Among its many points, the three-page document imposed controls and authority for purchases, gives guidelines for purchases during emergencies, establishes a uniform purchasing form, designates representatives of departments and gives them purchase limits, covers the issuance of credit cards and how to purchase office supplies, and covers petty cash purchases.

The city updated its policy in 2006 but didn't follow up with an ordinance establishing procedures and controls, according to City Administrator Dale Neiman's report.

The main point of concern raised on the policy was the issuance of credit cards, which Neiman said was the topic of a lot of discussion at a city staff meeting.

The city already has credit cards outstanding, Neiman reported; some of the cards have names on them, some don't. The new policy would issue all cards with names.

The new procedures call for issuing cards to the chief of police, lieutenants and sergeants, with a maximum credit limit on the cards set at $6,000.

The director of finance, city clerk and public works director also are to be issued credit cards with $6,000 maximums.

Council member Joyce Overton said it was improper to issue credit cards to finance department staff, since they are involved with finance controls.

“I have a problem with all these people having credit cards,” she said.

Overton said she could understand Police Chief Allan McClain or a lieutenant having a credit card, but questioned giving them to all five of Clearlake Police's sergeants.

Neiman explained that the police department needed a minimum of two credit cards. He said the additional cards for sergeants were because McClain and his lieutenant may not be readily available in emergency situations.

McClain explained that some training needs can't be set up without a credit card. He added that, during a recent incident involving hand grenades the department found, staff had to go out and get sandbags which the department doesn't keep on hand. Hazmat incidents also require special materials.

He argued that the council holds him accountable for his budget and he holds his staff accountable for their purchases.

“It just seems like it's going to get out of hand,” said Overton, adding that McClain should be available during emergencies to make purchases.

He replied that if they're arming officers and trusting them to make difficult decisions on the street, they should be able to be given credit cards, which he thinks will be OK, especially if the cards are issued in a person's name. That person must then justify the purchase.

“OK, I'm going to trust you on this one,” said Overton, adding that she still didn't support issuing credit cards to finance department staff.

Neiman said they could drop the cards for finance and have City Clerk Melissa Swanson or Public Works Director Doug Herren make purchases instead.

Overton moved to accept the revised policy, which also added monthly limits to purchase orders, which the council approved 5-0.

Also on Thursday, the council approved a rental policy for the Highlands Senior Center and city parks after debate that ranged over three meetings, held a public hearing on small wind energy systems and turned down an appeal by Wendy Fetzer for administrative penalties for failing to abate nuisance properties.

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Pearl Harbor Survivors Association members gather at the group's memorial mast in Lakeport's Library Park on Wednesday, November 11, 2009, to raise the flag in celebration of Veterans Day before some of them headed over to the county ceremony. From left, Henry Anderson, Walter Urmann, sweethearts Alice Darrow and Vanya Leighton (Darrow's late husband, Dean, served at Pearl Harbor, as did Leighton's late husband, Fred), and Bill Slater. Photo by Ginny Craven.

LAKEPORT – Community members paused to honor veterans past and present at a standing-room-only service in Lakeport on Wednesday.

The Veterans Day service, hosted by the county's Veteran Services Office, took place at the Little Theater on the Lake County Fairgrounds.

Close to 200 people packed the building and spilled out its doors, with Frank Parker of the United Veterans Council noting it was the largest crowd he had seen at the ceremony.

World War II-era veterans, including local Pearl Harbor survivors, to Korean War veterans, Vietnam veterans, those who had served in the gulf and those still assigned to duty in Iraq and Afghanistan – including Private Ricky Abraham, welcomed home this past weekend for a brief visit – were on hand, receiving handcrafted thank you cards from local children who participate in 4-H.

During the ceremony two local veterans received some special and well-deserved attention – Rich Feiro of the United Veterans Council's Military Funeral Honors Team received the “Veteran of the Year Award” and Dean Gotham, president of the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 951, was named “Friend of the Veteran” for his work to bring the “Moving Wall” Vietnam memorial monument to Lake County in June.

County Veteran Services Officer Jim Brown hosted the event, and offered thanks to many veterans groups and groups that support them – such as Operation Tango Mike, which sends dozens of care packages overseas each month – for the work they do.

Brown reviewed a list of accomplishments on behalf of veterans over the past year.

They included Highway 53 – between Highways 29 and 20 – being designated a Veterans Memorial Highway, an effort undertaken by the Clearlake Rotary Club.

The Board of Supervisors earlier this year also approved taking a neglected piece of county-owned land near Clearlake and turning it into a memorial park for Lance Corporal Ivan Wilson, Brown said. Wilson died in Afghanistan in July of 2008, as Lake County News has reported.

