Board of Supervisors - Regular Meeting

Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey there. Want to make your voice heard at a board of supervisors meeting? We're all ears. Here's how you can get involved. First, hop online and look at the agendas. This will give you the scoop on what's coming up before the board. Each agenda item includes a brief description of the issue, the recommendations, and potential impacts. If you need more detail, check out the detailed reports online. Those are called board letters. Then decide if you want to speak at Tuesday's general legislative session or Wednesday's land use session. You'll have three opportunities to have your say. Let's start with non-aggenda public comment.

This is your chance to talk about things that aren't on the agenda, but try and keep your topic related to county government. For non-aggenda public comments, you can speak at either the Tuesday or Wednesday session, but not both. So, pick your day accordingly. And keep in mind, the board can't act on the spot. They'll refer your comments to the chief administrative officer who will look into the issue. Last thing, the board will hear from the first 10 speakers, five in person and five by phone at the beginning of the session. Then all the remaining speakers will get their chance to speak after the discussion items. During the consent agenda, the board handles a bunch of routine items with one vote. If you want to comment on an item, keep it simple. For example, I'm John Doe speaking on item 5 and I agree with approving the contract. Discussion items are the main event where the board debates before making a decision. Want to speak at one of the meetings? It's really easy. Just hop online and fill out a quick request form at public comment. San Diego County.gov. Pick the meeting you're interested in? Hit the register button, then fill in your details. Make sure to include a phone number if you plan on speaking by phone. Prefer speaking at the podium in the board chamber? No problem. Just pick the inperson option. After that, just check off the agenda items you want to talk about and let them know you're for, against, or neutral on them. Hit register and you're good to go. A confirmation email will land in your inbox to wrap it up. If you're speaking by phone, the email will include the instructions for how to dial in. Be sure to submit your request early. Once public comment begins on the agenda item, we can't take any more requests to speak. And if you have documents, hand them to the deputy clerk when it's your turn to speak at the podium. Now, you get 2 minutes to speak, but if lots of people want to talk, it might get cut to 1 minute. So, you might want to consider writing two sets of comments. One for 2 minutes, another one for one. That way, if time's cut, you won't be scrambling. There's also a countdown clock at the podium to keep you on track. Once you're at the podium,

stay on topic. Stick to the current agenda item. If you stray off topic, you might get a gentle nudge to get back to the point. Keep your comments related to the agenda items recommendations because that's what the board is relying on to make a decision. Also, speak directly to the board. They're the ones making the decision. When your time's up, it's up. Overstaying might mean getting muted or even asked to leave. Now for some ground rules. For safety, keep aisles and doorways clear. If there isn't a seat, head across the hall to room 302 or the fourth floor balcony to watch the meeting. Respect is huge. Everyone should feel heard. That means you, other speakers, and the board of supervisors. Disruptive behavior gets one warning, and after that, a deputy sheriff might show you the door. So, let's keep it respectful. Your voice matters, and we want to hear from you. Remember, we're all here to make a difference. Down. Come on. Heat. Heat. N. Down.

Give it up. Heat. Heat. Hey, hey.

Heat. Heat. N. Hey, hey, hey. Yeah. Hello.

Heat. Heat. Hello. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat.

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Okay. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. I now call the March 24th, 2026 general legislative session of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors and Fire Protection District meeting to order. I would like to take a moment to acknowledge the land that we call home. There are communities in the San Diego region that face unjust conditions and circumstances related to the environments in which they live. The tribal nations of the San Diego region are example of one community that has historically faced such injustices. We acknowledge the harmony that existed between the land, nature, and its original peoples who have since endured displacement, persecution, and systemic oppression. We pay our respect to the unseated territory and homelands of the 18 tribal nations in our region, the most in any county in the United States from four cultural groups, the Kumi Deno, the Luceno, the Coupeno, and the Kaiwea. We aspire to learn from indigenous traditional knowledge and experiences in undoing injustices of the past. Andrew, please call the role for today's session.

Thank you. Chair Lawson Reamer, Supervisor Anderson, Supervisor Desmond here, Chair Promigiri here, Vice Chair Montgomery Stepp here, and Chair Lawson Reamer

here. We will now have Reverend Marshella Salgado Solorio from the University Christian Church delivero Suero lead us in the p pledge of allegiance. Please stand for the invocation of the pledge. Bonosas, good morning to the Hamas and Ramers, supervisors and members of our community. Thank you for the invitation to be here today. Invite us now into a moment of reflection and grounding. Loving creator, great source of life known by many names and present among all people. We pause to center ourselves in your presence within us and between us. We give thanks for those gathered here today for the responsibility of leadership and for the opportunity to serve the common good. In a time when our world feels heavy, when war continues to wound communities across the globe, when fear and division too often shape our public life, and when systems of power can overshadow the dignity of all people, we ask for clarity, courage, and deep compassion. Grant these leaders wisdom to make decisions that are just and lifegiving. Help them to listen beyond noise and rhetoric, to seek truth even when it is uncomfortable, and to lead with integrity, humility, and care. This week, many in our community have carried grief as stories have surfaced that challenge the legacy of leaders once held high. We hold space for those who have been harmed. For the courage it takes to speak truth and for the work of healing that calls us forward. Remind us that no movement, no institution, no community is strengthened by silence, but honesty, accountability, and a commitment to do better. strengthen our collective resolve to protect the vulnerable, to care for the unhoused, the immigrant, the elderly, the young, to honor the dignity of the LGBTQIA people and communities of color, and to ensure that justice is not selective but shared. Soften our hearts where they have hardened. Expand our vision beyond self-interest. Guide us to build a

community rooted not in fear, but in belonging, equity, and shared humanity. May we leave this moment grounded, guided by compassion, and committed to the sacred worth of every human being. Amen. Please place your right hands over your heart. Ready? Begin. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Okay, thank you. We'll now proceed with the proclamations. The first proclamation will be given by myself, honoring Caroline Smith. Accepting the proclamation will be Caroline Smith. And I would like to invite all my colleagues and Ebony down to the podium with me for both the presentation and the picture. So yes, everyone please come. Good morning. Today, um, I am both sad and honored to stand with my colleagues to celebrate Assistant CEO Caroline Smith's two decades of service to the residents of San Diego County. Caroline joined the county of San Diego in 202 um 20 2005 2005. She's had many hats. You're not wearing

a hat today, but she has many hats. Uh during her career here, um she served in leadership positions across the board, including board of supervisor district 5 as a staff member. She was in HHSA as a deputy director, assistant director, and later the interimm deputy CEO. the office of economic development and government affairs as a legislative policy adviser and director and finally as assistant chief administrative officer in September 2024. Throughout her out throughout her career with the county, Caroline has demonstrated an unwavering dedication to advancing initiatives that promote the health, safety, and well-being of residents, strengthening programs and partnerships that uplift communities and pro and improve quality of life across San Diego County. Thank you, Caroline, for your two decades of service to the County of San Diego. We are going to miss you so much. Um, if any of my colleagues would like to say any words before I give a proclamation.

Please go ahead.

Thank you. Thank you. Today we celebrate Caroline and everything she's brought to the county family. Caroline has been an incredible partner, steady, thoughtful, and always willing to jump in wherever she was needed. She has a way of bringing clarity to complicated issues and helping people feel grounded even on the toughest days. Caroline helped move big meaningful work forward and she did it with humility and humor. Beyond her leadership, she's been a genuine support to me personally, someone I could trust, laugh with, and rely on. her impact shows up in the teams that she's mentored, the partnerships that she strengthened, and the culture that she helped to shape. And while we're sad to see her go, we're also excited for her as she steps into new opportunities and gets to spend more time with her family. Caroline, thank you for your dedication, your kindness, and the way you've shown up for this organization time and time again. We're cheering you on in this next chapter and you'll always be a part of our C County family. Thank you for your partnership, your leadership, and your heart. And on behalf of the entire county family, we wish you every success, every joy, and every exciting adventure in the next chapter. Congratulations. Thank you.

Well, I just Caroline, I just want to say thank you so much for all your hard work and your efforts. I always knew if I went to Caroline for for something, I was going to get the straight straight scoop. She'd give it to me. Whether I liked it or not, she's going to give it to you the way it is. And I always appreciated that. And and plus, she started out working in district five and and moved her way all the way up to the top here. And um so lots of good things come out of district 5. Caroline, you did that. And I'm glad Caroline, I'm ready. I'm happy to see you in going off into the future and wish you all the best. Thank you very much. Jim doesn't get off that easy. Uh Caroline, uh your 20 years of distinguished service to the county of San Diego reflect a deep and genuine commitment to the people we serve. As a Ramona native from district two, you unve

you understood from the very beginning that county government has to work for every community and that perspect perspective showed in everything you did. You brought not only expertise and professionalism to the role of assistant chief administrative officer, but you also a steady hand, sound judgment, and a sense of purpose that earned the respect of everyone that had the privilege to work with you. This county is stronger because your dedication and your belief in public service. We know this job demanded an extraordinary amount of your time and energy. Rules like this don't just operate from 9 to5. Your family has shared in that sacrifice. And we hope this next chapter gives you the time that you deserve to be with your husband Scott, your son, Cole, and your two rescue laboratory laborators, Buster and Rocky. Yesterday, I asked her what her dogs names were. Trying to be very discreet, not to give anything away. Uh enjoy the moments that are often hard to come by in a career devoted to serving others. You should take great pride in what you uh have left behind. Your work matters. Uh it made a difference and it will continue to benefit the people of San Diego County for years to come. Thank you again, Caroline, for your service, your integrity, and the lasting impact that you've made to this organization and the people we serve. So, so much has been said that I completely agree with. Um, I am certainly going to miss your expertise, but I'm going to miss your h humor even more. And, um, if you ever do any standup, you know, come and let me know. She really is hilarious. So dealing with um five different elected officials um

who all have different needs um you always made me feel like whatever we shared it was your top priority to get it done and we've only been able to work together for a couple of years but it has been super fun and it also has been very productive which are two things that don't often go together. So Caroline I certainly will miss you. Um I do have your number. I'm not going to bother you, but Oh, well, let me just roll that back. I'm going to try not to bother you. Um, but I certainly will miss you and I wish you all the very, very best in whatever is next for you. And congratulations to your family for getting you back.

Very quickly, I know I'm the newest here and I've spent the least amount of time with you, but the time that I've spent with you has been so enjoyable. But I really truly appreciate your wealth of knowledge. I know you've contributed so much over these past two decades, but I want to be very clear about my gratitude from on behalf of the people of District 1 around the work that you did to help us move ahead, move forward the solutions related to the Tijuana River. They have made a tremendous impact in the progress we have made so far. So, I'm truly going to miss you. And most importantly, Dasha is going to miss you. Dasha's my doctor. So now, therefore, be it proclaimed by myself and all members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors that on this 24th day of March, 2026, we commend Caroline Smith and declare this day Caroline Smith Day throughout San Diego County. Well, Madam Chair and supervisors, thank you so much for those incredibly kind words and um for allowing me to be the implementation arm of your policym. It has been incredibly impactful for me because not just as a San Diego native, but my sister Courtney and I, I think, mom, we're the fifth generation on your side of the family, born in San Diego. My son is the sixth. And so having a front row seat to your leadership and how you've guided this region and served your constituents has been such an honor for me. So, thank you so much for for making me part of your process. And specifically to your chiefs of staff, to Paul and Work and Megan and Dante and Darren. Thank you so much for your

partnership and your friendship as we translated the policy into operations um and back up again so that we were truly implementing your vision. Debbony, thank you for being the best boss and the best friend. You guide this enterprise with grace and integrity and purpose and we are so incredibly lucky that you are at the helm. And I'm I am excited to get some time back with my family. You all have been patient um and graceful as I've poured my heart and soul into public service for 20 years. Um so I'm looking forward to having the gift of time with you all. And finally to the county team, those of you in the room and the 20,000 beyond. The passion and dedication that you show up with every day in the name of public service has been an inspiration to me for 20 years. Supporting you and your work has been my why and the greatest privilege of my career. So, Supervisor Lawson Reamer and supervisors, thank you so much for this honor, this proclamation, but more importantly for the honor of serving the residents of San Diego County.

Okay, thank you all very much. Uh the second proclamation will be given by myself and vice chair Montgomery step honoring the San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls. Accepting the proclamation will be Christine Custodio Suera. Come on. Come on. Come up. Come up. Come up.

So good to see you all. Great. Great to be here. Thank you. Um, today it's my honor to present this proclamation along with my colleague, Vice Chair Montgomery Steppp, to honor the County of San Diego Commission on the Status of Women and Girls in celebration of Women's History Month. For more than five decade, excuse me, for more than five decades, the commission has addressed critical issues impacting women and girls, including domestic violence, homelessness, human trafficking, child care and human care services, education and employment opportunities, medical and health services, welfare and social services, elder care and fraud prevention, sexual discrimination, and prejudice. The commission played a central ro role in advancing the convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women. It's the CIDA ordinance representing a landmark commitment from the county of San Diego to gender equity, datadriven policy, and inclusive governance. The commission's service reflects a deep commitment to public service, gender equity, and the well-being of women and girls throughout San Diego County. Please Good morning again, everyone. very proud to be here this morning honoring the San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls. This commission was created because mi the many challenges faced by women and girls in our county have too often been ignored and overlooked. If we cannot see and identify an issue, we cannot fix it. And when we do see and identify an issue, we have a responsibility and a moral obligation to rectify it. Their stories and perspectives need to be told so that when county policies and programs are being developed, we do it in a way that is equitable to women and girls. We must continue to work together to promote gender equity. And with that, I will read the final line of the proclamation. Be it proclaimed by chair Tara Lawson

Reamer and all members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on this 24th day of March 2026 that they commend the San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls for their outstanding service, leadership, and commitment to the residents of San Diego County and do hereby declare this day to be San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls Day throughout San Diego County. Congratulations, Chair Lawson Reamer, Vice Chair and Supervisors, on behalf of the San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls, thank you for this recognition and for the county's continued commitment to advancing equity for the women and girls who live, work, and raise families in our region. This proclamation is especially meaningful during Women's History Month. It reminds us that the progress that we celebrate today is the result of generations of women and allies who work to ensure that public policy reflects fairness, dignity, and opportunity for all. The county's adoption of the SEDOT ordinance represents a landmark moment for San Diego. It affirms that gender equity is not only a value but a framework for good governance. Through data, collaboration, and thoughtful policy evaluation, CEDA helps ensure that county programs and decisions consider the real lived experiences of women and girls across our communities. We are grateful to the commissioners whose leadership helped advance this effort. Chair Emmeritus, excuse me, Jenny Prrisk, Chair Emmeritus and Ceda Adviser, Perisa II Makudi, Nadia Farjude, Dr. Rebecca Boyce, Melinda Vasquez, Deja Cabrera, Diane Belk, Leia Goodwin, Terresa Snos, and Sher Lewig. Their advocacy, partnership, and

commitment helped bring this important ordinance forward. Since its establishment in 1975, the commission has served as an advisory board to the board on issues affecting women and girls. From economic opportunity and education to safety, health, housing, and justice, our work continues to elevate the voices and experiences of women throughout San Diego County. We are deeply grateful to the board of supervisors for your leadership and partnership in advancing policies that strengthen families, communities, and opportunity for all. Thank you for this recognition and for your continued commitment to the women and girls of San Diego County. Okay, thank you all very much. Uh the next proclamation, uh one moment. See, Monica's just going to be here all

day. Okay. The third proclamation will be given by Vice Chair Montgomery Step. Honoring Women's History Month. Accepting the proclamation will be Dr. Maria Kekler and Yukioa. Good morning again everyone. Um I'm so honored to recognize 39 years of Women's History Month. A month dedicated to acknowledging the hardships and discrimination faced by women throughout history and to celebrate their achievements particularly when battling adversity. And speaking of adversity, adversity, today women are facing a series of interconnected challenges, economic instability, inequitable access to health care, and threats to democratic participation. And despite this, women continue to fight not just for themselves, but also for their communities. Today, we honor two who are here, but three leading women in San Diego County who are doing just that in their work in everyday lives. uh Maria Kekler and Uiko Sneazawa. We honor Maria, the co-founder and CEO of Pivotal Empathy, Inc. and co-founder of the Healthc Care Empathy RX Lab at San Diego State University. Maria is a pillar of our community and bridges empathy, cultural intelligence, and behavioral science to de develop more empathetic practitioners and leaders in San Diego County. We honor Uiko, a software engineer, mother, immigrant, de d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d dedicated Padres's fan and community volunteer through raising her wonderful daughter Sam who also happens to be a policy adviser in my office and volunteering with Safe

Sleep San Diego San Diego rescue mission and path uo inspires all to remember that even small acts of kindness can make a meaningful difference for each and our communities. We also honor Emily Green Lake, who cannot be here today because she is competing in an international pizza competition in Vegas this week. Emily is the owner of Sisters Pizza and Little Sisters Pizza, two beloved Hillrest and North Park landmarks that serve as a vibrant gathering place recognized for both their New Jersey style pizza and advocacy for the LGBTQ plus and other marginalized communities like foster youth and neighbors wrongfully detained in their legal immigration process. As we commemorate this 39th year of women women's history month, let us honor and celebrate the women who paved the way, the women leading today and the generations who will continue to break barriers. And with that, I will present the proclamation be it proclaimed by chair Tara Lawson Reamer and all members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on this 24th day of March 2026 that we commend Maria Kekckler, PhD, Emily Green Lake, Guo Zen, Zenin Atazawa for their outstanding service, leadership, and commitment to the residents of San Diego County and do hereby declare this to be Women's History Month throughout San Diego County. Congratulations to you both. Please, if you would like to say a few words. I am very honored to be here. I have been in San Diego for the majority of my life and the longest place I've lived, apart from my native Mexico City. I am grateful to be able to serve this community through our work. Uh we know

that one thing that we all share in common here, no matter where we come from, is that sooner or later, we will be patients and so will the people that we love. And when we find ourselves in in a situation with a diagnosis when when we need care, what we're going to hope is that the person uh looking at our case at the foot of the bed has not let their empathy erode so that we can be treated as human beings. And so that is our work and I'm excited to be part of San Diego.

Um, thank you so much. I am truly honored to be here and to be part of this amazing community. Um, I couldn't do this without the support of my daughter and my husband. They're always by my side. Sam Mike, thank you so much. Thank you. Okay, thank you very much. The four fourth proclamation will be given by chair promagiri honoring home girls de corazone. Accepting the proclamation will be Maria Elena Grieman Linde.

