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At its Jan. 28 meeting, the San Benito County Board of Supervisors identified a set of priorities—five issues which, according to board chair Kollin Kosmicki, will be “on every agenda” in 2025. The priorities were approved in a 3-2 vote.
The priorities included a suggestion from Supervisor Ignacio Velazquez that San Benito County become a charter county. Velazquez said that such a move would give San Benito County more “freedom from the state.” The proposal was backed by Kosmicki and Supervisor Dom Zanger.
The other four issues the supervisors voted to prioritize were housing policy reform, road improvements, homeless encampments and trash cleanup, and tourism.
Unlike “general law counties,” charter counties are not bound by all state laws governing counties. If approved by voters, a county can form a charter to change specific laws related to governance, such as the number and duties of elected officials, depending on local needs. Only 15 of California’s 58 counties have formed charters.
Velazquez said that, while creating a charter “doesn’t change much,” it would help the county define what it “wants to be.”
“The state has been overreaching for the last several years,” he said. “We, as a community, know what we want. It’s time to say, ‘Thank you state, but we don’t like that.’ It’s time we start having this conversation.”
Shasta County created its charter last year for the specific purpose of changing who appoints the replacement of a supervisor leaving their position. Instead of the governor filling the vacancy—as happens in all general law counties—starting this year, the Shasta County Board of Supervisors will do it.
Charter counties must still comply with most state rules and regulations. They have to, for example, have a general plan and submit a housing element to the California Department of Housing and Community Development.
At the meeting, Supervisor Angela Curro said that, though she welcomes having the conversation, she had “real concerns” about charter counties. “It doesn’t stop the state from still putting things on us,” she said.
When he was mayor of Hollister, Velasquez proposed the same course for the city. He said that as a mayor of a charter city he “would be able to participate more in the daily operations of the city.”
Curro, along with Supervisor Mindy Sotello, voted against adopting the priority list.
“There are a ton of things we want to do: cleanups, roads, tourism, but the revenue is going to be really challenging,” Sotello said. “So I’d like to see us focus on revenue generation.”
Sotello said that hiring a county administrative officer and figuring out the future of the county’s fire protection services, which are still being negotiated with the city, should be prioritized.
Kosmicki said that, although a new county administrative officer, the fire protection contract, and the future of Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital are priorities, they would soon be dealt with.
“Those are issues that we’re continuing to work on that are priorities and that we’re hoping to have resolved relatively soon as opposed to working on them for the entire year in 2025,” he said.
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