Board of Supervisors - Regular Meeting

All right, good morning. I'll call to order the August 18th, 2026 regular meeting of the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors. Madam Clerk, will you please call the roll?

Supervisor Katz? Here. Supervisor Hartman? Here. Supervisor Lavagnino?

I'm here.

Supervisor Lee?

Here.

And Chair Nelson?

Here. Would you please stand and join me in pledging allegiance to our flag? Ready, begin.

under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Our next item of business is approval of the minutes from the July 14th meeting of the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors. Can I get a motion?

Move approval.

Second? Second. Okay, motion from Hartman, second from Lee. All in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Next item of business is the County Executive Officer's report.

No report this morning, Chair.

All right, not yet. All right, Madam Clerk, are there any announcements or changes to our agenda today?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, I just have one quick announcement this morning regarding public participation. For information on the Board of Supervisors' methods of public participation and instructions on how to provide public comment on items listed on today's agenda or during general public comment, please refer to page two of the agenda. Individuals who wish to provide verbal public comment may do so via Zoom by registering in advance using the link provided on page two. Please note that Zoom is available solely for the purpose of providing verbal public comment and is not intended for viewing the meeting. Alternative viewing options are listed on page two of the agenda. If you have any questions, please contact the clerk of the board's office at area code 805-568-2240 or by email at sbcob at countyofsb.org. And that concludes my announcements for today.

All right. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Next item of agenda is the administrative agenda. Would any board members like to pull any items? Right now I have 8, 16, 28, and 33. Does that have everything covered? Anybody else have anything besides those? Madam Clerk, is any items being pulled by the public?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, we have a few requests to speak on administrative item number four.

All right. So at this time, I'll take a motion to approve all of the administrative agenda with the exception of 8-8, 16, 28, and 33.

So moved.

Second. Motion from Hartman, second by Lee. All in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Next item of business are the resolutions to be presented. Madam Clerk, will you please read administrative item number one into the record.

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number one is sponsored by Supervisor Nelson. It is to adopt a resolution proclaiming the month of August 2026 as Child Support Awareness Month in Santa Barbara County. And joining us in person today, we have Director of Child Support Services, Mehta Richardson, Lucy Reyes, Child Support Manager, and Desiree Hernandez, Legal Office Professional Senior. And as they're making their way to the podium, I'll go ahead and read the resolution. Whereas August is observed as Child Support Awareness Month, providing an opportunity to recognize the vital role child support services play in strengthening families through financial stability, promoting parental responsibility, and enhancing the well-being of children throughout our community. And whereas California's child support program provides free or low-cost services that help parents through every step, including setting up and changing court orders, locating parents, completing genetic testing, arranging medical support, and handling payment collection and distribution. And whereas Santa Barbara County's goal is to give parents a simpler, more accessible path to meeting their child support responsibilities by offering tools that make the process easier and more accessible, thus helping parents focus on what matters most, raising healthy, secure, and thriving children. And whereas Santa Barbara County Child Support Services serves nearly 9,200 child support cases, distributing 28.3 million in annual support to families and children. And whereas during the month of August, Child Support Services is engaging the community through outreach and education at locations countywide, the federal correctional complex Lompoc to social services staff, at county health back to school health fairs, during Kids Day at Waller Park, at Downtown Fridays in Santa Maria, during Old Town Market in Lompoc, on Spanish language radio, and within our annual school supply distribution. occurring this year at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Mid-Central Coast Ron Estabio Clubhouse in Guadalupe. Now, therefore, be it hereby ordered and resolved that this Board of Supervisors of the County of Santa Barbara does hereby acknowledge August 2026 as Child Support Awareness Month in Santa Barbara County passed and adopted today.

Please.

Good morning, Chair Nelson and members of the board. My name is Lucy Reyes and I'm pleased to be here representing the Department of Child Support Services. Joining me today is Desiree Hernandez, who is on our legal support team and a valued member of the outreach team. We are both honored to support the department's outreach efforts during Child Support Awareness Month. This August, we recognize Child Support Awareness Month, a time to shine light on the impact child support can have on children and families. And at its core, child support is about helping children have the stability and resources they need to grow, succeed, and thrive. Our role goes beyond establishing financial support. We connect families with services, provide tools to help parents navigate the process, and work to ensure children have the support they need, regardless of their family circumstances. During Child Support Awareness Month, Santa Barbara County renews its commitment to supporting children and families by offering tools that make the process easier and more accessible. We aim to help parents focus on what matters the most, creating stable, nurturing environments for their children. I'd now like to invite Desiree to highlight some of the activities and initiatives that the department has planned for Child Support Awareness Month.

Thank you, Lucy. Good morning, Chair Nelson and members of the board. It's a pleasure to highlight our outreach efforts to engage families and community partners with child support services. We have partnered with libraries countywide to connect families with child support services by supplying bookmarks that promote our resources and encourage children to read. It's a simple initiative with a meaningful purpose, bringing families to resources that can strengthen their future while helping children build the knowledge and skills they need to succeed. We have also left some of these bookmarks to share with you all. We are proud to host the department's third annual back to school drive where we provide school supplies to local students. This year it was held at the Boys and Girls Club in Guadalupe on August 14th. To expand outreach and accessibility, we are participating in weekly Spanish language segments on La Mejor Radio to share information about the child support program and services available to families. Strengthening community partnerships remains a priority. We are providing informational sessions for Department of Social Services staff and educational workshops at the Federal Correctional Complex Lompoc, increasing awareness of child support services and connecting individuals with resources to support their families. These efforts reflect our strong commitment to expanding access, strengthening partnerships and supporting children and families throughout Santa Barbara County. It's work we are proud to do every day, but we are pleased to celebrate it during Child Support Awareness Month. We appreciate the opportunity to celebrate Child Support Awareness Month with you all. Thank you.

Thank you. Our child support services program is often one of the more unseen departments, but obviously doing some amazing work, very effective and efficient. And we appreciate all of your work there. Supervisor Capps.

And Chair Nelson, I just had a meeting with the director and I just had to point out that I believe she told me that the tenure in her department is 17 years, the average tenure. And that is just incredible, the fact that not only you all are doing such important work, but that you are so dedicated to staying in our county and staying in that department 17 years average. So thank you.

Thank you, Supervisor Capps, for highlighting that. All right, the next item of business is administrative item number two. Madam Clerk, will you please read that into the record?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number two is sponsored by Supervisor Lee and Supervisor Nelson. It is to adopt a resolution of commendation honoring Andrew Firestone for extraordinary service to Santa Barbara County's nonprofit community. And joining us in person today, we have Andrew Firestone. You can please make your way to the podium. I'll go ahead and read the resolution. Whereas Andrew Firestone, a Santa Barbara native, has dedicated himself to supporting nonprofit organizations countywide, inspired early in life by his parents' example of philanthropy and deep community commitment. And whereas Andrew has played key leadership roles as a founding board member of MOXIE, the Wolf Museum of Exploration and Innovation, and as a board member of the Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation and Visit Santa Barbara, while also volunteering for dozens of nonprofits, including Direct Relief, Dream Foundation, Calm, Make-A-Wish Tri-Counties, Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, Storyteller Children's Center, United Way of Santa Barbara County, and over 60 other nonprofits across the region. And whereas since 2007, Andrew has generously donated countless pro bono hours as an MC auctioneer, strategist, and volunteer for more than 70 Central Coast organizations, spanning family services, health, education, and the arts, carving out a vital role inspiring thousands of community members to recognize and embrace the life-changing impact of their support. And whereas with his signature blend of enthusiasm, humor, and heartfelt storytelling, Andrew's advocacy has helped raise tens of millions of dollars for nonprofits across the Central Coast, making him one of the region's most effective and adored champions of charitable giving. And whereas Andrew's family dedication to service proudly extends to his beloved children who actively participate in charitable efforts of their own, continuing the Firestone legacy of community engagement and heartfelt support for those in need. Now, therefore, be it hereby ordered and resolved that this Board of Supervisors of the County of Santa Barbara does hereby recognize Andrew Firestone for his deeply committed leadership and extraordinary contributions to strengthening the nonprofit community throughout the Central Coast. Pass and adopted today.

So first off, I apologize for the length of that. We used every single inch of that proclamation. So those were very kind words, and thank you. Firstly, nobody ever volunteers with the expectation of recognition or acclamation. So thank you very much, though. It is truly, truly humbling. Secondly, Santa Barbara County has this incredible history and reputation for philanthropy and for volunteerism. And it's led primarily with the county and all five of you up there. And it's routinely that I see any one, two, three, all five of you at any event here in the county, which is very, very special. That's not the rule. It's the exception for a community. So thank you for all of your service. Lastly, I'm joined with some friends here and three generations of Firestones. And volunteerism in our community is incredibly important to us. And I think if my father and my mother would say that if we have one job here, it's to... make sure that we're raising empathetic, curious, and interesting children that are willing to go and do the work and get involved. And hopefully I'm doing that. So if that's one thing that I'm remembered by, aside from this amazing resolution, it's that I have raised kids that are also going to be involved and curious and empathetic to our community. So thank you very much. Thank you.

Supervisor Lee.

Thank you. Andrew, I just want to say thank you for all you do for nonprofits in our community. If anyone has seen Andrew in action, it's quite the show. You may want to bid more, but I'm not. So again, from myself, I appreciate and grateful for all you do. Thank you. All right. Thank you. Supervisor Capps.

Yeah, I want to echo that. When I walk into an event and I see that you're the auctioneer or you're the emcee, I just know we're in for a ride. And the physicality of what you do is incredible in the way, I mean, the dollars and the energy and the support that you have brought is immeasurable. And to see you with your family today, knowing how much time uh your father has spent in this room and how much service your entire family has brought to this community just means so much and your kids um and what kind of father and family you all have uh brought to this community so it's really wonderful to start off this meeting with you all here today thank you thank you supervisor caps supervisor hartman

Well, just wanted to acknowledge the Firestone legacy, I think, to Santa Barbara County. The patriarch will be honored here soon. So we'll see that legacy continuing in action, not just in government, but in public service across the board. And so you really are a model family saying, what can you give back to a community in so many different ways? So thank you.

