[Call to Order] [00:00:04] GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TODAY. WELCOME TO THE JULY 28TH, 20 20 MERCED COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MEETING. IN ORDER TO MINIMIZE THE SPREAD OF COVID-19, THE COUNTY IS CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE SOCIAL DISTANCING REQUIREMENTS WITH SEATING FOR THE PUBLIC LIMITED TO 25. WE HAVE ALSO PROVIDED SOME OVERFLOW SPACE ON A FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE BASIS. AT THIS TIME, WILL START WITH THE INVOCATION PROVIDED BY FATHER JUAN MALDONADO OF SACRED HEART CHURCH IN MERCED. AND THEN THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE WILL BE LED BY OUR CEO, JIM BROWN. LET'S BEGIN. IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN. HEAVENLY FATHER, ONE TRUE GOD, WE STAND BEFORE YOU ASKING YOUR BLESSING UPON THESE MEETING CHAMBERS WITH YOUR DIVINE INTELLIGENCE. GUIDE AND ENLIGHTEN OUR HEARTS, IN THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING, THE SPIRIT OF COUNCIL AND MIGHT, THE SPIRIT OF KNOWLEDGE AND FEAR OF THE LORD. GIVE US YOUR STRENGTH TO KNOW YOUR WILL THAT WE MIGHT LIVE OUR LIVES JUSTLY. GUIDE THE DECISIONS THAT WILL BE MADE HERE BY THOSE THAT REPRESENT US, ENABLED THEM TO UPHOLD THE RIGHTS OF OTHERS. DO NOT ALLOW ANYONE TO BE MISLED BY IGNORANCE OR CORRUPTED BY FEAR OR FAVOR. MAY YOUR FAITHFUL SERVANTS WHO LEAD THIS COMMUNITY, BE UNITED IN ONE SPIRIT AS THEY WORK FOR THE COMMON GOOD, AND CONTINUE TO REMIND US THAT ALL WE DO HERE TODAY, ALL THAT WE ACCOMPLISH IS FOR THE GREATER GLORY OF YOU AND FOR THE SERVICE OF HUMANITY. WE ALSO ASK YOUR BLESSING UPON YOUR PEOPLE, THAT WE MAY ALWAYS LIVE IN PEACE AND HARMONY AS WE WALK IN THIS PILGRIMAGE OF LIFE AND THAT WHAT WE HAVE BEGUN, THE SPIRIT MAY BE BROUGHT TO COMPLETION BY YOUR POWER, TO YOU BE GLORY AND HONOR. AND WE ASK ALL THIS THROUGH CHRIST, OUR LORD. AMEN. MAY ALMIGHTY GOD BLESS YOU, THE FATHER AND THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. THANK YOU. PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE SALUTE. THANK YOU. BEFORE WE MOVE ON, WE DO HAVE INTERPRETERS, IF WE COULD HAVE OUR INTERPRETERS COME UP TO THE MICROPHONE, INTRODUCE THEMSELVES. THANK YOU. JUAN MARTINEZ, SPANISH INTERPRETER FOR UNITED WAY. THANK YOU. MIMI FROM HEALTHY HOUSE [INAUDIBLE] . THANK YOU. THIS MORNING, THE BOARD HAD A CLOSED SESSION AND STAFF WAS PROVIDED DIRECTION. AT THIS TIME, I'D LIKE TO MOVE TO- REAL QUICKLY SORRY, PUBLIC COMMENT. IT IS NOW TIME TO RECEIVE PUBLIC COMMENT ON BOTH NON AGENDA AND AGENDA ITEMS. [PUBLIC OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK] THIS IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ALL AGENDA ITEMS, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF OUR PUBLIC HEARINGS. COMMENTS ON PUBLIC HEARINGS WILL BE TAKEN AT THE TIME OF THE HEARING. WE RECEIVED THIRTEEN WRITTEN GENERAL COMMENTS, AS