Good morning. Good morning everyone. Today I'm honored to recognize an organization that represents what community care, resilience, and transformation truly looks like in action. We are here to uplift and celebrate Home Girls del Corason, a program grounded in lived experience and dedicated to walking alongside women and young people as they navigate healing and growth. This recognition is not just about a program. It's about the power of second chances, of community-led solutions, and of investing in people who are too often overlooked. Kong Girl Delorason was founded from the lived experience of Marilena Grieman Lindy, whose own healing journey became the foundation for something much bigger. Creating spaces where women and youth feel seen, supported, and empowered through a trauma-informed and healing centered approach. HomeGirls El Corason serves women and youth from communities that have been disproportionately impacted by poverty, violence, addiction, gang involvement, and incarceration. What makes their work especially powerful is where they show up. from women's recovery programs to community initiatives like the juvenile justice leadership academy and even inside facilities like the East Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility and the Youth Transition Campus. They are meeting youth where they are and some of them at the most critical moments of their lives. And just as importantly, they're cultivating leadership. They're helping develop credible messengers, peer mentors, and advocates. individuals who will go on to uplift others and strengthen their communities. Homeg Girls El Corason embodies the very best of leadership and a deep commitment

to community. I'd like to pause and acknowledge something that isn't said enough. This work is hard. It asks us to show up every single day with empathy, patience, and unwavering belief in people. That is exactly the type of leadership we should all strive to uplift and replicate. And it's leaders like Maria and so many women like her who do this work without recognition, often behind the scenes, quietly transforming lives. Today, we make that work visible. Today, we honor it. and today we commit to uplifting it. It is truly an honor for us to recognize their impact here today. So at this time I will read the final portion of the proclamation. Whereas the county of San Diego is committed to recognizing and honoring those individuals and organizations that are dedicated to the best ideals of public service and homeg girls delas is one such worthy organization. Now therefore, be it proclaimed by chair Tara Lawson Reamer and all members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on this 24th day of March 2026 that they commend Home Girls El Corasonon for their outstanding service, leadership, and commitment to the citizens of San Diego County and do hereby declare this day to be homeg girls throughout San Diego County. Good morning everyone. We want to thank the county board of supervisors for recommend or recommending us for this proclamation and for carrying our voices when many times it's not heard. We also want to thank the county board of supervisors

for inviting their inner child to play with our inner child. today. There's many times we don't get to address those moments in our live experience that have caused a lot of harm, not with only within ourselves, but within our communities. Something that's been really important with home girls is to create a space for our women to come together to begin to engage in conversations that are really deeply needed, but also bringing the elephant into the room. Because when we talk about trauma, people normally get on their cell phones, they got to go check out emails, they just we don't want to deal with it. And I get it. But what I've learned through my own little experience and with the support of an amazing team and family and a community that have embraced us that healing is needed in San Diego comm San Diego communities. Our voices are needed to be heard, but our traumas don't have different colors. They don't have different viewpoints. They don't have different skin textures. Trauma and feelings are real and we all carry them. And we've all come out of a a time of COVID where we've all experienced some form of trauma. So, we can now all engage in these deep needed conversations. So, my little girl within me, little Marilena, who I love to take out on dates and spend time with because she needed that growing up. I can now invest that into her. And we now invest that into each other. We invest that into our youth, whether on they're out here on the community or within juvenile facilities. We want to know that these voices are going to be heard. So something really important that we committed to 2026 is we're going to get loud. And so we want to thank you for creating this opportunity and for just loving on us the way that we've needed. And we want to be able to pour and love on you as a community. So thank you from our inner child.

The fifth proclamation will be given by chair promiri and supervisor Anderson undering San Diego Public Defenders Week. Accepting the proclamation will be Paul Rodriguez.

How are you? Good to see you. Thank you so much. Hi. Nice to meet you. Hi. Nice to meet you. Thanks for being here.

All right. It is my honor alongside Supervisor Anderson today to rec recognize the invaluable work of the San Diego County Public Defenders Office. The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the right to legal counsel for every individual accused of a crime. The landmark Supreme Court decision of Gideon versus Waynewright decided in March 1963 reaffirmed that this right extends to all regardless of financial means. As we mark the anniversary of this historic decision each March, we celebrate an office that embodies this promise every single day. Public defenders ensure that underserved communities are not overlooked or silenced in systems that were not historically designed with them in mind. They stand as a critical voice for those who might otherwise go unheard, advocating fiercely, leveling the playing field, and making certain that every individual is seen, heard, and afforded the full measure of justice. Since its founding in 1988, the San Diego County Public Defenders Office has provided client centered highquality legal representation to our community. Their commitment ensures that due process, fairness, and the rule of law remain accessible to all residents of San Diego County. The San Diego County Public Defenders Office delivers this through its distinct branches, the primary and alternate public defender offices, the multiple conflicts office, and the office of assigned counsel, ensuring every person receives expert compassionate legal representation. The public defenders office also plays a critical role in adv advocating for our most vulnerable populations. Youth and in the juvenile justice system, children

and families and dependency proceedings and individuals facing immigr immigration challenges including unaccompanied migrant children. By going the extra mile, especially for youth from underserved communities, through intensive case management, mentorship, and connections to vital resources, the office helps create pathways to better life outcomes while guiding families through complex legal systems, advancing not justice, but opportunity, equity, and human dignity. Their dedication goes beyond legal representation. There are t tire tireless champions of justice, equity, and systemic improvement. That this is why the county of San Diego declares this week as San Diego public defender week. It is not only a time to recognize the extraordinary dedication of these professionals. It is a moment to reaffirm our county's unwavering commitment to justice and fairness and to honor the indispensable role public defenders play in protecting the rights, dignity, and voices of every member of our community. And while we set aside this week for recognition, their impact calls for our gratitude and support every single day. On behalf of the county of San Diego, I extend our heartfelt gratitude and recognition to the San Diego County Public Defenders Office. Your work strengthens the foundation of our justice system and exemplifies the highest ideals of public service. And with that, I am honored to introduce my good friend and colleague, Supervisor Anderson.

Thank you, Supervisor Agiri. I'm honored to join Supervisor Agaryi in recognizing the San Diego County Public Defenders Office. Joining us today to accept the proclamation is Paul A. Rodriguez, the head of the Office of Public Defenders. Paul and his amazing team work tirelessly to uphold the principles of equal justice and ensure that everyone has access to legal representation. Without public defenders, there is no justice. We only have justice when both sides are fairly rep represented. Thank you to Paul and his and your outstanding leadership and your entire team. Uh the addition of the office of public defenders extends its impact beyond the courtroom throughout their outreach initiatives that have helped strengthen the trust in the legal system and promoted equal justice throughout the county. We are proud to have such distinguished such a distinguished department serving the residents of San Diego County and we deeply value its continued commitment to justice and community. Now, I'd like to read the last paragraph of the proclamation. Be it proclaimed by Chair Tara Lawson Reamer and all the members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on this 24th day of March 2026 that they commend the San Diego County Public Defenders Office for their outstanding service, leadership, commitment to the citizens of San Diego County. and we here do declare this week to be San Diego public defenders week throughout San Diego County.

You know, I'm uh I'm a little speechless. It's not that's not very common for a lawyer uh when receiving this award. Hey, those are my notes. Oh, okay.

Make your own. Um, I have to first thank uh, Supervisor Agiri and Supervisor Anderson for sponsoring this proclamation. We are deeply honored to be receiving this recognition. I have to say that nobody does this very difficult work alone. Uh standing with me today are staff from the public defenders office, attorneys, investigators, parillegals, mitigation specialists, uh trial support specialists, uh volunteers, IT staff, HR staff, administrative staff, all of whom come together with one common goal, and that's to provide zealous representation to every client assigned to us and to ensure access to justice. and of course look out for the most vulnerable individuals in all of our communities. In a word, if I had to boil it down to one thing, the work that we do at the public defenders is about justice. It is about ensuring that every person is treated equally under the law. And to some, that may be an ideal. That may be something that we aspire to. But not us. Not us at the San Diego Public Defenders Office. Every day in every corner of our county, countless staff from our department represent individuals who are not heard or seen the way everyone should be. It is my distinct privilege to accept this proclamation. And I read somewhere that the moral arc of the universe bends towards justice. I will humbly add that if it does, it is because of individuals like these

standing with me today who work in our department who not only aspire to it but demand it every single day. Thank you so much to our county board of supervisors for this proclamation, to supervisor Agiri and Supervisor Anderson for sponsoring it and for supporting our department. Thank you so much. Okay, thank you very much. The sixth proclamation will be given by supervisor

Anderson honoring arts, culture, and creativity month. Accepting the proclamation will be Bob Leman. How you all doing? I'm honored to be here today as we recognize arts, culture, and creativity month. I want to thank Bob Leman, Christine Jones, Charlene O'Keefe, Felicia Shaw, Monica Hernandez, Renee Rickettts, and uh Marissa Rosales for joining us today on behalf of the Commission for Arts and Culture. Bob and his fellow commissioners are fantastic advocates for the arts in San Diego County and I am excited to have them here today as we honor this occasion. The arts are not just entertainment. They are a fundamental part of our human experience. Arts and cultures culture contribute significantly to our economy, creating jobs, driving tourism, and fueling innovation. During art, culture, and creativity month, we celebrate the artists, creatives, and cultural organizations who play a vital role in strengthening our communities. By acknowledging the importance of art, we uh help preserve the legacy and enriches, inspires, and connects generations to come. For these reasons, I'm proud uh to I am proud to present this proclamation honoring arts, culture, and creativity month. I'd like to read the last paragraph. It says, "Be it proclaimed by chair Tara Lawson Reamer and all the members of the

San Diego County Board of Supervisors on this 24th day of March 2026 that they commend the San Diego County Arts and Culture Commission for their outstanding service, leadership, and commitment to the citizens of San Diego County. And we hereby declare this month of April to be Arts, Culture, and Creativity Month throughout San Diego County. Awesome.

I'm Bob Layman, the vice chair of the San Diego County Arts and Culture Commission. As the state of California prepares to celebrate Arts and Culture Creativity Month this April, thank you to the County of San Diego Board of Supervisors for this proclamation recognizing the importance. On behalf of the commission, we are grateful for your leadership and unlifting a sector that is vital to our region's identity, economy, and quality of life. Arts and culture are not only a powerful economic driver, supporting jobs, tourism, and small businesses. They're also a key reason people choose to visit San Diego County and ultimately why so many decide to call it home and raise their families here. This recognition affirms the essential role creativity plays in building vibrant, connected, and thriving communities across San Diego County. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Thank you. The final proclamation will be given by Supervisor Desmond honoring Women's First Step House of North County. Accepting the proclamation will be Kira Casy.

We

got the best for last. Thanks for bring down here. Thanks for coming down. Thank you. Thank you. Wow. Thanks for coming down. Appreciate it. Yeah. Yeah. You're welcome. Well, good morning everyone. It is my honor to welcome and recognize the Women's First Stephouse of North County uh led by President Kira Casy and her incredible team here today. Um thanks for coming all the way down to San Diego here. So on behalf of the county of San Diego, we're very proud to celebrate an organization that truly reflects compassion, resilience, and strength of community. The Women's First Step House of North County stands as a beacon of hope, offering women a safe place to pause, heal, and to begin again. We are grateful for their life-changing work that you do every day. Since opening their doors in 2021, this remarkable volunteer-run organization has provided more than 550 women with a free, supportive pathway towards sobriety. Alcohol touches every corner of our community. Alcoholism touches every corner of our community, affecting families, friendships, and futures. in North County. This organiz organization is helping to restore all three one woman at a time by rebuilding confidence, renewing purpose, and strengthening the fabric of our community as they celebrate their five years of service. Uh later this month are commending their their we commend their unwavering commitment to public health and to the community well-being. uh their work reminds us that recovery is possible and that their hope when shared that can really transform lives. So whereas the county of San Diego, we're very proud to honor and recognize organizations that exemplify the highest ideals of public service, the Women's

First Stephouse of North County is one such organization. So therefore, be it proclaimed by all the members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on this 24th day of March, 2026 that we commend the Women's First Step House of North County for their outstanding service, leadership, and commitment to the citizens of San Diego County and do hereby declare this day to be Women's First Step House of North County Day throughout San Diego County. So I want to Kira, I want here got a proclamation here. You want to hand it hand it off and and do you want to say a few words? Okay, great. Thanks for making the trip. Of course. Thank you.

All right. Thank you for taking time to recognize the importance of women, alcoholism, and recovery. It's a life gift that we are able to offer women. I would also love to express our gratitude to County Supervisor Jim Desmond and the rest of the supervisors for this honor today. It's incredible for us to be up here and receiving this. So, thank you very much. Welcome. Yeah. Um, I would also love to introduce the team that is here with us today. We have many board members, founding board members, we have alumni and we have our resident chef. Um, so you can look us up, but it's Aaron Pascalini, Susie Lampy, Leanne Garmms, we have Pam Survey, we have Bobby Cran, Surasi, and we have Heather Van Bochen Toten, something close like that.

Together, we're part of a large volunteer team. We're a volunteer-run organization. We have one employee and she is the resident cook and we are open 365 days a year for women who are in need of help. We offer a free 10-day stay for women. It's amazing. They come in and they have lost hope in life. Many have lost their children. They've lost their financial security. They've lost their houses. They've lost their jobs. What we offer them is a chance of hope. We introduce them to sobriety. We share with them experience, strength, and hope that they too can live a life in sobriety one day at a time. When women enter our home, something magical happens. Shame turns into safety. Isolation turns into community. And they, for the first time, were able to see healing and hope like they've never seen it before. What a gift. We have one alumni. I'd love to share her story. She came in. She had lost custody of her two kids. She had lost her job as a property manager. And she had lost her house. Her life was over in her mind. She came in. She heard stories of experience, strength, and hope of women who had had experiences just like her. And she chose recovery. She chose to become our resident cook. She quickly got access, you know, custody of her kids back. She got her job. She got a house. And she most recently got her real estate license exam passed. It's incredible what we offer women that chance at life again. So with that, what I would love to do is um recognize that we are celebrating five years of our of our upstanding service this Saturday with a wonderful celebration. Uh and we would love to offer and say if you know a woman struggling with alcohol, please share that we exist. A free 10-day stay, no insurance required. We are here for you, for your family members, for our community. If you are a woman in recovery and you're looking for service opportunities, we welcome you. Please look at our website. We would love to teach you how we share experience and strength and hope with women in need. And so with that, what I would like to do is thank you again for this

proclamation presentation. We are amazingly honored. Um and we would love to have all of you uh just make sure to share share the words, share the message. Recovery exists. It is possible. And with that there is hope. So thank you.

We'll get a picture up here. I just want to say it's just wonderful when you see volunteers stepping a photo up here. Yes. Okay, thank you all so much. Um, thank you for the enthusiasm of my colleagues with so many proclamations this morning. Lots of uh people in our community to honor. Um, and yes, it's just really wonderful to see so many people here. So, uh, before we begin our

meeting, I would like to take a moment to address our house rules. Public engagement is the cornerstone of transparent and accountable government. And these board of supervisors meetings are one of the primary venues where all San Dieagans can make their voices heard. Our county is committed to work environment free from unlawful discrimination and harassment, including sexual, racial, religious age, disability, or any other forms of discrimination or harassment. Under the board's rules, speakers may not use loud, shouting, threatening, impertinent, slanderous, profane, or abusive language to any member of the board, staff, or the general public. Additionally, all remarks and questions must remain on topic during the duration of your speaking time and must be addressed to the board and not to county staff. Any speaker who engages in comments that break these rules will be issued a warning. After one warning, you will be asked to leave the chambers for the remainder of the meeting. Finally, speakers threatening violence may be reported to law enforcement and will be removed from the meeting. This is a space for community engagement, deliberation, and progress, not for harassment, violence, and hate. So, we now proceed with non-aggenda public comment. This is an opportunity for the public to address the board on subject matters within our jurisdiction, but not an item on our meeting agenda today. The only action we may take is a referral to our CEO. Under the board's rules, speakers may speak once per meeting for non-aggenda public comment, either at today's general legislative session or tomorrow's land use legislative session, but not at both sessions. You may select which session to address at your convenience. To better facilitate our meeting for non-aggenda public comment, we have five speakers in person and five speakers by phone. And the first five speakers in person will be now randomly selected. The remainder of non-aggenda public comment will be heard at the close of today's session. Additionally,

in accordance with board rules, in order to ensure timely completion of today's agenda, for any discussion items with 10 or more speakers, individuals will have one minute to share their opinion. According to rule 4A, members of the public that are non-English-speaking and need interpretation assistance receive twice the allotted time for their comments. And as a final reminder, audience members may not whistle, clap, stump feet, or do anything to disrupt our proceedings. If you disrupt this meeting, you will be given one warning. After that one warning, if you disrupt the meeting again, you will be directed to leave the chamber for the remainder of the meeting. Andrew, please call the speakers.

Thank you, Chair Lawson Reamer. We have 19 requests to speak on matters not listed on the agenda, nine individuals in person, and 10 requesting to speak by phone. For those that requested to speak by phone, please dial into the conference line using the instructions that were provided to you. We'll begin with the in-person speakers and we'll now randomly select the first five speakers in person. All the remaining speakers will be heard at the conclusion of today's session. As your name is called, please come forward and stand on the arrows until it is your turn to speak at the podium. You will have two minutes to address the board. And I'll ask you to begin by stating your name for the audio record. Like to invite forward the first three individuals. Perita Javier, Brian Laferty, Debbie Foster. They'll be followed by the two remaining individuals in person, Michael Brando and allegedly Audra. If I've called your name, please come forward. Say good morning.

Good morning. Health hazards of ceramic mark artists.

Come on, please. Ceramic artist can be exposed to many hazards including metals such as lead fire jenny such as selica hell I mean Eight. Predictive motion radiation and toxic mess emissions from counts. be held. These expositions have not been well characterized among artists, although limited informs available from commercial potteries. Adverse health effects may be pretended, right? by using the mysteries such as lead free glasses, improve ventilation and proper work practices precautions. s must be in place if children

have enough. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

Hi. So, um, Madame Chair and County Board of Supervisors, I have a statement that I just wanted to read to you. Members of the board name Oh, it's I'm sorry. It's Debbie Foster. Thank you.

Members of the board of supervisors, my name is Debbie Foster, and I'd like to address the current vacancy on the Ramona Cemetery Board of Trustees. I want to make both the county board of supervisors and the public aware that this seat has been vacant since December and has yet to be filled. As a result, the board is operating with only two trustees, which creates a significant risk of deadlock on key decisions. This not only limits the board's ability to function effectively, but also places the cemetery and public confidence in it at risk. It's important to emphasize that the cemetery itself is financially stable and doing well. However, operating with an incomplete board can create the opposite impression, making it appear as though the organization is struggling when that is not the case. I am not in a position to speak the reasons why the seat has remained unfilled. However, prolonged vacancies can create conditions where a well- functioning organization appears unstable or in need of outside intervention. That perception matters. It really does matter, especially as discussions continue regarding potential structural changes, including a possible merger with another district. With an ad hoc committee committee already evaluating the possibility of a merger with the water district, it is important that any conclusions or recommendations be made with a fully staffed and properly functioned cemetery board in place. Decisions of that magnitude magnitude could reflect the cemetery's true condition and include the full voice of its governance. To my knowledge, there is no precedent in San Diego County for a special cemetery district merging with another district. That makes it especially important that any decisions about the future of the cemetery are based on accurate representation and not circumstances created by an in by an incomplete board.

