Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors

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All members of the Board should actively seek out and attend training regarding the roles and responsibilities of board members in special districts.

R2

The Board should work with the Fire Chief to develop a comprehensive policy and procedures manual consistent with existing federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

R3

The Board should ensure the policies and procedures manual includes thorough review of all contracts and agreements to protect the NCCFD from unexpected, unnecessary, and excessive expenditures.

R4

The Board should actively seek the advice and expertise of legal counsel in all matters that may lead to potentially litigious issues.

R5

The Board should ensure the Fire Chief has clear authority to implement the newly developed policy and procedures manual and to manage the day-to-day operation of the NCCFD.

R6

The Board, collectively and individually, should not subvert the NCCFD organizational structure and chain of command and should not interject themselves into the management of the day-to-day operations of the NCCFD.

R7

The Board should develop and implement policy to facilitate open and ongoing communication with NCCFD personnel.

R8

The Board members should conduct themselves in a manner consistent with the public’s expectations of persons elected to positions of public trust.

R9

The Board should maintain a professional relationship with Local 3800 to ensure there is no perception of impropriety or undue influence on decision making by the Board.

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The Board, management, and staff should forge an active partnership in the rebuilding of the NCCFD’s public image and should actively communicate with their constituents to restore and maintain the public’s trust. Responses Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors: Date: September 13, 2013 Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Excellellce ill Emergellc), Service" /I 11329 McCourtney Road, Grass Valley, CA 95949 (530) 273-3158 FAX (530) 273-1780 [email protected] ~Yww.nccfire.com August 15, 2013 To: The Honorable Thomas M. Anderson Presiding Judge ofthe Grand Jury Nevada County Superior Court 201 Church Street Nevada City, CA 95959 The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Soard of Directors, as required by law, would like to respond to the Nevada County Grand Jury Report ofJune 11, 2013 on the subject of the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors. The findings and recommendations of the Grand Jury Report will be addressed individually below. FINDINGS: Finding I. 1. The Nevada County,Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors is dysfunctional and is wracked by discord, acrimony, back­ biting, and mistrust among Board Members. Response 1.1. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this finding. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors rejects the Grand Jury assessment that the Board is dysfunctional. On the contrary, this Board has worked collectively to provide a uniform vision and positive direction for the District. In fact, this Board has done so by unanimous vote when making key decisions. It is not uncommon to have difference of opinions and/or disagreements that may occur when serving on any type of board. However, it is that ability to bring together a diverse group of citizens who are willing to serve and bring their unique perspectives and talents to bring about change. It is clearly evident that all members this board are committed, and even further, care passionately about the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District. ACTION TAKEN: In order to improve our service as Board Members, the Board is continuously working on our communication skills with one another and also by requesting the assistance ofthe District's legal counsel, when necessary. The seven Board members are willing to receive ongoing training so as to benefit the Board in fulfilling its duties and responsibilities. Finding 1.2. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors, both collectively and individually, have fallen woefully short in their roles and responsibilities as board members of a public agency. Response 1.2. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this finding. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors have not fallen short in their roles and responsibilities, but rather, had to take a leadership role to address the following critical issues: 1. Over the past two years, the NCCFD has suffered from a series of dramatic and significant events which occurred, due to the loss of its entire senior leadership, including our Fire Chief, two Battalion Chiefs, a Division Chief, the Human Resources Director, and the Board Secretary. The personnel left either due to retirements or resignations for a variety of reasons. 