A presentation for next Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting is entitled “Department Accomplishments.” The presentation gets off to a stumbling start as the first department listed is Assessor – Clerk/Recorder – Registrar Of Voters whose accomplishments are “N/A.” Which, after looking at the rest of the “accomplishments,” was the most honest answer of all the departments.
(Acting) Auditor-Controller/Treasurer-Tax Collector Sara Pierce reported that her office: “Worked with Treasurer-Tax Collector staff to integrate staff and processes into the newly consolidated Office of Auditor- Controller/Treasurer-Tax Collector.” Notice the use of the words “consolidated office,” undermining the Board’s frequent insistence that they had not consolidated the offices, but just the top job/title. Ms. Pierce’s staff also “Working closely with Information Services, Assessor and Treasurer Tax Collector offices, finished the County’s data conversion/implementation for the new Aumentum Property Tax System.” This could be quite an accomplishment since the Aumentum Property Tax System has been in use for more than a decade now. Nice to hear that they’ve finally done the data conversion. They also, “Completed all FY 22-23 Reporting including ACFR and State Financial Transaction Report.” I.e., their job]. And they, “Posted over 88,000 direct or special assessments charges submitted by 40 Special Districts totaling over $12.5 million to the current year’s Secured Tax Roll.” Translation: they calculated how much money is supposed to go to the County’s 40 Special Districts (Fire, Water, Cemetery, etc.) at $12.5 million or a little over $300k per. Very nice.
The Treasurer/Tax Collector side of the consolidated office “Successfully collected an excess of $179 million in taxes, licenses, and assessments for the County, School Districts, and Special Districts.” And, “Established department guides for major annual processes including BID Election, Tax Billing, Collections Type Transfer, and Power to Sell.” And, “Dedicated staff diligently participated in numerous Aumentum training sessions, dealing with complicated conversion and integration issues, while still performing their demanding normal duties.” They “Began reorganization of Treasury functions due to the consolidation of Office of Auditor- Controller / Treasurer-Tax Collector.” (Only three years after the consolidation.) And they “Completed significant clean-up of all Property tax payment plans.”
OK. But did they process any delinquent taxes? Did they initiate any tax lien sales? Did they send out notices of tax delinquency or intent to begin tax lien sales? Did they identify any new tax delinquents? Not an accomplishment, apparently.
Under Behavioral Health and Recovery Services we saw that they handled a lot of the related finances and completed a bunch of other routine administrative and structural/facility stuff. But there’s nothing about the patients (exclusively reimbursable patients) on whom their funding depends and whom their office is supposed to service) at all. The last item in the BHRS list however was a statement that they did indeed get the $9.3 million state grant to help cover the cost of the Psychiatric Health Facility (PHF). But it stops there; nothing about the status of the Measure B funds now that that $9.3 million has been received.
The County Counsel’s office says that they managed about 250 pending cases and did a bunch of Family & Children’s Services work. They also say they “defended numerous litigation matters, appeared in all departments of the Mendocino County Superior Court, argued in front of the First District Court of Appeal, assisted with the closing of 17 lawsuits filed against the County, and handled 57 bail bond matters.” They also handled a bunch of routine business like “advice, drafts, reviews, and some Public Records Requests and subpoenas. Etc.
The District Attorney prosecuted a whopping 25 trials for the year 2023 (one every two weeks) along with sending 123 people to prison. Their list also includes their routine duties such as victim-witness services and drug enforcement.
The list goes on and on, mostly boilerplate and ordinary bureaucratic propaganda with page after page of routine “accomplishments,” none of which are out of the ordinary or beyond their office functions.
By far the longest section is the “Executive Office” where they list the many grants they’ve applied for and received (with lengthy descriptions copied and pasted from the grant applications.) Clearly grants are their most important product.
Nowhere in the excruciatingly long list of “accomplishments” is anything remotely like a comparison with what was expected or planned. Many of the “accomplishments” are barely a step above closing the doors at night. For example the Human Resources Department “processed 1,636 Personnel Transactions.” And Employee Wellness claimed credit for “over 80% of employees improved their LDL and cholesterol to low or moderate levels, and more than half lowered their blood pressure and triglycerides to similar levels.”
The Sheriff’s Office bragged that they continued their law enforcement duties without offering any numbers.
All in all, it reminded us of Chris Rock’s famous line in response to some of his homies in the hood bragging that they stayed out of jail and didn’t abandon their children. Rock’s reply: “You don’t get credit for doing what you’re supposed to do!”