Brown said the park is an appropriate recognition for someone who paid the ultimate price for his country.

He offered thanks to those who toiled to bring the Moving Wall to Lake County this past summer. “It will be long remembered and appreciated by many.”

Brown also thanked the United Veterans Council Military Funeral Honors Team for its efforts.

Despite the fact that he's been battling the Department of Veterans Affairs for years, Brown thanked the agency, which currently is working on site selection for a new VA clinic in the south county.

“We're very close,” said Brown, who is optimistic the clinic will be open next year.

The keynote speaker, District 1 Supervisor Jim Comstock, is a Vietnam veteran who recounted the history of Veterans Day, which began as Armistice Day – to mark the end of World War I – before eventually being renamed to honor veterans of all wars.

Comstock, who served in the Navy and spent time flying over Vietnam, pointed out Lake County's large veterans population – more than 8,000 out of 65,000 people, which means more than 10 percent of local residents are veterans, he said.

He recalled how, as a young man, he was in college with an upcoming final exam on the same day as he was required to report to the Bay Area for his military physical and evaluation. When Comstock went to talk to his professor – who would pass him anyway – the professor noted, “Son, where you're going, you don't need this class.”

Comstock said he was proud of his service in Vietnam. “We are the land of the free because of the brave, and you are the brave,” he said, speaking to the veterans in the audience.

As Brown prepared to announce the 2009 Friend of the Veteran Award winner, he recounted the past winners of the award: 2000, Charles Stephanski, who transported prescriptions to veterans for free through his courier service; 2001, the van drivers who take local veterans to VA clinic appointments out of the area; 2002, Vernon Clegg, who helped keep the Avenue of Flags alive; 2003, Rich Feiro, firing party commander for the Military Funeral Honors Team; 2004, Dr. Kevin Mack, who has offered mental health services to local veterans over the last 10 years; 2005, the United Veterans Council Military Funeral Honors Team; 2006, Pearl Harbor survivor and D-Day veteran Jim Harris, who Brown recalled told him what he needed to do to help veterans in the county not long after Brown was hired at the veteran services officer; 2007, Ginny Craven, founder of Operation Tango Mike; 2008, Congressman Mike Thompson, a Vietnam veteran, and his local representative Brad Onorato, both of whom were credited for their work on behalf of local veterans.

From left, Friend of the Veteran Award winner Dean Gotham, president if Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 951, and Rich Feiro, who won Veteran of the Year at Lake County's annual Veterans Day ceremony on Wednesday, November 11, 2009, in Lakeport. Photo by Ginny Craven.

Gotham, the 2009 winner, was chosen for bringing the Moving Wall to Lake County, Brown said.

The prime mover behind the effort, Gotham worked hard – and pushed hard – to get the big task accomplished. “You might even say he pissed a lot of people off,” Brown added.

But the result, Brown said, was great.

Comstock, who helped Brown present the award to Gotham, read the plaque, which noted Gotham's effort to improve veterans' lives.

Gotham thanked Lake County for its contributions to the Moving Wall. “This was truly a community effort,” he said, adding he'd never seen the county pitch in with such fervor.

Parker presented the Veteran of the Year Award to Feiro, noting as he did so that “this is long overdue.”

Feiro was chosen for his work to honor veterans through military funeral services, Parker explained.

Parker remarked on the constant, diligent nature of Feiro's work. He said he once asked Feiro about all the things he must do in organizing a military funeral for a veteran, and Feiro showed him a list of 29 items.

Feiro gave credit to the 25 members of the team, who he said make it go and do it “because it's the right thing to do.”

From the stage he then gave the order to proceed with the three-rifle volley, which the team – stationed just outside – fired before two trumpet players from the Clear Lake High School Band played “Taps.”

After the event, both Feiro and Gotham appeared pleased and surprised.

“I'm shocked,” said Gotham.

Those who made the Wednesday ceremony possible included the Clear Lake High School Band; Emily Barker, who sang the “Star-Spangled Banner”; Kelseyville Sea Scouts; AJ Carlson, who offered the event's invocation; Robert Deppe of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, who provided the sound system; and Lake County 4-H members, Brown said.

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Pvt. Ricky Abraham, enjoying a month-long leave in Lake County, was recognized at Lake County's annual Veterans Day ceremony on Wednesday, November 11, 2009, in Lakeport. He also received thank you cards from 4-H members. Photo by Ginny Craven.

