- a weekly column published in the Pioneer Press

When most people think about politicians, they tend to focus on the “grippin’ and grinnin’” part. In my first months in office, I have been struck by the tremendous amount of “decidin’” we do.

The Board of Supervisors passes a handful of local laws and sets overall policies. It decides upon which local services a discretionary pot of about 15% of the county’s total budget will be spent. This “pot” pays for police and the various departments like the clerk, auditor and planning. To the extent we can afford, it also includes programs like tourism and economic development. Most folks don’t know that the state legislature has already decided upon which programs the remaining 75% of their tax dollar will be spent. For “entitlement” programs such as social and behavioral health services, the County only makes decisions on how such programs will be staffed and operated.    

It has not taken me long to understand that my job one is to make good decisions and to see that I get all the information I need to do that. Some of that information comes from our hefty written Board packet; some from presentations and public comment at the meeting; some from experience. I also try and get out into the community to various meetings in my District so that I can get folk’s input on issues and keep in the loop as to what is important to them. 

I am amazed by the number of meetings I attend and the wide variety of issues to discuss. For instance, Monday I attended a subcommittee meeting of the coho recovery team. Then a constituent and I had a briefing on plans for the new Juvenile Hall. From there, I toured the County’s Animal Shelter. In the evening, I attended a committee meeting at the new Collier Interpretive and Information Center (CIIC.)

I am officially appointed to represent the Board on several committees. These include the County Planning Commission, Economic Development Council, Behavioral Health Services, Community Services Council, Local Childcare Planning Council and Siskiyou Health Partnership. I also serve on the Family Interagency Services Council. You will also find me at many local meetings in my district from Chambers of Commerce to Neighborhood Watch and Fire. So many groups meet at the same time and I can’t attend them all, so I try to move around as my schedule permits. Let me know if there is a meeting you would like me to attend.

It is easy to get swallowed up in the parade of issues and meetings and lose site of actually getting plans from talk to on the ground changes. So I have selected a few issues to really work on. One of these is Fire Service.

In my next column, I’ll talk a bit more about the fire department funding crisis and some of the options we face. Until then, your homework is to find out which fire service would respond to your house in an emergency. Call the chief or the Fire Department Board and ask how they are doing on volunteers, equipment and operational funding. Look up what you pay on your property taxes each year to support them and how much you personally donate to keep them running.