- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Supervisors approve temporarily reducing in-person county services to the public; board considers extending date for restoring Friday public office hours
The action to authorize the temporary reduction of county services to the public will potentially take the county back to how it operated in the initial months of the pandemic last year, and follows the board’s decision on Jan. 5 to temporarily close its chambers to the public.
Prior to the discussion on Tuesday, Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace told the board that last week saw the largest number of new COVID-19 cases to date, with this week on track to do the same.
The numbers posted by Public Health showed that COVID-19 cases totaled 2,612 on Tuesday, up by 356 cases over the previous week.
In her written report, County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson, also noted “dramatically” worsening pandemic conditions in recent weeks, “with an increasing number of COVID-19 positive cases impacting the County workforce.”
On Tuesday, Huchingson reviewed the board’s action on Jan. 5 to create an ad hoc committee to work with department heads in the efforts to comply with the county’s COVID-19 Public Health Emergency - Worksite Protection Protocol.
Supervisors Tina Scott and Moke Simon were appointed to represent the board on the committee.
Huchingson said the committee has met several times. “We were a bit surprised by the discussion,” she said, adding they were appreciative of the department heads for their candor.
Department heads told county leadership that they support rolling back in-person services right now in favor of pivoting back to how they operated in the spring, when many services were provided without in-person contact, she said.
The resolution directs department heads to immediately replicate steps taken during the earlier closure of county offices “by temporarily providing for service delivery to the public without in-person contact except in situations where in-person contact is unavoidable due to court obligations and state law requirements, or where limited in-person contact is necessary for purposes of service of process, recordation of property-related documents, and/or providing fiscal services to public entities and independent special districts.”
When in-person contact is unavoidable, the resolution directs department heads to ensure full compliance with all provisions of the COVID-19 Worksite Protection Protocol.
Department heads also need to determine how best to provide limited access to allow those functions, notify the public by posting signage at the departmental office as to the method in which services will be delivered and the limited circumstances in which in-person
contact will be permitted.
The resolution also directs department heads to support remote work assignments for county employees to the greatest extent possible, gives them the continuing authority to define essential and non-essential workers and said they shall direct nonessential workers to shelter in place or provide remote work assignments when possible.
The board will review the resolution at least once every 30 days “until pandemic conditions improve to the extent that regular service delivery can be resumed.”
Scott said they didn’t want to wait another Tuesday to bring the matter to the board because of their concerns for the workforce.
“If COVID goes through one of our departments, then that department gets completely shut down,” she said, adding that they want to provide services while keeping staff safe.
“Protecting our workforce should be No. 1 for us,” said Simon.
He said they heard from department heads about their concerns as well as wanting to continue to serve the community as much as possible.
Simon said they have had cases of COVID-19 in departments and, like Scott, pointed out that an entire department could be shut down because of the virus.
Board Chair Bruno Sabatier said he had conflicts over the proposal.
“We are not leading with the best of examples for everyone to follow,” he said, explaining that he doesn’t see county departments doing exactly what local businesses are being asked to do.
“We need to step up our game,” he said. “We need to set the rules and set the tone.”
He also was concerned that some members of the public might not have access to the necessary technology to meet virtually with county staff.
Simon said the topic of tightening up protocols and having the county set an example was a topic of discussion with department heads.
Scott De Leon, who heads Community Development, Public Works and Water Resources, said all three of those departments work with the public a lot and he realizes the inconvenience.
On Jan. 8, he said the line of people who came to the courthouse to speak to Community Development staff at the county extended way down the hallway. “Frankly, it’s very disturbing to see that.”
De Leon said they have made dropboxes available, staff is working on FAQs for the website, they are planning to add cameras for every workstation so staff can have virtual consultations with the public and they are going to implement electronic building applications.
“We’re already working towards making it as efficient as we possibly can,” he said, adding, “We’ve encouraged working from home as much as possible.”
De Leon said some building inspectors will probably be working remotely soon as well.
Assessor-Record Richard Ford said his staffers already are doing telework, they have a dropbox outside of their office and they make appointments with title companies to come in and do recording work. He said they plan to improve their previous logistics.
The board ultimately approved the resolution 5-0.
Date to resume Friday office hours to public may be pushed back
In November, the board had directed staff to phase out a temporary policy instituted in 2018 that closed county offices to the public on Fridays. The board wanted a soft reopening to start in January, with offices to be reopened on Fridays by April 1.
However, considering the current circumstances, Sabatier asked Huchingson to put the matter back before the board for further discussion.
Sabatier said by having closed the board chambers and reducing in-person services, the county is sending conflicting messages and contradicting safety protocols by still moving forward with its previous plans for the Friday reopening.
Rather than saying the transition back to full Friday openings needs to be done by March 31, he suggested a compromise to say that the process won’t start until that date, with the board to review progress in the coming months.
“I’m in complete agreement right now,” said Simon.
Ford told the board his department will probably continue with its soft opening plans as Fridays tend to have far less traffic than the rest of the week.
Huchingson suggested having the ad hoc committee discuss the reopening with department heads next week and then come back to the board with a resolution to fit the situation better.
The board agreed and reached consensus to pursue that suggestion.
In other business on Tuesday, the board approved updates to the county’s COVID-19 Return to Work Protocol including aligning the county’s policy with Cal OSHA Emergency Temporary Standards, and also adding new information regarding testing, training, handling multiple infections and outbreaks, exclusion of COVID-19 cases investigation of workplace COVID-19 cases, correction of hazards and OSHA FAQs, and a requirement for department heads to certify their compliance and post it with update certificates.
At Sabatier’s request, the board also took up an additional item regarding state Senate Bill 74, the Keep California Working Act, which would provide another $2.6 billion in grants for businesses.
The board voted to give the bill its support and to ask the two cities to sign on and provide a united front.
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