LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors this week will discuss the possibility of scaling back the frequency of board meetings, and also consider extending emergency declarations made last year for drought conditions and a damaging December storm.

The board will meet beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 20, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.

The meeting can be watched live on Channel 8 with the video available online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Boards/Board_of_Supervisors/calendar.htm . Accompanying board documents and the agenda also are available at that link.

In an untimed item, County Administrative Officer Matt Perry will go to the board – at the request of Board Chair Anthony Farrington – to ask for consideration of options to reduce the number of regular board meetings held each month.

Perry's report to the board explains that the last few meetings have been canceled due to lack of enough items on the agenda.

“This prompted staff to re-evaluate the need for the Board to meet on a weekly basis. Most northern California rural counties the size of Lake County regularly meet less than 4 times per month. In those counties, the regular meeting schedule is 2 or 3 times each month with an occasional special meeting as may be needed,” according to Perry's report to the board.

He said reducing the number of regularly scheduled meetings per month would help relieve staff of the time spent preparing the agenda and minutes, and attending board meetings, which is important due to staff reductions.

He's suggesting a three-month trial period of one of two proposed schedules: meetings on the first, third and fourth Tuesdays, or the first, third and fifth Tuesdays.

In other board business, the supervisors will consider changing county code and policy to eliminate mileage reimbursement for board members.

Also on Tuesday, County Office of Emergency Services Manager Marisa Chilafoe will go to the board to ask for the continuation of an emergency proclamation declared last March due to the county's ongoing drought conditions.

She also will ask the board to continue its emergency declaration from Dec. 11 in response to a heavy winter storm that dumped several inches of rain on the county, resulting in damage to local roads and closures.

The full agenda follows.

CONSENT AGENDA

7.1: Approve minutes of the Board of Supervisors meetings held Jan. 6, 2015, and Jan. 13, 2015.     

7.2: Approve amendment no.1 to the agreement between the county of Lake and Edgewood Center FY 2014-15 for Children and Families for Specialty Mental Health Services, a decrease of $45,000, and authorize the chair to sign.   

NONTIMED ITEMS

9.2: Consideration of state and federal legislative priorities 2015, adoption of resolutions advocating for federal funding sources, and consideration of legislation request.     

9.3: Consideration of changing county code and policy to eliminate mileage reimbursement for members of the Board of Supervisors.

9.4: Consideration of options to reduce number of regular meetings of the Board of Supervisors.

9.5: Consideration of the following appointments: Law Library Board of Trustees, Lower Lake Waterworks District One Board of Directors, Middletown Cemetery District Board, Spring Valley CSA No. 2 Advisory Board    .

9.6: Continuing the proclamation of emergency declaration for a) drought conditions; and b) 2014 statewide December winter storms.

9.7: Consideration of equitable sharing agreement and certification for the Lake County Sheriff's Office's participation in the equitable sharing program with the US Department of Justice for asset forfeitures.

CLOSED SESSION

10.2: Conference with legal counsel: Existing litigation pursuant to Gov. Code Sec. 54956.9(d)(1): Rivero v. Lake County Board of Supervisors, et al.     

10.3: Conference with legal counsel: Existing litigation pursuant to Gov. Code Sec. 54956.9(d)(1): Fowler & Ford v. County of Lake.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.