San Bernardino City Council Faces Tough Decisions as 2024/2025 Budget Exceeds Revenue, Animal Services Scrutinized

For the first time in nearly five years, the City of San Bernardino’s proposed budget for the fiscal year 2024/2025 projects higher expenditures than revenues, leading to intense debate among city council members during the June 26th special meeting.

Councilman Theodore Sanchez highlighted the fiscal discrepancy, stating, “We have $236.6 million in revenues and the proposed budget is $237.7 million. This is the first time in at least five years that we are projected to spend more than we are projected to make in revenues from all sources. This city unfortunately has one of the most dubious reputations for being one of the largest cities to go through bankruptcy. I want to make sure that the decisions we make here are fiscally sound.”

Sanchez pointed out the impact of adding nearly 150 positions over the last 16 months, noting, “What that does is it expands the bandwidth of the work at city hall but it cuts into capital improvement projects; such as streets getting repaved, bridges getting built, and parks getting cleaned up.” He proposed cuts to previously approved positions, including an additional administrative assistant for the Mayor, which was met with opposition from Mayor Helen Tran.

“Council, I only have one staff in my office and this is just asking for one administrative assistant and I would like to ask the council to help support my office,” Mayor Tran pleaded. Despite her appeal, the council voted to remove the position, with only Councilwoman Sandra Ibarra dissenting.

The council also reconsidered other city positions, leading to further debate. Sanchez proposed eliminating two additional City Council administrative assistant positions, which was refuted by Councilwoman Ibarra. “When I came on board there were four full-time employees in the city council office and now we have one person carrying the burden of four full-time employees. If anyone has tried to call the council office, you tell us, are we responding? If the answer is no, then you know why. We don’t have the bandwidth to address all of our citizens,” Ibarra argued.

During the public comment period, Christian Flores of Inland Congregations United for Change urged the council to increase community development and housing funding by $1.5 million to support the general plan update. “For years, community members living in mobile home parks and apartment complexes have been hit with regular rent increases and additional fees that are levied against them from their landlords. I want to express frustration with state-released funding to the county to address homelessness and the amount of times the City of San Bernardino doesn’t apply for said funding, and I don’t want that to continue to happen,” Flores stated.

Tanya Gonzalez, a member of the Airport Communities Coalition, also highlighted the challenges related to housing and infrastructure. “As a community organizer I have engaged with community members that live in your city and have heard and learned of the issues they are facing. Some of the major challenges they face are housing and infrastructure, since there is a lack of affordable housing here in the city. And we know the solution is to create more affordable housing opportunities and invest in better infrastructure in the city. We know this is going to be a long process and that the city is not the only agency responsible for housing, but you do have a responsibility to engage your constituents and to be receptive to the feedback, because believe it or not, they do have lots of great ideas of what they would like their city to look like,” Gonzalez said.

Animal services also faced scrutiny, with many community members unhappy about the budget allocation. Lydia Zavala, from animal services, criticized the city’s reported 92 percent save rate, calling it “fudged data” and highlighting the need for competitive veterinary salaries. “You’re adding more staff, more space, more programs, and none of this is going to resolve having too many unwanted pets,” Zavala said. Sharon Negrete echoed these sentiments, labeling the veterinary salary of $150-$168,000 per year as “an embarrassment and a clear indicator of the lack of value this position holds in our community.” Negrete also alleged and questioned if San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, who gave a 1+ million grant to the city in 2022, was aware that they are not using the funds to spay and neuter pets in San Bernardino to keep the stray pet population under control. 

Despite the controversy, the proposed budget includes significant investments in various departments:

• Mayor’s Office: Budget increase from $305,812 to $403,756 in FY 2024/25 and $425,651 in FY 2025/26.
• City Council: Budget increase from $1,092,321 to $1,243,619 in FY 2024/25 and $1,300,847 in FY 2025/26.
• City Clerk: Budget increase from $1,748,820 to $1,942,869 in FY 2024/25 and $1,994,357 in FY 2025/26.
• City Manager’s Office: Significant increase from $3,440,261 to $5,243,556 in FY 2024/25 and $5,805,481 in FY 2025/26.

Funds allocated towards housing also saw substantial increases, reflecting the city’s commitment to addressing housing challenges:

• Community Development & Housing: Budget increase from $12,092,145 to $15,004,584 in FY 2024/25 and $16,413,508 in FY 2025/26.

The budget discussion underscored the city’s efforts to balance operational needs with fiscal responsibility, aiming to enhance the quality of life for residents while maintaining financial stability.

As the meeting concluded, it was clear that San Bernardino’s leaders face tough decisions in the coming fiscal year to ensure that the city’s financial health remains robust and that community needs are effectively met.

For further details on the city’s proposed budget and specific department allocations, please refer to the full budget document available on the City of San Bernardino’s website at  sanbernardino.primegov.com/public/portal.