Thank you. Your time is up. Thank you. Okay. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

And I understand that allegedly Otter wants to speak tomorrow. So I'll call the fifth speaker today, Dena Saras Sar Sarasova. Good morning. My name is Brian Laferty. I am a county employee work at the med I work at the medical examiner. I'm a proud member of SA local 221 and I'm also a union steward. Uh so last year as part of our contract uh the county agreed to have a study done to see how much it would cost how much it would cost the county to move everyone in tier D to tier C and get rid of tier D. And we were told uh that I'm I'm on the retirement committee. We were told back in November it would be that study would be made available around Decemberish. That's what we were told. the it is now almost the end of March and so and so tier D has had a negative impact on recruiting and retention. If someone were to start working for the county at 18 years of age, they'd have to work until they are 80 years old to get 100%. This is an issue that is very big for our members and that is why I have here uh petitions signed by our members demanding that the county deliver its cost study by by June 24th of this of this year, one year after the ratification of our contract. Like I said, I cannot stress enough, tier D is bad for everybody. It is negatively impacted. Recruitment and retention. County employees deserve to retire in dignity. And we ask that that the county stop dragging their feet and

deliver that cost study. And and those petitions, by the way, will be deliver will be delivered to the clerk of the board of supervisors. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Two. Two of these. Two of these today. Michael, you got it. two of these. All right. I want to talk about two things today. Jurisdiction and what you label behavioral health. When I walked in the building today, I said to one who works here, "Oh, you're still here." And I said, "I thought I thought you were gone." And the person said, "No, I'm still here. I thought I thought you had given up on all the pain and suffering going on here." And I said, 'I don't come here for the pain and suffering, although that's what is emanated from this board, the hypocrisy of things, the hypocrisy of every topic under the sun. And it was interesting watching all the rigomearroll this morning with the proclamations, how it seems so wonderful and so uh eloquent and heartfelt that people are giving recognition and I'm sure these people are doing some very good things. But underneath this whole substance, the foundation, which is a rotten foundation of this board, is absolute unconsciousness and insanity. Some people call that evil. I'm still wearing this shirt from five years ago because people are still dying from the boweapon serum injection. And so many of you like to criticize Trump and I'm no Trump fan, but he's the one who

continues to lie about this and says that it saved millions of lives when again in our inverted reality the exact opposite has happened. I would play something. I think I will play it because it kind of sets the tone for the day. Okay, I'm speaking a little out of turn. We sit up here and we do theater like all day long. Um I know we never get to say the stuff that's really going on. want me to sit here and have theater all day? Okay.

Yeah, theater. And I know Tara, you're on your way out apparently because of some alleged pregnancy that's going that's going on online. Talk about that. So, it's interesting that you're trying to get out of here like so many people have successfully done. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good morning, members of the board. If you can pull the microphone down a little closer. Thank you. And state your name.

My name is Dina Sarasova. Thank you for having me. I've never spoken before. Um, I wanted to let you know that next week marks the seventh anniversary of my son being kidnapped by his father. His attorney set me up, my my son and I, to uh be arrested, falsely arrested. We were separated. My son was put into Pinsky Children's Center. And I was let go right after he was released to his father and taken out of state. And I've been fighting for some sort of justice nonstop all these years. The county finally admitted that there were irregularities in how they handled the investigation because I found a letter in his Pinsky file in my son's Pollinsky file that predates predates the day that he was entered into Pinsky by six days six days ahead of him being brought there. They were already researching what his medical coverage was. And after all this, HHS operations compliance determined that my complaints were unfounded. My son is being treated like he doesn't deserve justice. Please conduct an independent review of who was waiting for my son to be brought there. Please. Thank you for listening. Thank you. We'll now hear from those

that requested to speak by phone. Again, in accordance with the board's rules, we'll hear from the first five callers. The remaining callers will be heard at the conclusion of today's session. When it is your turn to speak, you will be unmuted and you will hear a recording that will tell you to begin your comments. We will start with our first caller. Paul, you just heard it again. Pinski is a hole. Now, medical fraud, in this case, hospice fraud is a huge problem. The California state auditor flagged that there has been a rapid increase in the number of hospice agencies with no clear correlation to increased need. Other flags included excessive geographic clustering of hospices, long durations of services for patients, abnormally high rates of living patients discharged from hospice and agencies possibly using stolen identities of medical personnel. It often involves stolen Medicare numbers being used to falsely enroll patients in hospice. In one case, a 69year-old woman was denied coverage for physical therapy because Medicare records showed that she was dying in hospice. Uh, per CBS News, red flags for fraud included the dense concentration of hospice companies. Nearly 500 were operating within a threemile radius in LA. Uh 89 companies were found to be registered to a single building on Van Wise Boulevard.

72 of which reportedly shared multiple signs of fraud. Almost 40 of the companies shared key personnel, something that state auditors consider to be a potential red flag for fraud. Federal records indicate that regulators visited multiple suites in the building between 21 and 20 25 when CBS News attempted to reach 56 hospice hosts whose dating federal data indicated hear from the next caller. Hi, my name is Zora Fahheim, president founder of Los Angeles Alliance for Animals. Andrew Strong is one of the worst deputy CEOs for public safety group as it relates to animal welfare and an instrument of lawlessness, corruption, and I'm glad that we continue to have mounting evidence that Andrew Strong has allegedly been untruthful to his boss, the board of supervisors, that everything is okay within DAS when it is not. Not to forget Kathleen Planner and Holly Porter, who also allowed years of corruption within DAS. Most alarming are the recent allegations that horses previously confiscated due to suspect neglect, according to Andrew Strong, NDA Summer Stefen, have now been returned to Deborah Barkley, not to mention a long- winded history of documented neglect towards those horses and dogs. If true, on what basis, Tara, were these animals deemed safe to return? and who is being

held accountable that these animals have now once again been placed back into harmful conditions. I am glad that the American people continue to be presented by factual, undeniable evidence that animal abuser supervisor Tara Larsamer continues to engage in serious allegations of aiding and embedding criminal animal cruelty and Tara and Summer Stefen's passion for protecting mentally ill hoarders ruling our county who create a serious child endangerment within our municipalities. If Tara Andrew Kathleen Summer Stefen and incompetent Eric Bodner have an ounce of decency within your B bones, you would resign today. Thank you so much for your time.

Thank you. Now hear from the next caller.

Pam, my nexus, abortion is murder. the county jurisdiction sanctuary for the murder of human babies. Girls and women usually have an idea of when conception occurs. Most seek medical attention when the provider settles the date of conception, validating the pregnancy and sets the due date for the birth of a baby. Therefore, the determination of pregnancy affirms the point of conception is the beginning of a new human life, not just a clump of cells. Otherwise, why does the mother choose death or life for her baby? A current pregnancy confirms female is the sex capable of pregnancy. This is regardless of subjective gender identity, label or title such as a non such as non-binary, pansexual, transman, etc. There are two sexes and only one can become pregnant. Men cannot ever be pregnant no matter the amount of makeup or number of ugly dresses they wear or hormones they ingest or surgeries they undergo. Girls and women pretending to be boys or men are not male. Therefore, they are capable of pregnancy as a female. The monthly average number of abortions in America in 2025 was over 98,000 per month in America. These numbers reflect dead babies. The right to life, liberty, and happiness is erased by abortion, by murder. Democrats will continue to confuse girls and women with the lie abortion is reproductive health care. Where is the sanctuary for the babies?

Thank you. We'll hear from the next caller from the swallow. And the goal is to get rid of our species. Anyways, for every problem in society, there's an agency, a government funded agency there to collect money and say they're trying to solve it. But what we've learned, what we've actually learned is that every single one of these problems have become lucrative. From homelessness to child welfare to car to the carbon footprint to medical services and on and on. And when problems become profitable, there is no real incentive to solve them. Take the medical industry for example, a trillion dollar cancer industry. There's no incentive to find a cure when man when managing the illness is already generating billions. Um and there's several cures so out there people just need to look. Uh people have become so dependent, so trusting that they've forgotten to question the source of all of these lucrative problems. Any guesses? I'll give you a hint. The very word itself when broken down means to control the mind. Govern control, meant mind. Words matter. They always have and the truth is often hiding in plain sight. Here in San Diego County, one of the most overused words is transparency. But what we've come to see is that these agencies from uh the county to Sandag and beyond are anything but transparent, especially within uh the school boards where children are being encouraged to keep secrets from their own parents. Serious things, lifealtering things. Uh we're dealing with corrupt judges, compromised lawyers, shady politicians, conflicts of interest galore, uh politicians, I should say, um everywhere

we look. And instead of confronting this corruption headon, people are being distracted, manipulated, pushed to focus on things they have zero control over. Meanwhile, what's happening right here on our own soil gets ignored. I look forward to the day people stop falling for the distractions and start paying attention locally.

You will now hear from the final caller this morning. gambler here. Well, it looks like we got six months. Six months until I need to figure out a way to go ahead and remove this restraining order. I never once threatened, never once did any of that. All I want you to do is go ahead and fix the problems that you claim that you want to fix. But in order for you to do that, you must recognize where the problems stem from. why you have no money for the infrastructure, why you encourage big business or big corporations to build subdivisions so that you can no longer take control of those roads. That's why we have all of these frigin communities that have HOAs rules up the wazoo. People don't have control over their land anymore because you require them to go ahead and fix the roads in front of their houses. We could go ahead and end all that right now by turning our waste into profit. You could take Julian Brown's technology today as it is and start recycling our plastic, turning it into fuel, which is a lot cleaner than g than the fuel that comes from the ground. and turn the byproduct into graphine which could in uh strengthen our roads 10fold. They could give us some money to go ahead and fix all the roads that you refuse to fix because no one is building

in those areas. Why don't you be honest with the people for one day and tell them what the hell is going on and then that there is real solutions? But no, you're too busy searching for the grants from people that are willing to go ahead and cheat from us. Steal our money just so that you could pat yourself on the back. Now, I don't want to sue you. I don't want to sue the county, but if you're going to force me to do Thank you. And Chair Lawson Reamer, that concludes a request for non-aggenda public communication this morning. Again, all the remaining speakers will be heard at the conclusion of today's session.

Uh, thank you so much. Um, I have a a question actually for our CEO based on some of the public comment. Um, that was interesting. So, there was a comment on the study, the fiscal study, the TRD study, and apparently we're behind on getting the study or just wanted a little more clarity what was going on with it. Where where's that study? Um, thank you chair for the opportunity to address the tier study. Um, the tier study we began drafting it after theou was negotiated with SEIU went through drafts and iterations which is the December date that was mentioned. There was a draft at that time that was being formulated. The report itself was finalized um and sent to your offices on Friday. Um, and we anticipate more discussion around that report.

Uh, but has it been sent to them? Not yet. Okay. Yes, it's done, but it has not been shared with them. Yes, that's correct. So, it sounds like it's in route. That's right. Okay, great. That's a great update. Good to know. I'm glad we're um holding up our end of the bargain. So, thank you so much. Um any other comments on non-aggenda public comment for my colleagues. Okay, great. Uh the next item on our agenda is approval of the minutes and statements proceedings for the sessions of March 10 and March 11. Is there a motion to approve? Okay, we have a motion by supervisor Anderson and a second by Vice Chair Montgomery Steppp. Please vote.

Chair Lawson Rama, that motion passes unanimously with all supervisors being present 10 voting I. Okay. Uh we now proceed with the formation of the consent agenda. This is items 1 through 16. All items in the consent agenda are routine and will be acted upon with one motion. We will have public comment on consent after my colleagues are able to pull any items they would like for discussion or make any comments on any items. Uh beginning with Vice Chair Montgomery Steppp, anything to pull or any comments?

Uh thank you so much. I do have a comment on item number six. I'm proud of the work that is being done here to strengthen and u modernize our behavioral health system. Also want to thank county staff who have worked uh diligently to get us to this point. Um the fact is that is that BHS has outgrown its current framework within HHSA. Today marks the first step in elevating BHS to a standalone department. Um the county's behavioral health needs have grown dramatically since our system was designed more than 30 years ago. This transformation will allow us to expand treatment capacity, strengthen care coordination, and advance a care before crisis model. Um, this item is about building a system that is more responsive and better equipped to meet the growing needs of our community. And that does conclude my comments. Thank you.

Okay. Thank you very much. Uh, Chair Promagiri. Thank you. I'd like to pull item three, please. Okay. Item three has been pulled. Um, we will take item three. That's the sheriff item. Um, so if you could please uh let this for Ebony, please let um Kelly know, Sheriff Martinez know that we'll take that item. uh right before 18 so that uh kind of all of our budget questions are are taken together. So we'll do item three, then we'll do the time certain item 18 which is um the budget items and then we'll move into the truth act after that. Okay, thank you so much. Uh any other comments or items to pull? Okay, we'll move to public comment. Thanks.

Thank you, Chair Lawson Remir. We have 19 requests to speak on items on the consent agenda. eight in person and 11 requesting to speak by phone. As a reminder, item three was pulled from the consent agenda for discussion. So, any individuals that requested to speak on item three, please hold your comments until the board discusses that item. We'll receive public comment on that item separately. Any individuals that requested to speak on the remaining items in the consent agenda by phone, please dial into the conference line using the instructions that were provided to you. We'll begin with the inperson speakers. As your name is called, please come forward and stand on the arrows until it is your turn to speak at the podium. You will have two minutes to address the board and I'll ask you to begin by stating your name for the audio record. Also, when speaking, please identify which item or items on the consent agenda you are speaking about. I'll be calling you in groups of three, so I'll ask you to please listen for your name. Like to invite for the first three individuals, Caesar Javier, allegedly Audra, and Brian Laferty. Thank you. All right. So, no, I don't think the district attorney should be getting any money for this family justice center when she's engaged in human trafficking and in fact complicit in the attempted murder of Andrea Ebbing trying to um you know make sure that she perishes in jail when she was held captive for eight days, denied medical services. Um and you have a child abduction unit. You go and steal children from their families. Um, so any money that you're going to be getting is not going to bring any kind of family justice and your guys' human trafficking nonsense. It's crazy when you guys are human

traffickers and you're saying that you're going to do any kind of combating of that. your human trafficking unit is here with Elizabeth. And you know, I mean, she even just sent out Alfredo to go talk to a mother, which is terrifying to think about when you guys are engaged in the abuse of children and the cover up of sexual abuse. And in fact, Summer Stefan, I mean, you get pedophiles brought to you like information where you could charge them and you refuse to do it. So it's like and you and your husband and your sister and all of these like shenanigans just to keep justice from happening and to protect your RICO racket. It is absurd that you guys want to sit here and virtue signal like you're doing anything. The Pinsky Center should be shut down. It should have a long time ago. There shouldn't be decades of abuse of children. And you guys sit up here and you act like this. I mean Terry, you're pregnant. I called it last time too. Is that just a clump of cells? Like what happens if there are women that sit there and are pregnant like you terrified of your human trafficking unit coming and abducting their children? Just like when they came into the hospital to try and take Evelyn's twins, saying that there was neglect in the hospital. In the hospital, they're being neglected. And so your trafficking unit tries to come and get them and kidnap them. And because we said we want to talk to your boss, they refused. Thank you. Next speaker, please. We'll go ahead and call three additional speakers. Michael Brando, Dorian Golu, and Mark. I've called your name. Please come forward. And the final speaker will be Alicia Morrison.

Mark, I want to thank Mark 105.

Mark, I want to thank Audra for posting this documentary. I was on her side and still had no idea how corrupt CPS is until I saw this documentary, Never in America by Ryan Mata on rumble.com and YouTube. Here are some bullet points this film makes about child protective services. One, provision in the law that they are required to file for a termination of parental rights. Two, the baby was left alone for long periods and baby's skin was burned from laying in its own vomit. Three, the hospitals and CPS get a lot of money as soon as the child is separated from the parents and no warrant is required. Four, police, doctors, and hospitals lie and the judge agrees in court and the news favors what they say. Five, states put quotas on their case workers to find abuse accusations they can make. Six, the shelter care hearing hides information on cases behind confidentiality laws and places gag orders on parents. A criminal has more rights than a parent in these courts. Seven, at the direction of their county supervisors, CPS is a business which gets more money for removing more children. Eight. The right for states to take your child began in 1974 with CAPTA, but few children were taken from their parents until 1997 when adoption and safe families act gave funding through the federal government and unlimited funding for hospitals through Medicare and Medicaid, making it extremely profitable. Nine, under title 4D of the Social Security Act, the federal government is essentially paying CPS agencies every time they accuse someone of abuse, whether the allegation is true or not. About 443,000 children were removed by CPS yearly and state government gets reimbursements based on the rate of adoptions. 10. Government, police, hospitals, and CPS have immunity for violating your constitutional rights to take your children. 11. Every celebrity, politician, or independent journalist that tried to expose CPS has died, including Senator Nancy Schaefer of Georgia, who was shot dead in her

home right before plans to release her documentary on CPS corruption to the International Criminal Court. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

Good morning, Alicia Morrison. This going to be for item 15 on the consent. Uh thank you for these appointments to the community uh Lincolnacres community sponsor group. Uh thank you again supervisor Giri uh for working to bring this to fruition for the community of Lincoln Acres and to this board for unanimous unanimously establishing uh this community sponsor group. Uh we will work hard for the community of Lincoln Acres to be an advisory body which is essential uh an essential role in residential engagement. uh which is critical to have a formal voice for communities to have a chance to thrive and make positive change. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good morning. Two months ago, I was here asking for help. Can you please state your name, sir? Dorian Golo.

Thank you. asking for help to stop this drug dealers, criminals next door from releasing those poisonous gases towards our house. Nothing has been done. One single phone call I receive for information. That's it. No more. This is done with the protection of Lieutenant Bakuris from the communication center who made sure that he arrested me for calling the sheriff's department for help after threatening me not to call. lieutenant threatening you not to call the sheriff's department. And he went farther after I was arrested. He made sure that now a DA case is filed against me for doing nothing except calling the sheriff's department for help. If you can't help, I want to make a direct call to Miss Summer Stefan. Please help. You don't know what happened. You are not informed. Everything stops below you. I attempted to contact you. I attempted to call uh Miss Martinez, the sheriff. Nothing gets to her. It's handled below. No misconduct. Please help.

Um sir, just a reminder to please address your comments only to the board. Okay. Thank you very much. that you can speak to us but not to the staff or or I spoke to you but you did nothing for two months. Thank you. So now may I speak directly? No no you you're here and you can speak to the board and that's please help. Okay sir. Yes. That's your last warning. Thank you. Yeah I'm leaving. Please do your job.

