Fiscally bailed-out Blythe hospital adds doctors to ER
Wife of Cabazon man convicted of killing toddler pleads guilty
Pg 16
Pg 31
VISIT HEYSOCAL.COM
Local. Relevant. Trusted.
Thursday, June 04-June 10, 2026
County board contends with deficit as fiscal year nears end By Joe Taglieri
A
Riverside County's GDP, compared with the state and the nation over the last two decades. | Graphic courtesy of Riverside County
special election, which left the Office of the Registrar of Voters in a deficit, higher-than-anticipated payroll expenses for the District Attorney's Office and Department of Animal Services and underfunded projects overseen by the Department of Facilities Management. "As fiscal pressures continue to emerge, maintaining fiscal discipline will be critical to sustaining core services and aligning available resources with county priorities," Van Wagenen wrote. "Moving forward, the county will need to continue emphasizing balanced decision-making, operational efficiency, and long-term financial sustainability." The Executive Office requested the board "clean up" the imbalances before the start of hearings on the
proposed 2026-27 budget, which were scheduled to begin Monday. The third-quarter report indicated revenue streams had broadened in a few areas, mainly property taxes, which have increased $19.8 million above the amount projected at the outset of the fiscal year. That will translate to a 3% rise in discretionary income — $1.36 billion versus $1.31 billion — by the end of the current fiscal year, according to the report. "Composite reserves" should reach $650 million at the end of the current fiscal year, officials reported. Expected to peak at nearly $700 million, but in order to cover ongoing budget shortfalls, that number no longer seemed likely. The See Budget Page 32
reserve pool total had been projected in June 2025 to reach a maximum of $655 million in the current fiscal year, so the latest estimate is for the most part accurate. County supervisors approved the $9.98 billion budget on June 24, 2025 and approved a tentative hiring freeze for most agencies to try to halt deficit spending. Payrolls continue to require half of county spending — over 26,000 people work in more than 40 agencies on a regular or rotating temporary basis. The Executive Office also noted sagging revenue for public safety programs. "Although discretionary revenue continues to show steady growth, certain revenue categories are performing below meeting
NO. 278
Hilton, Becerra heading for runoff in California governor race By City News Service
R
joet@civicnewsgroup.com s the current fiscal year enters its final month, unanticipated revenue shortfalls in Riverside County government require roughly $60 million in reserve funds to be allocated to maintain a balanced budget, according to a report the Board of Supervisors reviewed Tuesday. The board voted 5-0 without comment to approve the Executive Office's recommendation to draw down the reserve pool to cover cost overruns. "The county continues to face a variety of structural and operational fiscal pressures," county CEO Jeff Van Wagenen wrote in a memo to board about his office's third-quarter budget report. "Rising labor costs, uncertainty surrounding state and federal funding, increasing demand for core services and ongoing infrastructure investment needs are placing additional strain on available resources." The 94-page third-quarter report indicated a variety of expenses must be met before the end of the fiscal year, or a number of county departments would operate with spending deficits. The Executive Office recommended the Board of Supervisors approve drawing down the reserve pool by about $60 million to cover the spending excesses. Those include higher costs connected with overspent defense contracts, overhanging expenses from last November's
VOL. VOL. 10, 12,
epublican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra appeared Wednesday to be heading for a November runoff election, outdistancing a large field of competitors in the state's gubernatorial primary. With returns still being counted statewide, Hilton had 1,386,966 votes, or 27.8%, as of Wednesday morning, while Becerra received 1,267,070 votes, or 25.4%, according to the California Secretary of State's Office. Democrat and billionaire hedge fund manager Tom Steyer was third with 979,007 votes, or 19.6%, followed by Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco with 566,679, or 11.3%. It was unclear Wednesday morning how many ballots remain to be tallied from Tuesday's election. The vote totals were expected to be updated repeatedly in the coming days, with many pundits predicting the later ballots to skew towards Democrats, likely resulting in Becerra ultimately finishing first in the race. The race to succeed termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom has been a lively one, but the campaign in recent days appeared to boil down to a toss-up among Hilton, Becerra and Steyer, and Tuesday night's results showed that scenario playing out. Becerra had surged in recent polls, with Hilton and Steyer trailing right behind. Hilton saw a boost in support, moving past Bianco, after being endorsed by President Donald Trump in April. Hilton has urged voters to
back his bid for governor to avoid the possibility of being locked out of the November election by two Democrats. Hilton has spent most of his career as a political strategist and observer. He worked for former British Prime Minister David Cameron, after which he moved to California, where he's resided for close to 15 years. Hilton has made tax reductions, spending limits and curbs on bureaucratic red tape some of his central campaign themes. Hilton spoke to his supporters Tuesday night in Huntington Beach, standing on a stage with the words "Change is Coming" behind him. "I thought, is that a little premature to write the words `change is coming'?" he said. "I don't think so, because change is coming. Change is coming to California. Change is coming to California and it's long overdue." He added, "It looks very much as if Californians really will have the chance to vote for change in November and take our state in a new direction, a fresh start for our state, which is long overdue. But I just want to say something to every single person who voted for me, and every single person who voted in this election, whether you voted for me or not. I am here for you, for every single one of you." Hilton has leveled sharp criticism at Becerra over a campaign finance scandal involving two of the candidate's employees caught
See Governor race Page 09