In September, supervisors Chuck Washington (3rd District) and Kevin Jeffries (1st District) asked the Riverside County’s Executive Office to develop a strategy and then budget for increased Code Enforcement staffing on evenings and weekends. They requested a response within 60 days.
As part of the first quarter review of the county’s 2021-22 budget, Executive Officer Jeff Van Wagenen presented the staff’s proposal to expand enforcement of county codes to evenings and weekends.
A June 2021 Riverside County grand jury report also recommended an increase in staffing to enforce a new short-term rental [STR] ordinance and to “adequately address noise complaints.”
Van Wagenen asked the board of supervisors to approve another $770,000 to hire 10 more Code Enforcement staff, including six more code enforcement officers. The proposal includes four other staff positions.
The added staffing will cost $495,000 and the balance of the request is for equipment such as eight new vehicles.
The first quarter budget plan including this increase was approved unanimously without any discussion.
The explanation of the added funding and staff stated, “This adjustment will fund the operation to mitigate violations by unpermitted vendors, unpermitted events, short-term rentals and noise during evenings and weekends, during the occurrence.”
Washington feels the increased staffing will make a positive difference on the negative effects of STRs on the Hill. “The plan is undergoing final revisions, but we do know that the new enforcement team will assist in short-term rental compliance,” he told the Town Crier in an email. “This initial funding will be helpful in stopping ‘bad neighbor’ short-term rentals that allow their guests to hold loud parties on the weekends …
“… and we are working toward directing additional funding to short-term rental enforcement in our revised short-term rental ordinance that is currently being drafted,” he added.
Funding for more code enforcement will be evaluated in the future, Washington stated. Next fiscal year, “The budget will be reviewed and can be adjusted based on the needs that we are seeing in the county,” he confirmed.
Currently, the county sheriff’s office is the principal agency responding to code complaints on weekends. While there is no increase for the sheriff, Washington noted, “With the new enforcement team in place, the sheriff’s deputies can concentrate on responding to other, more time-sensitive situations.”
Overall county fiscal position
The county’s financial position has significantly improved since the budget was approved last summer. The projected deficit has fallen from $53 million to $18 million. The reserves are now projected to grow from $231 million to more than $350 million.
These changes resulted from a projected increase in revenue, including nearly $6 million from the Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT), and a nearly $90 million increase in projected year-end revenue. This was largely attributed to the federal funding to reimburse local governments for the unexpected costs caused by the COVID 19 problems. (Hotels/motels and county-registered STRs pay TOT.)
Code Enforcement was not the only program increased in this budget review. The county added nearly $2 million to other programs such as the public defender and 25 other new positions.
