Vanessa Anderson is one of two Deputy County Executive Officers responsible for the management of core functions of the County Executive Office. Specifically, she is responsible for facilitating the County’s fiscal planning and budget management, grants management, marketing, program evaluation and political relations. In addition to program work in these areas, Vanessa remains focused on policy and legislative analysis affecting the various county departments supported by the executive office. Working to further the mission, vision and values of County through service delivery at all levels is always a priority.
Vanessa earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting in 2006. In 2007, she started her career in public service with Stanislaus County as an Account Clerk and worked her way through various Accounting roles throughout the organization. Her experience includes extensive budget and grant preparation, fiscal monitoring & reporting for General Fund, Special Revenue Fund and Enterprise Fund departments.
In 2015, Vanessa left Stanislaus County as the Fiscal Manager for the Health Services Agency to begin working as a Management Analyst III for San Joaquin County’s Health Care Services department. In this role, under an administrative structure, she was responsible for the coordination of a multi-departmental budget submission and quarterly monitoring reports to the County Administrator’s Office. Additionally, Vanessa spearheaded the County’s application for the Whole Person Care Pilot program, which was approved under California’s 1115 Medicaid Waiver. Other areas of expertise included the annual preparation of the Uniform Data System (UDS) reporting and the Annual Certification submission for San Joaquin County’s Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) Look-A-Like (LAL) designation. Vanessa was extensively involved in various county-wide projects including: the transition of the Coroner’s Office to the Office of Medical Examiner and the PeopleSoft software enhancement and upgrade. Her final role in San Joaquin County was Deputy Director-Finance for Health Care Services; she provided oversight for 10 departments with an overall annual budget exceeding $500 million for the following areas: Health Care Services, Behavioral Health Services, Public Guardian/Conservator, Whole Person Care, Medical Examiner’s Office, Public Health Services, Emergency Medical Services, Correctional Health Services, Veterans Services Office and Neighborhood Preservation.
Vanessa joined Merced County in 2021 as Deputy County Executive Officer and has most recently presented a $1.057 billion budget for Board approval and facilitated the roll-out of a new budgeting solution for countywide budget management.
Vanessa has lived in the Central Valley her whole life and enjoys spending time in the foothills, mountains and occasionally heading to the beach. She also loves staying close to home and spending time with family and friends, especially exploring the towns of Lodi and Murphys.