WELL AS ONE WRITTEN COMMENT ON ITEM NUMBER 13 AND 12 WRITTEN COMMENTS ON ITEM NUMBER THIRTY SIX. THEY WILL BE PLACED INTO THE MEETING RECORD. AT THIS TIME, EITHER RAISE YOUR HAND OR STAND TO THE SIDE AND YOU WILL BE DIRECTED TO THE PODIUM. IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING WE ASKED THAT ONLY ONE PERSON SPEAK AT A TIME AT THE PODIUM. AND BEFORE FOLKS SPEAK, IF YOU COULD STATE YOUR NAME, THAT WOULD BE GREAT. ABSOLUTELY. I'M SIMA [INAUDIBLE]. UM, I WAS REALLY NERVOUS COMING IN HERE. BUT NOW THAT I LOOK AROUND AND SEE SO MANY FAMILIAR FACES, UM, PEOPLE WHO TRUST ME, I FEEL LIKE I CAN CALM DOWN A LITTLE BIT. DEAR MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF MERCED COUNTY SUPERVISORS, MERCER COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. AS SOME OF YOU KNOW, I'M DR. SIMA ASADI. I'VE BEEN A COMMUNITY PEDIATRICIAN AND MERCED FOR OVER 20 YEARS. I AM ALSO THE PRODUCT OF AN IN-PERSON PUBLIC SCHOOL EDUCATION FROM KINDERGARTEN THROUGH MEDICAL SCHOOL. I HAVE SPENT MANY HOURS OVER THE LAST FIVE MONTHS STUDYING, READING, [00:05:07] ANALYZING, GOING THROUGH PAPERS ALL RELATED TO COVID-19 AND HOW IT IMPACTS PEDIATRICS. IT IS TO SOME DEGREE, BOLD OF ME TO SAY, BUT I WANT YOU TO CONSIDER ME YOUR LOCAL EXPERT ON PEDIATRICS AND COVID-19. I HAVE DONE MY HOMEWORK AND THIS LANGUAGE IS A LANGUAGE THAT I STUDIED. I DON'T EXPECT MANY OF YOU DID. AND THE SAME WAY, I DON'T UNDERSTAND MAYBE YOUR LANGUAGE. THIS IS HARD STUFF TO UNDERSTAND. AND THIS PANDEMIC REALLY HAS CHALLENGED EVEN US AS SCIENTISTS AND DOCTORS IN TERMS OF OUR NORMAL UNDERSTANDING OF DISEASE AND DISEASE SPREAD. SORRY, I'M GOING TO TRY TO BE QUICK. UM, AS A PEDIATRICIAN, MY ROLE IS CLEAR IN THIS COMMUNITY. I AM AN ADVOCATE FOR CHILDREN, PERIOD. UM, IN MEDICINE AND SCIENCE, WHEN I'M DECIDING WITH ANY OF YOU OR OTHERS ON A TREATMENT OR RECOMMENDATION, I AM CALCULATING IN MY HEAD BENEFIT VERSUS RISK. NO PRESCRIPTION SOLUTION OR TREATMENT COMES WITHOUT RISK. PLEASE HEAR ME. I AM NOT UP HERE TO TELL YOU THAT COVID-19 DOES NOT HAVE RISKS FOR PEDIATRICS. HOWEVER, BY THE WAY, THERE IS NEVER ANY SUCH THING AS NO RISK. HOWEVER, I AM HERE TO TELL YOU THAT WHEN ANALYZING RISK VERSUS BENEFIT, THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE IS MOUNTING THAT SHOWS THAT COVID-19 IS NOT A PEDIATRIC PANDEMIC. FOR THE MOST PART, KIDS ARE NOT CONTRACTING, SPREADING OR SIGNIFICANTLY SUFFERING FROM COVID-19 ITSELF. IT CAN BE SAFELY ASSESSED THAT THE RISK OF COVID-19 IN CHILDREN IS SIGNIFICANTLY LESS THAN THE ACADEMIC, SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL, MENTAL, PHYSICAL AND NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS OF IN-PERSON SCHOOL. IN FACT, IN MANY PARTS OF OUR COUNTRIES AND OTHERS, KIDS HAVE BEEN IN PRESCHOOLS, DAYCARE CENTERS, LARGE CENTERS DURING SIGNIFICANT OUTBREAKS AND THEY HAVE NOT HAD SIGNIFICANT PROBLEMS OR