2. Exceptional decreases in tax revenue that threatened to significantly reduce the scope and scale of emergency services to our community. ACTION TAKEN: Because of the series of events beyond our control and occurring over this same period oftime, the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors was called upon to take action far beyond the limited roles normally expected of Boards of Directors driving a unified effort by aII District employees to pass aTax Initiative to preserve existing emergency services to our constituents. Individual Directors stepped into the leadership vacuum to provide coaching, experience and support forfirefighting staff that had been poorly developed for leadership roles by previous management. This action also led to discovering significant problems in District operations, policies, and procedures. An ad hoc Board Committee was formed to work with Joint Operational Area partners, Grass Valley and Nevada City, in place of departed experienced staff to fully understand, evaluate and preserve joint operational processes. This corrective action was taken to protect and benefit all citizens ofWestern Nevada County, actually strengthening our operations at a time when these operations could have fallen apart. In February of2013, the Board turned to an outside consultant, FireForceOne, and met its Director Ronny Coleman, a nationally known expert in Fire Management. FireForceOne was hired by the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District to conduct a nationwide search for the recruitment and appointment of the District's next Fire Chief. As an adjunct to that charge, FireForceOne determined that it was critical to the successful appointment of the new Fire Chief that a clear understanding of the pertinent historical factors and current issues facing the District be identified. Therefore, FireForceOne conducted internal and external interviews of the District's various stakeholders. Interviews included all District Board Members, all District Chief Officers, a significant number of rank and file members at all ranks and fire and administrative employees of the cities of Nevada City and Grass Valley. A key finding of this effort was the need for leadership that went beyond understanding how to fight fires, but also brought heightened attention to the management issues and development of people and focused as well on significant improvements in District policies and processes. The Board's goal was to take the district beyond the realm of a patchwork of previously independent fire districts into that of a well managed, modern and professional emergency service. As a result of Fire ForceOne's consultant efforts, job qualifications for a new Fire Chief were established and a national search was initiated. In July 2013, the hiring ofa new Fire Chief occurred meeting these requirements. Finding 1.3. The Board has failed to follow or has knowingly chosen to ignore the various NCCFD ru!es, ordinances, and regulations, as well as California's open meeting Jaws. Response 1.3. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors partially agrees with this finding. The Board has not purposely failed or chosen to ignore the various NCCFD rules, ordinances, and regulations, as well as California's Open Meeting Laws. The Board acknowledges huge challenges that the District faced over the past two years as presented above. There is no question that both as individuals and as a Board, we have made inadvertent mistakes. Without sufficient staff support and without formal expertise and counsel, errors may have occurred . • The Board has made a due diligence effort to understand and operate within existing policies and procedures. Recognizing the need, District legal counsel became more actively engaged in all areas of Board activity, including development of Board Meeting Agendas and Meeting procedures and/or operations sta rting in March of 2012. The seven Directors on the Board fully recognize the need to improve and continue their commitment to do so. Finding 1.4. Members of the Board failed to take advantage of available training on their roles and responsibilities. Response 1.4. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors agrees with this Finding. Currently all members of the Board have attended the required training, but the focus of our efforts has been to try to understand the shape, scale, and scope of the issues facing the District. With a workload far beyond expectations, Board Members may have inadvertently prioritized non-essential training too low. Finding 1.5 Some member ofthe Board knowingly chose to ignore provisions of the Brown Act and NCCFD internal by-laws, rules regulation, and ordinances in order to affect public opinion during the special tax initiative. Response 1.5. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors partially agrees with this finding. Many members of this Board repeatedly have urged caution with communications and procedural details to minimize the potential for violation of California's open meeting laws. While errors may have occurred, the Board rejects the idea that members knowingly ignored these regulations. Since March, 2013, integration of Legal Counsel into Agenda planning and Board Meeting procedures and processes has led the Board to avoid conflicts and any potential violations ofthe Brown Act from occurring. Since June of 2013 Legal Counsel has been asked to attend all Board meetings to ensure that additional errors are avoided. Finding 1.6. Board meetings are conducted in a manner lacking professionalism, civility, decorum, respect, and common courtesy between Board members. Response 1.6. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. Free and open disagreement is the linchpin of democracy. Open and honest debate is necessary to the development of politically acceptable solutions. Board Members choose to serve in order to provide direction and oversight. There are times when conflict and strong opinions surface when addressing very difficult issues and also when dealing with significant stress and the possibility of change. Yet, working though this conflict can result in more aggressive questioning, more detailed oversight, and better solutions. The Board does not encourage personal conflict, but rather encourages working beyond conflict to create a better District. Finding 1.1. There is a complete breakdown of organizational structure and chain of command within the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District. Response 1.1. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors partially agrees with this Finding. The Board acknowledges there was a lack of leadership that occurred in February 2012, Local 3800 of the Nevada County Professional Firefighters Union submitted a "No Confidence" vote to the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors against its then Chief. This action, and a subsequent alleged physical altercation between the Chief and a District employee, led to his early retirement which significantly impacted the chain of command in the District. The Board, in an effort to obtain the time necessary to initiate a proper search for a quality Fire Chief, requested the District Training Officer to assume the role of Interim Chief. Further It quickly became apparent with the unexpected loss of our entire senior leadership, including our Fire Chief, two Battalion Chiefs, a Division Chief, the Human Resources Director, and the Board Secretary, that the District was in asevere crisis. • The Board is troubled by the statement that "there has been a complete breakdown oforganizational structure and chain of command..." which completely ignores the very credible job that has been done by all firefighters that have stepped into leadership roles because of the departure of the entire cadre of senior leadership in the last two years. This District has not faltered in its mission because of the quality of NCCFD firefighters who are still delivering incredible emergency service to our constituents, saving lives, delivering babies, extinguishing wildfires with the confidence of excellent training and well seasoned experience. The Grand Jury does agrave disservice with the wording of this Finding, whereby creating unnecessary doubt in the minds of our community about our firefighters' ability to deliver quality emergency services when needed. Finding 1.8. The Board has undermined the authority of the Fire Chief as the Chief Executive Officer of the NCCFD. Response 1.8. The Board does not agree with Finding 1.8. as it makes it sound like the entire Board of Directors set out on a purposeful mission to undermine the authority of the Fire Chief. This is not the case. For many years the Board had respected the chain of command and permitted the leadership to handle its internal issues without undo interference. By late 2012, after the resignation of the Fire Chief and further efforts by the Board to understand the internal working of the District, became apparent that significant employee issues, even conflicts, had long gone unattended, poorly addressed and/or ignored. In addition, there had been no quality succession planning and developmental training implemented. The leadership vacuum left was difficult to fill. There was a crisis at hand and the level of existing expertise was insufficient to meet the needs of the District. Finding 1.9 The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors has and assumed the role in violation of internal by-laws and policies and procedures. Response 1.9 The Board does not agree with Finding 1.9. As an oversight Board, no Member is on site observing employee activities on a day to day basis, and ifissues are not clearly and quickly brought to the Board Meeting in fonnal Staff Reports, it is difficult to see how relevant information can be relayed to a Board that is maintaining the chain of command. In a situation where temporary leadership lacks, some of the experience necessary, the Board acknowledges that individuals from the Board may have provided an unprecedented level of support, advice, and direction t in attempts to fill the perceived leadership vacuum. Even today, it is safe to say that no Board Member knows the full story. The Board of Directors is very cognizant and sensitive to the impact this unfortunate chain of events had on the District's employees, its constituents, and even to the Board itself. Finding 1.10 The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District lacks a comprehensive policy and procedures manual. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors agrees with this Finding. Finding 1.11 Many of the codes, by-laws, policies, rules, procedures, resolutions, and ordinances are inadequate, vague, and in conflict. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors agrees with this Finding. Finding 1.12. The conflicts in the of the codes, by-laws, policies, rules, procedures, resolutions, and ordinances allow the Board to "pick and choose" the policies and procedures the Board wishes to follow and those it wants to ignore. Response 1.12 The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors strongly disagrees with this Finding. Existing operational structures are a legacy of the consolidation process over the years. The Board formally recognized this issue in late 2012 and began addressing this issue in February 2013 purchasing an external software package and service to more fully ensure compliance with Federal, State and local regulations. When fully developed, probably in 2014, the District Policies and Procedures will more closely align to "best in class" practices. • This Board is adamant in its desire to create aDistrict that is transparent to our constituents and community, as well as fair and supportive of our employees. Finding 1.13 The Board failed to seek advice from and utilize its contracted legal counsel regarding potentially litigious issues. Response 1.13 The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors agrees with these Findings. The Board acknowledges that this had been the general practice within the District in the past. However, beginning with the "No Confidence" vote issue discussed above in 2012, the District has used legal Counsel much more frequently to avoid potential problems, liability and/or conflicts. Since March 2013, legal Counsel has been a part of all Board Meetings, including reviewing Board Agendas, cumulating with a formal vote to have Counsel present at all Board Meetings in June 2013. Finding 1.14 The Board has shown its lack of fiduciary responsibility by repeatedly entering into financial agreements which lack protection for the NCCFD and fail to meet the requirements of their own rules, regulations, policies, procedures and ordinances. Response 1.14. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with these Findings. The Board disagrees with this finding as this finding uses the term "repeatedly" when suggesting that NCCFD either enters into financial agreements which lack protection for the District or fail to meet the requirements of its own rules, regulations, policies, procedures and ordinances. However, that data is incomplete as the findings providing supporting date for only four issues. The Board would like to address the three issues in detail: 1) the contractual suspension and reinstatement of "merit increases", 2 1the hiring of an private investigator without publicly posting the opportunity and entertaining multiple candidates to investigate alleged violation of district rules and alleged criminal conduct by a district officer, 3) and the hiring of a district contractor as a permanent, part time employee again without publicly posting the opportunity and entertaining multiple candidates. 1} In late 2011, the District was suffering from a very severe budget shortfall due to the cumulative effects of the economic downturn that began in 2008. Many cost cutting efforts had already been taken, including reduction of safety training, postponement of building and vehicle maintenance and travel. Re-evaluating the budget for 2011-2012, the District could see that it was faced with an unsustainable financial situation; and that, by the end of the fiscal year, in July 2012, the District would have spent down its entire financial reserves and leaving the District in debt. Furthermore, projecting expected tax revenues for the budget year 2012-2013, the District, without reserves and owning budget deficit, would face drastic cuts to its services to its stakeholders. At minimum, the District would have to layoff six firefighters and permanently close at least one fire station. Any unforeseen changes in the District would mean further service cuts. This is the basis for the 2012 Tax Initiative. However, careful analysis indicated that even with all the reductions already made, the cost of running the election would dissipate District reserves so fast that it would be in the hole long before the end of the fiscal year, and additional savings had to be found that would keep NCCFD solvent until the outcome of the election could be determined. Thus, in late 2011, local 3800 agreed to suspend "merit raises" for any individuals that earned them. It must be clear that merit raises are an integral part of a firefighters career. Eliminating them would completely restructure all agreements with the firefighters, and that even when in l place for a short period of time, suspended merit increases can significantly impact a firefighters career compensation and even their retirement program. During the first six months of 2012, eight firefighters earned merit increases, but as per the MOU these eight individuals did not receive them. This saved the District about $25,000 by the end ofthe fiscal year; and after borrowing from restricted fund, NCCFD finished the 2011-2012 fiscal year with only $15,000 in its account. In July, once the District knew it could count on the funds generated by the Tax Initiative, the Board discussed the unfairness of letting these six individuals be denied their earned merit increases while other District employees had not made similar sacrifices. The Board acted to reinstate these employees merit increase as of July 1, 2012 rather than waiting until January 1, 2013 as indicated in the MOU, ensuring that their compensation was only delayed by six months. This decision was reported in the press without it ever being noted that there were only six individuals impacted by the action, nor was there any comment • about the unfairness of the original agreement. The District owes adebt of gratitude to these six firefighters. It was their sacrifice that permitted NCCFD to end the 2011-2012 fiscal year solvent. The Board believes that the early reinstatement of merit increases, when funds became available, was a fair, open and honest way of demonstrating our appreciation for their individual sacrifices, and restarting their career tracks. 2) In March of 2012, the mem bers of an ad hoc Board Committee including the Board Chair became aware of alleged violation of district rules and alleged criminal conduct by a district officer. The Board Chair immediately contacted District Counsel to determine the best way of addressing this event to protect the rights of the parties involved and the District's interests. It was determined that in order to proceed, the District had to move quickly to obtain an external investigation of the incident. A Special Meeting ofthe Board was held on Thursday, March 20, 2012 and, in Closed Session to "Review Complaint Against A Public Employee," and the Board determined that the ad hoc committee should proceed with an investigation, and granted permission for the committee to find an investigator to independently investigate the incident and provide a report for Board discussion and action. It was reported out of closed session that the ad hoc committee would follow up on the complaint. To protect the privacy of the employees involved, and to proceed as rapidly as possible to determine the risk to the District, the normal process for obtaining contractors for the formal investigation was not followed. The full Board approved the contract for the investigation at