Thank you. Next speaker please. Michael two two here. Okay. All right. Let's talk about six and seven and Monica Montgomery Stepppford's comment about behavioral health. These items are illegitimate frankly because of the underlying model. Care before crisis. Care before crisis. When who is it that actually facilitate facilitates and aids and abeds emotional crisis in this local area? And I just want to be sure and say it's not just the people sitting on the dis. It's actually staff members like Elizabeth here. It's actually uh like uh um what's her name? Kimberly Gina who got the heaven out of here. I actually ran into her and it was good that she got out of here on her own terms I believe. But yet we still have people in behavioral health like this Nadia Pa Brahm spreading misinformation and sitting out here. I guess she's going to talk later. to know just on that basis alone those two items are invalid. I want to briefly address number five. This is unspeak an unspeakable topic. Unspeakable topic. Why? Because there's so much more going on in our nation. And Tara will likely say, "Oh, no, that's not our jurisdiction." But she's always going to talk about other things that aren't her jurisdiction when it suits her fancy. I want to mention the Jeffrey Epstein files in relationship to human trafficking. This board's never addressed that. The unspeakable evil that's found in those files concerning things like human uh baby torture, children torture, sexual exploitation, even the mention of the unspeakable evil, unconsciousness and insanity of adrenochrome. Adrenochrome, Jim, it's unspeakable. The

good news though is everything's coming to light and it can't be stopped and that's a good thing. Thank you. Final call for Caesar Javier or Brian Laferty. Not seeing any movement in the chamber, we'll now hear from those that requested to speak by phone. We'll start with our first caller. Leo uh seven. It's disappointing that the board letter does not go into pros and cons of United Behavioral Health. Optimum's performance. So I checked it out for you. Optimus United Healthcare subsidiary of patients. Quote, Optimum is the epidome of dystopian healthc care. just had to go 5 days without an anti-depressant since they insisted on mailing me scripts scripts despite living only a short walk from a neighborhood pharma unquote from an insider quote optim took over and implemented entire systems changes coupled with ineffective and cold management this directly hindered employee performance and impacted quality of client care," unquote. Do review, do not review. Five, um, you know all about trafficking, gunshot. The county already has a multi- agency human trafficking task force, collaboration between fed, state, and local law enforcement, and the DA's office. What makes this so bad is that the amendment has only two

street people victims and no children out of 20. I would expect lots of business political argument about the abuse not much from people who actually live it. The same around Robin has fostered the current share current state of trafficking and exploitation. eight SD county commission. Um I like it that there is a provision um where one can request to speak for over three minutes. Thank you. Here from the next caller

uh consuel and speaking on 56, seven and eight. So let's start with eight. It was interesting listening to the proclamations for this uh commission on the status of women and girls u with this board can't even define what a woman is. And by the way there's nothing loving about ignoring someone's delusion. Okay. Now item five, six, and seven. These are just all results of a sick system. Item five, commercial sexual exploitation of children's. Item six and seven, behavioral health services. It's mind-blowing to witness all of this uh with blinders off I should say uh just how complacent so many have become but honestly I can't even uh it can't be that surprising because um I understand and it's just been orchestrated this way seamlessly orchestrated and it's it's layers like a totem pole you got the people at the bottom the people in the middle and the people at the top and then you got the ones to design the totem pole itself. So, when I hear people talking about fixing the system and calling it out, I have to remind you the system was never meant to be fixed. It's running exactly how it was designed to run. For those of you who know better, whether you're sitting in the chambers or listening online or hearing this later, it is on each and every one of us to remind people, humans were never meant to live like this. All living beings deserve better. Even if uh one being is suffering in this system, then all of us are suffering. That's so true. And right now, far too many are suffering. So, we have to get to the point where we first acknowledge the truth. Nothing this county agency does is actually fixing problems. The solutions are always band-aids, and those band-aids benefit the pockets of the ones overseeing the corruption. And the hardest part for me is knowing that just how many people are suffering so deeply. we become uh so

addicted to trauma, desensitized to helping people. Um but I also see something. Thank you. Hear from the next caller.

Hi, good morning board. My name is Madison and I'm speaking on items six and seven. I appreciate the county's work to strengthen behavioral health services and recognize how important it is to build a system that is responsive, accessible, and able to meet real needs across our communities. As behavioral health services becomes a standalone department, I hope that youth substance use prevention remains clearly recognized as a core part of behavioral health. Not just treatment after harm has occurred, but prevention before young people enter crisis. One area that deserves special attention is teen marijuana use. We are seeing increasing evidence that adolescent marijuana use is linked to serious mental health concerns, including higher risks of anxiety, depression, suicidal thinking, and in some cases psychosis, especially because the teenage brain is still developing. Even what is often described as casual or occasional use can affect memory, motivation, learning, and emotional regulation. When we talk about behavioral health, prevention must include protecting young people from substances that can worsen mental health outcomes and create long-term challenges. That means making sure prevention education, early intervention, and youth focused substance use services are fully integrated into this new behavioral health services structure. A stronger behavioral health system should not only respond when young people are already struggling, but also help prevent those struggles from taking root in the first place. Thank you for considering youth prevention as part of this important transition.

Thank you. Here from the next caller.

Good morning. This is Peggy Walker. Thank you. and yes to consent items six and seven. And respectfully, the expanded scope of work called for in the standalone behavioral health services contract should require thorough assessment of how expanded availability of intoxicating products sold throughout our county, including unauthorized psychotropic products sold in retail outlets, is affecting youth behavioral health. Data on juvenile offenders regarding marijuana use, for example, is available. But we need collective data about ER admissions and treatment needs for the hundreds of others under 25 resulting from heightened use of marijuana and other intoxicating substances. Such data is essential to strengthening San Diego's social safety network, providing a comprehensive system for mental health and for substance use care. It's also needed to inform policy and meet the meeting the goal of serving everyone in the county. Thank you.

Thank you. Hear from the next caller. Hey, it's Sh saying my name. Item seven, not any contract with a corrupt state, especially on the multi-billion dollar fraud known as behavioral health. Everyone's been seeing the viral videos of all the different types of fraud going on with healthcare. Not new since 2020, but specifically tied to the types of unchecked ideas the county has been pursuing. And you know what comes to mind is of course uh the harm reintroduction coalition who had no contracts, no contracts at all going audited and having money go to surgeries, plastic surgery and cars going to Mexico, etc., etc., etc. And you want to have more contracts doing probably the same thing. No, thank you. Item eight, 75% of this board doesn't even know what a woman is. So how are you going to approve anything for a commission on women and girls? You celebrated seed which literally destroyed the definition of woman and the county's distorted sick perverted eyes. How dare you? Item nine. Not to ugly Soviet style stack attack luxury boxes at trolley stops to benefit MTS and their union mafia controlled board with career grifters like Manuela's dog Matthew Lea Gonzalez. Item 15. I support Alicia and Doyle Morrison to the Lincoln Acres group. However, is it appropriate for a husband and wife to both be on a group? Is that not slightly a conflict? Not to Monica's choice of Chantella Sllayton to the Commission on Women and Girls, a fellow lawyer. Notice still single with no clump. Daddy, Bumbler, Teras, Union Politico, Amelia Sering to the Commission on Women and Girls. How will marketing and political science help women or help anybody? Aren't those just synonyms for degrees and brainwashing? I question my mother's choice of deep crew to the aging advisory council because she has a business prompt for care home care all over the county which may have experience but also has a financial

stake in saying yes to whatever this board push pushes which unfortunately isn't needed audits. So no to almost all of her appointments. On another note, please ensure your call-in line is working. Sometimes the number doesn't work and today the audio cut out for over 20 minutes.

Thank you. Hear from the next caller. Good morning, supervisors. My name is Becky Rap and I'd like to speak to items five, six, and seven. I appreciate the county's continued focus on addressing human trafficking, behavioral health concerns, and the importance of protecting vulnerable in individuals in our community. The advisory council is incredibly important as human trafficking is one of the most complex and devastating issues facing our communities, requiring coordination between law enforcement, service providers, educators, and survivor advocates. However, I want to emphasize a critical part of the conversation that must not be ignored, and that's drug prevention. Substance use is deeply connected with many of the challenges we are trying to address. It increases vulnerability especially among youth and is often used as a tool to control um to control an exploitation. At the same time, it's a m main contributor to our mental health crisis and homelessness. Traffickers often use drugs as a tool to recruit, control, and keep victims dependent. Youth who are already struggling with substance use are far more vulnerable to being targeted in the first place. Substance use can impair judgment, lower inhibitions, and create dependency, making it easier for tra traffickers to manipulate and control young people. As a result, youth struggling with substance use are at a significantly higher risk of being pulled into trafficking situations, making prevention and early intervention even more critical. So I encourage this board to ensure that drug prevention is fully integrated into this council strategies.

Thank you. Thank you. Hear from the next caller.

Good morning board of supervisors. This is an Riddle. I called in today to address item consent item eight. I tried to understand what your final goal was for behavioral health services and it seemed to be to provide uh care for those with mental health issue or substance use care. But I think it's important that we realize that behavioral health always has included prevention services. Some might say from a financial point of view it has to be pivotal. It is after all prevention services that will reduce the risk factors that lead to mental health issues and substance abuse and it helps interrupt the conditions that also create these problems. And so as we do our planning, prevention ought to be at the front of this. And we should remind ourselves as the Truth Initiative, a premier nationwide prevention group in association with the NAACP, reminds us that that early and heavy marijuana use is linked to a lack of economic and social attainment of young people. If ever there were conditions that would lead to poor mental health outcomes and further substance use, it would be heavy and early use of marijuana by our population. Thank you for letting me bring this concern, the need for prevention services to be a in a central location when we look at behavioral health. Thank you.

Thank you. We hear from the final caller. gambler here. All these issues stem from Proposition 13 when we decided to cut our own revenue stream to go ahead and provide services. And every action that you've taken since then has been to put band-aids on that. The problem is you don't have enough money to do what you want to do. So you come up with creative ways that really end up hurting us. You're not looking for solutions because having a solution would cut that revenue stream. That's the fact. What I'm saying is that you no longer need to look for those revenue streams. We have 5 years on our landfill in Miramar. We could immediately take action today by immediately recycling that plastic and turning it into fuel. This could generate millions and millions of dollars where you don't have to chase grants. You don't have to look for the uh the state's approval on this. It goes on everything that you can do as your position. But if you are puppets to someone else, you're going to ignore this. If you do not care about equality, you're going to ignore this. If you do not care about propping up a young black inventor, 17 in high school when he came up with this idea, you are part of the frigin problem, Monica. You do not care about black people at all. If you want to ignore Julian Brown's work, if you want to go in and hand his technology to two universities,

uh just a reminder, you need to stay on topic. Uh the topic of these items of your comments right now is the consent agenda. If you're uh remarks are not pertinent and relevant to the consent agenda items, you will forfeit your time. Uh you can continue. If you continue off topic, you will forfeit the remainder of your time. Okay. So, talking about getting stoned is okay, though. Or are we just being selective? Because this is on topic. You guys are looking for money to go ahead and fund projects that you're lacking money in. Correct. This is Thank you. And Chair Lawson Reamer, that concludes public comment on the items in the consent agenda. Okay.

Okay. Thank you so much. Thank you for everyone who um took the time to have an opinion. Uh we still need a motion in a second. Um, a second. Okay, we have a motion by Supervisor Anderson um and a second by Supervisor Montgomery. Step, please vote. Chair Lawson Ramer, that motion passes unanimously with all supervisors being present and voting I.

Okay. Okay. Great. Thank you all so much. Um, okay. So, we will now move on to discussion items. I'm going to outline a little bit um first uh for my colleagues and for the public um exactly how we're going to proceed with the agenda today. A few items are going to have to be moved because some are time certain. Um so to begin with uh we're noting that item 18 that is set for a time certain of 3:00. So although it says item 18, it will not be held uh discussed in order. It will be at 3 o'clock. Item 17, the truth act community forum is set for a time certain of six. So everyone please note item 18 is at three. That's the budget item. Truth act item 17 is at six. Um my my colleague uh chair promagiri pulled item three from consent. And that is uh highly uh related and relevant to item 18. So we will hear item three right before item 18. Um, and so any items that are not heard prior to item 18 will be continued to tomorrow's agenda. Uh, so I'm just trying to be clear for everyone. I know this is a lot of of of information, but just so everyone can plan accordingly because item 18 is set for a time certain of three and item three needs to be heard before item 18, which means we'll probably have to get to item three around uh 210 or so um in order to get through item three to have time to get to item 18. Any items that are not heard before item three are going to be continued to tomorrow's agenda. Is everyone following that so far? So that means that our order is number 1920 2021 and estimation is likely uh that the that the other items will likely get uh

continued till tomorrow. Um and then we'll be 31817. So again 192021 31817. Say it one more time. 192021 31817. If um item if if items 19, 20, and 21 go quick uh and we have time for another item before item three, we will do that. Um and chair procuri, we will definitely take lunch. We all need to eat. So um and uh if you would like to do uh lead lead your exercises at some point, I would absolutely join them. So, thank you for that. Thank you for keeping us focused on wellness on the board. Um, okay. Thank you so much. So, we now move on to discussion item 19, establishing a county consumer fairness and public protection unit to protect residents and enforce the rule of law using dedicated settlement funds. Um, I'm going to make a couple remarks just to kick this off. Uh, because this is an item that I have introduced. uh then we will predominantly um have public comment. I know uh I know there was a number of people who called in and then we will have time for a board discussion on the side. Great. Thank you. Um so before beginning um I just wanted to thank the really dozens and dozens of collaborators who helped co-draft this proposal. Um this is not a proposal that uh something I I thought of on my own. Um to be quite honest, it really came out of a lot of community discussions and in response to um stakeholders who had been reaching out for years with concerns and those concerns really reach reached a crescendo when um Trump gutted the Consumer

Financial Protection Division uh at the beginning of last year. I I particularly really want to thank uh the ARP um for their assistance and for their input. Uh, I'd like to thank uh Coast Law Group, um, Legal Aid, Legal Aid, shout out. You all are amazing. Amazing for the fight you bring to protect people in our community and amazing for your wisdom and guidance in putting this together. uh serving seniors. Uh really grateful to um the National Consumer Law Center uh to Singleton and Shriber to Stop the Sewage uh who has kept us laser focused on you know the Tijuana crisis, the Tijana River Coalition. um, Vet Art, Wild Coast, Youth Will. Um, also huge thank you to uh the UC UC Berkeley Consumer Law and Economic Justice Center who've been um incredible experts and thought partners. Uh the Interfaith Worker Justice Center of San Diego County, CPI, Coast Law, um the uh Yale Consumer Law Protection Unit that has uh been really supportive of the San Francisco city and county attorney. as most of you know, it's one combined function there. Um, and they've been really, really helpful as well as folks up in San Francisco who launched that unit who've been really helpful in helping think about how to structure this. Uh, people in Santa Clara who've been working on similar units. Um, and just really wanted to say thank you to everyone. I can't take credit for this alone. Um it's really been um a a shared work of of collaboration and input and trying to respond to the the needs of our community that others have have voiced um and brought together. And so I just want to uplift that um the spirit it's not just in the drafting of this but also the spirit um if this is passed

today you're really hopeful that our county council can continue working with these really extraordinary partners the dozens and dozens of community groups and experts who've been so helpful in kind of conceptualizing this. Um and then you know obviously the implementation would be in your hands your good um and competent hands but I um I'm sure that they will be uh good sounding boards um as as your work moves forward. So um you know just kind of wanted to center that and not take not take credit um for work that is shared. I think backing up big picture, you know, why I've have really prioritized is bringing this to you all today and proposing this is the the really looking at um how for in many families in San Diego uh the skyrocketing cost of living is compounded by everyday practices that quietly drain household income, the hidden fees, the deceptive pricing, the abuse of debt collection, bad faith insurance denials, environmental predatory practices, is dumping and other unlawful conduct that makes it just so hard to get by and makes people struggle not only with affordability but even with bas basic things like protecting their own public health and the health of their families. When these unethical and exploitive practices go unchecked, they function as an invisible tax on working people, seniors, veterans, small businesses, making everyday life so much less secure. Um, but when we enforce the rules and the fair rules of the marketplace, we protect people, we stabilize finances, we protect health, we protect safety, and we ensure that honest businesses are not undercut by those who break the law. No one should have to fight corporate abuses on their own. So, this proposal would establish a consumer fairness and public protection unit within the office of county council to build out our capacity here in San Diego.

uh the resources to to do this um really fortunately already exist. Our consumer protection fund in our county has grown to over 220 million and is continuing to increase faster than it is being spent, which is an extraordinary uh lucky opportunity that we have here in San Diego County, especially given the huge budget crisis and budget constraint that we are under otherwise um and the attack that we have been under for the last nearly year and a half um in terms of the the budget pressures we're facing. But we do have an an opportunity in a moment to utilize the consumer protection fund that is really only for this purpose. Um so this money exists for one purpose and that is protecting San Diego consumers. So this is why um really to fill this gap and this critical gap is why the state legislature explicitly recognized and expanded the civil enforcement capacity of county councils in 2021 because the state legislature recognized the enormous volume of challenges that we're people are facing every single day from so many sides and on so many levels and the huge challenges of enforcement. So SB461 um which was passed and signed into law in 2021 allowed counties to step into this breach um and to fill some of this gap. Um so just for some context um Los Angeles County has already established their own um civil enforcement unit. Santa Clara County. Um, we know that we're one of the the, as I mentioned before, pioneering this work with San Francisco, which is a little bit different because it's a city and a county, but another very large

county in the state of California. Um, our own county is one of the few remaining counties that has not already established such a unit. So, the question is not whether this authority exists. It clearly does. Uh, the question really that is why we haven't used it. And I think that's why so many community groups have been um so enthusiastic and so supportive about building out this capacity. Um this unit is will complement and amplify a important and let me just say go a little farther not just important really vital existing work uh that's already ongoing um that is focused on um protecting consumers cracking down on illegal and deceptive practices really wonderful work um and again just really want to give a shout out to that wonderful work that's already ongoing um I mentioned legal aid Um, also really want to uplift uh the work of our attorney general um in the state of California, Robanta, who's been just such an extraordinary partner and appreciate uh the partnership of Rob's office and helping us think through how to structure this unit. So appreciate that and really glad um we now have a county council coming straight from the AG who will be able to help guide this work here in San Diego County. So appreciate that. Appreciate the extraordinary work of our DA Summer Stefen and her hugely impactful team. um uh who's who's done just an enormous job um in fighting on these issues and hopefully we can continue expand their capacity. Um I think there's an opportunity to increase that capacity pretty significantly. Um because these works, this work is all uh complimentary to each other. Um and really hopeful we can uh continue to build out and increase the DA's capacity as well um as this unit gets stood up. Um as well as our city attorney uh in city of San Diego, Heather Ferbert. um just had a really interesting conversation with her last week or the week before about how

excited she is for this unit to get moving because a case was referred to her that uh was about health and safety and she felt like that's the county's purview um and couldn't wait for our unit to get uh stood up because she felt like the city shouldn't take that on um but the county should take that on. So uh really looking forward to that as well. Um, so I think our big picture really looking at this unit acting as our a force multiplier to protect our community and the broader context uh beyond San Diego County is is quite troubling. Although we do have uh wonderful partners here in San Diego County, uh the broader national context is quite um quite troubling and quite upsetting. And I know that um the call to move forward on this consumer fairness and public protection unit really ramped up um early last year when um the Trump administration gutted the consumer financial uh protection division in Washington. And as folks probably recall, the CFPB was stood up in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis when tens of thousands of hardworking Americans lost their homes uh because of really um predatory lending practices. But the big banks walked away whole and the investors walked away whole while regular people um many were homeless um lost their lost their life savings um lost everything. And the purpose of the CFD, Consumer Financial Protection Division, was really to fight for working families. And uh unfortunately, we're now in a moment where um Trump has turned his back on regular people uh to stack the deck for his donors, for big banks, for shady health insurance companies, for billionaires, uh and not

not staff up to fight for us. And as I've said so many times, I really think the core of the work that we have to be doing here in San Diego County at this moment is protecting San Diego County um from these kinds of incredibly destructive and negative impacts that are coming from Washington and us just saying not here, not now, not in our county, not on my watch. Um so the need for this work could never be greater and um the moment really is now. So you know just want to uplift uh some of the some of the big concerns that we're seeing and that uh came came out in the town halls and community conversations I've been having with stakeholders. There's there's increasingly sophisticated scams, AI fraud, predatory financial practices, very complicated bath face insurance practices, um environmental harms that directly impact public health like the ongoing crisis in the Tijuana River Valley and um really looking at all of these patterns of harms so we can build capacity to pursue high impact cases. Uh the work is also has to be about prevention about helping residents recover what they're owed and ensuring unlawful practices do not continue. Um no single office no matter how strong can fully address the volume complexity and evolving nature of today's corporate misconduct on its own. Um, this unit will leverage the restricted settlement funds and reinvest recovered resources back into protecting our communities without competing with other county priorities. At the core, this proposal is about fairness. It's about making sure families are not navigating predatory systems on their own and is about ensuring that the rules are enforced

consistently. It's about building a local economy where those who play by the rules can compete on a level playing field. Uh so that that is just the context um behind this proposal and I also want to note um I know that ultimately as this moves forward the it will fall to implementation and whether whether whether we're batting it out of the park or not is going to you know really sit in the responsibility of our county council. I have so much faith um in in Damon and just really so honored that you're here and you've joined us to be part of our team. Um but would also urge you to uh seek the input um of my colleagues especially those um whose communities are most directly impacted by a lot of these harms as you look to um staffing up and hiring particularly in the director. Um I know uh supervisor sorry chair protomagiri um has spoken many times about these issues not just about the Tijana River Valley but also about predatory practices and payday lenders and um shady financial practices and um you know some really horrible practices around um people being displaced from their homes. Um I think she would have a lot of insights and wisdom on kind of how to think about uh moving this forward. So, I know that um this would be a full board action, but also would would like to uplift um just really trying to get the input of my colleagues who've been fighting on these issues for for many many years as we build up uh this capacity here in San Diego County. So, um with that, I look forward to the discussion and to working my with my colleagues to move this forward. And we will turn to public comment.