CONTRIBUTED TO SIGNIFICANT PROBLEMS IN THE OUTBREAK. MAKE NO MISTAKE, HERE IN THE US, HERE IN OUR COUNTY, WE ARE FAILING OUR CHILDREN IN OUR RESPONSE TO THIS PANDEMIC. I AM ALREADY WITNESSING THE TOLL THAT THIS IS TAKING ON OUR CHILDREN, NOT THE VIRUS ITSELF, BUT OUR INABILITY AS A SOCIETY TO COHESIVELY RESPOND TO IT AND TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT EVEN EXISTED. SOME CHILDREN IN OUR COMMUNITY ARE NOW FACED WITH HUNGER, DESPAIR, SOLITARY CONFINEMENT AND NEGLECT, ABUSE AND IN SOME CASES, DEPORTATION TO OTHER COUNTRIES TO AVOID THE PROSPECT THAT A PARENT HAS TO FACE OF LEAVING THEIR CHILD HOME IN AN UNSAFE ENVIRONMENT WHILE THEY GO TO HARVEST OUR FOOD. I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT REFUGEES IN A THIRD WORLD COUNTRY, I AM TALKING ABOUT REAL KIDS, REAL CIRCUMSTANCES HERE IN MERCED, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. WE SHOULD BE VERY, SORRY, ASHAMED OF OURSELVES AS A SOCIETY. WE PRIORITIZED OUR REOPENING IN A WAY THAT HAS NOW LEFT US CRIPPLED AND NO CHOICE BUT TO DELAY REOPENING OUR SCHOOLS. MONTHS AGO, OUR EXPERTS SITTING BEHIND ME IN THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT OUTLINED IN GREAT DETAIL THE PROTOCOLS NECESSARY TO REOPEN SCHOOLS SAFELY. THE GOVERNOR HAS NOW CAN GET OUR COUNTY UNDER CONTROL AND CONSIDER RESTARTING BASED ON THOSE METRICS. DOCTOR, YOU HAVE YOU HAVE JUST A FEW SECONDS. OK, I'M SORRY. I DO WANT TO PUBLICLY COMMEND ONE PRIVATE SCHOOL IN THIS TOWN, OUR LADY OF MERCY SCHOOL, THAT FROM THE START HAS EMBRACED DISTANCE LEARNING AND IS NOW MADE EVERY MODIFICATION POSSIBLE TO THEIR SCHOOL TO MEET THOSE PROTOCOLS. I JUST WANT THEM TO BE LOOKED AT AS AN EXAMPLE FOR HOW TO DO THIS AND DO IT CORRECTLY. THEY'VE EVEN CHANGED THEIR DRINKING FOUNTAINS TO HANDWASHING STATIONS. I SUGGEST THAT EVERY ADULT IN A DECISION MAKING CAPACITY PLEASE PUT POLITICS ASIDE, WORK TOGETHER AND TO ENSURE THAT OUR SCHOOLS, PRE-K THROUGH 12 ARE READY TO GO AS SOON AS WE CAN MEET THOSE METRICS. UNFORTUNATELY, THERE ARE THREE METRICS THAT I ALSO WANT YOU TO PAY ATTENTION TO. [00:10:03] THE TEEN SUICIDE RATE, THE TEEN PREGNANCY RATE AND THE TEEN DROPOUT RATE. AGAIN, BY BEING IN DENIAL ABOUT THIS PANDEMIC, WE HAVE NOW FAILED OUR KIDS. I OWN THAT. WE MUST OWN THAT. AND WE MUST WORK TOGETHER TO MAKE IT BETTER. THANK YOU. OH, AND IF ANY OF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SCIENCE OF THIS OR THE PEDIATRIC COMPONENT AS YOU GO ON MAKING YOUR DECISIONS, I AM READY TO ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS. DID YOU BRING A CARD, DR- I KNOW WE CAN I THINK WE RAN OUT. YES. NO, THOSE ARE MY HUSBAND'S CARDS. I'LL GET THEM TO YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND I DO APOLOGIZE FOR THE PUBLIC. WE DO HAVE A LIMIT OF THREE MINUTES AND THANK YOU. DO WE HAVE ADDITIONAL MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK? CAN YOU