As for the promised Budget vs. Actual reports…
All they offered was some very general and highly simplified charts showing essentially that they spent about 1/7th of the allocated budget.
No list of departments and their budgets, no comparison of budget vs actual, no explanations of trends. Nothing.
But what did anyone expect? Real budget reports? They don’t even know what a budget report would look like, much less present them.
Will anyone even notice how pathetically unresponsive it all is? Or will they pat each other on their collective backs again, check off the box for budget vs. actual reports, and move on?
A READER WRITES (regarding the missing Anaheim man whose car was found abandoned in Navarro):
He may have run into an issue and had the car stolen, or some other negative fate. It’s hard to say until he turns up. I passed what I presume was the car numerous times over several days and slowly saw parts disappear and the windows get smashed, as is normal on any rural road in the area when a car is left more than 24 hours. IMO the CHP needs to tow cars ASAP when abandoned unless there is a note from the owner as it quickly becomes an attraction to thieves and people looking for something to destroy.
ANOTHER READER: So, he’s been missing for five months. His car was found two months ago hundreds of miles from his destination? Law Enforcement didn’t track his phone when he went missing to find his latest location or even after the phone was found? He could have been carjacked months ago in Modesto, Fresno, Merced, or any of those places near his destination and his car could have just been dumped here.
A BUDGET REPORT IN NAME ONLY
Next Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors Agenda packet includes a departmental budget rundown for LAST fiscal year. Most variances are minor since the budget was revised mid-year to reflect experience to date, explained by staffing adjustments and in a few cases adjustments due to expenses or revenues booked in prior years.
The Ag Department shows some odd budget numbers for the fiscal year (July 2023-June 2024):
The Auditor offers this explanation for the weird numbers:
“Salary/benefits savings, and true up in revenue to book receivable balance.” Whatever that last part means, perhaps a delay in some state funding (“receivable”).
But the numbers themselves don’t look right. Even if the Ag department was running short staffed for that fiscal year with a part time Commissioner and limited staff, the report says the department’s expenses were only $586k. Did they really let the department shrink that much?
We also were intrigued by the Auditor’s explanation for the cannabis department’s revenue shortfall: “Revenue less than projected.” Of course, but why?
We were surprised to see that “Emergency Medical Services” was listed as a “department.”
According to the confusing item, EMS revenues were less than half of what was budgeted, but where do such revenues come from? Probably the general fund. But there’s no explanation. And expenses were less than half of budget? The cryptic explanation offered is: “Majority of variance relates to underspending CalFire contract.” This is a reference to the Calfire (fire/medical) side of the 911 dispatch system. But it leaves open the obvious question: Why did Calfire “underspend” on their contract?
Toward the end of this “draft unaudited financial report” we saw this mysterious summary of revenues:
This shows that “Aid from Other Gov’t Agencies” was overbudgeted by more than $100 million while “operating transfers in” were underbudgeted by about $86 million. Despite these huge numbers, there’s no explanation at all.
Nevertheless, this is the first time the County has tried to produce a departmental summary for the last fiscal year. It’s interesting even as it leaves a lot of unanswered questions. But what is needed is a monthly departmental budget to actual report for revenues and expenses for THIS fiscal year so that management and the public can see trends, consider explanations and make adjustments if necessary.
Last month we reported on the Board’s revisionist history included in their response to the State Controller’s criticism of their unplanned, chaotic and ill-advised consolidation of the Auditor’s Office with the Treasurer’s office. The State Controller had recommended that “For future reorganizations, conduct a risk assessment before implementing significant changes, such as consolidating two elected offices.” At that time, Acting Auditor-Treasurer Sara Pierce had simply suggested that the County agreed with the recommendation. But the Supervisors, contorting history and the timing of events to make sure blame is placed not on them but on the former Treasurer and former Auditor, revised that response (“corrective action plan”) to: “The Board of Supervisors agrees that with future reorganizations, a risk assessment should be implemented prior to significant changes, such as consolidating two elected offices, so long as the elected officers or affected departments are responsive and agree to participate in the risk assessment in a timely manner. Without responsive and timely participation by all affected parties, a risk assessment can be indefinitely delayed or published with incomplete information.”
