County Executive James R. Williams Issues Statement on Fiscal Year 2025-26 Adopted Budget

"The Board of Supervisors has adopted a budget that is balanced, responsive to the needs of our local community, and clear-eyed about the fiscal uncertainties that we face. 

“At its core, the Board-approved $13.7 billion budget reflects our community’s values. The budget safeguards critical safety-net services for those most in need, while recommitting funding for programs and services that are under direct threat by the current federal administration. As a County organization, we are making one thing very clear: We will continue to support the needs of the diverse communities we are here to serve. 

“The Board’s Approved Budget also reflects our local policy priorities, ensuring the County is making strategic investments where they are needed most. The approved budget will allow us to expand our behavioral health services to better serve those in crisis, preserve supportive housing programs that help people exit homelessness, and maintain delivery of critical health care through our public hospital system, the largest in Northern California. 

“While the Adopted Budget supports the continuity of County services and operations, we are still facing looming and unprecedented state and federal funding cuts. We must be clear-eyed about the challenge this presents for the County and our community, especially given that 30% of our budget today is federally derived.

“Our Board has already taken decisive action in the adopted budget to realign close to $60 million in local General Fund dollars to backfill certain anticipated federal funding losses. This historic move will help prevent greater impacts to critical services that many in our community rely on. However, this action only addresses a small portion of the significant funding shortfalls we may be faced with in the months ahead.  

“As the county executive, I remain deeply concerned about the federal cuts being proposed to Medicaid, Medicare, and food assistance programs that currently benefit thousands of vulnerable families in Santa Clara County. We continue to urge our governor and state leaders to mitigate, not exacerbate, funding cuts to counties that may come from the state’s own budget process or the federal reconciliation bill currently being debated in Congress. 

“I know that our County organization, and the diverse, dynamic community we serve, will continue to stand steady through these turbulent times, weathering the storm of the moment and charting a path forward that best reflects our values and the needs of our community. 

“Despite the unknowns we still face, the Board’s adopted budget represents a steady and strong step forward for our entire County organization.

“I want to thank each member of the Board of Supervisors for their leadership during such a challenging budget year and for their close partnership with County administration throughout this year’s budget process.”