the next regular Board Meeting. It is important to note that this investigation cost the District $ $936.84, and our Personnel Code specifically states that "The purchasing officer may, without bidding or prior Board approval, make single purchases not to exceed $5000." The Board believes that this exemption applies to the Board as well. 3) In March of 2012, after reviewing the contract of a part-time contractor, the Deputy Chief determined that this contractor's status might be approaching the state mandated limits for consideration as a "temporary" employee. However, since the Administration staff had recently been reduced by half, and since the knowledge and skill possessed by the "temporary" employee could not easily be replaced, it would be best for the District to employ the contractor as a permanent employee, saving costs, training and time at a moment when the District's clerical needs were critical. This proposal was approved for these reasons by the Board. It is the Board's intention to follow all of the District's processes and procedures whenever possible, but the Board also recognizes that those policies and procedures do not cover all the exigencies that may occur. We will always reserve the right to respond to unusual, timely circumstances as necessary to protect the District. The Board will also seek legal advice from District Legal Counsel when necessary to avoid potential problems, liabilities and conflicts. Finding 1.15. The Board has shown its lack of fiduciary responsibility by entering into employee collective bargaining agreements which led to excessive and unexpected expenditures by the NCCFD. Response 1.15. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. The Grand Jury has accurately presented the facts in the case of the Employee Health Savings Accounts (HSA), but has incorrectly interpreted those facts. HSA accounts are uniquely beneficial to employees with certain specific medical insurance needs, and also provide a unique cost savings to the district over the cost of traditional Medical Insurance programs. These facts and benefits to both the employee and the District were thoroughly discussed before Resolution 11-17 was passed, and during the re-approval of those contracts in 2012 for the current year. Due to the timing of required payments for the HSA contracts, individuals terminating their service with NCCFD may "appear" to receive an undeserved cash payment. This occurred for the first time in 2012, and future negotiations with service providers and collective bargaining agreements will attempt to address this perception, but the overall cost savings to the district of HSA accounts is still substantial. The Board stands by its decision on this issue; expenditures were neither unexpected nor excessive. Finding 1.16. The lack of executive leaderShip of the NCCFD and the micromanagement of the NCCFD by the Board have created and fostered an unhealthy working environment for administrative staff, leading to hostility and mistrust among the administrative staff, the Board, and NCCFD employees . • Response 1.16. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of DIrectors agrees with these Findings. The Board recognizes that the loss of senior leadership and financial hardship have taken a toll on the working environment for all District employees and to an over involvement of the Board in District operations. In April, 2013 the Board authorized the search and acquisition of an Interim Chief when Division Chief chose to retire. The new Interim Chief was hired on June 26, 2013. The Interim Chief was specifically given the task of re-establishing the appropriate chain of command in anticipation of acquiring a permanent Fire Chief The newly hired Fire Chief took office on August 5, 2013. Finding 1.17. The atmosphere of hostility and mistrust has caused the physical separation of administrative staff, leading to additional time and effort being expended to provide administrative services. Response 1.17. The Nevada County Consolidp_ted Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. As stated, this finding, building on Finding 1.16, clearly suggest that the movement of some staff to remote offices was a result of the lack ofexecutive leadership and Board micro-management. This was not the case. Previous District leadership, at a time when a majority of the current Board was not even on the Board, chose to separate administrative staff as a way of solving personnel issues. It is clear, in hindsight, that that decision was a poor one, the legacy of which has further exacerbated District issues. New executive leadership has addressed the issue. The administrative staff is no longer physically separated as of August 8,2013. All administrative staff is located at Station 91, 11329 McCourtney Road, in Grass Valley. Finding 1.18. Some members of the Board have exhibited a lack of civility, decorum, and respect toward the employees of NCCFD. Response 1.18. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. The Board has never heard a formal complaint from any employee of the District indicating a Board Member has acted improperly toward an employee. The Board disagrees with this finding because it feels it cannot take any responsibility for an individual Board Member's demeanor. Finding 1.19. Board members should be held to a higher standard of behavior due to their election by citizens of the NCCFD to pOSitions of public trust. Response 1.19. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. Board Members are elected officials, and as such are not subject to Board sanction, discipline or punishment. In addition, even healthy Board discussions may become heated when divergent perspectives come in conflict. Our democratic process does not regulate speech, only actions. While the Board recognizes its collective responsibility, it has no authority to impose any "standard" on an individual member. Finding 1.20. The Board and NCCFD administration have failed to investigate and adjudicate allegations of employee violations of the NCCFD rules, regulations, policy, procedures, and ordinances. Response /.20. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors can find no statement offacts in the Grand Jury Report that indicates the Board or the NCCFD administration have failed to investigate and adjudicate allegations of employee violations as indicated in this Finding. It is impossible to determine what is being referenced in this Finding. The Board must disagree with this Finding because it is vague and unsubstantiated. . • Page? Finding 1.21. The closeness of the personal relationship between some Board members and the administration of Loca\3800 places the Board's credibility in question during collective bargaining with Local 3800. Response 1.21. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors disagrees with this Finding. This is a very small community; and the Fire Service in general is an even smaller and tighter community with similar interests and opinions. During the recent interviewing process, essentially all of the candidates had been Union members in their career, and several had been Union officers. Nearly all of our Board Members have been members of the Fire or Police service or both, and several have been Board members for many years. Friendship is not a viable reason for doubting the Board's credibility. What is important is how a friendship with a Union member or a member of the Administration is managed by the individual Board Member. Again, the Board has no authority to manage or regulate that friendship. Finding 1.22. Not only is the circulation of racially offensive material by the Local 3800 President in violation of the human relation tenets promulgated by the International association of Fire Fighters, it is also in direct conflict with the NCCFD personnel code. Response 1.22. The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors agrees with this Finding. All The Board members have all attended training and are willing to receive ongoing training so as to benefit the Board in fulfilling its duties and responsibilities. Grand Jury Recommendations 1. All members of the Board should actively seek out and attend training regardless of the roles and responsibilities in Special Districts. Response: Training contractors have been identified. Appropriate training will be identified and be made available to all board members in the next ninety days. 2. The Board should work with the Fire Chief to develop a comprehensive policy and procedures manual consistent with existing federal, state, and local laws. Response: The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors formally recognized the need for improved policy and procedures in January 2013. The Board has also authorized the purchase and implementation of Lexipol Comprehensive Emergency Services Policy Manual. The Lexipol addresses issues related to risk management, liability, safety and best practices for emergency service suppliers. It will help the District comply with current statutory laws, stay abreast of court decisions and keep up with the evolution of best practices. A committee consisting of a Board Member, District administrators and Labor representatives has begun working through all the detailsto ensure that critical issues relevant to the District are fully integrated into the system. Once this complex work is completed in 2014, the finished product will be submitted to both the Board of Directors and local bargaining units for approval and implementation. 3. The Board should ensure the policies and procedures manual includes thorough review of all contracts and agreements to protect the NCCFD from unexpected, unnecessary, and excessive expenditures. Response: The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors recognizes the need for review and update of ficial policies and procedures. The Board has already initiated work with the District Administration to review existing policies and processes. It is expected that this effort will integrate best practices for financial management as developed in cooperation with District • PageS Auditors, and enhance financial transparency. This effort will take a significant amount of work by an administration that is currently working on a significant number of critical issues. The work will be addressed as part of the policy and procedure work in recommendation 2. 4. The Board should actively seek the advice and expertise of legal counsel in all matters that may lead to potentially litigious issues. Response: The Board formally requested District Counsel be present at all Board Meetings in JUly. Current practice is now to have Counsel review all agendas. 5. The Board should ensure the Fire Chief has clear authority to implement the newly developed policy and procedures manual and to manage the day-to-day 0 peration ofthe NCCFD. Response: The Employment Contract for the New NCCFD Fire Chief, as of August 5, 2013 states: A. The Fire Chief shall serve as the principal and highest ranking administrator and official for District and shall be in charge of the day to day operations of District, including without limitation, the supervision of all other District employees and shall report to, and be directly accountable to, the Board of Directors. B. The Fire Chief shall perform all duties prescribed by the laws, rules, and regulations of the State of California, the United States of America, and the District's Board, and shall carry out all lawful directions of the Board. The Fire Chief is not required to take direction from a single Board member or carry out any orders by a single Board member. Directions will come from the Board of Directors through the Chairman of the Board. C. Duties and responsibilities shall be as set forth in the job description for the pOSition to which the Fire Chief is assigned, or as may be revised from time to time by the Board after consultation with the Fire Chief, as determined necessary for the effective and efficient operations ofthe District. (For current assignment, see Appendix "A".) 