As we said last month, both (now former) officials offered their formal assessment of the risks BEFORE the consolidation was forced on them, aka in a timely manner. Then, AFTER the consolidation, when one of those officials retired and the other continued to point out the negative impacts of the consolidation, the Board decided that the remaining official who was trying explain the problem and the impact while persevering with the consolidation, Chamise Cubbison, failed to provide “responsive and timely participation.” The truth is that it was the Board which ignored the risks “assessed” by both elected officials and went ahead with the consolidation without considering them. But this Board simply can’t fathom that they were at fault, that they indeed did no risk assessment, so they blame the blameless the officials who are no longer with the County. And, as with Cubbison’s abrupt ouster, they offer no opportunity for a corrective response.
ACTING AUDITOR-CONTROLLER/TREASURER-TAX COLLECTOR Sara Pierce finally gets around to juggling her staff to accommodate last year’s office consolidation, almost a year after the Board created the mess.
Non-Surprise: As former Auditor Chamise Cubbison predicted before she was ousted, the cost of the combined office will go up by over $170k per year.
Acting Auditor-Controller/Treasurer-Tax Collector Sara Pierce:
The Acting Auditor-Controller, Treasurer-Tax Collector and Human Resources have collaborated over the past eleven months to conduct a comprehensive study of the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office. This effort has identified a pressing need to restructure current classifications to better align with the evolving duties and responsibilities within the department. The proposed restructure aims to enhance operational efficiency, improve service delivery, and align with the strategic goals of the County.
During its October 16, 2024 meeting, the Civil Service Commission approved two new classifications - Revenue Recovery Specialist II and Treasury Specialist I. The Commission also approved title changes and modifications for existing classifications of Revenue Recovery Specialist to Revenue Recovery Specialist I, and Treasury Specialist to Treasury Specialist II, as well as modifications of the Senior Revenue Recovery Specialist. Additionally, the Commission approved the reclassification of eight incumbents during this meeting.
The recommended re-organization creates a department structure like that of the Auditor-Controller’s Office. The new classifications, title changes and classification modifications provide a series in each of the classifications allowing for career growth aiding in employee retention.
Human Resources recommends the Board adopt a new classification specification of Chief Deputy Treasurer-Tax Collector. Establishing a single incumbent Chief Deputy Treasurer-Tax Collector position allows additional support by providing oversight and supervision within the department and will assist the Auditor-Controller, Treasurer-Tax Collector and the Assistant Treasurer-Tax Collector with administrative matters and will be exempt from Civil Service.
Currently, the Treasurer-Tax Collector has a Principal Department Analyst. As a result of this study, Human Resources requests the Board adopt a new classification of Investment Operations Analyst. This classification will be exempt from Civil Service and accurately reflects the responsibilities needed for managing the County’s Treasury Pool, including preparing various accounting and financial reports and assisting the Auditor-Controller, Treasurer-Tax Collector in oversight and analysis.
The proposed changes aim to modernize the office structure, improve operational efficiency, and support the professional development of employees within the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office. The proposed changes do not alter the work being performed by incumbents; rather, they provide more comprehensive specifications.
The fiscal impact shown below for this year is calculated at Step 5 during the pay period 24-24 (November 10, 2024) and includes the cost of benefits. The annual recurring cost shown is also calculated at Step 5 including the cost of benefits.
Current F/Y Cost: BU 1130 $111,184 Increase, includes cost of benefits; BU 2012 Savings $111,184 including cost of benefits.
Budget Clarification: Department to work with fiscal.
Annual Recurring Cost: BU 1130 $170,046 Increase, includes cost of benefits; BU 2012 Savings $170,046 including cost of benefits.
Budgeted In Current F/Y (if no, please describe): No
(Translation: the reorganization which Pierce says will provide the necessary separation of duties between the Auditor and the Treasurer (essentially as it was before the consolidation) will cost an unbudgeted amount of about $112k (for the new “Chief Deputy Treasurer-Tax Collector” for this fiscal year, and an on-going cost of $170k per year thereafter.)
LAST WEEK we noted CEO Antle’s Measure B promise to provide some Measure B information, a promise which she conveniently hedged with her usual “…hopefully.”
After assuring the Board that she was working oh-so hard on “options” regarding Measure B funding, and “working their very best to figure out how to get those Measure B dollars back to Measure B…” etc., she concluded by saying, “More to come on that. Hopefully by November 6.” We also noted that nobody expressed any concern about CEO Antle’s dismal record of not delivering on things she’s “actively working on.”
It’s now a week later and the November 6 board agenda says nothing about Measure B. Antle’s dismal record remains intact.
The supervisors should be running the country not the CEO and the supervisors made a terrible mistake combining the two offices. They can reverse this any time they want. Do It Now!!!!