REPEAT THAT INTO THE MICROPHONE? THANK YOU. THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK IS ON ANYTHING WITHIN THE BOARD'S JURISDICTION OR ANY OF THE AGENDA ITEMS ON TODAY'S AGENDA. THANK YOU. I WANTED THE PUBLIC TO HEAR WHAT OUR COUNTY COUNCIL HAD TO SAY. THANK YOU. SEEING NO ADDITIONAL MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WOULD WISH TO SPEAK, I'D LIKE TO NOW TRANSITION TO THE COVID-19 UPDATE. [COVID-19 UPDATE] IT SHOULD BE ON. OK? THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, GOOD MORNING, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. CEO, BROWN, COUNTY COUNCIL [INAUDIBLE]. MY NAME IS REBECCA NANYONJO-KEMP. I'M THE PUBLIC HEALTH DIRECTOR FOR MERCED COUNTY. WE'RE HERE TO PROVIDE- CAN YOU HEAR ME OK? MAYBE I'LL LIFT IT A LITTLE BIT. IS THAT BETTER? OK, WE'RE HERE TO PROVIDE AN UPDATE AS WE DO EVERY BOARD MEETING SINCE THIS PANDEMIC WAS UNDERWAY. WITH RESPECT TO COVID-19, I'M JOINED BY MY COLLEAGUE, DR. KRISTIN SULLIVAN. SHE'LL BE TAKING THE FIRST FIVE SLIDES. I'LL TAKE THE REMAINDER AND WILL REMAIN FOR QUESTIONS. SO WITHOUT FURTHER DELAY, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO HER. GOOD MORNING. SO I'M GOING TO JUST BE GIVING AN UPDATE ON THE STATISTICS AND THE IMPACT THAT THE CHANGES IN DATA THAT WE ARE SEEING ARE HAVING ON OUR COMMUNITY. WE WERE LAST HERE ON JULY 13TH. SINCE THEN, WE'VE SEEN ABOUT A 70 PERCENT INCREASE. SIXTY NINE PERCENT INCREASE IN OUR LABORATORY CONFIRMED CASES. WE'VE SEEN ABOUT A TWENTY SIX PERCENT INCREASE IN OUR PROBABLE ACTIVE- AND AGAIN, THOSE ARE LABORATORY CONFIRMED CASES, BUT JUST THOSE THAT HAVE COME IN IN THE LAST 14 DAYS. THE MOST DISHEARTENING AND IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT IS THAT WE HAVE MORE THAN DOUBLED OUR DEATHS SINCE I WAS LAST HERE SPEAKING TO YOU TWO WEEKS AGO. WE HAD 12 DEATHS ON JULY 13TH, AND WE UNFORTUNATELY NOW HAVE TWENTY NINE MERCED COUNTY RESIDENTS WHO ARE NO LONGER WITH US DUE TO COVID-19. ANOTHER IMPORTANT METRIC THAT WE HAVE BEEN KEEPING AN EYE ON IS THE ACTIVE HOSPITALIZATIONS, PARTICULARLY IN OUR COUNTY. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT EXTENSIVELY HERE THAT ONE OF THE BIG THINGS THAT WE WATCH IS OUR HOSPITAL HEALTH CARE CAPACITY, BECAUSE ONCE HEALTH CARE CAPACITY IS OVERRUN, THAT'S WHEN WE CAN SEE A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN DEATHS, AS WHAT HAPPENED IN NEW YORK CITY. A LOT OF WHAT THEY SAW THERE IN THE DEATHS THEY SAW THERE WERE DUE TO THE FACT THAT IT WAS SO NOVEL AND THERE WAS LIMITED TREATMENT PLAN. HOWEVER, IT ALSO WAS DUE TO THE FACT THAT THEIR SYSTEMS WERE OVERRUN AND THEY HAD TO START MAKING CRISIS CARE DECISIONS ABOUT WHO WOULD RECEIVE WHAT TREATMENT. SO THAT IS ANOTHER METRIC THAT WE'RE VERY, VERY COGNIZANT OF. AND WE HAVE SEEN A PRETTY DRAMATIC INCREASE IN THE HOSPITALIZATIONS WITHIN OUR COUNTY SINCE I WAS HERE TWO WEEKS AGO. SEVENTY