That's right. Thank you, Supervisor Hartman. Supervisor Lavagnino.

Yeah, well, I would like to get Andrew up to North County. I hear about the amount of money he raises up down here. So yeah, we'd love to give you up there. But I was just thinking as I'm leaving and Brooks has been up here before, You know, you think about what your legacy is, but the reality is it's your family, you know, and that's what it's all about. And Andrew, as a grandfather now, as Brooks is, I kind of judge myself on how I see my grandkids and the fact you're raising empathetic, curious kids. When you said that, I'm going to go home and tell my kids that's, you know, and that's what I see in my grandkids. And it's really rewarding, even more so than almost anything we do up here. So congratulations to your entire family. Appreciate it.

Yes. thank you supervisor labanino and you know brooks has been a mentor and a hero of mine for many many years and many people in our community and it's good to see that legacy continue into multiple generations and generations to come that i think will be gracing this boardroom in our community for hopefully many more decades so thank you Next item of business is administrative item number three. Madam Clerk, can you please read that item into record?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number three is sponsored by Supervisor Nelson. It is to adopt a resolution of commendation honoring Dallis Estrada, Marco Marrera, and Justin Wyckoff of the Agriculture Commissioner's Weights and Measures Office as the August 2026 Employees of the Month in Santa Barbara County. And joining us in person today, making their way to the podium, we have Dallis Estrada, Marco Marrera, and Justin Wyckoff. I'll go ahead and read the resolution. Whereas Dallis, Marco, and Justin exemplify the county's organizational values of accountability, customer focus, equity and inclusion, innovation, trust, and ethics. And whereas Dallis, Marco, and Justin model the transformative behaviors of collaborative problem solving, alignment with the county's vision, risk taking, data driven decision making, and strategic thinking. And whereas Delise, Marco, and Justin, agricultural weights and measures inspectors with the Santa Barbara County Agricultural Commissioner's Weights and Measures Office, our role models for the office by consistently providing exceptional customer service, demonstrating professionalism, courtesy, and an unparalleled dedication to serving the residents and stakeholders of Santa Barbara County. And whereas Delis, Marco and Justin exemplify outstanding teamwork through their consistent willingness to support their colleagues, share knowledge openly and collaborate effectively to ensure departmental programs, inspections and outreach services are delivered with efficiency and integrity. And whereas Delise, Marco, and Justin, positive attitude, strong work ethic, and dedication to public service serve as outstanding models for the entire office and demonstrate an unwavering commitment to their roles. Now, therefore, be it hereby ordered and resolved that this Board of Supervisors of the County of Santa Barbara does hereby acknowledge Delise Estrada, Marco Marrera, and Justin Wyckoff as Employees of the Month for August 2026.

Good morning, Chair Nelson and members of the board. My name is Adriana Rosales. I'm a supervising inspector with the Agricultural Commissioner's Office. I'd like to thank you for the opportunity to acknowledge Dallas Estrada, Marco Marrero, and Justin Wyckoff as Employees of the Month. we're constantly inspired by our staff's hard work and dedication to public service i am pleased to briefly share a bit about each of them today dallas initially worked with the department for two years and a half as extra help conducting trapping working through the county she was later hired full-time when it became clear that not having her full-time would be a significant loss Since then, she has become someone our department relies on across a wide range of programs. She played an instrument role in getting this year's crop and livestock report published and ensuring that the information provided is both accurate and useful for both agricultural industry and the public. She has also taken on the day-to-day management of our Ag Pass program, demonstrating exceptional dedication during emergency incidents by making sure participating farmers receive the support and the information they need during crisis. Dallas outstanding customer service and consistent willingness to go above and beyond have made a huge, have been a huge benefit to our department. As for Marco, he has been with the department for nine years and has become an invaluable asset to the pest prevention division. He has brought to the department a deep knowledge and love for plant pests and insects. Just as importantly, he has a strong passion for the work we do to protect agricultural and our natural resources in Santa Barbara County. Whether assisting a resident or working with someone in the agricultural industry or conducting parcel inspections and identifying potentially invasive pests, he approaches every task with diligence and careful attention to detail. he is always eager to share his extensive knowledge with his co-workers marco is willing to step in and help wherever he is needed his enthusiasm for his work is clear and he understands that the efforts he makes each day have a real and lasting impact on protecting agriculture and the natural environment in our county Last but not least, Justin has been with the department for a little over two years. Yet in that relatively short time, he has become a tremendous asset to the Environmental Protection Division. He is extremely detail-oriented and inquisitive and doesn't simply accept something just because that's the way we've always done it. He consistently seeks to understand the reason behind processes and is willing to dig deeper to fully grasp an issue or to determine whether there might be a better way to do it. The curiosity and thoughtfulness he brings to his work are contagious and positively influence staff throughout the division. While Justin learns new topics quickly, his patience and enthusiasm for the details have also made him an effective mentor for other team members. Public service often involves the work that happens behind the scenes, protecting the agricultural industry and the natural environment, helping our residents, and carrying out our responsibilities with care, accuracy, and respect. though this work you do may not always be visible to the public its impacts is both real and lasting on behalf of the agricultural commissioner's office it is our privilege to join the board of supervisors in acknowledging dallas estrada marco marrero and justin whitehouse as the employees of the month for august 2026. thank you for everything you do and congratulations

Good morning, Chair Nelson and members of the board. On behalf of my esteemed colleagues, I'd like to thank you all for this very special recognition. I'd also like to acknowledge our respective teammates, our department leadership, and our friends, and most importantly, our family. Their support allows us to be the best versions of ourselves, both professionally and personally, and make better versions of ourselves every day. Thank you all.

Thank you. I think as a supervisor, we're not supposed to have favorites just like as a parent with kids, but I think everybody knows that commissioner office is definitely one of my favorites and I appreciate all the work that you guys are doing out there. All right, I think we're gonna continue item A4 in the meeting. I think that's the order of business.

I'll second that. Yeah, we got a second.

Yeah, we might need to continue that to a future meeting.

2027.

2027, that's right.

Sounds good.

All kidding aside, Madam Clerk, will you please read administrative item number four into the record?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number four is brought to us by the Board of Supervisors. It is to adopt a resolution of commendation honoring Mona Miyasato upon her retirement from the county of Santa Barbara after over 12 years as the county executive officer and over 30 years of combined service to the communities of Santa Monica, Marin, and Santa Barbara counties. And joining us today receiving in person is Mona Miyasato.

At this time, I'd like to invite my colleagues to join me at the podium for the presentation of this resolution.

And I now have the honor to read the resolution. Whereas Mona Miyasato began her distinguished public service career more than 30 years ago, serving the communities of Santa Monica and Marin County before joining the Santa Barbara County in 2013, bringing with her a rare blend of calm leadership, sharp insight, integrity, and collaboration. And whereas Mona has spent the last 12 and a half years as county executive officer, leading a $1.7 billion organization with 23 departments and 4,700 employees with her signature steadiness and clarity, guiding the county through fiscal pressures, disasters, and even a global pandemic, all while making the complex seem understandable and the impossible seem manageable. And whereas Mona's leadership goes beyond budgets and operations, she has helped shape a clear vision, mission, and set of values for the county, grounded in service, accountability, customer focus, equity and inclusion, innovation, trust, and ethics. Under her leadership, these values are not just aspirational, they are embedded in how the county engages with residents, delivers services, and makes decisions. And whereas Mona's decision-making is rooted in listening, analyzing, and inviting multiple perspectives, enabling her to ask the tough questions, chart clear goals, and design solutions that last. And through this reflective yet forward-thinking approach, she helped transform the county into a more modern, transparent, and accessible organization. Introducing digital services and permits, launching enterprise systems such as Workday, and expanding public transparency through newsletters, plain language board summaries, and an online budget tool. And whereas Mona has long been the behind the scenes force who brings people together, powered by collaboration, late night phone calls, and countless meetings, all in service of the greater good. And because of her persistence, the county has made significant strides in serving vulnerable residents, reducing homelessness, and improving criminal justice and diversion systems. And under her guidance, new programs now offer early legal support, access to medication and mental health services, while interim supportive housing sites in three communities across the county have helped hundreds of people find housing, stability and a path forward. And whereas she guided the county through 40 emergency operations center activations, including the Thomas fire, the January 9 debris flow, numerous wildfires and winter storms, and the COVID-19 pandemic, never rattled, always prepared. And while leading staff through some of our county's darkest moments, she somehow found time to accidentally adopt more than one rescue dog at need. And whereas Mona is not only an exceptional leader, but an incredible human being, humble, warm, witty, funny, and supportive, whose legacy will endure in the modern system she built, the people she mentored, the community she strengthened, and the culture of integrity and collaboration she leaves behind. And as we prepare to wish her well in retirement, we extend our heartfelt thanks to her husband, Dave, for sharing such a brilliant and remarkable person with us all these years now therefore be it hereby ordered and resolved that this board of supervisors honors and thanks mona miyasato for exceptional decades of public service and her outstanding leadership as county executive officer and congratulates her upon her well-earned retirement pass and adopted today

All right, Mona, we're gonna actually give you the last word here. So if you'd like to sit down just for a moment, we're gonna go to public comment and then we've got a few presentations. Madam Clerk, I understand we have a couple of public commenters on this item.

Chair Nelson and members of the board, yes, we do have two requests to speak from the public on this item. And that is true. We want to give Mona the last word. So we are going to go to Robert Shaw here in Santa Barbara to be followed by Dr. Lee Heller. Robert?

Thank you, members of the board. My name is Robert Shawn, the CEO of Central Coast Community Energy. And I really wanted to come down to thank Mona for her time, but to thank the board for allowing Mona to spend time serving as an operations board director at Central Coast Community Energy, serving on our executive committee as our vice chair, and doing so at a really transformative point in our agency. Your guidance, her commitment to this really set sort of the standard for governance within our agency, what informed and meaningful oversight of the agency was. I really appreciate all of the guidance. The agency, the region are better for Mona's service. Thank you. Thank your family. We have a small appreciation, a token, just recognizing your dedicated and distinguished service with Central Coast Community Energy. Thank you, Mona.

And we did have one additional request to speak from Dr. Lee Heller here in Santa Barbara.

