By Pat Doody
Zack Scrivner speaks to Chamber of Commerce
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Zack Scrivner addressed the Kern County budget crisis at the May Chamber of Commerce luncheon. He told local businesses that the shortfall was primarily due to the unprecedented drop in oil prices. Oil prices were once over $100 a barrel. This dropped first to $55 a barrel and then to $35. The resulting shortfall caused a drastic reduction in tax revenue for the county and local communities. He added that oil reserves have been used to mitigate the loss but the budget still will need to be cut by 15%. In addition, “the state legislature attacks oil every year”, said Scrivner. The state is supposed to reduce oil usage by 50% by 2030, which could be devastating to the Kern County economy.
Public services may be the most seriously impacted such as the potential closing of several fire stations including the one at Stallion Springs. Scrivner said that County Clerk Mary Bedard discovered that in the effort to keep staff low, the county may have been paying too much in overtime. The county is now looking at paying overtime vs. adding more staff as a possible way to save.
Scrivner said that he is headed to Sacramento to fight the measure to make California a santuary state and to meet with State Senator Kevin DeLeon.
