provides to homeless service organizations.
"We're talking about giving millions of dollars to organizations that have already received tens of millions of dollars," Bashirtash said.
Clegg and other council members defended use of the funds, arguing the city had been able to shelter hundreds more people a year and has moved more than 400 into permanent housing.
Ward 2 Councilman Andrae Gonzales noted PSVS funding had allowed the city to hire roughly 80 police officers and make several other improvements across the city.
"When we approached the voters with Measure N, it was to preserve and enhance vital services," Gonzales said. "We had experienced two decades worth of cut after cut, cutting core services to the bare bone."
Ward 1 Councilman Eric Arias listed several projects in his district funded by PSVS money and pointed to programs created by the funding he said increased quality of life.
"I can't talk enough about how great the park rangers have been for our community, keeping our parks safe," Arias said.
Arias noted that the city had seen a 57% reduction in homicides and a 60% reduction in shootings, which officials attributed to the work of a city-funded intervention program.
Still, Weir and Bashirtash maintained the city's PSVS money was being ill-spent.
"We know what the solution is for criminals, but we're spending money on not the solution," Bashirtash said. "At what point in time are we going to stop feeding the problem and actually start feeding the solution so that taxpayers are getting what they're paying for taxes?"
Weir said calling the budget balanced by using PSVS dollars was misleading.
"This year we've used $12 million of money that we should not have used," Weir said. "Now, I'm not going to argue about who spent what or anything else. I'm telling you we did a disservice to the people of this community, and we owe them $12 million."
The city's budget will be formally introduced at the council's next meeting June 11. The city's fiscal year starts July 1.