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The Chair noted she called this Special Meeting of the Board because this is an issue of great gravity and concern; and, while the matter has also been before the Board’s Public Protection Committee, she thought at this point it was appropriate to bring it before the full Board. She recognized the number of public officials present in the audience and commented that the safety of our residents is a common concern shared by all. She added that upon that common ground, the Board is hoping to explore and discuss the issues that led to this difficult place as well as possible plans and strategies. She also noted that we are not at the end of this financial crisis but rather are only in the middle of it, as property tax revenues and state revenues are likely to continued to decline. In proposing solutions, she noted that employee salary rollbacks are an option being considered as part of labor negotiations. She also noted that while some have suggested using the County’s fiscal reserves to help fund the District Attorney’s Office, the Board of Supervisors has a policy to only allocate its reserves for one-time expenditures, whereas the D.A.’s funding needs will be ongoing.
David Twa, County Administrator, commented that while the Board has directed making public protection a top priority, tax revenues have fallen dramatically. He said it is important to note that all County departments had to take significant cuts as revenues continue to decline. He added that as the decline continues, there will be no way to continue to provide the current levels of service. He commented that across the state many other counties are also facing budget shortfalls of $100 million or more.
Tom Simonetti, Contra Costa Police Chiefs’ Association and Martinez Police Chief, said he is very concerned that law enforcement will not be able to rely on the D.A.’s office to prosecute criminals and that subsequently, crime will rise and cities' resources will be taxed. He also expressed concern that criminals could begin to gravitate to this county.
Robert Kochly, District Attorney, noted that Contra Costa is out in front on this issue and said he is sure that similar discussions will be taking place throughout the state in the time to come. He spoke to a suggestion that the D.A.’s office should still review all the cases even if it is not going to prosecute them all, saying this suggestion is problematic because his office will not have the attorney staff available to accomplish that amount of work. He also spoke to questions about why he proposes putting a policy of reduced prosecutions into place on May 4, 2009, when only some attorneys are being cut at that time and the remaining position eliminations won’t occur until the end of the year. He said that unless the number of prosecutable cases is reduced now, many of those cases will only have to be dropped at the end of the year when the other cuts take place.
Mr. Kochly proposed a temporary solution to the crisis: he said that since this process began, three fixed term attorneys left the office to take other jobs. He said the amount that was budgeted to fund their jobs through the end of the year would almost equal the cost it would take to keep on six temporary attorneys who were otherwise soon to be let go. He said this would be a cost-neutral way to buy some time to look for more permanent solutions. He also proposed a 10% reduction in his own salary to ensure that the cost of this proposal is neutral to the County.
The Chair called for public comment on this matter and the following people spoke:
Andres Soto, Richmond resident;
Ted Hudacker;
Martin Fernandez, Antioch resident;
Alfred Accurso, retired County employee;
Brian Kalinowski, Antioch City Council;
Angie Harlow, Pinole resident;
The Honorable Don Tatzin, Mayor, City of Lafayette;
Soren Tjernell, Community Clinic Consortium;
The Honorable Karen Mitchoff, Vice-Mayor, City of Pleasant Hill;
Adam Kruggel, Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization;
Daren Good, San Pablo resident;
Barry Grove, Deputy District Attorney;
Mr. Phillips, San Pablo resident;
Johanna Schonfield, Deputy District Attorney;
Paul Crovo, Concord resident;
Marianna Moore, Human Services Alliance of Contra Costa;
The Honorable Robert Taylor, Mayor of Brentwood;
Jim Bickert, Deputy Sheriff Association;
Kris Hunt, Contra Costa County Taxpayers Association.
The following people submitted written comments:
Rollie Katz, Public Employees Union, Local One;
Robert Kochly, District Attorney;
Robert A. Endries, Danville resident;
Don Tatzin, Mayor, City of Lafayette.
Supervisor Gioia asked if consideration could be given to the various cities which may each have their own ideas about how they want to approach reductions in prosecutions.
Mr. Kochly said that could be discussed with the cities.
Supervisor Gioia suggested looking at other creative solutions being considered and implemented in other areas, such as the trial advocacy project in Los Angeles.
Chair Bonilla suggested that workshop-type discussions take place at the Board’s Public Protection Committee level, with a report to subsequently come back to the full Board.
Mr. Kochly indicated the matter would need to come back to the Board in no more than 120 days if a “Plan B” is to be considered to keep current levels of service intact.
Mr. Twa said it is important to note that countywide the cost of salaries and benefits is not sustainable. He said we will need to look at solutions that may not be agreeable, such as salary rollbacks, but said we need to find a solution.
Supervisor Glover said he looks forward to the opportunity to work for solutions.
Supervisor Piepho stated that Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) and salary sustainability are priorities for this Board in effort to create the ability to provide public services.
Supervisor Gioia said he appreciates the leadership of D.A. Robert Kochly on this issue.
Supervisor Bonilla reiterated a need for countywide collaboration.
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Any disclosable public records related to an open session item on a special meeting agenda and distributed by the Clerk of the Board to a majority of the members of the Board of Supervisors less than 24 hours prior to that meeting are available for public inspection at 651 Pine Street, First Floor, Room 106, Martinez, CA 94553, during normal business hours.
The County will provide reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities planning to attend Board meetings who contact the Clerk of the Board at least 24 hours before the meeting, at (925) 335-1900; TDD (925) 335-1915. An assistive listening device is available from the Clerk, Room 106.
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