San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, DA Jeff Rosen back Measure A amid concerns about the impact of federal cuts on public safety

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan District Attorney Jeff Rosen and a coalition of local prosecutors and law enforcement officers are backing Santa Clara County s Measure A raising concerns that latest federal cuts could also impact funding for population safety County services that rely on revenues from Medicaid are expected to bear the brunt of President Donald Trump s Big Beautiful Bill which slashes trillion from the federally-funded robustness insurance operation over the next decade The statute is estimated to rip a roughly billion annual hole in the county s budget that could lead to cuts to services across the board Related Articles Shooting in Gilroy leaves one in critical condition Analysis into San Jose stabbing ends in two arrests Prop funding fight pits Newsom against San Jose Mayor Mahan Teen arrested accused of shooting gun near San Jose Sikh temple and school Judge tosses prosecutor s free-speech lawsuit against Santa Clara County DA but another appeal looms Measure A a five-eights-of-a-cent sales tax increase on the Nov ballot could soften several of the blow as county administrators anticipate it will generate million annually Rosen who joined the DA s Office as a prosecutor in before being elected to his current post in noted in an interview that his staff is smaller than it was years ago despite an increased number of cases The DA s Office like several departments across the county has seen the elimination of vacant positions as a upshot of several tough budget cycles that has left the county with other scarce cost-savings options Rosen has been critical in the past of proposed cuts his office s budget noting that fewer criminal investigators would lead to more criminals on the street If the sales tax measure doesn t pass it s clear to me that there s going to be cuts to law enforcement in the county cuts to the DA s Office and cuts to the Sheriff s Office Rosen described The Mercury News Those cuts I know will put at jeopardy the speed at which we test rape kits in our county all of our domestic violence prosecution our society prosecutors that are helping reduce crime as well as the auto theft and gun violence task forces Santa Clara County Regime Attorneys Association President Max Zarzana has also felt the impacts of newest county budget cuts in his role as a prosecutor in Mental Robustness Medicine Court The union which represents over local prosecutors society defenders and alternate defenders has endorsed Measure A and contributed to a campaign committee supporting the ballot initiative Zarzana explained in an interview that the core function of the criminal justice system is having trials and securing convictions everything beyond that is a secondary function Mental Medical Recovery Court and all the wrap-around services that are all by the county I believe those would all be put at exposure as a few of the first layer of cuts that might occur if the budget hole doesn t get fixed Zarzana noted Mahan who has publicly clashed with the county this year over the best approach to solving homelessness has voiced concerns in latest weeks about the county s fiscal ability to run its massive wellbeing care system the second-largest of its kind in the state Despite the criticism though the mayor has opted to endorse Measure A Passing this temporary stopgap measure means we don t have to choose between providing healthcare for San Jose families and prosecuting crime Mahan declared in a announcement No group should have to make that choice and by stepping up together we can ensure Santa Clara County residents don t The mayor Rosen and the coalition of local prosecutors and law enforcement officers are expected to officially announce their endorsements at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon This is a urgent news story Check back for updates