AB 2557 and AB 2561 attack local services for vulnerable Californians

OPINION – A pair of deeply problematic bills moving through the California State Legislature would jeopardize the delivery of local services in virtually every city, county and special district across the state.

At a time of significant service cuts due to massive budget deficits, counties and local governments need the flexibility to manage their budgets and workforce to protect communities and to continue to deliver local services in the most effective and cost-efficient way possible.

Both AB 2557 and AB 2561 are being promoted as good government bills. They are the exact opposite. If enacted, local services will suffer, local governments will be unable to prioritize the most important needs of our communities, and costs for local services will skyrocket.

Both bills should be rejected by lawmakers.

AB 2557 will jeopardize the local services all Californians depend on – especially the most vulnerable among us – by instituting a de facto ban on local government contracting with external service providers. That includes restricting contracts with nonprofits and community-based organizations that provide homeless services, mental health programs, foster care, 9-1-1 dispatching, emergency response, and much more.

These partners bring expertise, additional capacity, and most importantly are trusted in our communities. They complement the work of our dedicated public employees.

AB 2557 creates new, burdensome and bureaucratic mandates on those who provide services to local governments. These requirements include voluminous reporting requirements intentionally crafted to prevent local governments from partnering with local service providers.

Most small nonprofits or community-based organizations are run with volunteers and a tiny staff. They do not have the resources or the expertise to compile such complex data that is specifically intended to bury them and local government in paperwork rather than delivering services to our community.

If local agencies are forced to discontinue partnering with contractors, those services will be cut back or eliminated altogether, and all Californians will suffer – especially those most vulnerable.

Meanwhile, AB 2561 will divert staff resources away from critical services by placing onerous hiring requirements on local governments that are both impossible to meet and fiscally irresponsible.

AB 2561 requires local agencies with bargaining unit vacancy rates exceeding 10 percent to implement a plan to hire and fill every single one of those vacancies. Counties are committed to expanding training programs, building pathways into public sector jobs, modernizing the hiring process, and offering competitive compensation. But we cannot do it alone and getting to zero vacancies is impossible in the face of significant labor shortages, especially among specially licensed professionals.

Furthermore, it is fiscally irresponsible to ask local governments to fill every single open position in the face of massive state and local government budget deficits. At this very moment, counties across the state are facing potential massive layoffs partly as a result of the state’s budget deficit.

Codifying zero vacancies into law will virtually guarantee county deficits and remove local authority in prioritizing limited resources. Let’s not waste public employee time and resources spinning wheels instead of providing actual services to constituents.

Public employees are dedicated public servants that have tremendous expertise in their fields and are the primary deliverers of services to our communities.

It is also true that not every service, every time, is best suited for local government to deliver. Local governments need the ability to use a mix of public employees and local community partners to best meet the needs of our communities.

Both AB 2557 and AB 2561 tie the hands of local elected officials to best manage precious taxpayer resources and deliver services in the most effective way possible.

Lawmakers in Sacramento should reject these problematic and unnecessary bills.

Susan Ellenberg is a Santa Clara County Supervisor and Second Vice President. Chuck Washington is a Riverside County Supervisor and the Immediate Past President of the California State Association of Counties.