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Extracted from Consolidated Report

This investigation was originally published as part of a larger consolidated report containing multiple investigations. View the consolidated PDF for the complete document.

Santa Cruz County Grand Jury • 2007-2008

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Published: February 29, 2008 25 pages
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Findings 37 findings

F1 Page 117
The permanent extension of the sales tax measure devoted to library funding is essential to maintain library operations and enable long-term planning. The City of Watsonville could not afford to support current library operations without this supplemental funding.
F2 Page 117
The allocation of sales tax revenue directed to the library should increase with the growing population of Watsonville since the allocation is based on population size.
F3 Page 117
The materials budget for 2008 is very modest. No additional funds were designated for the purchase of materials for the new library. It would be helpful and efficient to have public input on purchasing materials. Watsonville Public Library 107 2007–2008 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report
F4 Page 118
The City of Watsonville and the Watsonville Public Library suffered a loss of approximately $170,000 by not submitting the necessary grant documents to the California Cultural and Historical Endowment in a timely manner.
F5 Page 118
The Main Library has more than doubled in size without additional staffing. This increase requires employees to work some hours on the floor with the public, reducing their time available to complete other duties. Concerns for daily library operations exist, such as covering a shift for an absent worker, or having enough time to effectively address a patron’s needs.
F6
Some safety challenges exist at the new facility: • Monitoring the expansive space on two floors. • Ensuring all patrons have left the building prior to closing. • Ensuring staff and patrons can walk safely to the unattended parking garage at night.
F7 Page 118
Some programs would not exist without volunteer participation (e.g., tutors in the Homework Center, Literacy Center, and Library Link program).
F8 Page 118
There is still a need for a homework center at the Main Library based on previous demand. It would be a valuable community resource because of the impending Watsonville elementary school library closures.
F9 Page 118
The public may be inconvenienced by the closure of the libraries on Sundays.
F10 Page 118
The custodian has limited time to service both branches and to respond to unexpected maintenance needs.
F11 Page 118
Fulfilling public expectations for the CAWHC will be a long-term commitment. The center has the potential to attract researchers who would use and add to the collection of historical resources.
F12 Page 118
The Literacy Center provides a safe and welcoming environment for adults who desire to learn to read and write.
F13 Page 118
The video-on-demand service would be improved if it were accessible to more than Microsoft Windows operating system users.
F14 Page 118
The Library Board appears to function in an advisory rather than an administrative manner, which is contrary to the city charter.
F15 Page 118
More conference rooms are available at the new facility; however, limited staff time may slow the development of additional programs or services for these rooms.
F16 Page 118
Adding a drive-up book drop outside the Main Library would help patrons return books without the need to park and enter the building.
F17 Page 132
During the last four months of the 2007-2008 Amador Plan, firefighter staffing was reduced. On a rotating schedule, instead of assigning three engine operators to all four stations, one station was reduced to two engine operators each week. Cal Fire assigned other state-paid personnel to the fire stations based on anticipated need.
F18 Page 132
A significant portion of the Pajaro Valley Fire Protection District is classified as State Responsibility Area but in contrast to CSA 48 has a single fire station with a year- round Cal Fire contract for two engine operators.
F19 Page 132
Only 0.4 percent of approximately $16 million in Proposition 172 funds are designated to the 2007-2008 County Fire budget with the remainder going to county law enforcement. County Fire 2007–2008 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report Response from the County: PARTIALLY AGREES. 0.4% of approximately $16 million in Proposition 172 funds were designated to the 2007- 08 County Fire budget pursuant to the revenue sharing policy developed in conjunction with the Fire Chiefs Association and adopted by the Board of Supervisors on January 27, 1998. This amount represents 12% of the actual annual fiscal year change in Proposition 172 revenues. Funds are distributed to the fire agencies in the County’s unincorporated area following an annual decision process by the Fire Chiefs Association. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: PARTIALLY DISAGREES. 0.4% of approximately 16 million dollars in Proposition 172 funds were designated to the 2007-08 County Fire budget. The amount allocated was pursuant to the formula for distribution of Prop. 172 revenue that was adopted by the Board of Supervisors on January 27, 1998, and represents 12% of the actual annual fiscal year change in Prop. 172 revenues. Funds are distributed to the fire agencies in the County’s unincorporated area following an annual decision process by the Fire Chiefs Association.
