Fresno County leaders will host an in-person town hall Thursday to explain critical changes to services such as safety, public health, Medi-Cal, and CalFresh as budget shortfalls hamstring programs.

Officials also will take the opportunity to discuss a potential sales tax measure floated by supervisors earlier this year.

County Administrative Officer Paul Nerland and Budget Director Paige Benavides will talk about how rising costs, slow revenue growth, and changes at the federal level will affect the 2026-27 budget.

Those services include public safety, emergency response, public and behavioral health, disaster preparedness, parks, animal services, community infrastructure, and agricultural and consumer protections.

Possible County Sales Tax Measure

Changes in federal policy regarding Medi-Cal and CalFresh could leave the county on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars more in the upcoming budget.

In a March meeting, Joe Prado, Fresno County public health director, said at the high end, covering indigent care could add $241 million in unaccounted costs.

Changes brought about by President Donald Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill also left the county and state more on the hook for SNAP and CalFresh benefits.

Earlier this year, supervisors discussed a possible sales tax measure to put on the ballot to bolster county revenues. A general tax measure can be approved by supervisors and placed on the November ballot.

A tax measure to support the general fund would need 50%-plus-one voter support to pass.

Fill Out the Survey

County official are encouraging residents to fill out this survey:

English: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/23MWKJT

Spanish: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/M7BYVS8

Upcoming Virtual Town Halls

The county also will host two virtual town halls at the links below:

Zoom meeting 1 — noon, June 24: https://bit.ly/4dJz2sE

Zoom meeting 2 — 5:30 p.m., June 25: https://bit.ly/4g57E9Q