Thank you. Oh, and sorry before that, um, my team has distributed, um, again, credit where credit's due, all the letters and of support. So, you all should have those. So, thank you.

Thank you, Chair Lawson Reamer. We have 41 requests to speak on this item, 19 in person, and 22 requesting to speak by phone. Also note for the record that we received 380 e comments, 342 of those in support, 25 in opposition, and eight neutral. For any individuals that requested to speak on item 19 by phone, please dial into the conference line using the instructions that were provided to you. We'll begin with the inerson speakers. As your name is called, please come forward and stand on the arrows until it is your turn to speak at the podium. Because we have 10 or more speakers on this item, you'll have one minute to address the board. And I'll ask you to begin by stating your name for the audio record. I'll be calling calling you in groups of three. So I'll ask you to please listen for your name. Like to invite forward the first three individuals, Sarah Federman, Joanne Franciscus, and Darice Savios. If I've called your name, please come forward. Hello. Good morning. My name is Dr. Sarah Federman. I am an associate professor of conflict resolution at the Croc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego. I am in strong support of this unit. I'm also a swimmer and a surfer. And my students here and I, we've been having a Tijana watershed class, social action class this semester. And we've so appreciated the work on cleaning the sewage. We've also discovered the over 300 plus contaminants, organic and inorganic, that are coming from industrial waste. So we know that this uh unit is very eager to focus on US polluters. There are a number of US corporations on the Tijana side in the maculadoras who are dumping and that dumping is polluting the county. So super supportive of it. Um and look forward to it being created and we can help. So thank you all for your service.

Thank you. Next speaker, please.

Good morning supervisors. I'm Joanne Franciscus, CEO of the Legal Aid Society of San Diego, and we strongly support this item. LSSD provides free legal services to lowincome San Dieans in critical areas of civil law. Last year, we opened over 10,000 cases, the top three issues being housing, healthcare, and consumer protection. And while that is a huge number, we received over 90,000 calls for assistance. Every day we represent tenants being charged illegal junk fees, patients saddled with medical debt, taxpayers whose returns were stolen, seniors defrauded of their life savings. But we can't file cases against every bad actor. So every day those bad actors are doing a riskreward analysis and exploiting the gaps in enforcement. As a service provider working in this space, I can tell you that no one agency or organization can do it alone. The Consumer Fairness and Public Protection Unit will help us fill this enforcement gap, protect San Dieans, and will do so without costing taxpayers a dime or taking resources away from any existing programs. We welcome the opportunity to work together to make San Diego a safer and fairer community. Thank you.

Thank you. As the next speaker is coming forward, I'd like to invite three additional speakers. Mika Wilbur, Lucana Gonzalez, and Maria Ortiz. If I've called your name, please come forward. Yeah. Okay.

Good morning, chair and supervisors. My name is Tamari Savayos. I'm a US Navy veteran, a trained doula, and a graduate student at the Joby Croc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego. I'm here in support of establishing the Consumer Fairness and Public Protection Unit. And as a veteran who deployed to Afghanistan, I was exposed to burn pits. I have seen how toxic exposure can affect service members and our families long after deployment. In my work supporting families during pregnancy and early infancy, I see how sensitive babies are to our to air quality and environmental conditions. I also have personal experience with pregnancy loss, which deepen my understanding of how vulnerable babies are before birth. Every family, every part of our in every part of our county wants clean air and water for their children. Residents living near the Tijuana River wershed are carrying a heavier share of these impacts right now. Thank you for your time and your service. Good morning. My name is Mika Wilbur and I'm the managing attorney for the consumer protection team at the Legal Aid Society of San Diego. I'm strongly in support of creating this new consumer protection unit. Um, every day our team works to protect community members through litigation, outreach, and education. And every day we meet people who have been taken advantage of, like seniors who have been pressured into predatory contracts and homeowners left with unlivable conditions after trusting the wrong contractor. Um, last year alone, we closed more than 800 cases and helped over 1,600 people with issues ranging from misleading gym memberships um to defective solar installations. Um, but despite these efforts, that's just a small fraction of the people who need

help in San Diego. Uh, far too often our limited resources result in us having to turn people away. Um, and so we would strongly encourage you to set up this unit. Thank you.

Good morning, Chair Lawson Reamer and supervisors. My name is Lisana Gonzalez and I'm speaking on behalf of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber supports common sense measures that go after bad actors and provide a competitive business environment. Current local and state legislation establishes a strong framework for this. While this item may be well-intentioned, we are opposed based on the unintended consequences it may create for businesses and consumers. While this item may be well-intentioned, um we submitted a letter to the board alongside other local businesses and housing organizations to explain these possible outcomes. Specifically, the lack of a clear right to cure or path to mediation for violations, the duplication of existing authority that the DA has, and the inherent need for settlement funding are problematic. Thank you for your consideration of our comments, and we look forward to working with the county on future solutions to protect consumers and local businesses. Thank you. As the next speaker is coming forward, I'd like to invite three additional speakers. Emma Stanley, Ariel, and Jesus Martine Gyos Munos. Good morning. My name is Maria Ortiz and I'm a graduate candidate in the conflict management and resolution program at the University of San Diego. I am here in support for the consumer fairness and public protection unit. This unit is vital because it provides a mechanism for crossber environmental accountability, something that our region desperately needs. As part of the social action class at USD, my colleagues and I are focusing on the Tijuana water crisis. We've seen that this is no longer just a water issue. It is a public health crisis affecting our shores, our water, and our air. Whether it is negligent polluters at the borders or PAS, forever chemicals from corporate manufacturing infiltrating our drinking water, the result is the same. San Dieans are paying the price with their health. Contaminants don't stop at the border, and our protections shouldn't either. Supporting this unit is a

fiscally responsible move. There is currently $200 million available for the recent settlements that can be used for this cause. This means we can hold polluters accountable and protect our residents without impacting the general fund. We have resources and we have a need. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

Good morning. My name is Emma Stanley. I'm a peace and justice graduate student at the University of San Diego. Um, we're studying the Tijana River pollution crisis. I strongly support the consumer fairness and public protection unit. I'm here because the Tijana River pollution crisis is consistently framed as just an infrastructure problem. However, it's actually an accountability problem. For years, private companies have been dumping waste into the Tijana River because they know nobody is going is coming after them. The CFPP finally gives the county the power to stop the fingerpointing and start legal action. We need a team that can actually sue the corporations upstream that are using the river as a chemical dumping site. Please support item 19. Use these settlement funds to make the polluters pay for the cleanup instead of continuing to make our families pay with their health. Thank you.

Thank you. As the next speakers coming forward, I'll invite three additional speakers. Kristen Northrup, Zoe Lauren, and Lingan Chen. Good morning. My name is Jesus Martinos. I'm a community organizing coordinator for the CHO Federation, a resident of District 1, and a graduate student at the University of San Diego. For decades, the most marginalized and disenfranchised members of our community have borne the burden of a worsening climate emergency. Our waterways are polluted and our air is contaminated. As someone who is immuno compromised, this pollution directly impacts my ability to live a proactive, healthy life. And I am not alone. Hundreds of residents in the South Bay face similar health challenges made worse by environmental neglect. This unit has the power to address a root cost to our decadesl long pollution crisis, tackling illegal dumping and industrial runoff. I am hopeful that this consumer fairness and public protection unit will finally establish a baseline of for accountability from corporations that continue to harm our ecosystem and vulnerable populations. If this unit is to ensure our health and safety, it must be rigorous in defending our community from negligence and environmental non-compliance. Gracias.

Thank you. Next speaker.

Good morning. My name is Kristen Northrup and I'm here on behalf of Coast Law Group and Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation. I am here in support of the proposal to establish a consumer fairness and pro public protection unit. Many San Diego residents are struggling with unfair fees, deceptive business practices and predatory conduct that makes everyday life more expensive. At the same time, environmental issues like like pollution affecting communities such as the Tijana River are creating serious health and financial burdens. This unit will help hold bad actors accountable across both consumer protection and environmental harms, protecting families, seniors, service members, and small businesses. I respectfully urge you to um established this unit. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker.

Good morning, member of the boards. My name is Zoe Lauren. I am a graduate student at the Croc Institute of Peace and Justice studying the Tijuana River Pollution Crisis. I'm here to urge you to vote yes on the consumer fair fairness and public protection unit because what's happening in South San Diego is not just an environmental failure. It is a story of corporations exploiting legal gaps while workingclass communities pay the price with their health. The communities most affected are predominantly low-income and working class facing entrench inequities that compound the harm. Small businesses dependent on coastal tourism have also faced serious economic downtowns. Um this is what enforcement gaps look like in practice. corporations externalizing cost onto the most vulnerable while no single agency has the mandate or capacity to stop them. The CFP unit changes that it gives San Diego County the legal opportunity to domestic.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. As the next speaker is coming forward, I'll invite three additional speakers. Audrey Kim, Joel Lierson or Lerson and Caesar Javier.

Good morning supervisors. My name is Ling Hanchen. I am a student at the University of San Diego and previously an intern at the United Nations Environment Program. I support the creation of the CFPP. Multinational cooperations are operating across borders with ever greater ease and very few restrictions. Their environmental account accountability cannot be optional. It must be fundamental because communities and ecosystems are already bearing the cost of pollution. In 2019, questionnaires showed that 73% of respondents has exposure to water from the cano or riverside pressure relief tubes and at the same time at least eight threatened or endangered bird and fish species are losing their habitat habitats. These are real people, real lives and facing real consequences. That's why addressing the Tijuana River Valley pollution crisis is not a luxury but practical action. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker, please.

Good morning. My name is Audrey Kim. I am a San Diego resident, a current law student, and a former and future legal aid employee. Having worked alongside dedicated attorneys in that space, I have witnessed firsthand how limited resources may prevent us from taking on complex corporate misconduct, leaving our most vulnerable residents without a voice or a remedy. San Diego is already one of the most expensive places to live in the nation. And as chairwoman has mentioned already, unlawful business practices only deepen that burden. The Tijuana River pollution crisis is a clear example of a long neglected public health emergency that will only worsen without stronger enforcement. This unit would give the DA's office, local legal aids, and other partners a dedicated civil counterpart to address cases that currently go unanswered. As a law student, I am especially encouraged by the proposed law school partnership and believe many students here would welcome the opportunity to contribute to meaningful public interest work in our own community. I believe this is a meaningful step toward making San Diego better for all of us and I respectfully urge the board to vote yes. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker, please.

Good morning, distinguished members of the board. My name is Joel Lieber. I'm an attorney and since 2012, I've had the privilege of working with city attorneys and county council in California and throughout the country to address a number of issues plaguing our communities. I wholeheartedly support enactment of the proposed consumer protection unit. There are very few cities and counties throughout the country or in California that have the powers that the legislature has deemed to give this county of San Diego both in terms of pursuing cases under the unfair competition act to get civil penalties and to um effectuate appropriate injunctive relief. But in addition, a few years ago, the legislature gave the county of San Diego the power to issue a prelitigation investigative subpoena. Normally, you can only get discovery after you file the lawsuit, but now the county has that power. I would strongly urge the county to enact the proposed consumer protection unit and take advantage of the power specifically granted by the legislature to counties such as San Diego. Thank you for your time.

Thank you. As the next speaker is coming forward, I'll invite three additional speakers. Allegedly, Audra, Michael Brando, and Tiffany Curry. Cesar and Purita, we honor our late niece who died for us, protecting us, defending us. We are here to help you. Help you to step down if you do not understand the meaning of this. You are using English language. County consumer. Say it. San Dieans protection unit. Who are these? You, me, her, us. Specify. We know how to read behind the line. We experience it. Oh, you see Anderson is not here. Sorry, sir. You missed the point. Our enemy is unseen. Unseen. Mom reimer. Thank you. You were and you are the governing board member including Mom Agiri.

Thank you. Oh, sorry. Thank you. Thank you, God. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Caesar, would you like to take your artifact?

Next speaker, please. Good morning. My name is Tiffany Curry and I'm speaking on behalf of Outdoor Outreach, a San Diego based nonprofit connecting underserved youth to the outdoors and reducing barriers to access. I'm also honored to speak on behalf of the Tijuana River Coalition, a group of over 65 organizations raising awareness and advocating for solutions to the Tijuana River pollution crisis. Many of the youth that we serve at Outdoor Outreach live in communities directly impacted by the pollution. We've seen firsthand how this ongoing crisis limits access to safe, healthy outdoor spaces and affects famil family's well-being. Creating a consumer fairness and protection public protection unit at the county would be a step towards addressing a critical issue. Industrial waste being dumped into the river by American companies with factories based in Tijuana. We support this item today and hope to see a future where all children and families in Southern California and Northern Baja are free to play in vibrant communities. Thank you.

Thank you. As the next speaker is coming forward, I'll invite the remaining speakers in person, Mark and Robert Brown. The hypocrisy is hilarious. You guys um have people come in to the biggest corporation that is corrupt in San Diego expecting you guys to protect us against other corporations from, you know, predatory practices. It's like creating a human trafficking unit when you're a human trafficker, right? It's so interesting the way things are inverted in this world. And you guys are the reason why people's cost of living constantly goes up. In fact, you even take people's homes if they can't pay the tax on it. And then you're like, "But we're going to help you keep your homes, too. Just don't." It's always like, "Look over here, not over here. Look at Trump. Don't look at Tara." You know what I mean? Tara's not doing it. It's Trump. As long as you focus on that, then it'll seem like you guys are just doing your job, right? Which is to be totally corrupt. It's so funny that you guys want people to follow the law and then we have our Bonta puppet here that's going to run this unit. It's so terrifying what you guys do. Good job. You're doing good.

Speaker, please. Mark, the rent for Terascini Senior Housing in Claremont starts at $1,447 for a studio apartment. The square footage of a two-bedroom apartment ranges from 363 to 539 square ft. Chelsea Investment Corporation is a subsidiary of City Community Capital focused on affordable housing development. They're involved in various projects including the Midway Rising Initiative and affordable housing in the Claremont community and at San Diego State University. City Community Capital is a subsidiary of Cityroup Incorporated, which financed 7 billion in affordable housing in 2024. In the tax year 2024, City Community Capital reported a net income of 12.7 billion, which is a significant increase from the previous year. If your budget prioritizes making a huge profit for city community capital, you are succeeding. If supervisors are supposed to spend our tax dollars wisely with no bank interest or investor profit, you failed completely.

Seven minutes.

Next speaker, please. Good morning. My name is Dr. Robert Brown. The first thing I want to do is thank you. Thank all of you for your courage, for your sacrifices, your dedication, leadership practices, and service. I'm a research faculty and graduate homeland security. and I also do research in transformational justice and I've immersed my life at looking at law enforcement reforms, practices and oversight. But I come before you today in opposition to this because it to me it feels like and I've spoken to a lot of people in the community. It seems like it's the same thing that we're already doing in the DA's office. and we know that you want the best for us in the community, but we first need to know how exactly how it's going to differ from what they're already doing in the DA's office. So, we it it appears to us like you're creating another unit. So, we we whatever you do, we're willing to work with you and help you. Thank you. Okay. Thank you.

Thank you. Final call for Ariel or Michael Brando. We'll now hear from the individuals that requested to speak by phone. Before we move to um by phone, how many um requests by phone do we have? We have 21 requests to speak by phone. It looks like about 12 of those are in the call queue at this time. Okay. Um I see our district attorney here in the audience today, which is wonderful. Um did she has she requested to speak? And if not, I'd love to invite her at least give her the opportunity to speak even though she has not requested. It's at your discretion. Thank you.

Okay. Uh uh DA Summerstein if you'd like to make a comment before we go to um folks who are calling in don't feel obligated but would love to invite you if you wanted to come up and and speak for two minutes not to put you on the spot and uh just uh our clerk of the board asked how long Um all I know all the other speakers only did have one minute uh but this is our district attorney who uh brings a particular point of view so she's going to get double that time. Thank you.

Thank you so much. And hopefully I'll be able to also answer questions because I know some of the board members had uh questions. So uh because this is like you said a very complex topic. So good morning still um chair and board of supervisors. I'm Summerr Stefen, San Diego Countyy's district attorney. And uh one of the things that I think uh are key for our county to continue to thrive is collaboration that's really built in trust and um in this situation unfortunately um I think that it is premature uh that we can do something good for the county to expand services but the way that it's being done is uh rushed and without uh input from a key stakeholder, meaningful input, and that would be the DA's office. Uh we had five days to respond to a very complex letter when our office has been doing the consumer protection work, both civil and criminal, for 51 years. The key author for the consumer protection, civil consumer protection that's used around the state is part of my unit and he's here today. Tom Papa George, you can look him up. He could have provided a lot of information that would have helped the county develop something that actually is an ad as opposed to a duplication. In fact, the real concern um in duplication is beyond just duplication. It's the fact that it can interfere with investigations. For example, in this binder here that is

hard for me to lift is one binder of one investigation on the Tijuana River case that the only reason I'm sharing is because we had to be in court uh with the federal court where this case is being heard. Thank you. And so to be able to be in court and see the case, the litigants know that we are involved. Um, if for example, county council as esteemed county council started investigation, the time I'll give you another 30 seconds, but I do want to be respectful of um the time limits, but please continue.

Madam Chair, I have my hand up. Uh, it may be more timeefficient because I was going to I wanted to ask her some questions. So, uh I don't whatever you want to do, but uh we should go if you want to if you want to answer questions, I think probably most uh appropriate uh procedurally would be to finish public comment because we have a whole bunch of folks on the phone waiting. Whatever you want to do, I just And then when we get to board discussion um then um our district attorney could come back and answer your question if she's willing to stay for that time period. Yes, this is very important.

Okay, why don't we go ahead and do that? Thank you. Thank you very much. Um Okay, thank you. So, let's um just to clarify for everyone, we'll continue. We'll finish public comment um and then we will go to board discussion.