Good morning, Chair Nelson and members of the board. I'm going to try really hard not to cry. And I'm not here for aid 21, but yay spay-neuter money. And thank you, Andrew Firestone, for your service. I've seen you and you're amazing. I've been an activist for a long time with this county. I saw Mike Brown, I saw Chandra Waller, and then came Mona. And it's been an incredible 12 and a half years knowing she was at the top of the pyramid, knowing how hard she worked. I remember pulling into the county parking lot at 9.45 PM with Darcelle Elliott after seeing a movie, and the light was on in Mona's office. And Darcelle was texting her because she was still working. So that's Mona. And we are going to miss her so much. But now she's going to have more time for her husband, more time for her rescue dogs. And somehow I will go on. Somebody said recently, oh, this is the new PIO for animal services. Oh, yeah, I've heard a lot about you. And I said, uh-oh, what did you say? Oh, Lee gets shit done. Sorry. If that can be said of me, imagine how many more times that could be said of Mona Miyasato. So thank you, Mona. We will miss you so much, but I look forward to the next level of enjoyment and relaxation and having your phone off at night. Thank you.

And at this time we now have a short video to be presented or to show.

For more than three decades, Mona Miyasato has devoted her career to public service, from leadership roles in Santa Monica and Marin County, to joining the County of Santa Barbara as County Executive Officer in 2013. She helped navigate some of the most challenging moments in our county's history, leading emergency operations through the COVID-19 pandemic, wildfires, and the 1-9 debris flow with calm and clarity. And she helped build lasting protection for the future, including new debris basins and a regional fire communications center, providing countywide emergency fire and medical response. Mona strengthened the county's safety net, expanding behavioral health care and supporting a new approach to homelessness, with three interim supportive housing communities that have helped hundreds of unsheltered residents find stability, health care, and a path to permanent housing. She also brought together criminal justice partners to expand diversion and early intervention programs. Her steady leadership earned the county a AAA bond rating, while new digital tools and plain language reporting made county government more accessible to the community. Mona's dedication throughout the years is appreciated by those throughout the county, state, and country.

For years, you've guided the county with integrity, calm, and an unwavering commitment to community. And through challenges and change, you brought people together, solved problems, and kept the focus where it belongs, on serving residents with excellence.

I've had the chance to work with you for a number of years while you've been our head leader, CEO of the county. And I can't thank you enough. You've been there through wildfires, through debris flows, through emergencies, through budgets, through so many different things. And you have helped us work together and you've also helped our community move forward. Can't thank you enough. You will be missed and I wish you the best of luck in the next chapter of your life.

Being part of hiring you was one of the best decisions I am most proud of. And I knew Santa Barbara was in good hands when I headed to Congress. From my time in the county to our partnership while I've been in DC, your exemplary leadership and dedication have been a constant. You proved that you were exactly the leader we needed during these unprecedented times. Your tenure has been, as I used to say on the board diaries, a win, win, win for Santa Barbara County. And I, along with our community, cannot thank you enough. I wish you all the best as you start this next chapter. Take time to smell the roses. You deserve it.

Thank you, Mona Miyasato, for your years of service and dedication to Santa Barbara County.

All right. I think we got a few things to say, and then we'll get into the last word. Supervisor Lee.

I'll go first. I think in the video, Steve, Bob, and I were wearing the same outfit.

I only have one.

Wow, Mona, what haven't you done? I think you've done everything the county has ever offered. I'm not going to say goodbye, so this is more like I'll see you at Costco later walking up and down the aisles. But I want to thank you for being patient with not just myself, but with my team. We had some very interesting conversations in our office, and Mona got to witness it all. Thank you for your mentorship. Thank you for being patient with me and teaching me about county works and being part of a team because through you, I learned about North County and how Central County, how things work and that we are one big family that supports each other. So with how you teach me that, I'll be a different place, but thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Thank you, Supervisor Lee. Supervisor Capps.

Yeah, thank you. I'm focusing a lot on all the things that I learned from you over the last three years and it's a lot. All of our conversations, your intense knowledge. I would bring up a street in the second district and you would have the the incredible knowledge of what was happening in the history and I think, oh my gosh, you have that knowledge about all five districts and how many years does that go back? And I could go on and on and this is not the time for it, but when I think of how to describe you, it's the perfect combination of being this confident yet quiet powerhouse and to achieve that is a rare gift professionally and personally and that's why it was said repeatedly at a reception for you last night you are i believe the greatest thing that's happened to this county I do, in nearly the 13 years that you have blessed us all, not just us in this room and the department leaders and the supervisors, the 11 that have had the honor of working with you, but the entire population of this county. And so, you know, when, Leaders, you don't remember all the decisions that they make, but you remember how they made you feel. And when things were uncertain, you instilled confidence. And when decisions were difficult, you listened. And I'm going to remember how you also got creative. You assessed, and then you often came up with decisions that were like, oh, wow, I didn't think of it. We could do it that way. And that's really a legacy of a good leader. And we'll always share that foster dog Buddy that I had first for a few weeks and found a forever home with you. And so here's to more time with Buddy, more time with Dave, more time with the dog that you had to get so that Buddy would be happy. and no more Tuesdays in this room, but we will miss you so much. I think we're all in shock and we're gonna brace ourselves, but we'll all feel your presence forever and ever. Thank you.

Thank you for those beautiful words. Supervisor Capps, Supervisor Hartman.

if i can get through this um 12 years ago santa barbara county was 23 separate departments uh doing 23 separate jobs and mona made us a team one county one future she took a county that had lurched from crisis to crisis and taught us to treat emergencies just like tuesdays because under her they practically became that 43 plus fires, floods, a pandemic, and still the work of this county never missed a beat. Mona, you did it with something rare, can do practicality, real polish, but not one ounce of ego. We had a party last night. It was supposed to be all about Mona. It turned out being all about us. And so she did this by giving us 12 plus years of her undivided attention, time she didn't spend on her health, on her own interests, on her husband Dave, who I suspect has been patiently waiting for this day for a very long time. So Dave, thank you. I grew up at a time when women didn't lead counties. In fact, women didn't lead much of anything. So for me, watching Mona run this operation with total grace and command of the room, every room she entered, has been one of the great privileges of my career. Now she's headed off to coach, to help other public sector leaders. And that's exactly what somebody this accomplished should do. But we grieve losing her. It's a real comfort knowing that her strategies, her playbook, her insights into issues, they've shaped this county and this culture in a way that will continue. And now she's gonna help other leaders inculcate them with the same values.

so mona um you've been the captain of this county that we needed and we're really going to miss you supervisor lebanon thank you chair you know the reason why it was all about us is because i got the assignment like six months ago that i was gonna roast mona and what do you say like There's no faults. There's no ego that you can attack. We're easy targets. I mean, very. So I had plenty of material without without going after Mona. But, you know, what I've found in life is pretty much timing is everything. And I think the board was very lucky that I think we all have commented on this, that Greg Hart was the chair during covid because he had such a calm demeanor. You don't want me. at running COVID meetings. And he definitely didn't want Peter doing it. So Greg was perfect. And I was there when, you know, I was part of the group that hired Mona. And that timing was perfect because for those that don't remember, we were in real financial trouble. Like you think this budget was bad. 13 years ago, it was disastrous and we were laying off all kinds of people and And the previous CEO had dealt with that. Mona came in and it was like springtime. It was like, okay, we need to rebuild this county. And how do we do it? Had the perfect leader at the right time, a positive person with zero ego. And to kind of piggyback on Joan, to me, I think your biggest legacy is that, and I know you were just honored at Girls Inc., but how many little girls, how many young women we've seen in this room that have attended our meetings and witnessed how we're struggling with these major issues and we're looking to you for guidance and for direction. And you always pointed us in the right direction. So it's been a great ride. I spent most of my career with you and wouldn't have done it with anybody else. So love you. Yeah. Oh, by the way, Mona does mean little noble one. What does Miyasato mean? And we don't know what Miyasato means. That was for last night.

Well, it's an honor for me to get to wrap up the comments here with my colleagues about Mona. I feel like that you heading to coaching makes a whole lot of sense because you've been coaching me for my entire career here at the county. I think in many ways you've helped me be a better representative and a better supervisor, and I really thank you for that. um something that a lot of people don't know about mona though is that the amount of selflessness you know you think that there's a long hours but many times she put her own financial rewards other benefits that she had rightfully earned that many of her colleagues throughout the state were receiving she put those aside because she wanted to set an example for the entire organization she made the cuts within her own department before she asked other departments to make that too and so i think that's the type of leader that i think we can all look to um and that's the type of coach that we all want to have is someone that we respect and honor in that way and so mona on behalf of the constituents of the fourth district and the entire county we were blessed to have you as our ceo for the last 12 and a half years and we wish you the best of luck and god bless you