F20 Page 133
The average age of fire engines ready to respond is 15 years, but County Fire recommends maintaining an average age of less than ten years. The replacement cost of an engine is approximately $350,000.13
F21 Page 133
The community of Paradise Park is located within the boundaries of CSA 48. (See Map, Appendix A.) Because of the distance to the nearest County Fire station, it is impractical for them to service this community, so Paradise Park’s fire protection services are contracted out to the City of Santa Cruz. Response from the County: AGREES. Response from the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO): AGREES. LAFCO also note that the CSA 48 “island” along Highway 9/the San Lorenzo River comprises more than Paradise Park. It includes parts of Cowell Redwoods State Park, residences on the west side of Highway 9 across the road from Paradise Park, and Ocean Street Extension.
F22 Page 133
Fees collected for fire marshal services do not cover the cost of operations. FDAC recommended recently that fire marshal staffing be reduced in an effort to match spending with revenues.14 Response from the County: PARTIALLY AGREES. The two options would be to reduce costs or increase fees to cover the cost of services provided by the fire marshal.
F23 Page 133
CSA 48 fully funds the position of addressing clerk in the General Services Department. The addressing clerk updates and maintains the database of street names 13 California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection/Santa Cruz County Fire Department. Five-Year Mobile Equipment Replacement Plan for Fiscal Years 2006-2011. County of Santa Cruz Fire Department Advisory Commission, draft minutes for the March 19, 2008, meeting. County Fire 123 2007–2008 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report and locations. All emergency personnel in the county have access to this updated information to accurately locate addresses. FDAC recommended recently that the County Office of Emergency Services assume the funding for this position.12 Response from the County: PARTIALLY DISAGREES. Beginning in FY 07/08, the Clerk position’s time and associated cost has been distributed between the County Fire and Office of Emergency Services based on the jurisdiction receiving the benefit. Although the position itself is in the Fire budget unit, the actual costs are distributed based on the work and derived benefit.
F24 Page 134
Cal Fire enters dispatch information into and draws statistics from the California All Incident Response System (CAIRS) database. CAIRS data was used to prepare the County Fire call reports presented to the Board of Supervisors. Response from the County: PARTIALLY AGREES. Additional data for the report on CAL FIRE firefighter deployment during non-fire season was obtained using the CAL FIRE computer aided dispatch system.
F25 Page 134
A type of CAIRS report, Resources Activity, shows dispatch data for four different time points: dispatch, enroute, on-scene, return to quarter. Each incident is identified using the following fields: incident type, location, area and unit. Response from the County: AGREES. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: AGREES.
F26 Page 134
The majority of emergency incidents are not fire related yet fire personnel and heavy equipment are dispatched routinely. (See Appendix B.)
F27 Page 134
The Emergency Medical Services Integration Authority (EMSIA) was established to administer a program to integrate fire agency emergency medical services into a countywide system.
F28 Page 134
In the rural areas of the county, firefighters are normally the first medically trained responders to arrive on the scene of an emergency. Response from the County: AGREES.
F29 Page 134
Cal Fire and volunteer firefighters are trained and certified to provide basic life support services. Response from the County: AGREES.
F30 Page 134
The County contracts with American Medical Response to provide medically necessary ambulance transport staffed with advanced life support paramedics 124 County Fire 2007–2008 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report Response from the County: PARTIALLY AGREES. Response plans indicate more than one resource (engine, company officer) respond to each incident and this varies by type of incident. The fact that volunteer companies, adjoining district resources, or ambulances respond does not create a separate incident or CAIRS report. Individual resource or agency responses can be tracked by CAD data review. If engines are cancelled prior to arrival (e.g. false alarm or cancellation by law enforcement or other agency), it still qualifies as a response. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: PARTIALLY AGREES. Response plans indicate more than one resource (engine, company officer) respond to each incident, which varies by type of incident. The fact that volunteer companies, adjoining district resources, or ambulances respond does not create a separate incident or CAIRS report. Individual resource or agency responses can be and are tracked by CAD data review. If engines are cancelled prior to arrival (e.g. false alarm or cancellation by law enforcement or other agency), the initial dispatch still qualifies as a response.
