LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors has approved a new resolution that establishes the way members of the Lakeport Fire Protection District Board are to be selected, and also directed staff to set up a meeting with city of Lakeport and fire board representatives to further discuss the selection process.
Concerns about the selection process for the five-member board began to ramp up in late summer, as the district’s financial problems became urgent, ultimately leading to the acceptance of a new budget that required laying off three full-time firefighters, as Lake County News has reported.
The Lakeport Fire Protection District Board is the only appointed fire district board in the county; the rest are elected.
At its Nov. 20 meeting, the board considered and ultimately approved a resolution that County Counsel Anita Grant – who worked with the attorneys for the fire district and the city of Lakeport – presented that established a protocol for appointing the members.
The resolution said that the appointments made by the county and city have been determined according to each entity’s proportionate share of population within the Lakeport Fire Protection District based on the 2010 census and redistricting data presently available.
When updated census data or other reliable population info becomes available in the future, each entity’s proportionate share of population may change. Should that be the case, the document calls for the county and city to meet and confer in good faith to determine whether it’s necessary to change the proportionate number of appointments to be made by each entity.
Initially, the resolution calls for appointments to be made as follows: There will be two vacancies on the district board as of Jan. 1, 2019, one to be filled by the county and one by the city, with the terms of the remaining three district board members to continue until Jan. 1, 2020. At that time the county shall appoint two district board members and the city one board member.
It was explained during the meeting that whether the board seats should be filled by appointment or election is, ultimately, up to the fire district board.
Supervisor Rob Brown said he supported making the seats elected.
“This resolution will not stop that determination. It just simply sets the stage for the appointments,” said Grant.
There was no public comment and the board approved the resolution 5-0.
With the protocol now set, county staff said they would advertise for applicants for the one position to be appointed by the county at the start of the year.
Brown raised the issue that a meeting the board had directed he and Supervisor Tina Scott to have with city and fire board officials to discuss the selection process hadn’t happened. “Are we just going to disregard that?”
Lakeport City Manager Margaret Silveira said she had been involved in the discussions on the resolution and was comfortable with what the attorneys produced. The protocol is set to be presented to the Lakeport City Council at its Dec. 4 meeting.
“I was told there was going to be a meeting but we weren't contacted,” she said.
Brown said he didn’t have a high comfort level with the situation. “This issue with Lakeport Fire Department isn’t just a formality. It’s a mess. It’s a real mess,” he said, explaining it’s a mess because it affects public safety, and not just in the Lakeport district but in neighboring districts.
Grant said the protocol in the resolution simply establishes a mechanism for appointments, and she encouraged the board to have a meeting with other officials if they have concerns. She said the resolution resolves how appointments are to be made and under what circumstances to get back on an even keel. “It’s not intended to do anything more than that.”
Scott took Brown’s comments to mean she hadn’t been involved in meetings about the matter, which he maintained he hadn’t said.
While she also supports going to election, Scott said, “You’ve made it sound like I’ve been absent.” Scott added that it’s her district. “I’m actually not really sure why you are stepping all over this.”
Brown said his concern was that a meeting the board had directed happen didn’t occur. As far as it being her district, he said it has a tremendous impact on the Kelseyville Fire Protection District, whose ambulances have been getting called out due to Lakeport’s needs.
Board Chair Jim Steele received consensus from the board to direct staff to set up the previously directed meeting.
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Board of Supervisors accepts new guidelines for Lakeport Fire District Board appointments
- Elizabeth Larson
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