Thank you, board members. I appreciate all the kind words about all the achievements. Thank you for the beautiful resolution as well. And officially, we redesigned the resolution for the county's 175th anniversary. But unofficially, my husband has a very impressive one that's gilded from the city of Los Angeles. And I was going to be darned if I'm going to bring home one that looks like it came off of my printer. So that's, yeah, the board staff are laughing. That's the real reason. But, you know, it's difficult to say goodbye at the end of almost 13 years being here. And for today, this morning, I'm going to try to keep my remarks short because that's what I've been preaching for the last 13 years. So serving as the county executive officer has been the privilege of my life and of my career. The job has taught me a lot about county government, but also that county government is where many of the toughest social problems land. Homelessness, behavioral health, invasive pests, flood control, adult protective services, judicial system. Difficult budget, the list goes on and on, and everyone in this room is familiar with that. And sooner or later, someone from the public says, so what are you going to do about it, county? And for nearly 13 years, I've had the privilege of working with all of you, with all our department directors, all our staff, because they've answered the call every day. And we've been through extraordinary events together. We've rebuilt, modernized, and strengthened this county organization and our finances, and through the way, we had to make very difficult decisions. I'm most proud of, though, of not just one single accomplishment, but it's the strength of this whole organization and the people who continue to work here, all of you. I always say that a good CEO should leave an organization that is less dependent on that CEO, and I hope that I have done that. To members of the board, current supervisors, and the one who served before you, thank you for your trust in me. We've not always agreed, and sometimes you've not agreed with each other, which always makes my job interesting. but I've always respected the responsibility that you carry on your shoulders as elected officials, and I've been honored my whole career to help you govern. To our department directors, my executive team, the CEO's office, and the thousands of county employees, I just want to say thank you. Most people will never understand what you do on a day-to-day, on your day-to-day jobs, and when Supervisor Lavagnino and I are speaking, it's because a lot of our work is about prevention, A good day is when nothing evidently happened. People just expect government to work, and because of all our employees, it does. To our partners and other government agencies, community organizations, nonprofits, and even the media, thank you for working with us. The county does a lot. We achieve much, but we don't do it alone. It takes all of us working together. And finally, to my husband, David, and my family, My sister Marlis and her husband Russ, my brother Matt and his wife, and all my nieces and nephews, thank you for sharing me with this job. And I said last night, in particular Dave, he gave up a job he loved so we could move here and I could take this job. He's been my partner, my counselor, my reality check, and my support. So as I leave, I have great confidence in this county, in this county organization. There will always be difficult choices. There will never be enough resources. There will always be issues. But remember, the public trust has to be continually earned. This organization will do what it has to do and what it has always done, which is respond, adjust, and renew. And so I leave with a principle that has guided me throughout my career. And that is when the path is complicated, uncertain, or difficult, as our county government and most governments are, just think about walking straight along a crooked line. To me that means know what matters the most, tell the truth, make the best decisions you can with the information you have, and above all, treat people with respect. So thank you for showing me that same respect and for allowing me to serve Santa Barbara County. It's been an extraordinary honor. I will always be grateful. And I think today, it won't get me in anymore folks, so you know. And today I leave my badge on the table. Thank you so much.

At this time, we're gonna go ahead and take a five minute break. So we'll be back to county business in a year and a few. all right everybody welcome back all right we're coming back to the august 18th 2026 meeting of the santa barbara county board of supervisors we just finished um our resolutions including i think a record two standing ovations and uh i think the longest standing innovation in santa barbara county history for our outgoing ceo monami asado um well deserved um but back onto business as she would expect. And so Madam Clerk, will you please read item number A8 into the record?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number eight is from the auditor controller's office. It is to consider recommendations regarding the sheriff's office overtime analysis report for July, 2025 through June, 2026. All right, let's see.

I think this was Supervisor Lee. Yes, I apologize. Supervisor Lee.

Good. Thank you. I just want to highlight the report and that the changes that Sheriff's Department has made. The projection came in lower and they are being effective on the overtime. I will give Under Sheriff Brad Welch a chance to talk about what he has done and what they plan to do.

through the chair. So about nine months ago, when the auditor's report came out about our overtime, our sheriff gave the executive team clear direction for us to really get into the weeds of our overtime and find out what is operationally required and what we can reduce as far as our discretionary service levels. And so our team really worked hard, and I want to give credit to our supervisors, our frontline supervisors and our management team, because they're the ones that are actually doing this on a daily basis. We're able to kind of tweak our review processes and make them stronger, and we're able to institute additional levers and controls so we can monitor what is required and what we can do without. And I think this latest auditor report, you know, of course, give credit to them, is showing the amazing work our supervisory management teams are doing in reducing our overtime footprint, but also still maintaining the safety that the County of Santa Barbara and this board requires.

I just want to say great job on continuing to work on that. Thank you. All right. Thank you, Supervisor Lee. Supervisor Capps.

Yeah, no, I'm glad. Thank you, Supervisor Lee, for pulling it. I also wanted to give you the opportunity, the fact that, you know, we're already seeing a reduction of $3.4 million. It's really significant. I know you're staying on it because we still have nearly half of employees, I believe, are working over 12 hours a day, which is a lot for them, and also some costs, so we still need some structural changes, which I know you're staying on, and we're working at the board level too. And since there has been a development that I know you all are taking extremely seriously, I read the statements in the news, I just wanted to give you the opportunity to speak about the second arrest that did relate to overtime because I know, again, how seriously you're taking it and wanted to ask you if there's anything that you've learned from that that you can speak to, I understand if not, but if there's anything from that experience that is changing any practices from here on out.

Sure. Supervisor Capps through the chair. Yeah, it's, you know, the sheriff said it best in his press release on the day of this individual's arrest, which is by no means does this one individual's actions and behavior reflect the amazing work that our sheriff's employees do on a daily basis. You know, Supervisor Lavagnino always says our custody deputies are walking the toughest beat in the county. And our patrol deputies are out there just running from call to call. And our ops support division, our amazing fiscal team, our human resources training bureau, everybody comes in and works their tail off day and night. And so this one individual does not reflect the great work that they do. As far as what we've learned, what we've learned is that the tweaks in the review process and the additional levers and controls that our team has put into place under the sheriff's direction are working. So after the former custody sergeant's arrest in January, that's when the sheriff directed us, hey, look at every single time card with overtime on it. So we had our administrative investigators, our criminal investigators, putting everything on hold, reviewing 688 time cards, And that's when this behavior and activity was immediately flagged. It was investigated, there was criminal conduct, and then we subsequently arrested one of our own. There's nothing worse for a police officer or a deputy sheriff to be working with somebody who's committing a crime, and we take it extremely serious. As a member of the county's team and the sheriff's team for 27 years, I can tell you that it's very rare that a member of the sheriff's office or the county family is accused of committing crimes. There's only a handful that I can think of in the last 27 years, but I can tell you that under the direction of this sheriff, if it's pointed out, we will investigate it thoroughly. And if warranted, we will prosecute them to the absolute fullest extent of the law.

No, I appreciate that and it's abundantly clear that it's been taken very seriously and that it's an earth shattering thing to experience. So just so I understand, the extra scrutiny that has happened over the last year plus has led to this arrest? Would you agree that that's been the sequence of events?

Supervisor Capps to the chair, that's, yeah, absolutely. As soon as we instituted those policies and procedure changes, it immediately flagged. And so with those policies now in effect and those additional levers and controls, we would catch that in the future if, heaven forbid, this ever occurred again.

Well, that's, I mean, again, not the outcome that you would ever want. And I understand the ripple effect that it has on a team to understand that that behavior was occurring. But I appreciate the forthrightness that you bring to this conversation. And again, the results speak for themselves. And I appreciate just the continued work that this takes and understanding that there's some more work to be done. Appreciate it.

Thank you. Thank you, Supervisor Capps. Assuming that we're going to go ahead and adopt A33 here today, which is the DSA contract. Can you talk a little bit about how that's going to impact future overtime and some of the numbers we're seeing here?

sure and i do um supervisor caps did talk about the the 15-hour shifts i did want to point out in the auto report i think there was a number that was about 70 percent reduction over the past year in those extended shifts and i have to give a shout out to the deputy sheriff's association specifically corey matthews the executive director and tyler yates their president They collaborated with Chief Deputy Ryan Sullivan and his team to really work on reducing those 15-hour shifts down to 12s and then getting down to 8s. It's better for the organization. It's better for employee wellness. Fiscally, obviously, it's great as well. So kudos to them. As far as the DSA contract, you know, there is discussion on the $812,000 set-aside. going towards the equity raise for the Deputy Sheriff's Association. Of course, we support our deputies getting back up to market value where they need to so we can continue to recruit and retain. That 812, we had other ideas for it. We were hoping to use it.

I think we'll actually talk about that on 833. I was actually just kind of curious on what would the implementation of this contract mean for ongoing overtime?

Chair Nelson, unfortunately we're not budgeted for the raises as far as overtime. And so I do wanna caution the board while we're seeing that huge reduction in overtime hours every two weeks, I think we're between 33 and 50% less overtime hours every two weeks than we were last year. The increase in the DSA contract is going to have our costs creep up just because we're not funded on the overtime raises. So that is gonna be an issue for us that we're at the handle.

okay thank you um let's go ahead and get a motion on this one and then um while you're here uh under share for which will probably go right to a33 so we can have you um uh speak to that as well so um can i get a motion on a8 i move staff staff recommendation second that's just a receiving file so um all in favor signify by saying aye aye opposed motion passes unanimously So since we have the sheriff already up here, let's go ahead and move right to A33.

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number 33 is from the Human Resources Department. It is to consider recommendations regarding the Deputy Sheriff's Association Successor Memorandum of Understanding, August 17th, 2026 through July 2nd, 2028.

All right, and I think Supervisor Lee wanted to pull this. Do you have some?

I do. I have questions for staff, and just to clarify, I just want to ask, has the funding source been determined yet for the DSA contract?

Supervisor Lee, the final action on the funding source will happen on 9-1 when we bring the fourth quarter report for the budget.

Got it. So will staff come back with options for us to see how to fund this?

The recommendation in the board letter is to use the $812,000. That's the recommendation. If your board determines that they want to direct staff to find alternative sources, we can do that.

Okay. I want to say I'll be supportive looking at the, just be open-minded, be looking at different options for it instead of just determining right now if that's okay with everyone.

so what action today we're just going to be approving the contract and then on 9-1 we'll we have to look at what the exact funding source is because obviously this increase in the raise will therefore potentially put the sheriff over budget so we're going to need to make some adjustments is that how i understand that that's correct this are the actions to act to actually make the funding decision will happen on 9-1 not today okay understood supervisor hartman

I would like to have Human Resources Director Christy Schmidt come and talk about what this DSA contract means for overtime. There were some things in the former contract that contributed to overtime, and we've tried to address those as best we could, so I would like you to explain.

Thank you, Supervisor Hartman, through the chair, Christy Schmidt, human resources director. Yes, our negotiators were able to work with the DSA to explore ways that the labor contract could be changed to increase controls and reduce costs for overtime. And so there's a couple of ways that the contract does that. In one instance, it controls what we call MOU overtime. So where federal law requires that overtime at a premium be paid after 40 hours actually worked, our agreements had time off for sick time and comp time, vacation, holiday time. counting as time worked and that is not required by law so in this agreement comp time and sick time are no longer counted as base hours and so if someone works additional hours that will still be paid but not at a premium for overtime so that will help control costs we've also made additional changes to comp time and some controls on comp time that will hopefully reduce the need for overtime a little bit further and some other provisions around controlling portal to portal pay so there are a number of things in the contract that should help toward that and certainly we can see how that affects your your numbers over time

And thank you and to the DSA for figuring that out. It's very complicated, but I think we've made some real progress with this contract.