Thank you, Chair Lawson Reamer. We'll now hear from those that requested to speak by phone. When it is your turn to speak, you will be unmuted and you will hear a recording that will tell you to begin your comments. We will start with our first caller. Paul Bold, nice idea, but too expensive. With 3.5 million people in the county, 200 mil funding is not enough. An attorney with LA County Office of the County Council said, "The scammers are smart and they continue to shift and get ahead of you." Quote, "It's whack-a-ole." unquote. Uh the unit would be tasked with tasked with everything from denied health insurance claims, rental and housing scams, PJ River Valley issues, predatory financial practices against seniors to toxic chemical deceptions, lots of potential scammers, not to mention corrupt government people. Farah said, quote, "Bad businesses doing bad things should be held accountable." But we just learned of a 130 scam in the county.

The next caller

from Swellow here. So, it's up to me in this item was the long list of outside organizations being thanked. Um, many from within our county and why are we looking outside of our own community to solve issues that affect the people right here at home. I know why. It's the UN agenda. Um, and that alone should raise concerns for you people listening in. Uh but what's even more troubling about deceptive practices and environmental protections while people in this county are already dealing with environmental and health concerns go unressed like the chemtrails in the sky. We all deal with that and almost every county on the planet. Where is the same urgency for that? The accountability when actually impacts families on a daily basis instead of what we get are more rules, more enforcement, more pen people you claim to protect. And uh yeah, no one should be uh no one should have to fight corporate abuses is what you said, Tara. And I agree, but no one should

hear from the next caller. Good morning board. My name is Kathleen Lipet and I am I would like to express my very significant support for Summer Stefen and her job. And I think that the committee that was created by Tara Lawson Reamer to as a result of her decision to to create this this proposition this this program should have at minimum had a participant from the DA's office to help guide them. There's a duplication here that does not need to be duplicated. and to see another bureaucracy created with funding that the county does not have should not be spending. Give the money to the DA's office. Create a more personnel at the DA's office to do what they do best because this is not an item that is under the expertise of the county board of supervisors. Thank you for letting me speak. you hear from the next caller.

Good morning, Robert Stonebrook from Carlsbad. 30 lawyers and partners working at the behest of board of supervisors are not in anyone's interest except the political machine that will reap the bounty of these settlements. Our county already has a scam scam fighting organization and district attorney's office. So if the unit was about fighting crime, it would be in the DA's office where separation of powers assigns criminal enforcement responsibilities and not in a legislative body that can change the rules of the game to maximize revenue or coerc businesses they don't favor. One only had to listen to the community webinar on this topic where speakers proudly shared how these units can be scaled up and how it all starts with a lowhanging fruit. The webinar sounded more like a tech startup pitch than a crime fighting initiative. Today, one can look at the federal government to see how agencies can be weaponized for political purposes. Opening the door to a local version, one that will be hardressed to close budget loopholes and satiate political patrons, can be truly tyrannical. We should expand the DA's office to fight crime. This proposed unit will simply extract settlements from businesses, which will then pass them along to consumers and higher price. Hear

from the next caller. Uh, good morning, Madame Chair and members of the board. My name is Gerald Singleton. I'm an attorney with Singleton Shriber in San Diego. Uh, I want to say how important I think this unit is and at the same time recognize the very important work that the district attorney does. Uh, one of the things that I think is so remarkable about this is the opportunity to address issues that due to limitations of staffing and finances, the district attorney is not able to and because of where they're located in the county, uh, the city attorney's office cannot. So, I think this gives us an opportunity to support, supplement, and build on the work that the district attorney's done. And I think there's an opportunity for everyone, the district attorney, the county council, the city attorney, and the attorney general's office to work together for the people of San Diego. Thank you very much.

Thank you. We'll now hear from the next caller.

Thank you, Walker. It's unnecessary waste, not reform, to duplicate an established consumer protection unit in the DA's office that has successfully stopped illegal business practices for 50 years now with strict oversight. So, no on this rush proposal because it's presented with a lack of transparent governness given that the DA's office was given only five days to respond to it and should have been consulted. We don't need new bureaucracy when we have experienced DA pro prosecutors capable of handling the job. I'm with DA Summer Stefen who just proposed an ad quote ad in coordination with the DA's office which has demonstrated expertise in handling consumer fraud settlements rather than duplication and more county bureaucracy. Thank you. Here from the next caller.

Hi, good morning, Chair Lawson Remier, members of the board. My name is Bill Gilber, the director of the housing justice collaborative at Legal Aid San Diego, and I'm here to support the establishment of the CFPP unit. Everyday San Diego residents are hit with what can only be described as unfair unfairness in taxes, hidden predatory fees, personal lending, bad faith insurance deals, housing, consumer fraud, and envir environmental harms that drain family budgets. For low-income families, seniors and veterans and working people living on the edge, even small can push people into crisises or homelessness. At the same time, as federal enforcement has weakened, state agencies are being stretched thin and legal aid organizations simply cannot take on this large scale of corporate misconduct alone. This leaves a real enforcement gap. The CFP is a smart and responsible solution. It it uses existing settlement funds, not taxpayer dollars, to stop illegal practices, recover restitution, protect honest businesses, and prevent harm before it spreads. I urge you to support this proposal and ensure fairness, accountability, and real protections for San Diego residents. Thank you.

Thank you. Hear from the next caller. It's truth doesn't give an f about people being displaced and she'll never sue Mexico for their sewage. And terrorist friend Allison Snow got a lot of USD puppets to read scripts. Where was the Consumer Protection when this county fraudulently funneled well over 32 million of our tax dollars to illegal aliens? Or when this county raided our reserves to give their union campaign funders a kickback or when the Harm Reintroduction Coalition CEO was getting plastic surgeries with our money. This board can't even prosecute the Sword Shaw brothers who Allison put on her tenant protections committee. Conflicts of interest include Center on Policy Initiative, a campaign funer, Wild Coast Minimalist former employer, and Singleton Shriber who terror tried to manipulate Ivy residents with dictator Terra's blaming Trump as always to sue restaurants, landlords, and hospitals at a cost of $7.4 million a year paid for by you via Terara's new taxes on your paychecks and properties. Talk about a real unfairness tax. This item admits to generate dollars through fines and settlements. That's all it's about. An open door to ACE and all their greedy predatory lawyers to suck people dry their money to them in this board's benefit. It's a political scam. Just

you hear from the next caller.

Good morning. My name is Becky W. Thank you for bringing this item forward and I appreciate Summer Stefins's points and ask you to consider her objection to help streamline a better program. I would like to share with you um something that was said um an example that was mentioned during a workshop and it was the pursuit of accountability from the tobacco industry for decades of harm. That effort showed us something critical. When industries mislead the public and profit at the expense of public health, the government has both the authority and the responsibility to act. And today, we're facing a similar situation. The marijuana industry is often marketed as safe, harmless, and even beneficial. But we're seeing a very different reality, especially among our youth. Young people are experiencing severe mental health consequences, including anxiety, depression, and in some cases, psychosis, leading to suicide and suicidal ideiation. We cannot ignore these warning signs and I would hope that it would give this board pause and consider the harm of pushing this predatory indust.

Good morning board of supervisors and Riddle. I called in regarding item 19 which I respectfully oppose. I think our district attorney's office is poised to take this money and incorporate it into their already existing program and do a good work for us. As you know, the Union Tribune and Times of San Diego and several other medias have mentioned the optics of how this looks. It looks like the county is uh board of supervisors is in some sort of tiff war with district attorney's office for reasons we don't totally understand. And so I think you need to take a good look you all at what this looks like to us in the public where I might mention at least 32% of us are independent voters and are looking always to see what our electeds do to really represent us. I point out that the language of this seems to want to use the Tijana Valley River situation as some sort of let's solve this by having this

you hear from the next caller

gambler here talking to the board of people who can't understand normal thinking happens. Do you do you understand why I chose my name? I mean, you had a sheriff call me up and ask me that when you guys decided to try to go prosecute me and commit a uh try to have me be thrown in jail for calling you can't understand normal thinking. Um, look, is it that you guys really want to go after some of these properties right along the border to turn them into housing projects? Here's my question with that. With all these big trucks that weigh an ungodly amount of uh weight, they're going to tear up the roads. I highly recommend putting graphine and redoing the roads, making them stronger to be able to handle that. But in order to do that, you're going to have to recycle the plastic and actually do something good for us. You could generate $125 million instead of trying to steal people's land. You could go ahead and start reducing the cost here. you. I hear from the next caller.

Hi, my name is Allison Snow. I am the mayor of the city of Lemong Grove and I'm here in my individual capacity. I also um am a consumer protection attorney for 13 years. I ran the consumer protection division of the Legal Aid Society of San Diego. I opened up San Diego's first bankruptcy clinic, the debt defense clinic that became a national model. I've helped people with student loan debt, medical debt, dental debt, car fraud, everything. I've also had the opportunity to have a close relationship and work with law enforcement agencies, including the attorney general's office and district attorney's office on some of these cases. I will tell you there is a gap. Um, I have helped people. We've tried to bring cases over to the DA's office. The VA has reached out to us to to help and assist individual defendants, but there is a gap in services. We had the a program that was a predatory lending program and the money was not returned to the people and the only person who got any kind of criminal activity was the lowest person door-to-d dooror salesperson, not the finance lender who continues to ratify the fraud and add the

Now I hear from the next caller. Joe Venor uh calling this uh good morning honorable supervisors. Uh I am a consumer rights attorney and a law professor here in San Diego and I am in support of uh the proposal. Um, in my nearly two decades of practicing law, representing people as a legal services attorney uh and uh in private practice, I have seen, you know, the worst of of consumer rights violations and what it does to our communities. Um, this proposal will help uh uh to address those needs that are unfortunately continually growing. Um and also I wanted to address the point about the Chamber of Commerce saying that um you know there was no right to cure uh consumer laws. There's a built-in right to cure for almost you know every type of consumer law. So there's no kind of gotcha system there. Um, as far as the uh the DA and collaboration, I've personally

from the next caller.

Hello, this is Crystal Irving, president of SEIU Local 221, speaking in favor of the county establishing a consumer fairness and public protection unit. San Diego urgently needs this unit for many reasons that impact the members of SEIU and the communities that we get to serve every single day. And while time does not permit me to go into all the details, I do want to amplify a few. Housing, fairness for renters, and holding big corporate landlords accountable. Preventing families from going into debt simply because of denied claims from health insurance. The Tiada River environmental crisis, where our members still show up to serve the communities as park rangers and lifeguards at Imperial Beach, just to name two. And of course, more protection for seniors and veterans. This is a critical time in our history as a nation and as a county and taking action gives us the opportunity to step up and make an impact as many other large counties have already done. The consistent question that we asked as labor is which side are you on? And I believe this board to be on the side of people. So we are urging a yes vote on this item. Thank you.

You hear from the final caller. Good morning, Board of Supervisors. My name is Noah Yik, and I'm a researcher and policy advocate with the Center on Policy Initiatives. As an organization committed to building power and fighting for racial and economic justice for the working class, we know San Dieans are harmed when illegal, deceptive, and predatory practices go unchecked. Gaps and unfortunately working-class communities and communities of color disproportionately exposed to exploitation and harm. workers whose wages they're owed, renters are misled, and San Dieans are forced to live with a devastating environmental consequences of disasters like the Tijuana River Valley sewage crisis. These systemic harms demand stronger public enforcement and a dedicated consumer protection unit with the tools to act. The proposed CFP unit would strengthen the county's ability to protect San Dieans. It could work alongside the Office of Labor Center and enforcement to support litigation on wage theft cases, intervene when landlords and companies violate tenants rights or defraud renters, and hold polluters accountable for the harm they cause to San Diego's health and our ecosystem. We urge you to stand up for San Dieans and vote yes on this item. Thank you.

Thank you, Chair Losr. That concludes public comment on this item. Um, okay. Thank you so much and thank you for everyone. Sir, excuse me. Did you Sorry, Andrew. Was he in the queue for public comment? Yes, Mark. Uh, yes, you were in the queue. And you called his name. I called your name. Okay, Mark. Apologies. Uh, the clerk did call your name, so you must not have heard him. Okay, you can have your one minute.

Mark, item 20. Your overview states to advise the board of supervisors and county staff on issues of policy and to serve as links to the community. You never listen to the community's input anyway. Lots of examples of this. When many women hour after hour begged you not to allow men in women's restrooms, Tara and Nathan Fletcher passed through it anyway. Not just transgenders. Any man who says he is a woman, including predators. No one, including poor people, want to sales taxes their children inherit their homes. But this board passed it and the amount will increase drastically as property tax did after 1913. Before that property tax was unconstitutional. Everyone begged you for decades to stop the TJ River crisis. You didn't. Everyone begged for utility rates to not go up, but they have constantly risen. Even though we already have the highest in the country, and you have not kept rates down. In the name of helping us, this board intentionally fails at everything it supposedly tries to do. Thank you. And chair loss, we had one more caller that just dialed it. We'll hear from the final caller.

Good morning, members of the board. My name is Cole Samaru. I'm a Marine Corps veteran, CEO of Senior Tech Connect, which empowers older adults to navigate technology and stay safe from scams. Um, and I'm speaking in strong opposition to item 19. In my work, I see the sophisticated threats facing our older adults every single day, particularly in the rise of AIdriven fraud. Um, addressing these threats requires specialized expertise that is already held by the district attorney's consumer protection unit. Um, their office doesn't just prosecute. They are in the trenches with the organizations in the communities that help to educate the community. They've built the trust that our veterans and older adults rely upon. Creating this um additional unit within the city, the county council is bureaucratic bloat. It it does not seem like it has followed a clear process or fiscal discipline. Um listening to the people, I warn you to vote no and um to protect your reputation. Thank you and chair Lawson Reamer, that concludes public comment on the site.

Um, okay. Thank you all so much. I appreciate it. Um, so I do want to just begin uh before we go to board discussion. There was a number of questions raised um and comments raised by the callers uh that I are are fairly legal um and seem better uh more appropriate to be addressed by county council. So, I'm going to kind of go run through some of the ones I heard and feel free if you heard anything um that I missed uh please feel free to add it. I've just sort of taken notes. Um, but before that, before that I do that, I do want to address kind of the question around collaboration. I think it's really important. Um, you know, I think as as most of you are well aware, um, I did announce back in April, nearly a year ago, that we would be working on creating this unit. It was widely publicized at that time, lots of newspaper articles about it. Uh, so I know the DA's office um, was well aware. Uh but we did and um personally I did reach out um over a year uh ago to begin a conversation about uh standing up a unit similar to this um to get um input from from our DA. So I appreciate that we don't necessarily see eye to eye on the need of this unit. Um acknowledge that we come from different perspectives. Uh but the notion that I did not initiate a conversation um quite a long time ago as I said over a year ago um that that is that is actually factually not true. Um, so in any case, uh, moving on, I wanted to kind of run through what some of the questions I've heard. Um, and I do acknowledge that that there's a lot of sort of, um, complex legal issues and I wanted to make sure that um, the public and and our board um, has full transparency. So, I'm just beginning um, to to start with um, the legal authority of SB461. And I was hoping you could talk a little bit about what is this legal authority that SB461 created uh for county council offices. Um what is that specific legal authority? Uh to the extent that you're

aware, where else is it being utilized? And how is that um how does that overlap or differ from the authority the DA already holds?

Thank you for the question, Chair Lawson Reamer. Um, it was stated earlier that the authority comes from a bill that was passed about 5 years ago, SB 461, which creates uh this authority for counties uh that have cities with a population in excess of 750,000 residents uh and the inclusion of the city of San Diego uh in our county is what qualifies our county to have uh this authority within the office of county council. Um, it is currently an authority that is being exercised by the city and county of San Francisco, uh, the county of Santa Clara and the county of Los Angeles. Um, all offices whom I have spoken with their county councils about this authority and how their offices are are using them. Um, one of the comments that I or several comments that I did hear uh in the callers that I just wanted to clarify is the notion that this authority is duplicative when in fact this is what's known as a concurrent authority uh that the statute itself uh sets up concurrent authority uh and authorizes multiple public entities um to enforce the same statutory scheme. We see this in a variety of different ways uh in which the attorney general's office exercises concurrent authority uh to enforce criminal and civil laws. Um and so this is not anything novel or new. Um and it simply is meant uh to empower uh other agencies to exercise the same authority uh in a way that becomes uh comprehensive. Um and then with that civil enforcement authority um uh county council offices which are experienced in bringing civil actions where injunctive relief is obtained, civil penalties are recovered. Uh uh restitution is provided to victims. Uh

these are all functions uh that civil law firms and uh civil offices such as uh offices of county council uh continue to do.

Thank you. Um that's helpful. I I I think kind of giving a broader framework around um how of it's quite common for multiple public entities to have overup overlapping authority and concurrent authority I guess is the technical legal term. Um would be helpful if you could speak a little bit um uh how comparable units um coordinate handle deconliction and um you know what your what your approach would be because of course it would fall to to county council to to ensure the coordination um and what established legal mechanisms allow coordination uh between agencies while protecting confidentiality. So uh there are uh formal protocols that would be in place. Uh these are happening again uh in other jurisdictions where that concurrent authority exists between uh county council offices and district attorney's offices. It's the same way uh operates the same way with the attorney general's office. When I was there, um, I oversaw several enforcement actions that were conducted by the consumer law section, uh, civil rights, uh, issues, uh, that would have crossover and we quite fre frequently coordinated with local DAs, uh, and county council offices on those matters. Um there are uh you know methods for ensuring that uh uh criminal the appropriate criminal referrals are made whether they're done internally in an office such as uh the uh city and county of San Francisco or in the in the attorney general's office that has both functions. Uh that is something that does happen quite frequently uh when it is necessary. Um and then working with uh multi- agency civil enforcement is is is is something where there will be uh deconliction uh protocols set up and we would make sure that all of that was uh uh done uh according to what's required.

Thank you. I appreciate that. Um another question that arose regarding uh the source of the funds that are being proposed um to find to fund um the work of this unit. So, I was hoping you could speak a little bit about who has legal control over the consumer fraud trust fund. What are these legal restrictions and how it can be spent? Um, and how does this proposal um and certainly your plan for implementation of this proposal ensure um that these restrictions are honored? And I mean really to cut to the chase is you know what what kind of specific financial oversight mechanisms um does this proposal um and would you plan to administer to ensure that the trust fund is protected and prop properly um managed? Uh and I will defer certainly to the CEO's office if anything that I state is uh inaccurate, but my understanding is that this consumer fraud trust fund is a county fund. And so obviously that is subject to the the control of this board uh to allocate the funds in in the manner that they uh determine to be necessary and within the authorities that the funds have been appropriated. Um I know under Prop 64 um funds are restricted and so the use of the funds would be limited uh to these activities within my office uh to engage in this consumer protection work. Um we often uh and in our office we manage this the county's liability fund which is almost $90 million. Um and you know through the use of actuarial uh studies and and services and all of the internal controls within not only my office but countywide uh we are able to manage those funds. Um and so this would not be anything new uh necessarily to to our office. Um but again uh we would certainly deploy the resources uh

according to the restrictions placed on the funding. And I don't know if there's anything else that you would add to that. Okay. Um, thank you. And I I think the last question um that I think would be helpful to to to get your opinion on or to get your analysis of is uh the ethical obligations that govern county council's enforcement decisions um and how this unit's um structure as described in the board letter um would uh provide those kinds of um a framework and guide rails to ensure uh that that you're able to uphold the ethical obligations regarding enforcement.

