The meeting discussed the county’s mid-year budget report, guaranteed income programs and renovations to the superior court
By YUENJO FAN — city@theaggie.org
On Feb. 25, the Yolo County Board of Supervisors met to discuss the 2025 mid-year budget, evaluate the Yolo County Basic Income Project (YOBI) and take reports from county subcommittees.
For discussions about the mid-year budget, Laura Liddicoet, Yolo County’s chief budget official, presented a comprehensive report summarizing revenue changes. The report detailed how several revenue streams did not reach anticipated budget goals, meaning that the actual revenue did not match the projected numbers. Liddicoet also mentioned how most county departments are projected to yield a revenue surplus, but those numbers are lower than that of previous years.
“Major county revenues are projected to largely end the fiscal year below budget,” Liddicoet said. “At the state level, sales tax receipts are coming in below anticipated levels. The impact to us at the county is that our Prop 172 public safety sales tax revenue is projected to finish the year almost five percent below budget. Similarly, our public safety realignment growth was lower by approximately $27,000 than anticipated. […] Locally, property tax is anticipated to be less than one percent below budget and, with a bit of good news, our general fund sales tax is expected to come in slightly above budget.”
Furthermore, Liddicoet addressed the board about the current solar panel malfunction issues the county is facing and how they have accrued into another expense. For Yolo County to meet new costs, the budget department will now look to use money from its contingency funds to pay off these new electric bills.
“The county is experiencing some issues with our various solar arrays,” Liddicoet said. “There have been extensive financial implications of the solar arrays being inoperative the past few months. The most immediate of which is the state of the county’s electrical bill. […] Initial analysis indicates that we are seeing $400,000 quarterly increases in our electrical bills with the arrays being down. As you can imagine, this is putting some constraints on various electrical budgets.”
Across Yolo County, there are numerous solar farms and arrays, including a one-megawatt solar panel in Woodland that powers the county’s justice departments. The county is hoping for a quick end to the issues impacting the solar array and for fixes to their solar issue shortly.
The meeting then moved on to YOBI’s evaluations. Dr. Catherine Brinkley, a UC Davis faculty director for the Center for Regional Change and Community, took to the podium to discuss an evaluation of YOBI, one of the nation’s first 100 guaranteed income programs. YOBI’s goal was to provide stability to community members at risk of financial and emotional stress, especially after the events of the COVID-19 pandemic. The program, which ran from 2022 to 2024, had its results brought in front of the county supervisors for review.
“One of the big findings was a 62% increase in the number of YOBI families who reported that ‘Overall, my life feels more stable,’” Brinkley said. “We also saw statistically significant improvements in the number of YOBI families that could afford rent or own homes. We saw YOBI participants’ ability to [rent/own housing] move from 53% to 82%. Those that were in [YOBI’s] housing support program saw an increase [in housing affordability] from 64% to 93%.”
The YOBI program served 243 individuals and had an average stipend fund of $1,289. Monetary support for the program came largely from donors, while the county and UC Davis evaluated its effectiveness.
Moreover, County Supervisor Lucas Frerichs provided updates from the Historic Courthouse Capital Project Planning subcommittee. The subcommittee is looking to move forward with a plan to provide further renovations to Yolo County’s superior court building in Woodland. To follow through with this project, the county is looking into working with UC Davis architects to design additional areas within the courthouse while also replacing older building infrastructure.
“There’s a bunch of activities underway from actually securing the building to more immediate work around the outside of the building,” Frerichs said. “We’re working on a plan for cost estimates and funding for the inside and especially the third floor.”
The plan is still in its relative infancy, with more comprehensive details to come.
Lastly, Yolo County finalized Mike Webb’s appointment as the county’s new administrative officer. With 28 years of experience working for the city of Davis, including as a city manager, Webb’s new position will have him oversee county operations and budget.
The Yolo County Board of Supervisors meeting typically takes place on Tuesdays at 9 a.m. in the county’s superior court. More information can be found on their website.
Written By Yuenjo Fan — city@theaggie.org