Supervisor Capps, do you have an additional question?

Yeah, I do. Just a clarification, I believe, for the CEO's office, and I agree, I echo the kudos because this is a complicated contract that we've made a lot of progress with. So just to clarify the status, this basically says that with this salary increase, which was the request, this indicates that it'll be paid for by the set-aside that we previously

set aside for the sheriff's department since this is going to the sheriff's department that is correct supervisor caps the the recommendation today is that we come back on nine one with a budget revision that is funded by the eight hundred twelve thousand dollars set aside for the sheriff's department for the sheriff's department to the sheriff's department to the sheriff's department perfect thank you

And just to clarify that during budget discussions, we had to consider potentially using the $812,000 to increase positions for either this that had been previously cut. Is that how we had previously been programming those dollars?

Chair Nelson, that $812,000 set aside was specified for sheriff uses, and it included, you know, in the write-up on it, potential uses of it that included, you know, if overtime costs, you know, exceeded like previous years, Ivy Foot Patrol was a potential, or other uses as your board saw fit. And we said at that time that we would come back with recommendations to allocate.

And this time the Alavista Foot Patrol is fully unfunded at this point, sir?

THE ACTION THAT WAS TAKEN AT THE BOARD AND THE ADOPTION OF THE BUDGET HAS CONTINUED THROUGH. SO AT THIS TIME, YES, THOSE CUTS ARE IN PLACE.

OKAY. UNDERSTOOD. THANK YOU. I JUST ALSO WANTED TO JUST EXTEND MY THANKS TO THE DSA. THIS I THINK WAS ONE OF THE MORE DIFFICULT NEGOTIATIONS AND A LOT OF THE DSA NEGOTIATORS ARE ALSO um often people who are working in the jail are on patrol and they also have families and then they're also doing this as an extra duty they do have i think an executive director but this is a lot of stress to pit through this and get an organization together to a contract as well as our our hr team and i just wanted to thank them and my appreciation for their uh dsa president tyler yates and his work and their their team to to get to a contract that um i think makes a lot of progress sets an example for other depart other um negotiating groups too that we'll see how that this board's going to deal with overtime in the future or how we're trying to to look at those types of things so i think this is a again a hard contract but i think a necessary contract for our accounting to move forward with uh controlling costs and overtime issues supervisor lee just want to ask follow-up questions about the funding so the board has discretion over the allocation of that money correct

SUPERVISOR LEE, THAT SOURCE OF FUNDS IS DISCRETIONARY GENERAL REVENUE. IT WAS SET ASIDE BY YOUR BOARD IN A COMMITTED FUND BALANCE. SO IT IS A FOUR FIFTHS VOTE TO WHEN WE BRING THE BUDGET REVISION BACK TO RELEASE THAT LATER IN THE YEAR. BUT IT IS FROM A COMMITTED FUND BALANCE OF DISCRETIONARY GENERAL FUND DOLLARS. SO IT'S THE BOARD'S DISCRETION. GOT IT. AND YOU'LL BE BACK ON NIGHT ONE FOR US TO DISCUSS. our intention would be to bring back the budget revision for your board to to approve or or not approve it'd be a four-fifths approval to release that 812 into the sheriff's budget to cover the increased unbudgeted costs that you're approving today got it thank you

all right with that um supervisor hartman yeah one other thing i i just wanted to explain my reasoning on this it's a really tight budget year and we have other uh bargaining units coming up and this contract really stands out on its own because we made those changes regarding overtime and that means we'll have some savings over time that could be reinvested to try to bring the sheriff's deputies and custody deputies up to market because they're way out of market. So I don't think that this is a good guide for other bargaining units and just want to get that on the table.

Okay. Bob. Yes, Supervisor Lavagnino. Thank you. I just would ask staff to on 911 when we do bring it to find out what, also get us some clarification on if there's negotiations or give us a status on the UCSB talks or negotiations about how we do handle Isla Vista.

All right. uh i think it might be good to make sure you know i know that usually shows up in a budget revision packet maybe might be good to have a specific uh administrative item for the nine one meeting so that we can pull that to discuss about that separately i don't know if it needs to be a d item at this point but it for agenda management purposes it might be good to pull that out as a separate item um with that can i get a motion to approve uh item 833 so move second okay um any further discussion on the motion seeing none all in favor signify by saying aye aye aye opposed the motion passes unanimously thank you all right so we have one additional um admin item that's adam admin item number 28. um madam clerk please read that into the record oh 16. okay let's go to 16 first and then i'll go to 28.

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number 16 is from the county executive office. It is to consider recommendations regarding an outdoor festival license for 1805 Live.

All right, thank you. Supervisor Lee.

Good. I see Mr. John Thyme here from the 1805 board. If you want to come back and say any comments.

Good morning. Hello, everybody. I wish I had Andrew still here. We need to get him to fundraise for us. I'm just here as a resource for you. If you have any questions or any comments that you need me to make, I'd be happy to do so. But yes, I'm one of the founders of 1805.

Good. I just want to put on the record that I thank you for all you do and I look forward to be working with you to find a new location for the 1805 event next year. So I know everybody on your team has been working hard, but I'll be working with you to identify other areas. So I'll say thank you to them. Okay. That's it. Okay.

Would you like to make a motion to staff recommendation here?

Yep. I approve staff recommendation.

All right.

Second.

Motion by Supervisor Lee, second by Supervisor Hartman. Any further discussion? Seeing none, all in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passes unanimously. All right, thank you.

Hopefully you guys will come.

All right. Thanks.

Love to.

Next item of business is our last administrative item that was pulled, and that's item A28.

Chair Nelson and members of the board, administrative item number 28 is from the General Services Department. It is to consider recommendations regarding Amendment 1 to the Cali Real Campus solar power purchase agreement to add battery energy storage system.

All right. So I pulled this item. My question for staff was, you know, we're going through this, you know, utility scale solar um item in in the planning development include and then they've also included now um battery storage into that my understanding there's going to be a set of conditions that we're going to be having battery storage projects i just want to make sure that the projects the county are doing are also going to be abiding by the standards that are put forth in the land use development code i know typically we don't necessarily have to follow the land use development code but I think a lot of the standards that we're trying to put in place are for good reasons. So I just wanted to find out if we were going to be doing that or intend to be doing that on this battery storage project and future battery storage projects in the county. So J.D.

Good morning and thank you. Chair Nelson, this particular project probably does not meet the thresholds for a utility scale project. However, it will require that we follow all appropriate county standards and require full review and approval by both planning and development and county fire.

Okay, great. That's all I'm looking for is to make sure that we're kind of being consistent on those standards, especially around the safety of battery storage. I don't think Kyrielle has the same groundwater issues, but maybe they do. That's been one of my big concerns is making sure that there's abilities in place to protect potential groundwater pollution from future battery storage accidents. And so that's something that I know that's been on top of mind for me. And hopefully that will be incorporated into some of the standard conditions that come forward here in the next couple of weeks back to the board. But I wanna make sure that our county projects are doing those things as well. That was my concern. All right. Supervisor Levinio.

I also have a question about, so inside that, and I know you're saying it's not scale with me, utility grade. Are there noticing requirements inside those requirements for inside the, for battery storage? Noticing... residents that might live within the area. I noticed the aerial map. It is kind of separate from a lot of people, but there are some little enclaves of residential nearby. Supervisor Lavagnino through the chair.

I would have to confirm, I wouldn't want to give The wrong answer, but again, we would comply with all appropriate policies and code. There are fire safety measures built into the battery system, so it has a full fire control panel, detection, alarm, ventilation, suppression, as well as... gas smoke heat detectors and explosion proof features. So there's a lot of safety elements that are baked into this project.

I think the residents would love to hear all that. I think the biggest mistake that's been made on battery storage is not, and I think the prime example of that was up in Nipomo where They had a project that got approved by the Planning Commission, didn't go to the Board of Supervisors and never got appealed. So the residents really kind of didn't know what was going on. They were in the dark and then all of a sudden it gets built. They don't know. And then Moss Landing happened right about that time and everybody freaked out. My direction, and I don't know how big we could do this and it's not my district, so I'm not the one, but I just think, it'd be a really good idea to get out to the public. I mean, there's so much information and misinformation and people just don't know. And what, you know, fear is a great motivator. So people really get interested in something. So I really think, you know, I mean, if it was happening in my backyard, I'd love to hear from somebody to come in and talk about why this project's different than what's happened in the past. I understand it now a lot better, the more I've been educated about it. I just think that's really important. It's going to be a topic of conversation. So I think getting out in front of it is a lot better than trying to catch up on it on the other end like San Luis Obispo County had to do. And I know Supervisor Capps is the best about reaching out to the public and getting them involved. So I would anticipate something's coming, but I'm just putting my two cents in.

Yes, Supervisor Capps.

Yeah, thanks for the tee up. I'm thrilled to communicate about this and, you know, in fact, over the break I listened to a podcast. California has added more battery storage power in the last three years than the equivalent of 12 nuclear power plants. So battery storage is all over the state of California without incident by and large. And so I just want to give you an opportunity to speak of how and what this will do for county operations, having 24 hour operations, what that means, what does that mean for which facilities will be around the clock, the ability to be operating?

Absolutely. Thank you. So, Supervisor Capps, through the Chair, I was remiss. We also have our Energy Program Manager, Mr. Brandon Kaysen, online, so I may refer to him for some comments as well. But this battery energy storage system and the 1.4 megawatt photovoltaic array that is part of this project supports the county's Zero Net Energy Resolution as well as the Climate Action Plan. Yeah, it provides 24 hour support to a number of facilities within the Cairo campus, including public health, the main jail, IRC, sheriff administration, mental health, environmental health and VA clinic. So there's a number of mission critical operations that we build resilience in depth by having this system in place to support those operations in the event of a protracted outage.

And in terms of cost savings, what's the, can you just give some, speak to the benefits of battery storage?