Sure. Um well there are several different schemes of ethics enforcement you know throughout the state. Uh uh least of which would be the the rules of professional conduct. And so all of our attorneys as any attorney that's licensed in the state would be bound uh and and uh obligated to exercise their professional judgment in accordance with those ethics rules. And so the selection decisions all of those would be uh governed by uh those set of of of of standards. Um and uh you know if this unit is set up it would certain it would be my responsibility to ensure uh that compliance uh that the decisions that are made on cases to bring would ultimately be mine uh and subject to that same uh those same limitations. And so, um, this is again what how it operates in all of the county council offices that are exercising this authority.

Um, thank you so much. I appreciate that. I I may have further questions as this conversation um evolves, but I I did I did want to be uh responsive to public comment um so we could have a fruitful board discussion. So, thank you so much. I I see supervisor Anderson with his hand in the queue. Yeah. Uh thank you very much. I actually have a couple questions for our county council as well. If this moves forward today, uh what would that do to the load of the attorneys that we have on staff and how would we compensate or make adjustments?

So my excuse me so my understanding is that there would be an appropriation uh in the budget for the hiring of new staff. uh this would not be uh any workload that would be added to existing staff um but that there would have to be a ramp up period where we brought on uh staff to take on these responsibilities. And and how many people are you thinking is a startup?

Um I believe there may be an overall appropriation of positions within a certain amount of time. My objective uh would be sort of to slowly uh roll this out. Um obviously we would need leadership um to take on uh the uh o oversight of of of this new unit um and bring on additional staff as as as necessary and required uh to get the unit going and to take on the initial responsibilities. Um, how would this be different than what we've done up to now? Because we participate in the opioid lawsuits and we have settlements and we've sued other organizations. I'm not sure uh which ones I can mention. I think they're public record once we filed the lawsuit, but I don't want to run that risk of a Brown Act violation. But how is it that we're able to accomplish that now? and how would this change?

So, in many of those instances, these have often been cases that we have been invited to join coincidentally by other county council offices um that have the authority to bring these cases. And so, uh whether it's through uh contingency fee representation of private law firms that take on the representation of these counties and other cities that we will join. uh that has traditionally been the method in which uh we have engaged in the limited amount of of of of of uh consumerfacing matters that that we've been a part of. Will we still do that?

We we can still do that. We can still engage um outside counsel um in in matters where it would be appropriate uh to bring those actions. Um, would we be hiring outside firms to represent us and doing some of this work? I mean, I'm trying to think of the workflow. Uh, we have a pretty good prediction of how much workflow we have from what we do at the county over the time. But on a project like this, h how how are we going to meet that workflow? would we bring in outside firms at some point uh and then make an evaluation of whether we should staff it or keep with an outside firm that has specific u uh skill sets for that area. I mean I know that we do that now that we don't have all the skill sets necessary and we don't have uh enough work to hire somebody who's exclusively in an area as an expert. So how would that work? So the goal would be for the unit to be self-sufficient so that we would uh hire those who were qualified, have the experience uh and have enough uh resource within the department to be able to handle the workload on our own. uh again as we do now to the extent that there is an expertise that is uh lacking for particular matter that may be very nuanced or or or special um uh or if there was a capacity issue uh if certainly the work was growing at a faster pace than than we were then we could utilize that uh as u as a resource to be able to continue to pursue the work. Um if I may, Madam Chair, I I have some questions um for uh district attorney.

Absolutely. And let me before I just want to you did ask one question that I would note um you know a lot of those cases you mentioned that we've already brought um did come from board direction. Um, and so one difference I would see in this unit, and when I say board direction, almost all of them came from me coming to the board and asking for board direction, uh, which obviously appreciate the board support, but I think it would be more sustainable and more balanced if we had, um, a director of this unit within county council who was able to, uh, kind of think in a more strategic way. I mean, we all know we have big complicated jobs that aren't just thinking about litigation on behalf of um folks in San Diego County. Would prefer that those cases did not come uh only from me, but actually were being originated from someone with um a high expert level of expertise who is embedded and working directly for Damon. So, I do think that is a difference. We have done a lot of these cases um but coming from the board and this would shift that and it sort of in a way take the board a little bit more out of the loop and uh the have a lot more of their origination coming from within county council's office.

Um thank you for that. Uh um I was hoping I was hoping because you've been doing this work, your office has been doing this work. Uh, I did read your op-ed, so I was I was hoping that uh you could share some of your raised concerns on the proposal before us today and um what are the pitfalls that we should be aware of?

Thank you, Supervisor. And um I think it the main uh thing that is of huge concern to me is the process. um the process is not the way you can see even in today's board agenda that the board is referring smaller items not just the creation of a large new regulatory agency which by the way the letter says will be staffed with 30 new full-time employees within two years um at a budget of $30 million. And you can't even look at that as a budget of 30 million because once you have the full-time employees, you have to continue to keep them and to to employ. You don't want to hire them to fire them without looking at what the needs are and the progression and seeing where the county has the service. For example, as compared to Los Angeles, which is 10 million in population, county council's team is 14 members. This letter is asking for San Diego with 3.3 million to have right off the bat in two years 30 members of this team. It has not been done the way business in collaboration is done where it is sent to the CEO to study to work with all of the experts in an objective manner and return to the board with a recommendation as to where those gaps really lie. So we are not duplicating. We're using these precious resources forever and ever. No matter what federal state uh government does, San Diego can protect its own community. My office has

been fiscally responsible where for 51 years we've never had a single issue with the way that we use consumer funds. We document everything and we've never asked the board to grow in this area until recently when we saw that the amount of money allowed us to fiscally grow to meet the moment of the AI generated frauds and everything else. The process also in with excluding our office and uh truth is very important. I've, you know, as DA I've been called by organized crime and criminals many things, but untruthful is never something that has I've been called. Never. And um it's because the only conversation about the slutter that I've had in order to actually work on the good of the county happened on on March 4th. And in this conversation, unfortunately, the chair raised her voice and said this item will pass. And then she also said that my feedback better not be anything to limit this item. The conversation we had a year ago was she wanted to hear what my unit does and I provided all my team members to give her a blowby-blow it, you know, feeling that there's a supervisor who's interested in this area and we want to give her everything she needs. didn't hear anything for a year until this conversation that was had where it was a an another uh indication to me that something is wrong with this process. A process that is for the good

of the people, invites the experts, and allows really meaningful feedback. Because what we had already presented to the board and the board unanimously voted on is an expansion that is based on our deep experience working with the attorney general and all of the prosecutors across the state as to the threats that are coming to San Diego and how we would meet them, which includes a very expensive forensic digital lab. That's the only way you're going to beat organized crime and scams against seniors. You're not going to beat it with a civil injunction team at county council. They are excellent at what they do, but it is limited in terms of search warrant and resources to go after those organized crime and those big actors. So, we haven't done we're in the process of our expansion. So instead of the board waiting to see how that expansion that's already in process, there was a lease that was in front of this board to then determine what the gaps are um would have been a more thoughtful way. Um I also um the reason I felt that I normally work out things behind the scenes. I don't think any of these you board members have ever heard me have a public disagreement or a commentary about anything uh regarding this board. Not not ever in my years as DA. The problem is when I and my team have busted night and day to build an elder justice task force that became the central issue at the Hoover Commission where the state called us as the

experts. The nation called us as the experts on how we protect seniors from scams and how we we do that. And we explained everything that we do through this unique one-of-a-kind elder justice task force that allows seniors to if they don't re to encourage them to report to law enforcement because within minutes then we're able to stop their money from disappearing from our system using federal warrants and other things that we use. When we see time and time again communications about this item without us at the table that tells seniors that this civil county council team is going to solve their scam problems, that is destructive to public safety. that is misleading our seniors into thinking that a civil lawsuit is going to stop the scammers instead of what we've been telling them. Call us, call police immediately. Because in one case, we were able to actually break down the cryptocurrency ATM and get the older woman's money back. These are things that cannot be done in this process. So we truth is very important and we need to communicate about this item truthfully and not overpromise our community what cannot be done by a civil team. There is stuff that can be done and I already provided a whole uh gap that can be filled beautifully by county council. those mediations on tenants that are being greedy and abusing and letting their people live in in in you know

terrible as uh things that they can breathe. All of those things are things county council should do and I would welcome building that unit with county council. This though was built on I don't know what it is, but it was not built bringing the real expertise to the table. The DA's office operates across the entire state with prosecutors. That's how we're able to bring those lone sharks, the creditor case. We got $10 million for abusive calls because it's not a credit card company that works just in San Diego. It's across the whole state. So, we leveraged the entire power of the entire state to bring this $10 million action, the um fraud with regard to the solar, which is rampant. We were able to bring that across the state, but we were the lead prosecutors creating a $3 million fund for our victims to re replenish their money. These take days and nights of work to work on. Um, and we welcome additional help in a gap area that does not duplicate and doesn't take away from the expansion that we waited as we built this fund with the attorney general. The fund is built on the monies that we bring that this team brings with the attorney general's office. attorney general brought a massive settlement that allowed us to finally come forward and ask for an expansion. We didn't do it before we could have the money, not to just pay our employees and experts for a year or two, but for the years to come to be responsible to the fiscal health of this county. So, I I am asking

for you to not vote no on this item. I am asking for you to follow the process of sending this to the CEO to allow the hardworking people in your very county that have had your the backs of your community to participate and to create something unique and good and beneficial.

Thank you very much. Um, madam chair, first of all, I want to thank you for allowing the conversation to last long so we can get all this information out. Uh, I uh I want us to have the ability uh to go after items like the oipoid in, you know, in in make sure that we're not leaving money on the table when so many San Dieans have been injured. But I I am concerned that we're targeting being bigger than LA while we're a much smaller county. And um you know my big beef is uh five years ago I voted for a board letter that I thought would be very very helpful and I always get their name wrong. So I'm good with it.

It's okay. I think we're all on the we're all aware office of evaluation.

Can I can I just analy can I just want to say one thing to you? I think there was a factual um misrepresentation um regarding the size of this office. I want to make sure we're actually speaking to the facts that's in the board letter. Um this unit, it says directly quoting, "The unit shall be staffed with up to 30 FTEEs." So, this is a delegation to county council uh to make a decision to staff appropriately. It's a limit. It's not a mandate to get to 30. So I I if that was your concern, I don't know if that's where you're going, but um there was a I think a factual misrepresentation that said that this unit will be staffed up to 30 up will be staffed with 30 FTs. That is not what the board letter said. It's very intentional um of delegating um operational authority to the county council. Um but also frankly providing a limit. Um, I felt like, uh, if you want to get rid of that and just say the unit shall be staffed with up to however many county council deems as necessary, um, I would be open to that as well. Uh, the purpose of the 30 was really more to provide, um, an outside boundary, but ultimately it will be up to county council to make that operational decision.

Um, I appreciate that. Thank you for that kind offer. Uh, I'm going to take you up on it, but I'm going to fashion it in a different way. Uh, OEIPA, we spent $22 million on it. It's been five years. It's produced zero. Absolutely zero. And they're not going to produce anything until, I think, the end of this year or the next budget year. I don't want to legislate through a board letter. I rather go through a process where it goes through the CAO and it's determined there. So, we have safeguards in place. What I'm worried about this is the fact that you have in mind that you want to cap it at 30 when LA is nowhere near 30. The cap is way too high in my estimation. But I don't know. I don't know what that workload's going to look like. But I got to believe that if LA needed more people, they would have more people. And I appreciate that your approach is to build up and you're only putting a cap on it. What I'd rather have is the DA at the table along with other folks. Not one person in my district has brought this issue up. Now, that doesn't mean we don't have an issue, but there's nobody clamoring on my door saying this is so crucial and so important. Now, I also am balancing the fact that the opioid lawsuits and settlements have been very good for this county addressing and providing us the the funds to really go after uh opioid and all the fentanyl poisoning. So, I see the good side to it. What I'm worried about is we're frontloading how it's going to be done, where it's going to be done, what it's going to be do. I would like to have more vetting. I'd like to be able to use this time to go back to my district and make sure that people are privy to it because I didn't have those

conversations with you. We have a Brown Act that precludes you from telling me all your good ideas and as a result. Maybe there are people in my district that never thought it was possible and they have ideas and I want to make sure their ideas are included so that people that are living in the unincorporated area have a seat at the table as well. I'm not against this. I just would like to slow it down and have more input so that when I vote for it, I don't have a fear of uh a single source contract with a known felon because we didn't fully vet it. I'm not suggesting that any of that stuff's here, but I have a little bit of whiplash going through that last goround of a single source contract and then finding out nobody bid on a $6 million contract. It's different issues, but my sensitivities are high. So, I'm simply asking that uh we amend in I'll let you fashion the amendment because I'd like to get there uh that we give it to the CIO just to do some uh community input, get the DA's input, and see if we can identify anybody else that has a skin in the game. One of the reasons why I asked whether we would use outside counsel is many of the people that testified in favor today would benefit would be benefactors of us going out for outside counsel because that's what they do every day. So, I'm not opposed to using them, but I want to hear from everybody and then make the appropriate decision. But right now, as it stands, I can't support in its current fashion. If you're willing to go through that, delay it 30 days, I can get there.

Thank you so much. Um, Supervisor Anderson, I appreciate your comments. Um, I do not think it would be appropriate for the CEO to run that consultative process to stand up something that reports to the county council. There are different direct reports with different um, competencies and different roles in in our county. Um, I do uh certainly hope and expect that the county council will be engaged in that kind of consultative process and if it would uh earn your support uh to stipulate that um you know request that the county council consult with board offices to find out who to get input in uh from as uh he goes about kind of crafting this unit, including yourself. Happy to include that. Um there's certainly um an intention here. Um I think it's spelled out in the board letter that the county council will be engaged in that kind of consultative process. It does um ask that the county council engage not with just with the district attorney which is obviously extremely important but also other stakeholders that uh perhaps I have not spoken with and that it would be ex that and if you needed to stipulate that kind of more explicitly than is already here. I don't think that's an appropriate function of the CEO. This is a legal function. um it should be done by the legal office who's then going to be responsible for actually implementing and administering the program. But certainly do agree about the importance of consultation. So just to say again to clarify um this is the board letter as as outlined um the only thing that it requires of the of the of our county council specifically is that they do have to hire move forward with hiring someone to lead the unit. Other than that, there's a huge amount of discretion. It says please go consult with um with stakeholders to to better understand the scope uh to engage in that uh consultative process and it and it says to staff with up to 30 FTEEs. It doesn't require that. Um, I'll move the item as it is currently, but if um you

wanted to make a friendly amendment to uh stipulate the county council would engage in that uh stakeholder consultative process of some way, um I don't again like I said, I don't think that is um an appropriate function of the CEO, but I think it would be wonderful for the county council to do that.

Um I accept your friendly amendment to my friendly amendment. However, I'm not I don't want to hire somebody until I know what the plan is. I'm not comfortable moving forward until we have those stakeholders input and that I have an effort opportunity to go into my district and notify them that this process is here. In every other in every program that we've ever done that's been successful, we've used that process of going into our districts and notifying people because we don't have a lot of time for people to know. Many people in my district, they don't understand what we're voting on today. They've never had an opportunity to speak up. I want to give them that opportunity. Delaying it by 30 or 60 days, I don't think is going to kill that process, but it will make it better. What I do know is the last time I did this was $22 million ago, five years ago, and we've now squandered 22 million. I

I'm looking forward to talking about that um that item next.

Let me finish. Let me finish. I hear you. So, so I want to get there. I'm giving you a path of how I could get there, but I'm not going to initiate hiring people until I know what the full plan is and that my constituents have a voice in the matter and the DA is at the table uh preemptively. I don't we're going to hire somebody, but we haven't even fully defined the lane that we're going to be in. And I'm not sure that expertise is the same expertise because I think that lanes can be slightly different. I want to know this information. I don't want to go through any more newspaper stories front page that we're now giving single source contracts to to uh known felons or that we're hiring up whole departments that produce nothing after 22 million. this I want I want the clarity and transparency on the front end and not try to chase it down later after we've already started the department and already hired somebody to lead the department. I don't think a 60-day delay would kill us and it would give a give me a lot more satisfaction in voting for it and I want to vote for it. It's not a matter of not wanting to vote for it, but I can't vote for it if we're going to move ahead with prescribed items before everybody's giving their input.

So, would it be just to kind of figure out if this is going to meet your needs? Would it be um helpful if we stipulated that prior to um hiring the CFPP director in the next 30 days, uh the county council would conduct uh extensive outreach and get input um regarding the job description and the needs of the community uh before moving forward with the hiring process and that that would have to happen in the next 30 days so we're not kind of waiting around. I because we're going into summer, I'd prefer it was 90 days because some people may be under too long for me, but I'm happy to compromise. You had said 30. I could do 45. Uh, how about 60 because people are on holiday.

Uh, let me ask uh Damon. I mean, I I know that you had some kind of you really wanted to kind of figure out how to staff up your team. You know, today is March 24th. If we said, hey, you need 45 or 60 days and before you hired, you were going to engage in a consultative process. um when one opinion from Damon and also from my fellow colleagues um before accepting the amendment what whatever the pleasures of this board I will proceed and and do it within the time frame that's may we also ask our DA if that people available to participate

let's let's let me hear from our call my colleagues because their hands are in the queue so I hear you uh Joel I think we'll be able sorry supervisor Anderson I think we'll probably be able to get there but I I do want to create space for a board discussion so uh for accepting that um or crafting that. I'll I'll turn turn it over to Supervisor Montgomery Stea who has hand had her hand up for quite some time.

It's fine. Totally fine. Um so, uh a few questions. I want to I'm I'm reading the recommendations and it does really require a lot of coordination um with the way that it reads. It's um just the very first sentence direct county council in coord in coordination with the CAO um to establish this unit. So I think that maybe if we want to more clearly define um the CAO's role in that. I have no issue with it, but I do the way that I'm reading the board letter, it does call for that type of coordination. It also uh it says that the the unit shall work collaboratively with uh the San Diego County District Attorney, city attorneys, uh the AG. Um so I I um I think maybe my hope is that we're a little closer in thought um than it appears um because these are I'm reading straight from the board letter. Um what I do have somewhat of an issue when we're when we're talking about um there are two things. Um one is with the director. Um just clarity that I support this being a function of county council to hire that director. Like that is with the way that our charter works, the way you know this part of um u what anyone under his office would be hired by him. So um that is where for recommendation three I have a little bit of an issue because the language um kind of um it it it is not very clear to me that that will be his sole responsibility. Right? So I would like to provided that

this uh moves forward moves forward, I would like to uh recommend some other uh language for recommendation three. I'll get to that in a moment. I also tend to agree on the FTE part. The only thing I would say is I want to make sure we're comparing apples to apples because I don't know enough about LA's, you know, unit, right? Does that mean what the way I'm reading this here that does not mean 30 attorney FTEEs? That means maybe an administrative assistant and investigators, you know, uh, and attorneys or whoever else is involved, which of course we also would look to toward our district attorney to um, help inform some of that. Um, even though this would be, you know, so solely on the civil side. So, um, uh, I I just want I want a little bit of clarity with that, but I do agree and I think the word the two words up to were very important for me, too, because I don't want to go in a situation where we are um I don't think we can ever overstaff either of the units. What I do think is that when we talk about that concurrent jurisdiction and everyone knowing what their roles is, that's the work that's going to be super important as um um we uh enter all enter into this. So um my you know I I want to support this today. Um I I do have that amendment. Um, I also do have some some similar concerns around the 30 FTEEs, but understanding that I am okay with the uptune language, but I'm also open to anybody that wants to change that. Um, because that, you know, that is quite a bit depending on how we define it. Um, and it and it should be we should um the all the units that we have at the county should be very successful in the work they do. We know the district attorney is very successful in this work um that her office does. uh we want to continue

that. Um I think we can and so my recommendation for uh the for for the third prong here is that I want I would like to strike that out and just simply say the county council may engage with extern external stakeholders including those with relevant experience and community perspectives to inform the work of the CFPP unit. It just basically takes out that language around hiring. Um because I I I do think that that should be up to county council. Thank you. Do you have um does Andrew have a

I'm happy to accept that as a friendly amendment. Okay. Thank you.

