Opinion
In her recent letter captioned “An end run around the Kelseyville community,” Carolyn Jarrett states that, at the suggestion of a retired lawyer, the Citizens for Healing, C4H, filed a proposal to the Board of Geographic Names, or BGN, to change the name of Kelseyville to “Konocti” as an end run around Kelseyville citizens deciding the issue for themselves.
That assertion by Ms. Jarrett is incorrect. I am that lawyer, retired after 50 years of practicing law in Lake County, and here are the facts.
Last fall I learned that C4H, based on information provided by the Lake County Registrar of Voters, planned to circulate a county-wide initiative petition this spring to change the name of Kelseyville. At the same time, a local group of citizens was organizing as Save the Name to oppose the petition.
I also learned that the procedure they were following was based on an opinion issued a few years before by the Office of the Lake County Counsel.
I questioned whether that opinion was legally correct. I was concerned that, if it were wrong, citizens throughout the county would be embroiled in a controversy they had no legal authority to decide.
I then conducted legal research on the question of who has the legal authority to approve, or disapprove, a petition to change the name of Kelseyville.
I found that authority rests with the United States Board on Geographic Names, or BGN.
According to its website, that agency was formed in 1890 to bring uniformity throughout the United States to the names of geographic features, including unincorporated populations like Kelseyville, for the purposes of the federal government. I also found that any person can file a petition with BGN to change an existing name.
I sent to the Lake County Counsel’s Office a report on the results of my research. I received a reply that my research was correct and that the prior memorandum issued by the office was mistaken.
I then gave the leaders of C4H, and the leaders of the Save the Name the information I had obtained. I referred them to the BGN website at https://www.usgs.gov/us-board-on-geographic-names, which states:
“The BGN Domestic Names Committee makes decisions only after receiving recommendations from the local and county governments, Tribal governments, the State Names Authority and appropriate land management agencies. The public is also given the opportunity to provide input. Recommendations from local organizations, like historical societies and conservation groups, are welcomed but not required.”
The State Names Authority for California is the California Advisory Committee on Geographic Names, or CACGN.
That agency describes its role at cacgn.ca.gov as follows:
“If the proposal [to change the name] fits their criteria, the BGN then forwards those related to California to the CACGN for an initial review. The CACGN reviews and researches each proposal, then solicits input from a diverse array of interested community members, and then votes at a public meeting on whether to recommend that BGN approve or disapprove the proposal. Based on the committee vote, the CACGN provides its recommendation to the BGN, which has the ultimate authority for determining each name change proposal.”
According to the BGN website, any person who wishes to comment on the proposed name change for Kelseyville should send their comments:
By mail to:
Executive Secretary
U.S. Board on Geographic Names
Domestic Names Committee
523 National Center, Reston, VA 20192-0523
Or, by email to:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
The information I obtained is intended to inform everyone on the legal steps to approve or disapprove the change in the name of Kelseyville and was never intended to do an end run around anyone.
Peter Windrem is a retired attorney. He lives in Kelseyville, California.
That assertion by Ms. Jarrett is incorrect. I am that lawyer, retired after 50 years of practicing law in Lake County, and here are the facts.
Last fall I learned that C4H, based on information provided by the Lake County Registrar of Voters, planned to circulate a county-wide initiative petition this spring to change the name of Kelseyville. At the same time, a local group of citizens was organizing as Save the Name to oppose the petition.
I also learned that the procedure they were following was based on an opinion issued a few years before by the Office of the Lake County Counsel.
I questioned whether that opinion was legally correct. I was concerned that, if it were wrong, citizens throughout the county would be embroiled in a controversy they had no legal authority to decide.
I then conducted legal research on the question of who has the legal authority to approve, or disapprove, a petition to change the name of Kelseyville.
I found that authority rests with the United States Board on Geographic Names, or BGN.
According to its website, that agency was formed in 1890 to bring uniformity throughout the United States to the names of geographic features, including unincorporated populations like Kelseyville, for the purposes of the federal government. I also found that any person can file a petition with BGN to change an existing name.
I sent to the Lake County Counsel’s Office a report on the results of my research. I received a reply that my research was correct and that the prior memorandum issued by the office was mistaken.
I then gave the leaders of C4H, and the leaders of the Save the Name the information I had obtained. I referred them to the BGN website at https://www.usgs.gov/us-board-on-geographic-names, which states:
“The BGN Domestic Names Committee makes decisions only after receiving recommendations from the local and county governments, Tribal governments, the State Names Authority and appropriate land management agencies. The public is also given the opportunity to provide input. Recommendations from local organizations, like historical societies and conservation groups, are welcomed but not required.”
The State Names Authority for California is the California Advisory Committee on Geographic Names, or CACGN.
That agency describes its role at cacgn.ca.gov as follows:
“If the proposal [to change the name] fits their criteria, the BGN then forwards those related to California to the CACGN for an initial review. The CACGN reviews and researches each proposal, then solicits input from a diverse array of interested community members, and then votes at a public meeting on whether to recommend that BGN approve or disapprove the proposal. Based on the committee vote, the CACGN provides its recommendation to the BGN, which has the ultimate authority for determining each name change proposal.”
According to the BGN website, any person who wishes to comment on the proposed name change for Kelseyville should send their comments:
By mail to:
Executive Secretary
U.S. Board on Geographic Names
Domestic Names Committee
523 National Center, Reston, VA 20192-0523
Or, by email to:
The information I obtained is intended to inform everyone on the legal steps to approve or disapprove the change in the name of Kelseyville and was never intended to do an end run around anyone.