Over the, Supervisor Kapsch for the chair, over the 30-year lifespan that we used to assess these projects, we project a $12.5 million cost savings to the county based on having fixed utility rates, and it's a 0% escalation in this case by the PPA, so we're locked into a rate for the lifespan of the power purchase agreement.

Great. And again, extremely, you did the list pretty quickly, but the jail, the puff, pretty mission critical services that if power were to go out, it would be disastrous if these facilities were not able to operate. So I'm thrilled. I was so happy to see this item come to us and appreciate, especially as we are talking about utility scale solar, I think this was a really important item to bring. So thank you, Chair Nelson, for pulling it. Thank you.

So thank you. Thank you. Yeah. And I was not trying to pick on this one in particular. I just want to make sure that we're using that same standard because I think The size of the battery storage here is similar to what we're going to be regulating in that ordinance. And so I want to make sure that it's apples to apples, that we're abiding by the same rules that we're going to be putting out there in the public. The protections that we provide on setbacks and safety measures are uniform, or at least to the highest standard possible. So that's what I'm hoping to see here and in future projects that you guys explore battery storage at other sites throughout the county. So I'm glad to hear that. And with that, I'll go ahead and take a motion to approve this item.

So moved. I'll approve it. I'll second.

All right. And I'm sorry, Madam Clerk, we haven't had any public comment, right, on any of these items. I apologize for not asking.

Chair Nelson and members of the board, that is correct. We only received requests to speak on administrative item number four on today's agenda. Okay.

I just want to clarify for the record and for those watching. So no public comment. We have a motion and a second. All in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passes unanimously. All right, that concludes our administrative agenda. At this time is our time for general public comment. Madam Clerk, is there any members of the general public comment that want to speak on items that are not on our agenda today?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, yes, we have two requests to speak in general public comment today. We are going to first begin in here in Santa Barbara with Fred Razo, then we will go to Zoom with Gina Correz.

All right, I'll go ahead and close general public comment at this time.

Fred?

Welcome, Mr. Razo.

I've returned on a B ordinance follow-up. Good morning, Chair and members of the board. Let me put my glasses on. My name is Fred Rosso. I'm a Los Olivos resident and property owner. I appreciate the opportunity to return this morning and follow up on the issue I first brought before you on June 9th regarding code section 7.31. or 7-31, the county's apiary ordinance governing where managed beehives may be located, including its significant setback requirements. Following that presentation, Supervisor Joan Hartman's office raised an important question about possible competition between managed honeybees and our native bee populations. I appreciated that concern, took it seriously, and spent the intervening weeks looking more closely at the available information and county data. I'm back today to share what I found and to suggest what I believe is a reasonable path forward. First, context matters. European honeybees have been part of North American agriculture for roughly four centuries. They are not native bees, and the scientific literature supports legitimate concern about competition for forage under some conditions, particularly where colonies are concentrated. or sensitive native bee habitat is involved. That concerns deserved consideration. but scale also matters. A homeowner maintaining one or two well-managed hives with a dependable water source could provide pollination benefits to the homeowner's property and surrounding gardens. That is fundamentally different in scale and concentration from commercial agricultural placements that may involve dozens, hundreds, or substantially more colonies concentrated for crop pollination. Yet section 7-31 does not adequately recognize that distinction. The county's fixed setback requirements can make even one or two managed hives effectively impossible on many otherwise appropriate rural parcels. At the same time, the ordinance provides an exception from the 300-foot property line and road restriction for colonies placed for crop pollination. In other words, a very small residential apiary can face a restriction that a very large commercial pollination placement does not. That distinction deserves reconsideration, not because commercial pollination is undesirable, quite the opposite. Those operations provide an important agricultural service and significant pollination benefits. The point is that ordinance, that the ordinance measures a colony largely as a colony, rather than adequately considering scale, concentration, duration, location, management, and actual risk. The City of Santa Barbara's beekeeping framework is also worth considering. I'm not suggesting that a city ordinance simply be transplanted into rural Santa Barbara County, but given the size of many of our rural residential parcels, its experience demonstrates that appropriately managed hives with water, responsible husbandry, and significant safeguards for neighbors can coexist successfully within a regulatory framework.

Thank you, Fred. That is your time.

Okay. Very good. Are you almost done? I'm sorry. Are you almost done? Are you almost done with your? Yeah, yeah.

Do you want to finish? Maybe another 30 seconds. Yeah, go ahead. I apologize for going on. No, no, that's fine. Please finish. I have the time. Very good. Thank you very much. I appreciate that. Yeah. The information I received from the Agricultural Commissioner's Office together with the Native Bee Research and Supporting Material is included in the written public record I have submitted. I sincerely thank Commissioner Jose Chang, his staff, and Supervisor Hartman's office for their responsiveness and assistance. My request today is therefore measured and straightforward. Refer section 7-31 staff for review and bring it back on a future public agenda. Considered a tiered approach, reasonable standards for small managed apiaries, appropriate reporting and safeguards for larger or temporary commercial placements and specific protections where evidence identifies some sensitive native bee habitat. this does not require choosing between agricultural managed honeybees native bees or our neighbors it asks the county to recognize the difference among them and regulate according to scale and demonstrated risk after viewing the information i believe 7-31 deserves consideration thank you for your time your leadership and your service to santa barbara county and thank you for the extra time all right thank you mr raza we will now go to our final speaker on zoom gina juarez gina

hi good morning chair nelson members of the board welcome back from summer recess i hope everybody got a good rest my name is gina rodardi kiros i am speaking today in my role as a board member for families act our organization works directly with families impacted by the behavioral health and criminal justice systems i am here to speak about an urgent issue in our jail that falls within the purview of this board Counties are legally required to provide timely psychiatric care for individuals in custody who have serious mental illness. This includes prompt evaluation, stabilization, and when clinically necessary, transfer to a facility for adequate care. These are statutory obligations designed to prevent deterioration, crisis and liability. Statewide standards also demand strict jail oversight, particularly around mental health care, safety and conditions of confinement, requiring counties to correct care deficiencies proactively. There is a concerning backlog in the jail in getting individuals transferred to their court-ordered treatment beds. A significant number of inmates remain in custody waiting for transfer to a facility that is a higher level of care. Every day in which these individuals sit in custody, they are subjected to an environment that worsens their mental health symptoms. We highly recommend that inmates with severe mental illness be transferred immediately so that they can get treated and stabilize. If there's anything we can do to assist in helping to get these individuals into those beds, we are happy to do so. Thank you for your time, your dedication and your service and for making Santa Barbara County one of the best places to live. Thank you.

And that concludes general public comment for today.

All right, thank you from our public commenters. We'll go ahead and roll right into our first departmental item. Madam Clerk, can you please read departmental item number one to the record?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, departmental item number one is from the County Executive Office. It is a hearing to consider recommendations regarding the state budget for fiscal year 2026 through 2027, summary and county impacts.

Chair Nelson, members of the board, today we're discussing the recently enacted state budget and implications for the county's adopted budget. My name is Claire Tobin. I'm the legislative analyst for the county. Joining us on Zoom will be our legislative advocates, Jean Hurst, and I think also Kelly Brooks-Lindsay, and Paul Clemente, our budget director. Recommended actions for today are to receive and file a report on the state budget and potential future impacts to the county's budget and find that this action is not a project under CEQA. The state budget for fiscal year 26-27 was enacted at the end of June, just shortly after the board adopted your budget for the same fiscal year. The legislature is still in session until August 31st and they're making some adjustments, particularly in the form of trailer bills, which adapt the code for the budget that's being enacted. The governor also has until September 30th to sign or veto bills. There are a number of propositions on the November ballot, several of which could impact the county. Finally, for many of the new appropriations, we won't know our actual allocation until later in the fall. So given all these uncertainties, we're not recommending any changes at this time, but budget staff will return over the coming months with those adjustments. A COUPLE OF OVERALL NOTES FOR THE BUDGET. MOST OF THE FUNDING WAS ONE TIME. THIS IS HELPFUL FOR US IN THE SHORT TERM BUT IT MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO MAKE ANY REAL CHANGES IN THE OVERALL STRUCTURE OF THE BUDGET. I'LL ALSO NOTE THAT IN RESPONSE TO THE CURRENT FINANCIAL NEEDS OF COUNTIES, THE BUDGET PACKAGE THAT WAS ENACTED INCLUDED A TAX INCREASE THAT MADE CERTAIN TYPES OF SOFTWARE SUBJECT TO SALES TAX. The California State Association of Counties estimated that the tax will bring in 42 million annually in general purpose revenue. That's out of 1 billion that the tax is expected to collect overall. So across 58 counties, we're not expecting that to be a whole lot of new revenue. Counties will receive some additional funding through 1991 and 2011 realignment and public safety, transportation, that sort of thing. But we want to note that counties also have to pay this tax. So we're working on some preliminary projections, but that will also take from the amount that we receive and we have some concerns about how high that might be. However, it will depend a lot on what the state determines as the software that qualifies for the new tax. So with that, I'll hand it over to our legislative advocates who are joining us on Zoom. I believe Jean Hurst will give this section.

Jean, why don't I start with the first items?

So the- Thanks, Kelly.

In the state budget around trying to address impacts related to HR1. So the legislature included funding to address county's administrative costs for the increased workload for both Medi-Cal and CalFresh. However, the CalFresh funding is spread out over three years. You know you have funding for multiple fiscal years. On the Medi-Cal side, it is a one-time appropriation. There are conversations happening between the County Welfare Directors Association and the administration about is there some opportunity to look at that allocation being spread out over multiple fiscal years? And I think we will have a better sense of that probably next month. Additionally, I think there were many things happening in the healthcare space in addition just to HR1. The Newsom administration has been concerned about the rapid growth in Medi-Cal costs, and so they had proposed a series of changes to the Medi-Cal benefits and services available to individuals with unsatisfactory immigration status most of the almost all of those proposals have been delayed and will be something for the next governor to figure out but many of the things that would have gone to effect july 1 of 2026 i think probably of most interest to you all were the elimination of the prospective um the PPS rate elimination that is delayed until July 1, 2027. And then also on the HR1 front, the administration or the budget agreement includes a CalFresh local match waiver. So if a county cannot put up the entire amount to draw down the full allocation of state funds, you won't be penalized, the state will still pass the full amount through. And they provided some funding to address the new workload requirements around able-bodied adults without dependents. The area that I think sort of HR1 related that is still outstanding is around indigent care and there are still discussions happening and this could be something that gets addressed prior to the legislature's adjournment. Still unclear, you know, how that is going to play out, but it's definitely kind of on the table and there is interest in the legislature in trying to address that. Jean, I'm going to hand it off to you to talk about the last couple of items.