EIGHT PERCENT INCREASE IN BETWEEN THAT METRIC. [00:15:03] ANOTHER IMPORTANT VARIABLE RELATED TO THIS IS THAT CURRENTLY IN OUR HOSPITAL, 50 PERCENT OF OUR- OR CURRENTLY IN OUR COUNTY, 50 PERCENT OF OUR ICU BEDS ARE CURRENTLY FILLED WITH COVID-19 PATIENTS. SO NOT 50 PERCENT OF OUR OVERALL HOSPITAL BEDS, BUT 50 PERCENT OF OUR VERY LIMITED ICU CAPACITY IS CURRENTLY FILLED BY PEOPLE WHO ARE COVID POSITIVE. DUE TO SOME OF THIS, WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR WAYS TO SURGE. WE SPOKE LAST TIME ABOUT THE STATE FACILITY THAT WAS SET UP IN PORTERVILLE FOR SURGING OF CASES. THE STATE, BOTH REGIONALLY AND COUNTYWIDE, ARE ALSO LOOKING AT INCREASING OTHER ALTERNATIVE CARE SITE POSSIBILITIES AND PLACES TO OFFSET PATIENTS WHEN THE HOSPITAL SYSTEMS BECOME OVERWHELMED. UNFORTUNATELY, THE MAIN LIMITING FACTOR THERE IS STAFFING LIMITATION. THE ABILITY TO FIND AND CREATE BEDS IS NOT THE DIFFICULT PART. THE DIFFICULT PART IS TO FIND PEOPLE TO STAFF THOSE BEDS, PARTICULARLY IN AN AREA SUCH AS OURS THAT HAS A DIFFICULT TIME RECRUITING AND RETAINING HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS IN NON PANDEMIC TIMES. AND I DO ALSO JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT THESE STATISTICS ARE REALLY NOT EVEN TRULY ENCOMPASSING OUR FOURTH OF JULY SURGE YET. WE ARE A BIT BEHIND IN OUR CASE INVESTIGATIONS DUE TO THE SURGE OF CASES. WE'RE JUST STARTING TO SEE IN THE TESTING TURNAROUND TIME, AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, HAS BEEN QUITE LONG. SO WE ARE JUST NOW STARTING TO SEE CASES TRICKLE IN THAT ARE LINKED TO FOURTH OF JULY. AND I ALSO DO WANT TO JUST TALK ABOUT THE ORDER IN WHICH WE EXPECT TO SEE THIS DATA BASED ON PATTERNS IN OTHER LOCATIONS. TYPICALLY, WE SEE AN INCREASE IN CASES AND WE KNOW THAT THAT'S REFLECTIVE ABOUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING TWO TO THREE WEEKS AGO AND THE COMMUNITY. THEN WE WOULD EXPECT TO SEE THE INCREASE IN HOSPITALIZATIONS JUST AS WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE BECOMING ILL, MEANING THAT MORE PEOPLE WHO ARE HIGHER RISK ALSO BECOME ILL. AND THEN SUBSEQUENTLY WE WOULD THEN SEE THE INCREASE IN DEATH AND MORTALITY. SO DEATH IS WHAT WE CALL A LAGGING VARIABLE BECAUSE IT DOES TAKE SOME TIME FOR PEOPLE TO BE EXPOSED AND THEN GET SICK. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE TREATED FOR QUITE SOME TIME BEFORE THEY PASS AWAY. SO JUST TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE CONTEXT ON THE COVID-19 DEATHS WE ARE EXPERIENCING IN THE COMMUNITY, THE BREAKDOWN IN GENDER IS STILL ABOUT EQUAL. BEFORE IT WAS A LITTLE BIT HEAVIER TOWARDS THE MALE SIDE. IT'S NOW ALMOST EXACTLY EQUAL, BUT WE HAVE HAD A MORE SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN DEATHS IN FEMALES. AS YOU CAN SEE, NINE OF THE DEATHS THAT WE'VE BEEN REPORTING IN THE LAST TWO WEEKS HAVE BEEN IN FEMALE PATIENTS. REALLY