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Yolo County Grand Jury
• 2022-2023
Yolo County Public Cemeteries With Great Autonomy Comes Great Responsibility
⚠️ Translation Notice: This content has been automatically translated. The original English text is the official version. Translation may contain errors.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Findings and Recommendations 6 findings
F1
The Knights Landing Cemetery District is governed by a three-member board of trustees and has two current vacancies, which impairs proper governance and operations under the law.
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
The Yolo County Board of Supervisors should make appointments as soon as possible to fill the two vacancies on the Knights Landing Cemetery District Board of Trustees.
F2
The Cottonwood Cemetery District lacks guidelines or maintenance standards for the cemetery grounds, which may contribute to the observed unkempt appearance with grass, shrubs and trees obscuring flat markers of individual graves, headstones and monuments.
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
The Cottonwood Cemetery District should adopt cemetery maintenance standards by January 1, 2024, to ensure the property is appropriately and regularly maintained, including trimming and mowing grass, and pruning shrubs and trees around the cemetery.
F3
The Cottonwood Cemetery District lacks a formal process for evaluating the work completed by the groundskeeper or for tracking the employee’s work hours or schedule, which may contribute to the observed unkempt appearance as well as concerns about whether and when work is performed.
Related Recommendations (1)
R3
The Cottonwood Cemetery District should adopt written guidelines or expecta- tions for individuals performing groundskeeper and maintenance services for the District by January 1, 2024, including accountability provisions to ensure the maintenance and upkeep of the cemetery grounds, guidelines and expectations are being followed.
F4
A close familial relationship exists between a current trustee serving on the Board of the Cottonwood Cemetery District and the groundskeeper as the sole employee of the District. This raises questions of nepotism and the specter of a conflict of interest.
Related Recommendations (1)
R4
The Cottonwood Cemetery District should adopt both a Conflict of Interest and a Nepotism Policy by January 1, 2024, to ensure that decisions made represent the interests of the public as a whole and not the interests of any Trustee.
F5
The Capay Cemetery District, Cottonwood Cemetery District and Knights Landing Cemetery District are each out of compliance with state law (Government Code sections 6270.6 and 53087.8) requiring that independent 5 For 2021 only, the Capay Cemetery District adopted a hardship resolution determining the district could not adopt a website, so the district was deemed compliant with SB 929 for that year. 10 special districts in California either maintain a website by January 1, 2020, or adopt a hardship resolution annually.
Related Recommendations (1)
R5
The Cottonwood Cemetery District should establish a website
F6
The Cottonwood Cemetery District does not manage records of the location and ownership of burial sites and remains interred in a manner that can be maintained, reproduced or recovered easily. RECOMMENDATIONS
Related Recommendations (1)
R6
The Capay Cemetery District should establish a website
Additional Recommendations 2
These recommendations are not explicitly linked to specific findings.
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R7The Knights Landing Cemetery District should establish a website
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R8The Cottonwood Cemetery District should make available to the public the location and ownership of burial sites and remains interred, in reproducible form by April 1, 2024. This information could be displayed on a website. COMMENDATION All trustees of the various public cemetery districts in Yolo County are volunteers and the Grand Jury would like to commend each trustee for their public service in these important positions. REQUIRED RESPONSES Pursuant to Penal Code sections 933 and 933.05, the Grand Jury requires responses to its Findings and Recommendations as follows: From the following governing bodies: ■ Yolo County Board of Supervisors – F-1, R-1 ■ Cottonwood Cemetery District Board of Trustees – F-2, F-3, F-4, F-5, F-6, R-2, R-3,
Commendations 1
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CM1All trustees of the various public cemetery districts in Yolo County are volunteers and the Grand Jury would like to commend each trustee for their public service in these important positions. 2022-23 Yolo County Grand Jury 11 Yolo County Cemeteries FINAL, JUNE 1, 2023
Agency Responses 1
Government agencies' official responses to this report's findings and recommendations. Click on a response to see the structured breakdown.
No Responses Found 4
Government entities assigned to respond to this report. No response documents have been linked in our database.
Capay Cemetery District
Special District
Cottonwood Cemetery District (Yolo)
Special District
Knights Landing Cemetery District
Special District
Yolo County Board of Supervisors
Elected County Office