Sure. Just in addition to the kind of key focus on the HR1 impact, there were a number of other items incorporated into the budget, including additional funding for this next round of HAP. homeless housing and assistance program that was only partially funded last year. So the legislature and administration agreed to put an additional, I believe $400 million into that bucket for this next round and additional resources will then be made available to counties. Of course they do come with some strings. So there will be new accountability and cooperation requirements. from the legislature in order to draw down those resources. This, as you know, is sort of a legacy program, I think, for this administration and obviously a primary focus for the governor as he departs his service to the legislature or to the state. In terms of the criminal justice area and behavioral health, there are a number of other items incorporated in the budget that we have summarized in materials that we have sent out to the board. But there are a number of additional resources available, including, you know, Additional conversations that are continuing this month to finalize some of the state budget allocations that we're anticipating and the remainder of the legislative session, I guess now 2 and a half weeks or so of other items. This will likely incorporate include allocation of the. resources that are available and Prop 4 allocations among others. Kelly, maybe we can go to the next slide and sort of talk a little bit about what's not in it and sort of the activities that are associated with efforts to get additional changes to H.R.1.

um so there is um a push i think amongst the the county associations and individual counties at the state level around trying to do something to address the lack of resources in the budget for indigent care um there is a hundred million dollar ask and then there is work being done to develop trailer bill language that would do a few things. I think particularly of interest for Santa Barbara, it would give you the ability to go back to the state to look at whether a cost-based formula to measure your indigent care costs as opposed to just giving 60 percent back and is an option. There were some technical changes in statute previously, and they erroneously took away the ability of counties in your position to go back to the administration to revisit that selection. And it certainly is predicated on changes at the federal level that have a material impact on indigent care, which HR1 does. So the trailer bill would allow you to do that. And then for the counties that have been the administration has sent out letters to several counties freezing their AB 85 allocations and the trailer bill would allow the counties to elect whether or not to do the freeze because obviously freezing the amount of money the state gets at a time right before we start to see impacts from the changes in HR 1 and more people becoming uninsured Um, doesn't seem very fair. So we're having discussions about that. I think it's, um. There are a lot of moving parts in the legislature right now on a number of issues. Um, you know, you have an. Governor who's leaving office. Um, and so we are not getting clear signals from. anyone about sort of where this is headed, if it's going to be included in the final package or not, but it's certainly being discussed. I think Jean and I have meeting scheduled tomorrow on this. So we're definitely doing a lot of education right now and hoping to get somebody's attention on this. And Jean, I'll turn it back over to you.

Sure. With regards to, I know there were a lot of, there was an additional request from our local law enforcement with regards to funding Proposition 36. Kind of not surprisingly, the legislature and administration did not include additional resources for Prop 36, but rather counted multiple allocations to other sort of non-related law enforcement programs, including probation, as Prop 36 resources. So they've really kind of come into the practice of counting money many times for different purposes. And this is one of the areas I think that they're particularly reticent to provide additional resources specifically to fund Prop 36, which, as you know, Governor Newsom opposed that measure when it went to the ballot. So disinclined, I think, to provide those resources that were requested. Should we go to the next slide, Claire?

Go ahead, Jean. Thanks. I have it up here.

Sure. Just again, sort of outstanding items. There are likely going to be both trailer bills and amendments to the Budget Act that are forthcoming in the waning weeks of the legislative session. As Kelly mentioned, there's a hard push for some trailer bill language to correct some items associated with AB 85. There's a request for additional one-time resources with regards to indigent care. There are a number of other requests as well that are out there. We learned yesterday about the request from a number of folks for resources to fight off the glassy-winged sharpshooter infestation that sort of was unanticipated when the budget was crafted. And so there are a lot of those types of requests that remain outstanding. In addition, Obviously, we have the governor's sort of push on wildfire liability changes to assist with the fiscal solvency of the state's utilities. We have outstanding items in the tort area. There are a number of issues where the legislature and administration are working towards some eventual resolution before August 31st. I think the challenge there is one, that time is waning, and two, all of these things can be leveraged one against the other in an election year that always makes things very difficult. Obviously, there are ballot measures that are going to be presented to the voters in November. We did have some last minute changes to those ballot measures before the legislature adjourned for the summer back in June. But obviously, the conversations around those measures kind of heating up as folks start to kind of raise money and raise awareness in earnest to try to get ahead of the what is going to be an onslaught of electoral activity come this fall. That is both very expensive and very challenging to get through to voters, particularly with the midterm elections and other elections that are happening at the same time. So Claire, I don't know how you want to proceed, but we're happy to answer the specific questions that you had or any other questions, however you'd like to move forward.

I think maybe we'll continue with the presentation for now and our budget director will talk through the county impacts and then we'll take questions.

Okay, thank you, Claire. Good morning, board. So as far as the impacts of the state budget on the county's budget, it's important to note, as mentioned, that almost all of the funding discussed is one time in nature, which limits our ability to make any substantive ongoing additions or redistributions in our budget. Many of the social services items on here are estimates from the department and won't truly be known until they receive their allocation letters this fall. The first bullet on here is your board already took action on. This was the delay of the PPS rate change that Ms. Brooks mentioned earlier, just delays it one year. This was an anticipated reduction in health clinic revenue when your board took action on July 7th to sort of delay that reduction. It allowed County Health to add 15 FTE back. DSS estimates up to $3 million available this fiscal year for increased Medi-Cal administration. The department plans on using overtime as needed if workload spikes and will use this additional money to cover those costs. There is no local match in Medi-Cal eligibility, so this additional available revenue does not generate any local match savings for us. On the CalFresh side, an additional $195,000 at one time would similarly go towards overtime costs if and when needed. There may be even more up to 1.8 million over a three year period for CalFresh administration. It may require additional local match funds to access though, and we're waiting on more clarity for this. The CalFresh match waiver is a little different. There is an additional local match cost that we thought was going to materialize in DSS's budget this year related to HR1 funding ratio changes, and we funded them with ongoing general revenue to cover those costs and avoid large cuts in eligibility. The state budget is now waiving those additional costs for three years, which may free up to $1.4 million a year for the next three years. again we'll know the impacts with more certainty in the coming months and this is only one time for the next three years the department's ongoing local match costs will increase again when this expires but this this one may be an area that allows for some one-time redistribution As your board knows, the department has completely depleted its fund balances, which meant that when they got into fiscal trouble the past couple years with drops in their revenue or unanticipated cost spikes, it was the general fund that had to step in with over $7 million to help close their gap just last fiscal year. Building back fund balance would help them mitigate some unexpected issues themselves rather than have to come to the general fund each time. Your board also approved over $800,000 this fiscal year in one-time funding towards certain protective services contracts that were deemed critical to continue. Those contracts will again need funding next fiscal year if they are to continue, and this savings could potentially be used for that as well. So those are just some thoughts we're having on this as we continue to monitor this and before we get those allocation letters and really know what the impacts in DSS's budget are. Next slide, please. 200,000 one time for emergency response in CPS would go towards a program that regularly has exceeded its budget in recent years and would ideally help to mitigate some of those issues if they run into cost increases again this year that are unanticipated. The $1.1 million in that second bullet is for two years and it's essentially pass through assistance for four homeless and housing programs that won't really impact DSS operations. ALLOCATIONS FOR OTHER HOMELESSNESS SERVICES INCLUDE ANOTHER ROUND OF THE HOMELESS HOUSING ASSISTANCE AND PREVENTION OR HAP BLOCK GRANT THAT JEAN MENTIONED EARLIER. WITH ESPEY COUNTY WE THINK LIKELY TO RECEIVE ABOUT 3.1 MILLION. THIS WILL HAVE AN IMPACT ON CSD AND I'M SURE MONITORING WILL COME BACK WITH MORE ON THAT LATER. Probation in Bewell may see additional funding related to Prop 36, although the probation funding is likely going to be used to mitigate previously planned reductions in pretrial services, so really that's just gonna hold them steady for a little while longer. It's not necessarily an increase. Additional one-time VOCA funding will continue to supplement the state's backfilling of the reduced federal funding there. This impacts the district attorney. Allocations will likely be known in the coming months for them as well. And finally, as Claire mentioned earlier, the new sales tax being applied to certain types of software subscriptions could generate additional discretionary revenue for the county, as well as some of those other buckets that are sales tax driven, like your realignment, your Prop 172, but it's also going to have new costs to the county. Countywide, we do spend tens of millions of dollars on this type of software that may now be taxed. and the county is not exempt from paying sales tax there's still a lot of unknowns on this issue um the the revenues and the costs we're waiting for more information i think cdtfa no one quite knows what those those types of software are going to be taxed like this and how much of that's going to apply to us so we're trying to learn everything we can on this one and watching it closely that concludes my comments i think that's the end of the presentation

All right, thank you. Well, I think I was the one that actually requested this item to come to us, in part because I knew how much of our current year budget we just adopted was reflected by the state. And I was hoping to have more clarity by this point in the year. And it seems that things are just as murky as they were a couple of months ago. If anything, what I've seen is that we kind of built a budget based on worst case scenario and it's been worst case scenario. So I think it's been it was actually a very prudent budget as painful as it was for the entire county. I think it was the right call. I think that the reserves that we put aside for different potential costs are still appropriate until we know otherwise. So I just wanted to pass that along. I think the saying out there is when you know the state sneezes the county catches the cold and I think that that is very true. this year of all the years I've been here at the county. And so I just wanted to, you know, hear about these things. I think it's a good update. One thing I do want to ask if we can in the future is I know we got some additional funding on public health and we decided to go ahead and do that towards restorations. You know, that was kind of a late decision. I'm not against as those things materialize, but I think at some point they should probably come back to the board so we can talk about whether we want to bring some of that general fund back in or whether, you know, I think that those dollars need to be discussed at some point. Yes, some of those new dollars that might come back in when we get new allocations might give us a chance to recapture some of those general fund dollars that we set aside. I think right now... The assumption may be in some department that those are our general fund dollars now and that that's locked in and any money that comes from the state is for extra. And I think that's a policy call. And so that's what I'm hoping. Again, I support what we did with public health, because I also think that's an investment. I think what Director Homami is suggesting is if we invest in this department now that we're gonna be able to see returns later so that we can have less and less general fund. So I really support that. I think we've seen that even within behavioral wellness and that department, all the good work that's been done with director Navarro to get more revenue. So I know we know how to spend money to get money there, but I do want to make sure that we bring it back maybe to the board when we have those opportunities to maybe recapture general fund that we put aside this year, appropriately so to save some departments that needed help in a really tough year. But I also don't want to necessarily lose that opportunity in the future. So again, that was why I wanted to hear this item and make that point. So thank you. Other supervisors, any other comments or questions? All right. Okay, well, I believe this is a receiving file. I'd be happy to take a motion for my colleagues to receive and file this item. Oh, actually, let me ask if there's any public comment. Sorry, I'm slipping today.