IMPORTANTLY HERE, THE BIGGEST CHANGE IN DEMOGRAPHICS IS THAT NINE OF THE DEATHS THAT WE'RE REPORTING ARE IN INDIVIDUALS LESS THAN THE AGE OF SIXTY FOUR. SO, OUR SIXTY FIVE PLUS AGE GROUP HAS BEEN UNDERREPRESENTED IN THE CASES. THEY'VE BEEN OVER REPRESENTED IN OUR MORTALITY RATES. THEY ARE STILL THE HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE WHO ARE PASSING FROM COVID-19. BUT WE ARE SEEING A CONCERNING TREND THAT SOME OF THE FATALITIES WE'RE SEEING NOW ARE YOUNGER, MOST WITHIN THE 50 TO 64 AGE RANGE, BUT AGAIN, TRENDING YOUNGER THAN WE'D LIKE TO SEE. AND THERE HAS BEEN A FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY PERCENT INCREASE IN DEATHS IN AGES UNDER THE SIXTY FOUR IN THE LAST TWO WEEKS. I ALSO SPOKE ABOUT HOW OUR DEATH REPORTING HAPPENS BOTH IN AND OUT OF COUNTY. WE GET MUCH MORE RAPID FATALITY REPORTING FROM OUR IN COUNTY HOSPITALS. WE ARE OFTENTIMES HEARING ABOUT FATALITIES THAT HAPPEN OUTSIDE OF THE COUNTY FROM FAMILY MEMBERS WHEN WE CALL OR, YOU KNOW, OR HAVING IT BE QUITE A BIT DELAYED. AND SO WE ARE ALSO SEEING THAT PEOPLE WHO HAVE PASSED WITHIN THE COUNTY HAVE DOUBLED, BUT WE'RE SEEING QUITE A FEW MORE OF OUR OUT OF COUNTY FATALITIES AS WELL, WHICH AGAIN, BECAUSE WE DO TRANSFER A LOT OF OUR HIGH ACUITY PATIENTS OUT OF COUNTY, ISN'T NECESSARILY SURPRISING. BUT IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO LOOK AT THIS IN TERMS OF OUR WHOLE SYSTEM. OUR COUNTY HOSPITALS ARE REPORTING THAT IT IS MORE DIFFICULT TO TRANSFER TO THEIR SISTER HOSPITALS IN OTHER PARTS OF THE REGION BECAUSE THE HOSPITALS AND COUNTIES SURROUNDING OURS ARE ALSO REACHING CAPACITY. SO I'M GOING TO JUST MOVE ON TO THE WATCH LIST, THE STATE MONITORING LIST THAT DR. [00:20:05] [INAUDIBLE] SPOKE OF THAT WE NEED TO COME OFF OF TO BE ABLE TO REOPEN SCHOOLS OR ANY OTHER SECTORS THAT HAVE SUBSEQUENTLY BEEN CLOSED. SO JUST AS A QUICK WALK THROUGH, AGAIN, THE TESTING CAPACITY METRIC IS NOT ENOUGH TO GET US ON OR OFF THE WATCH LIST, BUT THEY DO LIKE TO SEE THAT WE'RE TESTING AT AN APPROPRIATE RATE TO BE ABLE TO CAPTURE THE LEVEL OF DISEASE IN OUR COMMUNITY. WE'RE GETTING CLOSE TO THAT METRIC BEING TRUE, AND THAT'S ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY TESTS PER HUNDRED THOUSAND PER DAY. AND WE'RE AT ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY TWO TESTS. WE HAVE, AS YOU KNOW, RECENTLY OPENED A TESTING SITE IN LOS BANOS FOR TWO DAYS. WE ARE HEARING THAT THAT TESTING SITE IS NOT MEETING CAPACITY. SO WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE THAT RESOURCE UTILIZED TO ITS FULLEST. OUR CLINICS ARE REPORTING THAT THEY ARE AT CAPACITY AND THAT THEY'RE SEEING QUITE A FEW PATIENTS AND IN SOME CASES UP TO TWO HUNDRED PEOPLE A DAY JUST IN TESTING FOR COVID. SO THE NEXT METRIC OR SET OF METRICS IS ELEVATED DISEASE TRANSMISSION. THIS IS MEASURED BY EITHER NEW CASES PER HUNDRED THOUSAND IN THE LAST 