Peter Windrem is a retired attorney. He lives in Kelseyville, California.
- Details
- Written by: Peter Windrem
I have been reading letters lately that show support for the reelection of our current District 5 supervisor. I would like to offer a unique perspective, as someone who served in that position for 20 years. Much of what has been stated is just political blah blah, and most voters are familiar with the disingenuous political tactic of taking credit for the hard work of others.
Supporters of the status quo speak of the relationships with state and federal officials that are essential for this position, and while it is true that those relationships are important, they would not suddenly vanish if Boone Bridges were elected.
I have worked closely with all of those state and federal officials, and I have found them to be very responsive when the right questions are asked. I am absolutely certain that these officials would continue to be supportive of Lake County regardless of who wins the election.
I’ve watched the incumbent take credit for grant funding when she should be giving credit to the hard-working employees, department heads and outside nonprofit agencies that requested those grant funds long before she ever took office. Not one single grant has been applied for by our current District 5 supervisor.
Supporters of the status quo speak of her “valued” experience and I am puzzled by the illusion of that experience. Four years ago, her experience as a volunteer at the elementary school garden somehow seemed to be enough.
For good or bad, the job of county supervisor is the only managerial type job in the county that requires no formal education or experience. What it reasonably requires is common sense and the intestinal fortitude to ask the tough questions about where and how taxpayer money is being spent.
The job requires a strong willed person who will hold the county administrator accountable and not rubber stamp every “free cheese” project that comes along and then rubber stamp a 40% pay raise as a payoff for that blind loyalty.
I am unable to find one instance of the incumbent standing in opposition to any project recommended by the county administrator. I can assure you that millions of dollars have been thrown away and wasted during her years in office.
I have spoken with Boone Bridges and have listened to his vision, as someone who has lived in Lake County his entire life. He has worked hard to build and sustain a business while raising a family and he should be given credit for that above all else.
I am equally impressed with the things that he will NOT do and those things put him in sharp contrast to the incumbent.
He has vowed NOT to give himself a 40% pay increase. He has vowed NOT to reward the fiscal incompetence of political supporters, such as the self-serving director of Kelseyville Senior Center Inc., by giving them taxpayer funds without accountability.
He has made it clear that he will NOT ignore the major issue of widespread cancellation of homeowners insurance.
He has promised NOT to divert millions of dollars from a countywide road budget and away from badly needed road repairs, only to use them to rebuild and repave the roads in his own immediate neighborhood.
These are just a few of the things that I have observed over the last three years and it’s time for it to stop.
Boone Bridges is a good person with common sense and will work hard for District 5 and Lake County.
He understands the requirements for this job include more than handing out proclamations, attending political pasta feeds and jumping at social media photo opportunities.
This is why I will be voting for Boone Bridges for district 5 Supervisor, he has the right experience.
Rob Brown is the former supervisor for District 5. He lives in Kelseyville, California.
Supporters of the status quo speak of the relationships with state and federal officials that are essential for this position, and while it is true that those relationships are important, they would not suddenly vanish if Boone Bridges were elected.
I have worked closely with all of those state and federal officials, and I have found them to be very responsive when the right questions are asked. I am absolutely certain that these officials would continue to be supportive of Lake County regardless of who wins the election.
I’ve watched the incumbent take credit for grant funding when she should be giving credit to the hard-working employees, department heads and outside nonprofit agencies that requested those grant funds long before she ever took office. Not one single grant has been applied for by our current District 5 supervisor.
Supporters of the status quo speak of her “valued” experience and I am puzzled by the illusion of that experience. Four years ago, her experience as a volunteer at the elementary school garden somehow seemed to be enough.
For good or bad, the job of county supervisor is the only managerial type job in the county that requires no formal education or experience. What it reasonably requires is common sense and the intestinal fortitude to ask the tough questions about where and how taxpayer money is being spent.
The job requires a strong willed person who will hold the county administrator accountable and not rubber stamp every “free cheese” project that comes along and then rubber stamp a 40% pay raise as a payoff for that blind loyalty.
I am unable to find one instance of the incumbent standing in opposition to any project recommended by the county administrator. I can assure you that millions of dollars have been thrown away and wasted during her years in office.
I have spoken with Boone Bridges and have listened to his vision, as someone who has lived in Lake County his entire life. He has worked hard to build and sustain a business while raising a family and he should be given credit for that above all else.
I am equally impressed with the things that he will NOT do and those things put him in sharp contrast to the incumbent.
He has vowed NOT to give himself a 40% pay increase. He has vowed NOT to reward the fiscal incompetence of political supporters, such as the self-serving director of Kelseyville Senior Center Inc., by giving them taxpayer funds without accountability.
He has made it clear that he will NOT ignore the major issue of widespread cancellation of homeowners insurance.
He has promised NOT to divert millions of dollars from a countywide road budget and away from badly needed road repairs, only to use them to rebuild and repave the roads in his own immediate neighborhood.
These are just a few of the things that I have observed over the last three years and it’s time for it to stop.
Boone Bridges is a good person with common sense and will work hard for District 5 and Lake County.
He understands the requirements for this job include more than handing out proclamations, attending political pasta feeds and jumping at social media photo opportunities.
This is why I will be voting for Boone Bridges for district 5 Supervisor, he has the right experience.
Rob Brown is the former supervisor for District 5. He lives in Kelseyville, California.
- Details
- Written by: Rob Brown
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