Members of the board, we have no request to speak from the public on this item.

All right, thank you. Can I get a motion to receive and file?

Move staff recommendation. All right, thank you. I'll second.

Okay, a motion from Hartman and a second from Capps. All in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passed unanimously. Thank you all. And moving right along to our second and last departmental item. For the public's knowledge, once we're done with department item number two, we will break for closed session and then we will come back to recess. But after this item, there'll be no further items for the public. So Madam Clerk, will you please read item number two into the record.

Chair Nelson and members of the board, departmental item number two is from the Planning and Development Department. It is a hearing to consider recommendations regarding the Hagfors Rezone Project, case number 25RZN3, and this is in the third district.

All right, Director Plowman.

Good morning, Mr. Chair, members of the board. Today we have a rezone application for a property in the San Ynez Valley. It's called the Hag Forge Rezone. And we have Soren Kringle, our case planner, Shannon Reese, the supervisor, and Travis Seward, deputy director. So with that, I'm going to turn the presentation over to Mr. Kringle. Please move forward.

Thank you, Lisa. Good morning, supervisors. As Lisa said, this is the Hagfors Rezone Project, case number 25, RZN-3. So the project site is a 1.4 acre vacant lot located at the southeast end of San Ynez. Right along Highway 246, we have the Chumash gas station located directly to the west, and we have the San Ynez airport located to the south. The proposed project is a request to rezone the subject parcel from the retail commercial zone district to the general commercial zone district. The request only requires a rezone and not a general plan amendment because the parcel's land use designation is already general commercial and does not need to be amended. No development is proposed as part of this project, but the applicant has expressed interest to staff and the potential development of a personal storage facility, which is not an allowed use in the retail commercial zone district. In addition to allowing for a personal storage facility, the proposed rezone would allow for 15 new uses not currently allowed by the C2 zone district. And it would also downgrade the permit requirements for certain other uses. These uses include agricultural processing, storage for contractor equipment and vehicle services. The table of new uses is shown here and is included in the staff report. While new uses on the subject parcel will be allowed by the proposed rezone, the development standards between the C2 and the C3 zone districts are virtually identical. This table from the LUDC shows that setbacks, height limit and density are all the same for both zones. Staff analyzed the rezone for consistency with the following rezone findings. Staff felt the subject parcel's location near the edge of town and near the San Ynez airport was adequate to support heavier commercial uses. As mentioned earlier, the subject parcel is surrounded by commercial and agricultural lots and no sensitive uses would be negatively impacted by the new uses allowed by the zone change. Furthermore, multiple C3 zone parcels already exist in the surrounding area as depicted by this graphic here. Finally, the San Ynez Valley community plan anticipated all types of commercial uses on the property and much of the surrounding area. And therefore the proposed zone change from one commercial zone to another wouldn't stray from the intent of the community plan. All of this, in addition to the fact that the development standards are virtually identical between the two zones, supported the request for the rezone. proposed project was reviewed for compliance with the california environmental quality act pursuant to secret guidelines section 15183 projects consistent with the community plan or zoning and was found to be consistent with the san diego valley community plan and its eir as mentioned before there is no development proposed by the project and the project will not result in any new significant impacts not anticipated by the san diego valley community plan If the board concurs with staff findings, we request that you make the required findings for approval of the rezone, determine that the proposed project has been adequately reviewed for compliance with CEQA and adopt an ordinance to approve a rezone amending the Santa Barbara County zoning map of the County Land Use and Development Code to change assessor parcels number 143254002 from retail commercial to general commercial. This concludes staff's presentation and we are available for any questions. Thank you.

Okay, questions from the board. Supervisor Hartman.

Well, I think that I support staff recommendation, but I do have one issue that I'd like to raise. I mean, it is on the edge of San Ynez, but it's kind of a gateway. So it creates the impression for San Ynez and the whole valley. So I'd like to know what development standards or what applies visually so that it's not commercial industrial, but it feels like welcoming in some way.

Yes, Supervisor Hartman, through the Chair, that's a good question. I think one thing to note is that it's in the commercial zone district. All future development would have to be reviewed by BAR or by the Central Board of Architectural Review. So I think that will address, they'll be able to review the project for compliance with those gateway policies like you're mentioning.

Okay, thank you.

All right, thank you, Supervisor Hartman. Supervisor Capps, do you have a question? No. Okay. I had a couple questions. One was that I understand it's getting Zone C3. Are zonings, do they work in the way that they're stacked? So like now goes, is it Zone 3 or C3? Or if it wanted to go back to a C2 issue or C2 use, would that take another rezone to go back to that? Or is it kind of one of these zonings where we're stacking what's allowable there?

Chair Nelson and Board of Supervisors, it's not an overlay such that the zoning would stack, but most of the uses allowed in C2 continue to be allowed in C3. So we have a few additional uses and some categories where the permit type required is reduced, but the items from C2 that they might consider

using in that zone are still going to be allowed with the rezone okay what so um are there uses that they will not be able to do that they can on c2 that they will not be able to do on c3 i think is the my my important question here yeah chair nelson not that i'm aware of i can double check that for you really quickly in our table and get back to you if there are some yeah if you don't mind because one of the things i was just going to suggest that maybe help was that so a development is not being proposed this time. I know that there's some places that have two zonings there, like C2 and C3, so that maybe if the, you know, future owner decides, oh, maybe I want to go back to something that's a C2 use that's no longer available in C3, you know, that might be something that somebody may want to do. Just was throwing that out there and just trying to keep that parcel, you know, you know, as many possible uses as possible so it gets developed to something productive. So that was the reason I was going to ask that question.

Supervisor Nelson through the chair. Traditionally we do not layer one zone over another so we wouldn't have a site that would have two zones that would cover the whole site. You might split zone a site potentially and have half BC2 or half BC3. Thank you. But if you can give us just a minute, I think that what Soren has indicated is correct, is that the items that are currently allowed in C2 remain allowed in C3. It's just not the other way around. There are more intensive uses allowed in C3 that are not allowed in C2.

okay that's what i was just trying to yeah again i was just trying to keep as many uses as possible on this property sure if they wanted to if they wanted to recess more to a c2 use in the future so i was just trying to trying to be helpful yeah so what we're seeing in the table is most of the uses um that are allowed in c3 or c2

they might hire they might require a higher level permit like for instance a recycling small collection center you could have that in c2 with the cup but in c3 it's a it's just a land use permit so that's that so you can see that it um the permit requirements um shift downward as you get into a more intensive zone i understand okay thank you so

And then my other question was more of a process question. Do we have any idea how long this rezone took from initial initiation to getting it two years to the board? Like when did that planner consult start on this one?

Or when did we first make contact? Chair Nelson, to my recollection, I can get an exact date for you, about a year and a half.

Okay. All right, and do we have any idea of how much has been spent in planning fees over that year and a half?

Chair Nelson, it was 50 hours of staff time. So we're looking at a total between noticing department fees and fees, 20, about 20 grand.

Okay, thank you. All right, I just think it's good to daylight those things for people as they try to frame other projects in the future, so. although this seems very straightforward, no CEQA, right? Did I read that right?

Supervisor, Mr. Chair, to really get an adequate understanding of what transpired with the processing of the application, it would be important to analyze how quickly the applicant moved once they received comments.

I understand that's only one of the pieces.

Yeah.

Okay.

All right, so those are my questions. Madam Clerk, are there any questions from the public, or sorry, and public comment on this item?

Chair Nelson and members of the board, we have no request to speak from the public on this item.

All right, now back to deliberations. Or staff, any more comments? No? Deliberations to Res. Hartman.

I'm prepared to move staff recommendation A through C in today's board letter.

I'll second. All right, any further discussion among the board members? Seeing none, all in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion passes unanimously. All right. Well, that concludes our departmental items. We're going to go ahead and recess to closed session. And Madam County Council, will you please read out the items that we will be discussing today in closed session?

Thank you, Mr. Chair, members of the board. In closed session today, the board will consider three items of existing litigation, the County of Santa Barbara versus SJ Amoroso Construction, County of Santa Barbara versus Rosser, both of which are Orange County Superior Court cases, Sable Offshore versus the County, which is a U.S. District Court case in the Central District, and Conference with Labor Negotiators, Employee Organizations, Engineers and Technicians Association, and SEIU Local 620. Agency Designated Representatives are CEO Monomi Asato and Human Resources Director Christine Schmidt. And the time estimate is about 45 minutes.

Okay. So we shall be back here around noon to adjourn today's meeting. But there will be no further public items today. So thank you. Welcome back to the August 18th, 2026 meeting of the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors. We're returning from closed session. Madam County Council, can you please report out on the actions taken by the board?

Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the board. The board in closed session heard three items of existing litigation, county versus SJ Amarosa Construction, county versus Rosser International, and Sable Offshore versus the county, and also conference with labor negotiators for engineers and technicians, association and SEIU Local 620, and the board took no reportable action.

Thank you very much. And that will now conclude today's agenda. And we will be adjourning to our next regularly scheduled meeting on August 25th in the beautiful Santa Maria hearing room. See you then.