The Whipping Post Take on SB County Board of Supervisors

COUNTY SUPERVISORS GIVE AWAY THE STORE, CLAIM IT'S NOT A 'PROJECT'

Board waves through millions in housing slush funds and 'grants' to pet charities, then declares it has no environmental impact. Brilliant!

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6/19/2026 · Inspired by “Consider recommendations regarding the approval of Subrecipient Agreements and Funding Commitment Letters, as follows: a) Approve and authorize the Chair of the Board, pursuant to the funding recommendations approved by the Board on June 9, 2026, to execute the following State of California Permanent Local Housing Allocation (PLHA) Subrecipient Agreements between the County and the following subrecipients: i) $9,823.00 to Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo County, Inc. (CAPSLO) for Home Repair in Santa Maria; and ii) $31,542.00 to Partners in Housing Solutions, Inc. for At-risk Homelessness Assistance; b) Approve and authorize the Director of the Community Services Department, pursuant to the funding recommendations approved by the Board on June 9, 2026, to execute State of California PLHA Funding Commitment Letter to People’s Self-Help Housing for a $453,700.00 extension and $612,643.00 in new funding for Heritage View; c) Approve and authorize the Chair of the Board, pursuant to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-2027 Annual Action Plan approved by the Board on June 9, 2026, to execute a Community Development Block Grant Public Services (CDBG PS) Subrecipient Agreement between the County and Domestic Violence Solutions for Santa Barbara County for $41,530.00 for Emergency Shelters; d) Approve and authorize the Chair of the Board, pursuant to the funding recommendations approved by the Board on June 9, 2026, to execute the following Human Services Commission General Fund (HSC GF) Second Amendment to a Subrecipient Agreement between the County and Good Samaritan Shelter for $50,000.00 for Freedom Warming Centers; e) Approve and authorize the Director of the Community Services Department, pursuant to the FY 2026-2027 Annual Action Plan approved by the Board on June 9, 2026, to execute the following CDBG Capital Funding Commitment Letters to the following entities: i) $247,794.00 to CAPSLO for Home Repair Program; ii) $500,000.00 to CommUnify for Fesler Childcare Center; iii) $200,000.00 to St. Vincent’s Institution for Family Strengthening Program Roof Replacement; and iv) $310,240.00 to Turner Foundation for Westside Apartment Communities Window Replacement; f) Approve and authorize the Director of the Community Services Department, pursuant to the FY 2026-2027 Annual Action Plan approved by the Board on June 9, 2026, to execute the following HOME Investment Partnership (HOME) Funding Commitment Letters to the following entities: i) $100,156.00 for City of Lompoc Tenant-Based Rental Assistance; ii) $150,000.00 for City of Santa Maria Tenant-Based Rental Assistance; iii) $1,500,000.00 for Brisa Encina; and iv) $1,000,000.00 for Perkins Place; g) Approve the proposed revisions to the Human Services Commission (HSC) bylaws; and h) Determine that the above recommended actions are not the approval of projects that are subject to environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(4), finding that the actions are not projects as they are the creation of government funding mechanisms or other government fiscal activities which do not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potentially significant impact on the environment.” via SB County Board of Supervisors

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SB County Board of Supervisors · The Whipping Post · NO.974 · PANEL 6/6 · SB-1S3

It seems a Tuesday in Santa Barbara County is now officially 'spend other people's money' day, as our ever-generous Board of Supervisors just signed off on a breathtaking array of what they charmingly call 'subrecipient agreements' and 'funding commitment letters.' The local dailies, no doubt still trying to sound out 'subrecipient,' will probably tell you this is just boring bureaucratic housekeeping. We at The Whipping Post know better.

Millions of dollars, flowing from 'State of California Permanent Local Housing Allocations' and 'Community Development Block Grants,' are being channeled to various 'non-profits' for everything from 'home repair' to 'tenant-based rental assistance.' Remember those 'community partners' who fill the Supervisors' campaign coffers? Funny how they always seem to be the primary recipients of these government windfalls. It's almost as if 'helping the vulnerable' is just a high-minded excuse for a robust, taxpayer-funded patronage system.

The cherry on top of this spending sundae? The Supervisors confidently declared that none of this constitutes a 'project' subject to environmental review under CEQA. That's right! Handing out millions for various 'housing activities' and 'facility upgrades' apparently has no environmental impact whatsoever. We commend their innovative legal gymnastics; perhaps they believe money itself, once removed from taxpayer wallets, simply evaporates into a carbon-neutral ether. Or maybe, just maybe, they've figured out how to build and renovate without using any materials, generating any waste, or changing any land use, thereby achieving the environmentalist's pipe dream through sheer bureaucratic will.

One has to wonder: if these aren't 'projects,' and they have no environmental impact, what exactly are they? A magic trick? A particularly expensive thought experiment? Or just another example of our ruling class using convoluted language to disguise the endless churn of public funds into private hands, all while avoiding any pesky accountability. The next time you're stuck in traffic, breathing California's 'clean' air, remember this: the Supervisors just greenlit millions for things that aren't 'projects' and have zero impact. Sleep tight, taxpayers.

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