On Tuesday Public Works Director Brent Siemer gave a quarterly report to the board on the alternative selection process for construction-related activities.

The report was a stipulation of the board's April approval of the alternate process, which Siemer said waived the current policy for consultant review and selection.

Siemer said the changes allowed to him put out a request for proposals for projects, then prequalify and engage firms. He also received extra contracting authority.

When the board approved the changes, Public Works was overwhelmed with projects. Siemer said they had 40 projects with a value of more than $15 million.

Since then, Siemer said his department has initiated construction on 19 projects valued at more than $5.6 million, which are producing jobs.

Public Works has entered into five contracts – totaling just over $474,000 – for construction management services on its various projects. Green Valley Consulting of Santa Rosa holds one of those contracts for $76,027; Quincy Engineering of Sacramento holds two contracts totaling $224,951; and Ruzicka Engineering of Lakeport received two contracts for $173,730.

He said the construction season crunch has slowed down. But his written report to the board anticipated that the projects expected to start in the spring would bring the projects total to $15 million.

Last week the board made changes to county procurement policies. Siemer said makes it possible to drop the alternative selection process.

That process has been beneficial in that it gives first consideration to local firms when negotiating for services, eliminates overhead costs for preparing competitive proposals and also does away with his department's costs to prepare and evaluate requests for proposals.

Siemer said he did want to maintain his existing list of contractors that he's compiled through the process, and asked for the board's concurrence with keeping that prequalified list in place for all on-call services through December 2010, which was granted.

In other board news, a request for board direction on revised membership for the Genetically Engineered Crop Advisory Committee was withdrawn, as the committee is planning to meet and come to a decision on its own.

The supervisors also held a public hearing on a county agreement with T-Mobile West Corp. for a facility space license which the board approved, and presented a proclamation designating the week of Nov. 8 through 14 as In-Home Supportive Services Caregiver Week in Lake County.

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While the new rules still aren't clear and there are concerns about charging providers and clients, board members agreed that they'd lobbied for such broad reforms over the last several years in order to protect seniors and other clients.

“We are the county that initiated this, we are the county that asked for this,” said Supervisor Rob Brown. “They've created this legislation based on what Lake County has been pushing.”

Ruth Valenzuela, field representative with Assemblyman Wes Chesbro's office, discussed the new regulations with the board on Tuesday.

The new rules – which promise “significant changes” to the IHSS program – resulted from legislation enacted in July, Valenzuela said.

She explained that the legislation established some service reductions and changes, expansion of quality assurance and anti-fraud activities, reduction in support of public authorities and federal stimulus funding.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has been looking at the anti-fraud regulations for a long time, said Valenzuela.

However, she pointed out, “The burden is on the counties to do all these things.”

As of Nov. 1 the counties are supposed to begin implementing the changes, even though the rules aren't clear and the state hasn't given the counties the tools they'll need, said Valenzuela. “It's a real problem for a lot of counties, including Lake,” she said.

One of the biggest challenges relates to background checks, which will be required of all IHSS providers – not just those who are in a public registry, such as Lake County has. The local registry only includes those who volunteer for a $1 an hour more in pay, as Lake County News has reported.

There are costs for these services, but no mechanism for the county to charge to recoup the funds, Valenzuela said.

Besides costs, there's a concern about being able to get all new providers – estimated at 40 a month – run through the Department of Justice background checks. Valenzuela also noted that all providers must have the checks by next July 1.

Another gray area is who will be allowed to provide services. Those convicted of felonies will be excluded, said Valenzuela, adding that the state hasn't yet identified “what is acceptable and what is not acceptable, which is causing a lot of problems for counties.”

There will be unannounced home visits – which already have begun in some cases – to certain providers based on concerns over fraud, Valenzuela said.

The system also has a hangup about post office boxes, which aren't supposed to be acceptable for receiving providers' checks. However, as was pointed out during the meeting, in some areas of Lake County post office boxes are required because rural delivery isn't available.

Fingerprints will be required on time sheets, with both providers and recipients supposed to be fingerprinted for the program at their own expense. Valenzuela said new IHSS providers won't be paid until they've passed through all the background checks and training.

Chesbro and Assembly member Noreen Evans authored SB 69 to delay implementation and ask for stakeholder input so counties can determine what tools they need to implement the program. While it passed the state Assembly unanimously, it failed in the Senate, although reconsideration has been granted, Valenzuela said.

She said she wanted to know what the county's concerns are about the program so they can be forwarded to state officials.

Brown said the measures needed to be taken. “It has to be done because this is about protecting recipients.”

Valenzuela noted during the discussion that materials for the new program still are only available in English, with Spanish documents expected.

