SUPERVISORS MINT NEW BUREAUCRACY BUCKS FOR 'BEHAVIORAL WELLNESS' BOONDOGGLE!

Well, folks, our ever-generous Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, in their infinite wisdom and boundless capacity for spending other people's money, have done it again. This time, they’ve cheerfully authorized a Program Funding Agreement with something called Advocates for Human Potential (AHP), Inc. – which sounds suspiciously like a lobbying firm with a fancy name – for a whopping $20,000,000.16. That extra 16 cents? Pure government thrift, no doubt.

This colossal sum, courtesy of the California Department of Health Care Services' Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program (BHCIP) Round 2 Unmet Needs Grant Funding Award, is earmarked for a 'new construction' project in North County. Specifically, a 'Social Rehabilitation Facilities Project' in Santa Maria, right there on publicly owned land. Because nothing says 'fiscal responsibility' like shoveling millions into new construction for 'behavioral wellness' programs that will inevitably expand their administrative empires faster than the weeds in your backyard.

While the Board busies itself with approving 'attestation letters,' 'forthcoming agreements,' and 'ancillary documents' faster than a bureaucrat can say 'environmental impact exemption,' one has to wonder: what exactly is being 'rehabilitated' here, besides the bank accounts of consultants and contractors? The 'unmet needs' seem to be primarily those of government agencies looking for new ways to spend bond money, not necessarily the actual citizens of Santa Barbara County.

And let's not forget the cherry on top: our Supervisors declared that these actions are NOT subject to environmental review under CEQA. Because approving a $20 million development on county land with a straight face is simply 'governmental funding mechanisms' and 'administrative or fiscal activities.' Apparently, concrete and steel magically appear without any 'direct or indirect physical changes in the environment' when the government is footing the bill. The Whipping Post suspects that particular magic trick will cost taxpayers far more than just the $4.9 million in 'matching funds' they've already budgeted for this feel-good fiscal fantasy.

So, while the ink dries on yet another multi-million-dollar government expenditure, remind yourself that every 'program funding agreement' and every 'unmet needs grant' is just another line item on the bill you, the hardworking taxpayer, will ultimately foot. Behavioral wellness, indeed. We're all going to need therapy after this.