By Jeff Horseman
The Press Enterprise
WILDOMAR, Calif. — It will take police longer to respond to “lower-priority calls” in Wildomar after the city cut its public safety spending to offset a state-created shortfall, the police chief said Thursday.
But Capt. Dave Fontneau said the city won’t need to spend extra for specialized teams such as SWAT and hostage negotiators, despite the council’s Wednesday vote to slash $1.54 million from the city’s $3.8 million police budget. Wildomar contracts with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department for police services.
Police and fire spending makes up the biggest chunk of Wildomar’s $8.23 million operating budget. In late June, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a Senate bill as part of the state budget package that transferred $130 million in vehicle license fee revenue from cities to pay for public safety grants.
Wildomar lost $1.8 million through the transfer, which hit new cities like Wildomar especially hard because they rely heavily on the fees to fund public services. The City Council Wednesday approved wide-ranging budget cuts to save $1.823 million.
The biggest cut was to the sheriff’s contract. The city will get 40 hours of deputy shifts a day instead of 72 hours.
Fontneau declined to elaborate on what he considered to be a low-priority call.
“Clearly anytime we reduce law enforcement services, that’s an area of concern,” he said. “We agreed to do this on a short-term, temporary basis because the city could not afford to pay bills without (the fees).”
Former council candidate Martha Bridges criticized the reduction, which was negotiated by city and sheriff’s officials and not up for consideration by the council.
“I really feel you took a hacksaw to the public safety budget and it will not serve the public well,” she told council members Wednesday.
City Manager Frank Oviedo conceded the cut was “pretty Draconian.” But he said the city had no choice given its dire financial situation.
Some council members said Wildomar still will have more police than it did before incorporating in 2008. Mayor Marsha Swanson suggested using community groups as highly visible citizens’ patrols to deter low-level crime.
Calls requiring SWAT, hostage negotiators and hazardous materials units will not be affected, Fontneau said. He noted that a Sunday night family disturbance call that resulted in a nine-hour standoff was handled under the revised contract.
The city might face an added bill, he said, if deputies are handling an incident that requires more deputies to be called in from unincorporated areas to backfill patrols. There would be no backfilling for officers answering routine calls, Fontneau said.
The council found other cuts beyond public safety. Starting next week, City Hall will close on Fridays and the council will meet regularly only once a month.
Oviedo agreed to furlough days to reduce his salary by $15,000. And all city life insurance policies are being cancelled.
The council did not follow Oviedo’s recommendation to eliminate the Planning Commission and have the council take over its duties.
“To discard the planning commission in favor of a politicized council is a dangerous step,” former councilwoman Sheryl Ade told the council Wednesday.
Swanson and Councilman Bob Cashman offered to go without their city-provided health insurance. Swanson said she plans to do so when she turns 65 in October.
The mayor also donates her stipend to Wildomar’s parks program. Council members considered doing away with their $3,600 annual stipend but held off, though each council member could voluntarily give the money back.
Swanson praised Oviedo for his suggested cuts. The council approved most of them, saving $1.823 million in the current fiscal year.
If the city succeeds in getting back its fee dollars, Swanson said the council will look to restore police funding. But she warned: “We have no promise of anything changing (at the state level).
“I can’t believe this happened anyhow,” Swanson added. “Overnight to have a balanced budget, and then to have a quarter of our money taken away.”
Copyright 2011 The Press Enterprise, Inc.