Santa Clara County supervisors are about to spend the week wrestling with a massive budget problem, opening three days of hearings starting next Monday to dig into the County Executive’s recommended fiscal plan for 2026–27. The sessions - an overview day, committee-level reviews, and a final wrap-up - are the public’s main shot to press supervisors on what gets protected and what gets trimmed in hospitals, behavioral health, homelessness programs, and public safety. Residents can show up in person at the Board Chambers or watch the livestream online to see, in real time, which services stay safe and which end up on the chopping block under intense fiscal pressure.
Hearing Schedule And Focus
The Board will hold hearings across three days, starting with an overview, then moving into committee presentations, and finishing later in the week with a summary and wrap-up. The meeting plan spells out which departments will be present on which day and when the Board will take public comment. That schedule is posted on the county’s official budget calendar, which lists the mid-June hearing dates, according to the County of Santa Clara.
What’s In The Recommended Plan
The County Executive’s Recommended Budget, released in May, calls for roughly $14.7 billion in spending and identifies a starting shortfall of about $787 million. To close that gap, the administration has signaled a mix of cuts, restructurings, and deletion of vacant positions, moves that could ripple across county departments and the services they provide. Local coverage has laid out both the overall spending plan and the size of the deficit the Board will have to confront during the hearings, as reported by Gilroy Dispatch.
Key Programs On The Line
Behavioral health and the county’s hospitals and clinics have emerged as some of the most at-risk services in this budget season. County officials and local outlets say the Behavioral Health Services Department alone is looking at roughly a $100 million shortfall next year, according to reporting from Mountain View Voice. The recommended plan also comes on the heels of earlier mid-year reductions that carved into the county health system, after the county previously slashed $183M from health operations.
How To Watch And Testify
The county says the public can attend in person at the Board Chambers at 70 West Hedding Street or stream the proceedings online. The county has posted those viewing instructions on its official X account. For anyone planning to speak, the Board provides procedures for in-person and remote public comment, including how to register and when to line up to talk. Details are available in the Board of Supervisors’ meeting information. For the direct watch link and location, see the county’s post on X from the County of Santa Clara.
Watch in person in the Board Chambers at 70 W. Hedding St. in San José or online at https://t.co/tE8CrVEGet. https://t.co/HN8w0vkXCQ
— County of Santa Clara (@SCCgov) June 12, 2026
What To Expect Next
Once the hearings wrap, supervisors will weigh proposed amendments and inventory requests before finalizing an adopted budget later this year. These June sessions are the one time each year when county departments publicly make their case in full view, so expect detailed back-and-forth between supervisors and staff along with steady community testimony on programs residents rely on. Officials have already warned that closing the gap will take a mix of targeted reductions and operational changes, not just easy trims around the edges.
For residents who care about hospital access, mental health services, or the county’s safety-net supports, this week’s hearings are the key moment to show up, speak out, and closely watch how the county plans to close its large budget gap.