With the estimated cost per provider for a background check at $32,the board supported picking up those costs.

“For years we've been talking about these kinds of reforms,” said Supervisor Anthony Farrington, who didn't want to delay in implementing the program changes.

Michelle Dibble of the county's IHSS Public Authority said the county received the instructions on the program changes on Oct. 31 – a Saturday – in order to implement them by the following day, Nov. 1.

The county has implementation issues, including having to tell 10 providers that they may not be paid because it's unclear if they'll be allowed to participate. The county hasn't received the necessary tools for provider orientation, with Dibble explaining that the state gave them a CD that has information that conflicts with the criteria for the background checks.

“Our staff is poised and ready to act as soon as we have those things in place,” she said.

“We really have asked for this to be done for a couple of years, and now they have pretty much done exactly what we have asked to be done,” said Supervisor Jeff Smith, who wanted clarification on the issues but also wanted to move forward right away.

He added that he wanted to see the program ready to move forward by the start of the year, and was willing to see the county start to move its IHSS providers through the background checks at a pace of 300 per month in order to meet the July deadline. The IHSS Advisory Committee recently estimated there are nearly 1,600 IHSS providers in Lake County.

Brown supported paying for the background checks. Farrington estimated it would only cost between $18,000 and $20,000 for the county to pick up the cost.

“I think it is a good investment,” Farrington said.

“We're already paying a lot more right now,” said Brown, who maintained that the costs to investigate fraud against IHSS clients has a greater cost.

Andy Rossoff with the Senior Law Project, who has worked on IHSS-related issues over the years, said the background and fingerprinting fees are a lot of money to come up with when a person is unemployed.

He also was concerned that the delays would prevent seniors from getting the help they need.

Rossoff said there has been exhaustive discussions at the local level about what crimes shouldn't disqualify a person from being a provider.

He urged the board to take some time in deciding how to move forward. “Be careful of what you get,” he said. “You may be causing more trouble with the implementation if you do it without a lot of thought.”

County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox told the board that the county does need guidelines for the program changes from the state. “We really need them to act – soon,” Cox said.

Dibble was directed to get further information from the state on how the program is to operate and report back to the board early next month.

She also was directed to write a letter to the state offering county feedback on some of the new regulations based on local experience with IHSS.

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The county's purchase of 1,344 acres on Mt. Konocti is expected to close on Friday, November 13, 2009. Courtesy photo.

LAKE COUNTY – The county's escrow on 1,344 acres on Mt. Konocti is expected to close this Friday, according to county Public Services Director Kim Clymire.

Clymire said the land will be used as a day use county park with non-motorized trails.

The Fowler family, which has owned the land for more than 50 years, offered the county first right of refusal on the land in late 2007, as Lake County News reported. The purchase price is $2.6 million.

According to the terms of the agreement between the county and the Fowlers, escrow had to start no later than Sept. 15 and end by Nov. 15.

The county already has completed a purchase of 176 acres on Buckingham Peak. The site's communication towers are generating close to $100,000, which Clymire said previously will be used for ongoing maintenance of the entire Konocti property.

Public Services reported that the park is tentatively scheduled to officially open in May of 2010.

First, the county must make some improvements that are a condition of the sale, such as realigning the road away from the seller's residence, creating pedestrian access around the gate at the base of the mountain that is to remain closed, except for authorized vehicles or by special facility use permit arrangements.

In addition, signage, parking improvements, benches and tables installation will be done as soon as possible, according to Public Services.

Clymire's office reported that beginning this week, a series of focused master management plan meetings will begin with a committee appointed from applications received from letters and newspaper articles that were sent out last month soliciting applications.

The committee, with previous and future public input from eight evening meetings and approximately 25 presentations to community groups, will decide on types of use, flora and fauna identifications, areas of restricted access, fire management and emergency response plans, and other issues.

Representatives from equestrian and nonmotorized mountain bike groups will be invited to meet with the committee as part of the plan development process and determinations will be made as to whether or not those types of activities will be allowed on the mountain, Public Services reported. Consideration also will be given as to whether or not dogs will be permitted on the mountain.

The county hopes to have the plan in draft or final form by the spring or summer of 2010.

Clymire offered his thanks to everyone who has been so supportive of this “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to acquire a major portion of the mountain for the public's enjoyment for current and future generations.

“I commend each of you, and especially the Lake County Board of Supervisors, for helping to make this forward thinking acquisition a reality,” Clymire said Tuesday.

For more information about the Mt. Konocti purchase, visit www.preservekonocti.org .

