District 1 Supervisor Mike Wasserman, who this month took helm as President of the Board, gave his State of the County Address Tuesday that outlined a “healthy, stable, effective” Santa Clara County that’s “delivering real life to help residents.”
To view a video of the address, click here.
Among the noteworthy items:
Bond rating in ship shape
The County’s bond rating was recently raised by Standard & Poor to AAA, the highest possible long-term rating. S&P took note of the County’s “strong budget flexibility and performance; very strong management; financial policies, and consistent ability to maintain a balanced budget,” according to a press release from the County. The AAA rating means that when the County has to borrow money, it will be able to do so at favorable interest rates.
Wasserman’s 2014 priorities:
• Keeping residents safe,
• Delivering services in an efficient and cost-effective manner,
• Educating the public on the services the County provides.
“The County is working on many fronts to meet the diverse needs of our residents. Whether it is helping kids find a safe way to school, providing shelter for those living on the streets, making sure immunizations are given, answering 911 calls, inspecting restaurants, making our neighborhoods safe, providing world class healthcare, inspecting gas pumps, operating our jails, or caring for our seniors and children, County government is protecting our residents, in one way or another, every minute of every day,” stated Wasserman. “I pride myself on being referred to as having a head for numbers, and a heart for people. When I think about our role as the County, tasked with delivering vital services to the residents of one of the largest counties in the nation, I am convinced that by working together and using our heads and hearts, we can, and will, deliver real life help to our residents.”
• 75 percent: Amount of the County’s budget that comes with “strings attached” from the federal and state governments
• $25 million: Projected preliminary general fund deficit for next fiscal year.
“The good news is that this is a much smaller deficit than any year over the past decade,” said Wasserman.