F31 Page 135
The Board of Supervisors asked County Fire management to provide monthly incident reports to evaluate the effects of reduced staffing approved in February 2008. Matching a 10-day period of ECC audio dispatches 15 to corresponding CAIRS Resource Activity reports revealed • A single incident can have multiple responses. • Every dispatch is reported as an incident response regardless of actual on-scene arrival. Volunteer company responses are not included. • Adjoining fire district responses are not included. • Ambulance responses are not included. Response from the County: AGREES.
F32 Page 135
Emergency calls from County Fire are first routed to the Santa Cruz Consolidated Emergency Communications Center (Netcom). Since the State requires Cal Fire to command its resources, Netcom must relay the initial call and pass control of the dispatch to the Cal Fire ECC. Response from the County: AGREES. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: AGREES.
F33 Page 135
County Fire responds to medical emergency calls but is not a member of the Emergency Medical Services Integration Authority (EMSIA).16 The Cal Fire Chief is on the EMSIA Board of Directors only on behalf of the Pajaro Valley Fire Protection District. Firescan.net, http://www.firescan.net/ 16 “Surviving Sudden Cardiac Arrest: Improving the Odds with Automated External Defibrillators, -5. County Fire 125 2007–2008 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report Response from the County: PARTIALLY AGREES. Although it is difficult to quantify and varies throughout the year, the CAL FIRE Chief estimates that 33% of his time is expended on Santa Cruz County issues. Additional administrative and operations management is provided through two Deputy Chiefs. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: PARTIALLY DISAGREES. Although difficult to quantify, with variations throughout the year, the CAL FIRE Chief estimates that 33% of his time is expended on Santa Cruz County work and issues.
F34 Page 136
The Cal Fire Unit Chief for both San Mateo and Santa Cruz Counties is designated as the Chief of County Fire and the Santa Cruz County Fire Department. Approximately 20 percent of his time is spent on Santa Cruz County support. Response from the County: DISAGREES. The role of the FDAC is not related to the authority granted under the establishment of CSA 48. Rather the FDAC was established under the County Code to exercise responsibilities to ensure that the interests of the county fire department, career and volunteer fire companies and the citizens residing within county fire department jurisdiction are protected and promoted by monitoring, studying, and advising the County Fire Chief and the Board of Supervisors. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: DISAGREES. The role of the FDAC is not related to the authority granted under the establishment of CSA 48. Rather the FDAC was established under the County Code to exercise responsibilities to ensure that the interests of the county fire department, career and volunteer fire companies and the citizens residing within county fire department jurisdiction are protected and promoted by monitoring, studying, and advising the county fire chief and the board of supervisors.
F35 Page 136
The FDAC represents CSA 48 and its role is to advise the County Fire Chief and the County Board of Supervisors. FDAC does not represent CSA 4. Response from the County: PARTIALLY DISAGREES. The membership of the Fire Department Advisory Commission was amended to reduce membership because the subject matter under consideration at most meetings was outside the scope of some then member representatives. As a result, those representatives did not attend every meeting. Representatives of these agencies are always available to attend any meetings where their participation would be helpful. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: PARTIALLY DISAGREES. As stated in the Board of Supervisors report in 2005, other issues besides attendance were considered in revising the membership of the FDAC.
F36 Page 136
The county code for FDAC membership was amended in 2005 to reduce membership from 13 seats to 10 seats, eliminating two representatives from the Health Services 126 County Fire 2007–2008 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report Agency (one each from Emergency Medical Services and Environmental Health) and one from Public Works, due to their poor attendance records. Response from the County: AGREES. Response from the Santa Cruz County Fire Department Advisory Board: AGREES.
F37 Page 137
Although several volunteer fire companies and Cal Fire maintain websites, there is no County Fire website. Conclusions 1. “County Fire” is a confusing term, implying the existence of a single department responsible for fire protection in the rural areas of the county.

Recommendations 17