The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors yesterday approved a balanced $4.4 billion budget and adopted an ordinance establishing a temporary moratorium on solar-energy projects. The 2013-14 fiscal year budget includes an increase of $151.1 million in the general fund, a portion of which will be used to cover retirement costs in law enforcement and to address rising caseloads in the county’s social welfare system. Of the county’s 12 budget groups, the Human Services Division has the largest budget: $1.6 billion.
Effective immediately, new industrial-scale solar energy projects are on hold in San Bernardino County, at least for the next 45 days. The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a moratorium at yesterday’s special meeting. The moratorium does not apply to projects already accepted by Land Use Services. According to a statement by Supervisor James Ramos, the move followed complaints from residents across the desert including some from Morongo Basin, Johnson and Lucerne valleys where proposed projects, some as large as 50 acres, are planned next to residences. And while existing County Development Code allows for such projects in unincorporated areas, yesterday’s action gives the county some time to incorporate a renewable energy component into the General Plan.