6. The Board, collectively and individually, should not subvert the NCCFD organizational structure and chain of command and should not interject themselves into the management of the day-to-day operations ofthe NCCFD. Response: The interactions of the Board with the Fire Chief are clearly spelled out in Section Cof the Fire Chiefs contract mentioned above. The actions that the Grand Jury refers to in this Finding 1.9 took place over about a three to four month period. Further actions by the Board other than to provide oversight have ceased in this manner. The hiring of an experienced organizational manager as Interim Chief with excellent communication skills and following the chain of command have helped assure that such mistakes have not reoccurred. The new Fire Chief has been hired and we expect that our new permanent Fire Chief will ensure that organizational roles are fully respected. 7. The Board should develop and implement policy to facilitate open and ongoing communication with NCCFD personnel. Response: The previous Grand Jury Recommendation clearly insists that the Chief be recognized as the person responsible for all day-to­ day operations at NCCFD. Beyond that, any citizen or employee of the District, under the Brown Act, is free to address the Board at the appropriate time in any formal Board Meeting. Facilitating "open and ongoing communications with NCCFD personnel beyond that allowed in public meetings might quite easily be interpreted as "subverting the NCCFD organization structure and chain of command." It is therefore very difficult to understand what the Gr and Jury is proposing by imposing this recommendation on the Board. For this reason, no further action will be taken on Recommendation 7 will not be implemented. 8. The Board members should conduct themselves in a manner consistent with the public's expectation of persons elected to positions of public trust . • Response: It is apparently not clear to the Grand Jury that the behavior of individual Board Members is not something that can be mandated by the Board of Directors of NCCFD or even by the Grand Jury. As indicated in Recommendation 1. The Board, as an entity, can and will affirm that the appropriate civility and decorum be maintained at all times and all employees, participating citizens and fellow Board Members are treated with respect; it will also ensure that Board members receive relevant training on the responsibilities of Special District Board Members. But it must be clearly understood that the Board cannot take responsibility for the comments, demeanor, or actions of any specific Board Member. This recommendation will not be implemented. 9. The Board should maintain a professional relationship with Local 3800 to ensure there is no perception of undue influence on decision making by the Board. Response: To start with, The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors believes that this recommendation is badly worded, and therefore it is uncertain as to what is actually being recommended. Perhaps it should read "undue influence on decisions made by the Board." The Board can only assume that the Grand Jury is making this recommendation in reference to Finding I. 21. above. If this is so, then the Board, as an entity can and will strive to develop and maintain a strong, cooperative, open, and professional relationship with Local 3800. If, however, the Grand Jury is suggesting that any individual Board Member refrain for developing or maintaining close personal relationships with a Local 3800 member or officer, or a dose personal relationship with any other member of the community, then this Board can only state that such a recommendation will not be implemented. 10. The Board, management and staff should forge an active partnership in the rebuilding of NCCFD's public image and should actively communicate with their constituents to restore and maintain the public's trust. Response: The Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors believes that it has already ta ken significant steps to identify and remedy critical issues within the District. It has engaged a nationally known expert consultant to assess the Districts management needs, developed a job description that provides for the meeting of those needs. This process produced an outstanding group of management candidates to run the District. Consequently, the Board obtained the services of an experienced Fire Chief that has demonstrated his abilities as both an effective manager and leader. It has developed a partnership with Local 3800 on the implementation of a much more comprehensive set of policies and procedures using the Lexipol system to ensure clear operating principals in the future. And It has worked with our Joint Operational Area partners to ensure that the existing cooperative agreements continue to develop and maintain existing cost-effective emergency services to our community. Although the Board did not agree with many of the findings listed in the Grand Jury Report, the Board is committed to providing quality service and will take the appropriation actions necessary to move forward in a positive manner. This is just the beginning of the new Nevada County Consolidated Fire District, and we believe it will only get better. For: Nevada County Consolidated Fire District Board of Directors •