Our 167th Year
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S AT U R DAY, M AY 13, 2 023
City of Santa Honoring mothers Barbara deals with NEWS-PRESS SPECIAL REPORT
VNA Health salutes Olivia Newton-John and Rona Barrett at luncheon
budgetary challenges Revenue from sales tax and TOT is rebounding, although modestly
Editor’s note: This is the first in a three-part series on finances for the city of Santa Barbara government. By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
At first glance, Santa Barbara’s financial picture looks grim. Revenue from two of the city government’s three main sources of income — general sales taxes and transient occupancy taxes –— dropped precipitously during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the General Fund, which pays for major city departments including police, fire, and parks and recreation, contains structural deficits that need to be addressed in Fiscal Years 2024 and 2025. And that means these departments must grapple with $2.7 million in budget cuts for at least the next two years. City staff have proposed 2% budget reductions for FY24 and another Please see BUDGET on A4
KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
A framed photo of the late Olivia John-Newton is shown during the VNA Health 22nd Annual Mother’s Day Luncheon Friday at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort.
By ANNIKA BAHNSEN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
On a beautiful Friday morning,VNA Health held a Mother’s Day luncheon at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort, where the honorees included Rona Barrett and the late Olivia Newton-John. Families and friends from the Santa Barbara community came to support the mothers in their lives as well as honor mothers who have passed away. The event was full of fun and celebration, with many surprises and performances for all to enjoy. The theme of the luncheon this year was “generations” in order to highlight the many generations of mothers and families who were in attendance. Ms. Newton-John, who was a Santa Ynez resident, was the 2023 Remembered Mother at this event. Many of her friends and family were in attendance, showing how appreciative they are of the singer and star of the 1978 movie “Grease.” Jane Seymour, a former Montecito resident and dear friend of Ms. Newton-John, flew from Hawaii the night before to speak about her friendship with Olivia. In the speech, the movie and TV star shared how they were pregnant at the same time and raised their children together. Lailan McGrath, the director of the VNA Foundation, told the News-Press that Ms. Seymour really “connected with the generational theme.” She also said, “It was a very touching and moving speech. Ms. Seymour
By BETHANY BLANKLEY
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THE CENTER SQUARE CONTRIBUTOR
Rona Barrett, center, speaks to the audience before receiving the Honored Mother award.
is very generous as well. She brought her scarves to sell in the lobby, and all of the proceeds went to VNA Health.” Additionally, Ms. Seymour, who recently spoke at the Alzheimer’s Association luncheon in Santa Barbara, shared the impact hospice care has had on the people in her life who have struggled with the disease. Ms. McGrath reflected on this speech and said, “Alzheimer’s disease is the top leading
condition in the older generation. It will become more prevalent over the years, and that in combination with the staffing shortage is something that needs to be solved.” One memorable moment from the event was that VNA Health surprised Ms. McGrath with her family. Ms. McGrath was unaware that her family was going to make an appearance, but they surprised her to show her some Mother’s Day love.
Easter Moorman, VNA’s director of marketing and communications, told the NewsPress that this secret was a tough task. “Lailan helps the community live well and healthy. She is the queen bee, so how do you include a secret in this whole production schedule and keep it hidden from the master planner?” Both women shared a laugh Please see VNA on A4
(The Center Square) – A federal judge in Florida Thursday night issued a temporary restraining order halting the Biden administration’s plan to release illegal foreign nationals into the U.S. en masse. The order is in effect for two weeks. The judge issued the order in response to a lawsuit filed by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, who sued after she learned of the plan. Ms. Moody argues it violates a previous order issued by the same judge in a lawsuit she filed over a year and a half ago and won in March. U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell for the Northern District of Florida Pensacola Division Thursday night granted Ms. Moody’s request to issue a temporary restraining order and enjoined the Department of Homeland Security from implementing or enforcing a new parole policy it created. A May 10, 2023, Memorandum issued by Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz, “Policy on Parole with Conditions in Limited Circumstances Prior to Issuance of a Charging Document (Parole with conditions),” is the same parole program Judge T. Kent Wetherell already ruled was illegal but was announced under a new name, Ms. Moody argues. The TRO went into effect at 11:59 p.m. EST to correspond with
Border crossers released by Biden Administration living on El Paso streets, please see A7. the end of Title 42 and to give Ms. Moody time to seek an emergency stay from a higher court. The TRO will expire in 14 days on May 25. A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for May 19 in Pensacola. At a hearing before Judge Whetherell on Thursday, the Biden administration argued that without being able to release people en masse they would have 45,000 illegal foreign nationals in custody by the end of the month. On Wednesday, they already had 28,000 in custody. On May 9, The Center Square reported that there were already 27,000 illegal foreign nationals in custody and “of that 27,000, a little over 5,000 are processed waiting for their next phase in the process,” a Border Patrol agent in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas told The Center Square. “Every sector is near 150% capacity,” the agent said, referring to nine U.S. Customs and Border Protection sectors along the southwest border, five of which are in Texas. Judge Wetherell replied to the Please see TRO on A7
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Federal judge issues temporary restraining order halting plan to release foreign nationals into the U.S. en masse TRO in effect for two weeks
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COURTESY KEITH DEMARTINI
Santa Barbara Finance Director Keith DeMartini remains optimistic because of city staff’s ability to see the economic writing on the wall.
Sudoku................. B3 Business . ............. A5 Weather................ A4
Wednesday’s SUPER LOTTO: 7-17-21-29-42 Mega: 22
Friday’s DAILY 4: 8-4-5-3
Friday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 1-2-23-40-45 Mega: 15
Friday’s FANTASY 5: 24-27-30-33-36
Friday’s DAILY DERBY: 06-01-03 Time: 1:41.50
Wednesay’s POWERBALL: 15-20-33-36-43 Meganumber: 12
Friday’s DAILY 3: 5-6-1 / Midday 1-8-8