Del Norte County 2003-2004 - California Grand Jury Reports

∼ June 30, 2004 — Del Norte County Grand Jury \mathbf{D}E*

8 pages 4 findings 4 recommendations

Findings & Recommendations 4 findings

F1: The 2003-2004 Grand Jury found that the health inspections for the Del Norte County Jail have been placed on an annual schedule to ensure compliance with the Board of Corrections.

Related Recommendations (1)

R1: the hiring of a full-time General Manager for the District, the proper public notification of resolutions and ordinances,

F2: Staffing continues to be an area of concern due to the budget crisis. During the past year the sheriff has been in the process of reorganizing the jail to compensate for inadequate staffing levels.

Related Recommendations (1)

R2: the voting on compensation and benefits for members during closed session,

F3: The issue of jail maintenance has been addressed with the approval of a full time maintenance worker assigned to the jail.

Related Recommendations (1)

R3: 4) the lack of bylaws.

F4: Policy and Procedure manual Findings:

Related Recommendations (1)

R4: No bylaws are required since the SRCSD is bound by the California State Government Code. The current rates of monetary compensation, retirement and medical benefits to elected Board members from the Smith River, Gasquet, and Bertsch-Oceanview Community Service Districts are compared in the following table. District Approximate Compensation Benefits (monthly) Number of Per Meeting Retirement Medical Travel to Board Rate Payers Meetings Smith River $25/meeting 660 $100 (up to $200 Full PERS $600/month) coverage for Member* plus one dependent 240 $40 Gasquet none none none Bertsch-Oceanview 700 none none none none * includes former board members qualified to receive benefits Research of Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) records, community service district records and contact with community service district representatives indicate benefits are within legal limits. The 2003-2004 Grand Jury was advised by the SRCSD that it is operating under Resolution 2001-7 to determine medical benefits. The 2003-2004 Grand Jury was advised by the PERS legal department that it is administering SRCSD medical benefits according to previous Resolutions 97-No.3 and 97-No.4. Conclusion: SRCSD Board members are receiving a generous benefit package as indicated in the table above. The current Grand Jury investigation concluded that SRCSD and PERS are operating under different resolutions when they should be operating under the same resolution. The Grand Jury also acknowledges that the SRCSD is continuing to make progress to remedy past problems that have plagued the District. Recommendations: The Grand Jury recommends that the SRCSD board continues to familiarize itself with the various codes governing its entity. This Grand Jury would further recommend that the SRCSD board continue to be diligent in its efforts to ensure proper public disclosure and notification of resolutions, ordinances and agendas. This may encourage increased public participation in the operation of the District. As a final recommendation, the SRCSD should contact PERS to ensure they are both operating under the same resolution. Response Required: None Secretary's Report On June 26, 2003, the Honorable Philip Schafer impaneled the 2003-2004 Grand Jury. Rose Tryon was appointed Foreperson of the nineteen-member panel. Eight of the nineteen members held over from the previous year in continued service to this community. Almost the same numbers from the current grand jury have chosen to serve a second year. The 2003-2004 Grand Jury met three times a month in addition to special investigative meetings and numerous on-site inspections of schools, law enforcement facilities and other public agencies. The 2002-2003 Grand Jury passed on seven complaints to the 2003-2004 Grand Jury for its monitoring or review. In addition, ten written complaints were received by this Jury for investigation. Each was given equal attention and deliberation. It was my pleasure to serve with such a diverse and interesting group of individuals as the 2003-2004 Grand Jury. I have come to appreciate the dedication of the people serving Del Norte County. I urge everyone to take an interest in the local government and boards throughout the area. Debbie Cochran, Secretary -2004 Del Norte County Grand Jury Formal Submittal of Report The undersigned, being duly sworn and acting members of the 2003-2004 Del Norte County Grand Jury, and comprising of at least twelve (12) members thereof, hereby affix their signatures, and submit this Final Report. Underson Cheryl Anderson Beth Moore Susan Andrews Manlyn Callahan Marilyn Callahan Anne Petrik Carolyn Cassman Joan Riley Debbie Cochran Ken Thomas Cevan Lori Cowan Rose Tryon Nancy Getman Dean Valero Mary Zee Byron Lundberg Dee Mattz The second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second second s

* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.