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Water Resources Deputy Director Pam Francis took the matter to the board.

On Oct. 2, the Big Valley Groundwater Management Zone Commission unanimously requested that the board request mitigation measures first put in place in 1980, when the California Department of Water Resources operated the geothermal plant, be reinstated, Francis told the board. She said Water Resources staff supported that request.

When the state applied to build the 55-megawatt capacity plant in 1980 studies revealed impacts on Kelsey Creek's watershed, according to Francis.

That early documentation also identified mitigation measures, including constructing, operating and maintaining a groundwater recharge facility – or detention structure – on Kelsey Creek, as well as stream flow and water quality monitoring, Francis said.

The county entered into two separate agreements with the Department of Water Resources to cover those mitigations as well as operation of seven stream gauges and water quality monitoring at eight locations, Francis' written report to the board explained.

The state ceased operating the plant in 1990, citing a depleted steam reserve, as Lake County News has reported.

After operations there ceased, Francis said the payments for operations and maintenance on the mitigations – the last one was for more than $12,000 – ceased, as did the monitoring, with the exception of a location on Clear Lake, according to Francis.

The Big Valley Groundwater Management Zone Commission picked up the costs of operating the Kelsey Creek detention structure, but Francis said they didn't have adequate funds to operate the three stream gauges in the upper Kelsey Creek watershed near the power plant. She said operating the stream gauges costs $20,000 each on an annual basis.

With the mitigations required under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Francis asked to have them immediately reinstated.

Francis requested the board require the plant's new operator, Bottle Rock Power LLC – which began operating the plan in early 2007 – to pay funds to the district for the mitigations, including the detention structure's operation and maintenance and “a fair share” of the cost to operate the stream gauge on Kelsey Creek.

She also asked the board to require the power plant to pay all operation costs for the stream gauges on Kelsey, Middle and Scotts creeks if Department of Water Resources funds no longer were available.

The costs to operate the detention structure for 2009 is estimated to cost more than $18,000, and the local share of operating the Kelsey Creek stream gauge is $13,650 out of $20,000 total, according to Francis' report.

Supervisor Rob Brown asked if Francis had spoken to Community Development Director Rick Coel about the matter.

“His take is that the board needs to act on this,” Francis replied.

Brown noted that Francis' request for a “fair share” payment is subjective, and they need to be able to tell the plant what that amount means.

Board Chair Denise Rushing asked if the mitigations discussion was a mechanism to reopen the plant's permit.

County Counsel Anita Grant said no, but the board can direct staff to go back and seek changes.

Grant further suggested that those mitigation measures can be made conditions of the new use permit that Bottle Rock Power LLC is seeking to expand the plant's steamfields.

Brown asked Francis if Calpine, another of the area's geothermal operators and probably the best known, is included in providing mitigations. Francis said they weren't, prompting Brown to suggest that one power generator shouldn't be responsible for mitigations to cover all of them.

Added Rushing, “We need to look at the whole mechanism, not just this one case.”

County Administrative Office Kelly Cox said Calpine pays a lot of property tax in the county, which the state didn't do while operating the plant. Brown pointed out that Bottle Rock does pay property tax.

He said they can't make assumptions about the new permit, the scoping process for which just began.

A scoping meeting for the environmental impact report on the steamfield expansion was held in Cobb on Oct. 27. Community members there have complained that the power plant isn't following the terms of its use permit in how it's operating currently, and voiced opposition to the expansion.

Sarah Ryan, environmental director for Big Valley Rancheria, told the board that she hoped an impacts analysis would be done as part of the required mitigation measures.

Ryan pointed out that CEQA require mitigations to make sure there aren't negative impacts for an area. She said if it's required for this plant, it should be required of others as well.

Brown moved to direct staff to work with Community Development on the use permit, and make any necessary modifications for any steam generator to pay their fair share of mitigations.

Coel, who joined in on the discussion, noted that Bottle Rock Power wasn't aware the discussion was taking place.

Rushing asked what would happen if the power plant didn't agree to the mitigations. Coel said it would then be up to the county to start a new process.

Coel said he needed to further research the matter, but he explained that there are processes the county can follow to make minor modifications to the use permit.

The board voted 5-0 on Brown's motion, which included a request that Coel report back on the issue on Dec. 1.

In other news, the board voted to begin a recruitment for a new Water Resources Department director, turned down a developer's request for a refund of more than $130,000 in fees paid to Lake County Special Districts to open the Clearlake Carl's Jr. fast food restaurant and heard a presentation on the lake's algae, which the board may expand upon in a future workshop.

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