County of Inyo

Public Comment

The Chairperson announced the public comment period.  Mr. Richard Cervantes, Lone Pine Resident, addressed the Board to request that the drinking fountain in the lobby of the Administrative Center be fixed. 

Post Agenda/ CAO-State Budget Memorandum

The County Administrator introduced a request for the Board to consider as a Post Agenda Item a memorandum from the Governor’s Office of Criminal Justice Planning (OCJP) concerning the availability of funds for OCJP Grant recipients as a result of the State not adopting a budget.  Mr. Mendez explained that the request meets the two tests for post agenda consideration in that the memorandum was received after the Agenda for the June 25, 2002, Board of Supervisors Meeting was posted and there is a need for the Board to discuss this item and possibly provide direction to Staff regarding the specific OCJP funded programs in the District Attorney’s office.  Moved by Supervisor Hambleton and seconded by Supervisor Lent to find that the memorandum from the OCJP was received after the Agenda for the June 25, 2002, Board of Supervisors Meeting was posted, and there is a need for the Board to discuss the impacts of the information contained in the memorandum and possibly provide direction to Staff prior to the next regularly scheduled Board of Supervisors Meeting, therefore, this item is added as Agenda Item No. 19A.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

CAO-P.W.-Bishop A/P/Boyd Group Consulting Contract

Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to approve the Contract between the County of Inyo and Boyd Group/ASRC, Inc., for Aviation Research and Consulting services for the period of July 1, 2002, through October 31, 2002, in an amount not to exceed $25,000, contingent upon the Board’s adoption of the FY 2002/03 Budget and authorize the Chairperson to sign, contingent upon the appropriate signatures and documentation being obtained.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

Integ. Waste/Kern County Waste Disposal Contract

Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to authorize making the annual payment of $6,099 to Kern County for the disposal of solid waste generated within the most southern area of Inyo County at the Ridgecrest Sanitary Landfill, for the period of July 1, 2002, through June 30, 2003, contingent upon the Board’s adoption of a FY 2002/03 Budget and in accordance with the Agreement between the County of Inyo and Kern County approved August 14, 2001.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

Planning Dept./ Quad Knopf and Pacifica Develop. Contract Amendments

Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to approve Amendment Number Two to the Agreement between the County of Inyo and Quad Knopf, Inc., and Amendment Number Three to the Agreement between the County of Inyo and Pacifica Development, Inc., for the provision of environmental review and processing services, extending the end of the contracts to June 30, 2003; and authorize the Chairperson to sign, contingent upon the appropriate signatures being obtained.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

Planning Dept./ Intermountain Slurry Seal & SECOR

Contract Amendments

Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to approve Amendment No. One to the Agreement between the County of Inyo and Intermountain Slurry Seal, Inc., and Amendment Number One to the Agreement between the County of Inyo and SECOR International, Inc., for the provision of environmental review and processing services, extending the end of the contracts to June 30, 2003; and authorize the Chairperson to sign, contingent upon the appropriate signatures being obtained.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

P.W./Domain Server P.O.

Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to authorize the purchase one Gateway 2000 Backup Domain Server from Gateway, Inc., of Sioux City, South Dakota, through the State CMAS Contract System in an amount not to exceed $1,230 plus tax and delivery.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

Rd. Dept./Micro-

computers P.O.

Sheriff’s Dept./ DOJ Asset Forfeiture Sharing Agreement

Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to approve the Agreement between the County of Inyo and the Department of Justice to allow the Sheriff’s Office to continue to participate in asset forfeiture sharing and comply with Federal guidelines and authorize the County Administrator to sign on behalf of the County.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

Child Support Serv./MOU for Regional Program

The County Administrator requested that the request for approval of the Memorandum of Understanding between Inyo County and Mono County establishing a governance structure for the operation of the Eastern Sierra Child Support Services, a regional child support agency for the term of July 1, 2002, through June 30, 2006 be pulled from the Agenda.

Resol. #2002-44/ Good Neighbor Act

Ms. Andrea Clarke, Resource Management Coordinator, reviewed the proposed resolution reiterating the County’s position of “no net loss” of private property and supporting the Good Neighbor Act of 2002.  Ms. Clarke responded to a question from Supervisor Lent regarding the County’s involvement as stated in the resolution should an Inyo County Tribe want to acquire lands for expansion.  Ms. Clarke clarified that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is not one of the agencies identified in the Act and explained how tribe acquisition would not be a problem because the resolution addresses the transfer of private land into federal ownership.  She went on to explain that in most situations the tribe acquires land which is already owned by the federal government in an agency-to-agency transfer.  Mr. Mendez added that should a Tribe purchase privately owned land then the County would want to be involved because a sale of this nature would transfer land from the property tax roles to federal ownership.  On a motion by Supervisor Hambleton and a second by Supervisor Lent, Resolution No. 2002-44, entitled “A Resolution of the Board of Supervisors of the County of Inyo, State of California, Supporting the Enactment of House Resolution No. 3962, the Good Neighbor Act of 2002,” was adopted: motion unanimously passed and adopted, with Supervisors Arcularius, Lent and Hambleton voting yes, and with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

Sheriff/CAD/RMS Project Restructure

The Undersheriff Jack Goodrich, provided additional justification for the request to restructure the CAD/RMS Project.  He explained that the County was in jeopardy of loosing the grant funds which were allocated to this project and the proposed restructuring will provide the means for the funds to be spent within the appropriate timeframe.  The Undersheriff also explained that the delay in the original project was due to numerous difficulties with the County’s inability to provide suitable infrastructure for the design, which caused difficulties for Logistic Systems.  The Undersheriff and the County Administrator explained that as the restructured project moves forward a new purchasing agreement will be formulated which will be more project specific.  Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to A) approve the restructure of the Computer Aided Dispatch/Records Management System (CAD/RMS) Project by authorizing the purchase of equipment, software and services as recommended by Staff from various vendors and in various amounts, including $20,000 for contingencies, for a total not to exceed $242,853; and B) ratify the Notice of Termination letter to Logistic Systems, Inc, canceling the purchase of a CAD/RMS.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Bear and Dorame absent.

Rd. Dept./Old Sherwin Grade Road Project

Supervisor Bear joined the meeting prior to the consideration of the request by the Road Department to award the contract for the Old Sherwin Grade Resurfacing Project.  Mr. Jeff Jewett, Public Works Director, presented and reviewed Staff’s recommendation regarding the Old Sherwin Grade Resurfacing Project.  Mr. Jewett requested the Board award the bid to the low bidder K&H Smith in the amount of $327,226, noting that the low bid was lower than the Engineer’s Estimate of $345,095. 

Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to award and approve the Contract for the Old Sherwin Grade Resurfacing Project to the low bidder K&H Smith, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $327,226, and authorize the Chairperson to sign, contingent upon the appropriate signatures being obtained; and authorize the Public Works Director to execute all other contract documents, including contract change orders, to the extent permitted by Public Contract Code Section 20142, and other applicable law.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

Rd. Dept./Nine Mile Canyon Rd. Project

Mr. Jeff Jewett, Public Works Director, presented and reviewed Staff’s recommendation regarding the Nine Mile Canyon Road Rehabilitation Project.  Mr. Jewett reviewed the specification explaining that in order to maximize the amount of work to be performed the Department had included three alternative projects in the specifications.  Mr. Jewett requested the Board award the bid for Schedule 2, to the low bidder K&H Smith in the amount of $692,130.  Moved by Supervisor Hambleton and seconded by Supervisor Lent to award and approve the Contract for the Nine Mile Canyon Road Rehabilitation Project, Schedule 2, to the low bidder K&H Smith, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $692,130, and authorize the Chairperson to sign, contingent upon the appropriate signatures being obtained; and authorize the Public Works Director to execute all other contract documents, including contract change orders, to the extent permitted by Public Contract Code Section 20142, and other applicable law.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

Rd. Dept./Schober Ln. Resurfacing Project

Mr. Jeff Jewett, Public Works Director, presented and reviewed Staff’s recommendation regarding the Schober Lane Resurfacing Project.  Mr. Jewett requested the Board award the bid to the low bidder Carlson Construction, Inc., in the amount of $165,030, noting that the low bid was also lower than the Engineer’s Estimate of $168,700.  Supervisor Hambleton commended the Department for their Engineer’s Estimate accuracy.  Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to award and approve the Contract for the Schober Lane Resurfacing Project to the low bidder Carlson Construction, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $165,030, and authorize the Chairperson to sign, contingent upon the appropriate signatures being obtained; and authorize the Public Works Director to execute all other contract documents, including contract change orders, to the extent permitted by Public Contract Code Section 20142, and other applicable law.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

CAO-Personnel/ Vacant Positions

The County Administrator introduced the request for the Board to consider the filling of certain vacant positions per the Board’s recently adopted evaluation criteria and in light of the “hiring freeze.”  The Chairperson announced that the Board would consider the positions individually.

Sheriff/Civil Officer Position

The Board and the County Administrator reviewed the criteria and scoring provided for the Civil Officer position, with the Sheriff and the County Administrator responding to questions regarding the specific methodology used to arrive at certain scores.  The Board, the County Administrator and the Sheriff discussed the specific duties performed by this position and how the position generates revenue.  The Sheriff explained that the County is paid for civil process.  The Undersheriff clarified that the money received is actually allocated to the State who in turn provides funding for jurisdictions for vehicle purchases.  The County Administrator provided additional clarification on how this would off-set General Fund expenditures.  Moved by Supervisor Hambleton and seconded by Supervisor Bear to authorize the filling of one Civil Officer position in the Sheriff’s Department.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

Sheriff/Correctional Officer Positions (4)

The Sheriff and the Undersheriff provided additional justification for the request to hire four Correctional Officers for the Jail.  The Sheriff provided information regarding the minimum staffing requirement for the Jail and the Undersheriff confirmed that when the required number of Correctional Officers falls below the mandated number, the positions are backfilled with Deputies and with overtime.  The Board and the Sheriff discussed the difference in training for a Correctional Officer and a Deputy, with the Sheriff explaining that there are different levels of POST Training required for the different positions and clarifying that Deputies may replace Correctional Officers but Correctional Officers may not replace Deputies.  Moved by Supervisor Bear and seconded by Supervisor Lent to authorize the filling of four Correctional Officer positions in the Sheriff’s Department.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

Sheriff/Reserve Deputy Positions (6)

The Sheriff provided additional information regarding the duties of the Reserve Deputies.  The Board discussed the non-General Fund COPS money which is used for these positions, with the Sheriff clarifying that the available COPS money would only fund a portion of one regular deputy position.  

Moved by Supervisor Bear and seconded by Supervisor Lent to authorize the filling of six Reserve Deputy positions in the Sheriff’s Department.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

D.A./Deputy DA Position

Mr. Tom Hardy, Assistant District Attorney, addressed the request to fill a Deputy District Attorney position, indicating that he had nothing to add to Mr. McDowell’s justification for the position and that he was available to respond to questions.  Mr. Hardy supported the Board’s filling of the position.    The Board thanked the Mr. Hardy for his comments and the District Attorney for the detailed and thorough justification for the position which was provided with the criteria.  Moved by Supervisor Hambleton and seconded by Supervisor Lent to authorize the filling of one Deputy District Attorney position in the District Attorney’s Office.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

Probation/Deputy Probation Officer

The Chief Probation Officer, Mr. Toby Dickinson, reviewed the justification to fill a Deputy Probation Officer position.  Moved by Supervisor Lent and seconded by Supervisor Bear to authorize the filling of one Deputy Probation Officer position in the Probation Department.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

Probation/Juvenile Hall Counselors (2)

The Chief Probation Officer responded to questions from the Board concerning the staffing requirements for the Juvenile Facility.  Mr. Dickinson explained that currently the Facility is understaffed and coverage is being provided through overtime.  The Board and Staff discussed the potential of having other County Staff fill these positions should lay-offs be required.  Mr. Dickinson explained the level of specialized training required for these positions.  Moved by Supervisor Bear and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to authorize the filling of two Juvenile Counselor positions in the Probation Department.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisor Dorame absent.

Recess/

Reconvene

The Chairperson recessed the regular meeting at 10:45 a.m., reconvening at 11:00 a.m., with all Board Members present except Supervisor Dorame.

BofS/Economic Benefits of Wildlands Study Presentation

Mr. Robert Richardson, Research Associate, Colorado State University, presented his study entitled “The Economic Benefits of Wildlands in the Eastern Sierra Region of California” to the Board.  At the conclusion of Mr. Richardson’s presentation the Board and Mr. Richardson discussed various aspects of the Study and in particular the slant of some of the conclusions.  Mr. Richardson responded to specific questions regarding the detail contained in the report.  Supervisors Hambleton and Arcularius took exception to the Study’s one-sided point-of-view on the benefit of Wilderness and the lack of the Study in identifying tangible benefits to Inyo and Mono Counties.  Mr. Richard Cervantes, Lone Pine Resident and Mr. Rex Allen, Representing APLE, addressed the Board to express their dissatisfaction with the Study and with anymore lands being designated Wilderness in Inyo County.

Workshop/Tobacco Program

Supervisor Lent explained his need to travel which necessitated his leaving the meeting early and left the meeting prior to the Chairperson convening the workshop.  The Chairperson recessed open session at 12:40 p.m., to convene in a workshop with Ms. Karen Christensen of the Health and Human Services Department on the County’s Tobacco Program. The Chairperson recessed the workshop at 1:00 p.m., reconvening in open session with all Board Members present except Supervisors Dorame and Lent.

District/Bishop Rural Fire Protection District Appointments

With regard to the request by the Bishop Rural Fire Protection District to fill two full terms and one unexpired term on the District’s Board of Fire Commissioners, the County Administrator confirmed that the Notice of Vacancies had resulted in requests for appointment being received from Mr. Howard Little, Mr. Lloyd Anderson, Mr. John Symons, Mr. Howard Holland and Mr. David Storey.  Supervisor Bear expressed a desire to meet with the applicants and suggested an Ad Hoc Committee consisting of two Board Members be formed to interview the applicants and make recommendations for appointment to the full Board.  She suggested that Supervisors Arcularius and Lent comprise the Committee because the majority of applicants are from their Districts, while volunteering should either one of those Supervisors be unavailable.  Supervisors Arcularius and Hambleton concurred with the suggestion, with the County Administrator and County Counsel confirming that an Ad Hoc Committee consisting of only two members of the Board of Supervisors does not require Brown Act compliance.  Mr. Bruce went on to explain that should a member of the public, staff or another Board Member participate in the interviews then Brown Act compliance would be mandatory.  The Board discussed their concern with making a commitment for Supervisor Lent without confirming his wishes.  Supervisor Arcularius suggested that the Board appoint Supervisor Bear as an alternate should Supervisor Lent be unavailable. 

Moved by Supervisor Bear and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to form an Ad Hoc Committee of the Board of Supervisors consisting of Supervisors Lent and Arcularius to conduct interviews of the applicants for the Bishop Rural Fire Protection District Board of Fire Commissioner vacancies and make recommendations for appointment to the full Board, and appoint Supervisor Bear as the alternate to this Committee should Supervisor Lent be unavailable to serve.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Dorame and Lent absent.

BofS/Minute Approval

The Clerk of the Board requested that the Minutes of June 4, 2002, be amended as follows:  Page one, paragraph 4, Motion carried unanimously with Supervisor Lent absent, should read Motion carried unanimously.  Moved by Supervisor Bear and seconded by Supervisor Hambleton to approve  the minutes of the Board of Supervisors Meeting of A) June 4, 2002, as amended and B) June 11, 2002.  Motion carried unanimously, with Supervisors Dorame and Lent absent.

CAO-State Budget Update

Mr. Mendez reviewed the memorandum received from the Governor’s Office of Criminal Justice (OCJP) which informed the County that the OCJP will not have the ability nor will they commit to disbursing grant funds prior to the State’s adoption of a Budget.  Mr. Mendez explained that this will mean there will be costs incurred in the District Attorney’s Office for the Drug Suppression Task Force, the Statutory Rape/Vertical Prosecution and Victim/Witness Programs for which the County may not receive reimbursement and which will then have to be covered by the General Fund.  Mr. Mendez explained that he felt the costs which would be incurred would be minimal and that at this time he was not recommending any reductions in the Programs.  Mr. Mendez explained that the memorandum provided the forum for him to discuss and update the Board on the State Budget, which is a fluid document, through which the impacts to Inyo County change day-to-day.  Mr. Mendez explained that he felt it was imminent that the County will have to make Program cuts, but that his recommendations on mitigation of the impacts of the State Budget would be presented during the County’s budget adoption process in July.  The Board concurred with the County Administrator’s assessment of the situation and in waiting until the County Budget Hearings to address any proposed Program reductions.

Closed Session

County Counsel announced that due to the travel schedules of several remaining Board Members closed session Agenda Items No. 20.  CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL EXISTING/ ANTICIPATED LITIGATION (Pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(a)(c) – One Case - LORP Pumpback Station Dispute between LADWP and County of Inyo, Adjudication of Dispute Pursuant to the Long Term Water Agreement entered June 1997 as Stipulation and Order of Judgment, Inyo County Superior Court, Case 12908 and No. 21.  CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATOR (Pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.6) - Instructions to Negotiators re: wages, salaries and benefits – Employee Organization - ICEA - Negotiators - County Administrator and Personnel Analyst, were pulled from the Agenda.

Adjournment

The Chairperson adjourned the regular meeting at 1:05 p.m., to 9:00 a.m., July 2, 2002, in the Board of Supervisors Room at the County Adminstrative Center, in Independence.