Okay. Thank you for that. I do think a a consumer protection unit will be invaluable because there are local cases that that the state attorney general and the district attorney's office do not have the capacity to handle for various reasons. In our research, what we have found is that um the types of cases that uh an office, a unit out of our county council's office should could take on are oftentimes some of those uh cases that are really big but don't result in the big monetary judgments. So those are the cases that you know really just there's not a whole lot of incentive um to pursue if we're merely talking about funding. But that is exactly why um the the there's a law requiring that the attorney general to deposit a portion of their money from their con larger consumer cases to the local fund to specifically use on these types of cases because they understand those local cases just won't uh return as much. And so u there's a mechanism for that and I think this should be considered um in the conversation that we have. But all in all, my hope and my prayer is that county council, district attorney, attorney general will collaborate on these consumer protection cases so we can get the most out of this um and not can, you know, kind of swerve into each other's lanes, but that we can get the most out of this. But we do have the authority to do it. Um the the money is there. We do need to be frugal about that. We do need to monitor it. Um but you based on your accepting that friendly amendment um I do uh I will second the motion um with that amendment and I also still open to discussions around the FTE conversation. Thank you.

Okay. Thank you. Thank you so much. Um Vice Chair uh Supervisor Desmond.

Well, thank you. Learned a lot today. Um, you know, the consumer protection unit, I I think within our district attorney's office, they're recognized as a leader in the state, and adding more resources to that existing unit, I think, is the most efficient way to expand their scope and breath of their consumer protection. But to me, this sounds like we're we we've got a plan, but we don't we don't know what problem we're solving yet. I don't know what gaps there may or may not be between what the district attorney is doing and between what what our county council might be be doing. I I do see, you know, in the in the first uh recommendation, you know, to establish a consumer fairness and protection uh unit. I mean, that's so we're going to go ahead and establish it. I think you know at um you know summer Stephan our district attorney you know put it you know respectfully forward is like the process that we're going through we're put kind of putting the cart before the horse and when if we're arguing be in the newspapers that's not just not a good look. So you know I'd like to see cooperation coordination um happen before we move forward with this protection unit. And so, um, and we all want our our consumers protected. We none of us want any fraud to happen there, but I don't I think we're we've got a a program being being put forward and we haven't really identified the gaps that we have between between the two and how that we can work collaboratively. And I do see under your recommendation, the unit shall work collaboratively to develop coordination protocols with other enforcement agencies such as the district attorney's office, city attorneys, and uh and the California attorney general. I'd like to see that take place before we vote and have this go forward. Uh and and that coordination and working with the with the DA's office so that and and and Damon, maybe maybe we leave Ebony out of

it. I you know what whatever whatever it takes. uh maybe have the lawyers work this out, but maybe let's identify the gaps that would be addressed by the creation of this unit and how we can work collaboratively. So, I'm going to make I'll make a substitute motion to direct our our county council to work with the DA's office to study the potential creation of a consumer uh county consumer fairness and public uh protection unit within the county council and identify what if any gaps could be addressed by the creation of this unit and how we can work in collaboratively. And I think that's going to take at least 90 days to bring forward. So, that would be my substitute motion.

Uh thank you, Supervisor Desmond. Um, so we have a motion on the floor and a second. Now we have a substitute motion. Um, if that does not get a second, then we'll I'll second it. Okay, we have a second of that. Okay. Uh, move on to Supervisor Giri. Sorry, Chair Promir.

Oh, it's fine. Uh, thank you, Madame Chair. I have some comments and then I do want to get to the question about the FTEEs because I think that's an important discussion. So, first and foremost, I want to thank you chair for bringing this forward. I want to thank the uh DA uh Stefan for being here and speaking uh and everybody who gave comment. I think at this at its core this proposal is about something very simple and we know this to be true. It's about protecting families across our region. Too many residents are being taken advantage of. Whether it's through predatory financial practices, deceptive business conduct, unfair housing tactics, wage theft, hidden fees, scams that quite literally drain their income, or environmental harms, as we heard so many commenters talk about uh people having to uh be forced to live with every single day. And for many families, especially working families, seniors, and immigrant communities, these harms don't just show up on paper. or they impact their daytoday lives and well-being. They mean harder choices at the end of the month. They mean stress, instability, in some cases significant health consequences. And the reality is that most of these problems are not one-time events. They're happening every day. It's the worker who doesn't get paid what they're owed. It's the tenant dealing with unsafe conditions or unfair rent increases. I can't tell you I have spoken to dozens if not probably at this point hundreds of people especially people who are on fixed incomes that are living in in squalor conditions because their landlords have them living that way and it's not so much I think of course it is about getting a return on your investment in these cases and yes going out after the big corporations but it's also about bringing justice for the little guy you know and I I think that's quite important as well. So I think that's what the consumer fairness and financial protection unit a aims to do.

It gives us the tools to go after the bad actors, pursue enforcement, and fight for the communities that have been disproportionately impacted for far too long. I want to be very clear. I know there's been differences of opinion. This effort is not about replacing. It's not about competing with the important work that's already being done. I want to take a moment to recognize District Attorney Summer Stefen and her team. They have been leaders not just locally but nationally on consumer protection, on public safety, on holding bad actors accountable and that is very, very clear. We are grateful for that leadership and we're grateful for the work that has already been done to protect residents across this county. It is trailblazing work and I for one am very grateful for the district attorney's work and success on this issue. I also want to note that the scale and requires us to work hand in hand and as has been mentioned I think there the one uh alignment we have across this board is that we want to see coordination. We want to see collaboration. So, I'm eager to see a cooperative enforcement model where the DA's office and the county council's office and perhaps even the city of San Diego's office, who I also met with, uh, are working together, leveraging every tool available to them and to us and sending a clear message that in San Diego County, we won't allow families to be exploited. At a time when people are feeling squeezed from all directions and when trust in institutions is fragile, our responsibility is to show that government can step up, most importantly work together and deliver real protection. And I do believe that this unit is a reflection of that responsibility. So I do look forward to the continued partnership with the DA's office, with county council, and like I said, even the city of San Diego if that's the case. We're going to engage

everybody in this concurrent authority work that is so desperately needed uh for our community members. So with that uh I'll I'll be supporting the um original motion and seconding not the substitute. Thank you.

Um thank you so much. Appreciate the support and the and the the insights uh from from all my colleagues. We do have a motion on the floor. Um, seeing no other requests to comment, we will first vote on the substitute motion. This is the motion um by Supervisor Desmond, which was to do a study on this matter or have county council do a study on this matter. Um, we can go ahead and vote on that. Chair Lawson Reamer, that motion fails with Supervisor Anderson and Supervisor Desmond voting yes. All other supervisors being present and voting no.

Okay. Thank you all very much. So, we now return to the original motion um as amended uh by um by my colleague, Vice Chair Montgomery Step. Um just to reiterate, this is the motion um that delegates uh to county council uh to um establish this consumer fairness and public protection unit um and uh to move forward with hiring a CFPP director. um delegates to the county council authority to figure out uh kind of appropriate staffing um of this unit um up to 30 FTs and as um super uh vice chair Montgomery step mentioned that's not 30 attorneys that includes all the support staff that would be needed um and uh ask county council to develop coordination and work collaboratively with um the district attorney the city attorney and the uh AG um as this moves forward. Um it also includes uh an early intake and early resolution function for consumer and financial protection and complaints. Um and this uh would be limited to not operate as a general consumer mediation pro program or substitute for private legal representation. Um again if we could put on the board the amendment from my colleagues so everyone can see uh what three would be written as and I think the purpose of that is very clear which is to make um clear that uh that it really is the purview and the authority of uh our county council to to hire this individual um and encourage obviously consultation with community members and external stakeholders is appropriate but that really it's a reporting line that goes to the county council um and that that needs to be that authority needs to be quite clear. I appreciate that. Um I appreciate that clarification. I think that is correct. Um so these are, you know, the main items. Um again, I think returning to Supervisor Anderson. Um would really like to move forward with this today. I I do want to be mindful

that uh my colleague had a I think really important point uh regarding not muddying the waters uh regarding importing lines. I think that's really important. I'm happy to kind of say on the record that I my hope and my intent would be for uh county council to engage in a stakeholder consultation process and to to talk to all the board offices about who to check who to talk to and who who to speak with. They're not named here. Uh but I I think that um my colleague is right um that we need to be clear about whose job it is to hire the correct person um and not and not muddy the waters on that. So um would love to be able to earn your support. Um but I I also understand that um if if you are not able to do so today then if there's no way that we can earn that support then I think we'll just have to move forward as is.

I um I agree with you over uh or the power I but in your board letter it said both. That's why I used the CAO because it was in your board letter. Um, is there any way that we could get the input and then the hiring so that at least we've gone to our constituents first and got their feedback before we moved forward? In almost everything we do that we've gotten public input first, we've had a better product and uh I really don't want to get ahead of my constituents. This is a big change. I think it's a good change, but it's a big change and I really want the opportunity to do outreach in my district before I vote to move forward with it.

Uh well, I would like to move forward with the vote on this today, but it if but if your question is whether county council um could engage and get uh public input before moving forward with hiring. I do think that's a question for county council um rather than for the board, but happy to if if that's your question for him, you should you can go ahead and ask him. Well, I'd want it to come back and present to us so that we know what's been what's what's going on. I mean, that's how we've done it in the past. This is a different direction than what we've done in the past. And look, I get it. You three have your votes and you don't need to do this, but um you know, we always talk about how important it is to have community input. We always talk about having the right people at the table and we're in such a rush to do this that we have to rush it out today before we've ever had that input. And I'm just not comfortable with it. I think we've made some mistakes in the past and I'm not going to cut any corners. Uh I'd rather go a little slower, still get there, but get there in the right way. And I listen when I say the right way, I mean the right way for me. it may not be the right way.

Can I ask just to clarify um are you essentially asking you saying okay if we added um to this uh an amendment that says um report back in 30 days with any kind of input that you've received from community members along the way. Uh is that what you're asking for?

Yeah, that that would be helpful. Then I'd feel comfortable moving forward. Uh I would prefer it if was a little longer but 30 days if that's all I can get, that's I can get. But that also give uh our DA an opportunity to give her feedback. So we'd get everybody's feedback and I think then when we move forward we'd have a better definition of what we're doing. You know the I know I pick on NEIPA a lot but it's a great prime example. I loved your idea when you presented it. I was all in. I mean in concept it was a brilliant idea. Uh, I'm giving you credit for yet another brilliant idea, but it's turned out to be just a nightmare. $22 million, zero production, and we're still lost. I don't want to go through that anymore. We're our dollars. Every time we have these meetings, we talk about how little money we have. I don't want to squander it if it takes another 30 days to make a better decision. And for me, I'd feel better with it. if you're all comfortable. I don't want to hold you up, but so that that's where I'm at.

Okay. Um, and thank you for your consideration.

Yeah. I mean, I think I would be I I I obviously want to ask uh the uh the seconder. I think I I I wouldn't want to change anything to kind of muddy the waters. I think as um super gum made made a very good point that really does need to be a process led by uh our county council that that's really important. Um, I would be comfortable with like an additional uh line a sort of a another recommendation that ask county council uh to return at our next board meeting which is in approximately 30 days um with an update regarding any community input. Um, but I wouldn't want to uh in any way um suggest that that this process is is something that uh need that that uh our county council would need to be delayed or would need u sort of board approval, I want to properly delegate that authority. But if that authority includes a transparent update to the board as opposed to an approval, I think that's something um but I would love to hear from my colleague. Yeah, I mean it it goes along with the with the amendment, right, which just says you can engage with external stakeholders. Um left it broad for that purpose. Um I I just want to be clear that we I just want to make sure that when we hire county council with the very specific expertise and experience from the DOJ that we allow county council to utilize that. And I don't want to uh overstep just like we would not overstep. We don't we don't ask any direct we don't know who our directors are hiring, right? Like we don't that's not something we trust that right. And so like I don't want to um I don't want to make that a requirement for county council when when across the board it's not a requirement. Um, and so with that said though, I think as this process has shown us with all of the letters, um, I

think it's a couple letters in opposition, but many letters in support that there's already an appetite for that type of engagement and then from the supervisors. Um, you know, there are we do each have blind spots from other districts, right? their districts have very specific needs and so that can also be a part of 30 45 days um whatever it is I'm certainly not opposed to that I just want to make clear that we are consistent with authority that we give our our direct hires that's it

so so just to kind of try to lend the plane um uh Vice Chair Montgomery step would it to kind of amend your amendment would it be um and then report back uh have Damon report back uh with any updates in 30 case. Would that be consistent? That that is that is fine. That is fine with me. I have no issues with that. It's Would that meet your concerns? Yeah. And and do we have somebody in mind that we're going to hire? I mean, is that is that why we're rushing?

Supervisor, I have not gotten that far uh and given any thought to to that at this point. and supervisor just just on that very point that's why I just want to make it clear right that we're not involved in that you know what I mean so well I'm proposals in at the county level going around where we would be approving uh department heads in making a charter change so it's not like that's not DCOS right not department but I'm just saying for this this is

it's not like that there aren't people on this board that want to get down in the weeds I'm not one of them and I'm not suggesting it. What I'm suggesting is going in with our eyes open, having heard from everyone. This is an incredible list of outreach for San Diego. I'm not seeing many of these folks from the 550,000 unincorporated people in their communities. So, I get it. But I think that when we're making big changes like this, we want to make sure that everyone had a seat. Look, we may go through this and nobody shows up. And I'm okay with that because we did everything in our power. And then I can go back at a future community coffee and say, "Look, we advertised it. We wanted to have you at the table. Uh, I'm sorry. I I we can only do as much as we can do." But there was no outreach that I'm aware of in my district in a meaningful way that would give that input. And I think that representing 200,000 people that live in the unincorporated, we're their only government. they should have a seat at the table and maybe their concerns aren't even uh uh the correct concerns and they might be concerned about potholes and they want to know what they're going to do for potholes. So, I'm not saying that, but I always want to make sure there was transparent as possible and we've given every opportunity to our community to be heard. And um uh and I also like the idea that this will give the DA's office an opportunity to give input on the front side instead of trying to cut a deal on the back side. And I have uh although we haven't worked closely, I have uh every belief in voting to hire you that you're open-minded and you're do you're in the best interest. So I'm just trying to make sure the cart doesn't get before the horse. That's that's the whole purpose of this for me and I can get there easily if we can go

ahead and get that 30 days of input. So just to uh be very try try to land the plan in a really specific way. uh county council may engage with external stakeholders that this is uh vice chair Montgomery steps um amendment uh to inform the work of the CFPP and county council shall report back uh with any updates regarding that consultation within may we have that amendment on our screens here oh I do it good thing you have uh chair promiri next to you oh thank it was doing it automatically so I don't know

um shall Uh, County Council shall report back uh with any updates on this consultation within 30 days. Uh, is that would that is that helpful? Is that what you're looking for? Uh, in the spirit of compromise, yes. Okay.

Is it perfectly what I want? No. But is it incrementally better? Yes. And then my district will have some input. So, I appreciate that. If you if I tell you how good of a legislature you are, it'll end up on the flyer next time. So, um Okay. I Is that satisfactory to you? It's it was your amendment. That is that is more than fine with me. And I do I do think that there are quite a few um organizations on that list that serve people in in district 2 and maybe not um as deep in the unincorporated area. But I think we'd be surprised if we looked and saw because there's a lot of need and a lot of those organizations care about a lot of people in the region no matter where they live. But I think this is always good to get more input and again I have said on this DAS that we all have blind spots right I don't live in the unincorporated and I represent parts of it but certainly not as much as you so happy to honor that. Okay. Um, Chair Promiri,

thank you, Madam Chair. I know I'm standing between us and lunch, but uh, I'll preface You're the pre you're the you're the the number one advocate for lunch.

Well, I I'll preface my comment by saying that I just want to acknowledge that there's enough work to go around. There's a lot of people in need and the DA's office has done a tremendous job in in spearheading a lot of that work, but there's still a lot of needs that are going unmet. And I think a perfect example is this binder full of, you know, organizations that are still calling for more and need more. Now, I know OEA is a sore subject, um, but OEPA is focused on research, right? This is focused on bringing justice and relief to probably tens of th I don't know how many people but a lot of people within our community. So to the point about or the question about urgency, this is an urgent matter and I think it's our responsibility to be responsive to the needs of our constituents who are suffering as I mentioned in my comments. So I just wanted to address that. Secondly, um I do want to address earlier the the the the common concern around the 30 FTE. Um I'd be okay if if you all wanted to consider uh you know hiring at the discretion of the county council as as you see fit as you move forward. Uh I you know obviously uh building a a unit from scratch may take some time. So, I just, you know, I'm open to that conversation if uh

I just want to clarify the letter. Yeah. No, I mean that is actually I mean that's why it's written in the way that it is. That's the intent. And so I just want to clarify that that really is the intent uh that this really is a delegation to county council um and that is why it says up to um and certainly um you know frankly and this is to put on the record if uh county council comes back and says to us actually I need more I'll be open to that. Um and if you come back and say actually we don't need this many open to that as well. So I just want to make sure that that is clear for the record. Is there a reason why the two-year timeline like is that are you just estimating maybe that's how long

we it was really came out of conversation. So again, I think what's helpful that was uplifted by supervisor M um vice chair Montgomery step is that the 30fts is not attorneys that includes investigators, administrator, support staff. So that came out of conversations uh with other um all the other units in California who had a recommendation of where they anticipated we would likely be wanting to be in the next couple years. Um so you know, San Francisco is much smaller, like significantly smaller, but it's also a double function like city and county. LA is much bigger. Um, so we kind of had to to sort of take from the advice and that's where that came from. Um, but it's also very clear that like we don't know, you know, we'll have to let the county council do their job um, and hire people and it maybe will be less and maybe um, and just putting this on your plate. If uh, in two years you come back and you say, "Y'all were wrong. I need more." Um, please come ask. Uh this was more sort of a kind of a guideline that came from a starting point.

Yeah. Okay. Thank you. I I'm happy to support the amendment. Okay. Um thank you very much. Um so we have a motion on a floor uh and a second. And I just again want to uh before we vote just appreciate uh the really um fruitful uh contributions of so many people who who've really been thought partners in this um and looking forward um Damon I know um just throwing you in the deep end. We're so happy to have you. So, thank you. Uh, please vote. Chair Lawson Reamer. That motion passes with Supervisor Desmond voting no. All other supervisors being present and voting I.

Okay. Uh, thank you very much. Yes, Chair Deiri. We will take an hour lunch. We will see you back here. It is 1:15. We'll see everyone. You're back here at 2:15. The board is in recess until 2:15. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat.