Employers can help blunt the fallout of financial uncertainty that’s disrupting local governments, a top Santa Barbara County official told area business and nonprofit leaders Thursday.
“You have a role to play,” county CEO Jana Petersen said during the annual State of the County Economic Summit—encouraging employers to help workers navigate potentially confusing Medi-Cal policy changes that could impact up to 47,000 county residents.
More than 300 people gathered for the late afternoon summit hosted by the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara in Goleta.
A sobering reflection on budget woes, the gathering also offered a clear-eyed overview of housing units in the planning pipeline—and an enthusiastic look forward at potential tech and space industry growth from the South Coast to the North County.
“Economic development isn’t just a strategy, it’s our moral imperative,” chamber President and CEO Kristen Miller said. “For both business and government, we need to learn the language of economic development… and to commit to a new kind of working together that relies on trust.”
Millions of enrollees nationwide face the potential loss of Medi-Cal coverage starting in January following multiple federal rule changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, or HR 1., signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025.
In one big shift, participants must prove eligibility every six months instead of annually. In another key provision, non-disabled, non-pregnant adult enrollees ages 19 to 64 must earn at least $580 a month or complete 80 hours of qualifying activities like work, school, or volunteering.
Santa Barbara area employers can give workers time to complete eligibility forms, set up and attend appointments, visit the Central Coast Coverage online information hub and reduce barriers to maintaining insurance, Petersen said.
“For working adults and families, staying eligible means more than just finding a job,” said Petersen, who joined the county in August after moving from Boulder, Colorado. “It means transportation and child care and all the other things that are needed for workers to continue working.”
In California, the federal bill shifted an estimated $9.5 billion in costs to the state’s 58 counties, according to the California State Association of Counties.
The healthcare dilemma comes as the county wrestles with a range of financial challenges. In June, the Board of Supervisors approved a reduced $1.66 billion budget and laid off dozens of employees.
“When I talk to my peers all across California, and even across the whole country, we’re all facing the same pressure,” Petersen said. “Our costs are growing faster than our revenues.”
On housing, Petersen noted the state mandates the county and the cities within it build nearly 25,000 new residential units by 2031. More than 5,600 of those units target unincorporated areas under the jurisdiction of the county government.
“I’m pleased to report we are well on track,” Petersen said. “Since January 2023, the county already has approved 3,159 housing units with 32 percent of those, or a little over 1,000, being affordable.”
Another 9,000 units, Petersen said, are making their way through the application process.
Board of Supervisors Chair Bob Nelson, who represents the Fourth District, noted the county pension system is 94.5% funded and on track to be fully funded by 2029.
“Yeah, it’s pretty good stuff,” said Nelson, who also advocated—as he often does—for easing the county development permitting process. “I know that we can protect the environment, respect our communities and make the permitting process reasonable, predictable and affordable. And that’s something we intend to keep pushing for as a board.”
Melissa James, CEO of REACH, a business-led nonprofit that promotes economic development across the Central Coast, said the Santa Barbara region is poised to grow quantum computing businesses and jobs.
James celebrated UC Santa Barbara research and the expansion of SpaceX activity at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
“This is not a tourism economy with a university attached,” James said. “It is a technology economy with ocean views.”
UCSB Chancellor Dennis Assanis, who joined the campus in September 2025, said new data shows the school generates $2.9 billion in economic impact.
“You are the people who are the movers and shakers,” Assanis told the audience. “We really want to work with you… Let’s put whatever past we’ve had behind us.”
