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03/11/2009: "Rose Explains CD&PD Layoffs"

(Updated with new Chart)

County Administrator Pete Rose explained to the County Council on Monday the reasons for the decision to lay off two employees at Community Development and Planning, and took the opportunity at the end of his briefing to say ”I am sorry to our employees.”

Rose said the “permitting in December January and February has been down over 35%.”

Based on just permit revenue, Rose said the department projects being "over $110,000.00 behind in about three weeks, and to that we add to the costs in our personnel rules -our benefit programs of [past] layoffs- and we are starting to approach $150,000.00 behind."


“we waited a little extra time to try and see a trend.. we are certainly sticking to the winter trend. The months of January and February were lower than any of the four that Mr. Hendrickson has seen.”



Rose said the numbers resulted in the decision to pare down the staff, and noted that a couple of the sections in CD&PD “are not having a lot of work to do in terms of their usual frenzy of processing permits."

Rose explained “At this point my idea was to make a couple of layoffs so that, if we waited another couple of months, heading into the busy season we might have to lay off more.” SJC Auditor Milene Henley said the revenue from permits is expected to continue to decline, and the longer Rose waited to reduce staff, the greater the chance CD&P will have even less money, and that could result in further cuts.

In response to a question from Richard Fralick, Rose said the layoffs were “permit revenue supported positions.” Rose went on to add that counties throughout the state have had to pare back due to lack of permitting activity. Rose added that even with the 35% decease in activity, “we stand near, or at the top, in activity” in the state.

Commenting on the lay-offs in a press release put out late Monday, Rose is quoted stating “these are difficult times for all County departments. We are trying very hard to take care of our team of talented and dedicated employees, while dealing with the harsh reality that the County has no rainy day fund to fall back on. All department budgets began the year with very little ability to absorb further declines in revenues.”

As for the future, Rose told the commissioners that depending on how the sales tax and interest revenues look after the end of the first quarter “we may be back here, talking again about this.”