Date: January 29, 2002	Contact: Michael Workman
	tel: (619) 531-5450

S.D. COUNTY AMONG BEST IN CLASS IN GOVERNMENT SERVICE
County Ranks Among Top Four in the Nation in Syracuse University Study

San Diego County ranked among the top four counties in the nation
in a study of government performance conducted by Syracuse University in
conjunction with Governing Magazine.

The study of 40 counties across the United States looked at financial
management, capital management, human resources, managing for results and information technology. San Diego County’s combined B+ in those five categories put
it among the top four scorers in the nation, and the highest score among participating California counties.

The county’s scores included A- grades in financial management, capital management and managing for results. It received a B- for human resources, and a B+ for information technology.

“We are pleased with the results of this study by the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. It affirms what we here at the County of San Diego have been saying all along – we are one of the best-managed counties in the nation,” said Chairman Ron Roberts of the County Board of Supervisors.

The study will be published in the February edition of Governing Magazine, and will be available on the project’s Web site, http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/gpp/.

The study’s authors note that – like the rest of the state – San Diego County was hit hard by the revenue cuts of Prop. 13, and the recession of the early 1990s: “But (San Diego County) has used those problems as a spur to managerial creativity that has had a profound effect on its 17,000 employees and its $3.7 billion budget.”

The study noted that the County is a national leader in the use of cost-accounting, and that its Geographic Information System is among the best anywhere.