14 DAYS OR A TESTING POSITIVITY RATE. SO YOU HAVE TO MEET JUST ONE OF THESE METRICS TO MEET THIS CRITERIA. WE DON'T MEET EITHER. SO CURRENTLY WE HAVE TWO HUNDRED AND SEVENTY NINE POINT SEVEN CASES PER HUNDRED THOUSAND IN OUR TEST POSITIVITY RATE, WHICH IS POTENTIALLY MORE CONCERNING BECAUSE IT REALLY DOES SHOW IS THIS INCREASE DUE TO MORE TESTING OR IS IT DUE TO AN INCREASED DISEASE SPREAD? WE'D LIKE TO SEE A TEST POSITIVITY RATE LESS THAN EIGHT PERCENT TO INDICATE THAT IT WAS DUE TO MORE TESTING AND NOT DUE TO INCREASED DISEASE SPREAD. WE ARE MORE THAN DOUBLE THAT AT EIGHTEEN POINT SEVEN PERCENT, AND THAT HAS BEEN INCREASING STEADILY. THE NEXT CRITERIA IS INCREASING HOSPITALIZATIONS. I TOUCHED ON OUR HOSPITAL CAPACITY, BUT THE METRIC THAT'S LOOKED AT FOR THIS IS THE PERCENT INCREASE IN THE LAST THREE DAYS. SO THE CHANGE IN PATIENTS IN COVID POSITIVE HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS WITHIN OUR COUNTY HOSPITALS. THEY WANT TO SEE THAT AT LESS THAN 10 PERCENT. WE'RE CURRENTLY AT TWENTY NINE PERCENT. AND THEN AGAIN, THE LAST SET OF METRICS THAT'S LOOKED AT IS HOSPITAL CAPACITY AND WHETHER OR NOT THAT IS LIMITED. SO THEY LOOK AT THE PERCENT OF ICU BEDS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE AND THE PERCENT OF VENTILATORS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE. SO WE ARE NOT MEETING THE PERCENT OF ICU BEDS AVAILABLE. THEY WANT TO SEE AT LEAST 20 PERCENT OF OUR ICU BEDS AVAILABLE. WE'RE AT SIXTEEN POINT SEVEN. AND I WILL NOTE THAT THIS DATA DOES LAG. AS OF YESTERDAY, AT LEAST ONE OF OUR HOSPITALS, ICU WAS AT FULL CAPACITY. THEY ALSO WANT TO SEE THAT OUR VENTILATORS, WE HAVE AT LEAST TWENTY FIVE PERCENT OF OUR VENTILATORS STOCK AVAILABLE. WE HAVE CONTINUED TO MEET THIS METRIC. THIS IS THE ONLY METRIC THAT WE'VE CONSISTENTLY BEEN MEETING SINCE WE'VE BEEN PUT ON THE WATCH LIST AND WE DO HAVE ALMOST EIGHTY THREE PERCENT OF OUR VENTILATORS AVAILABLE. SO WE'VE BEEN ON THIS WATCH LIST FOR THREE AND A HALF WEEKS AND OUR NUMBERS ARE GOING THE WRONG WAY, UNFORTUNATELY. SO THIS IS THE TIME THAT WE REALLY NEED TO DO SOMETHING DRAMATIC TO TURN THESE NUMBERS AROUND. THIS IS-- AND I ALSO JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT THIS IS STILL THE FIRST PEAK. IT'S A PRETTY COMMON MISCONCEPTION THAT THIS IS OUR SECOND PEAK. IT'S NOT. IT'S JUST THAT WE NEVER FULLY CONTROLLED THE FIRST PEAK AS A STATE OR AS A COUNTRY. SO THIS IS STILL A PART OF THE FIRST PEAK. AND SO WE'RE NOT GETTING THE RELIEF THAT WE WERE EXPECTING OF A DECLINE IN CASES TO PREPARE FOR THEN A SECOND PEAK. WE'RE STILL WITHIN OUR FIRST PEAK. AND AGAIN, THIS IS STATE WIDE. CURRENTLY, THIRTY SEVEN COUNTIES ARE ON THAT WATCH LIST. SO I ALSO JUST WANT TO SPEAK A BIT ABOUT THE TREATMENT OF COVID-19. THIS HAD COME UP AT A PREVIOUS BOARD MEETING. WE WANTED TO TELL THE BOARD AND THE PUBLIC WHAT OUR CURRENT HOSPITALS ARE DOING. SO THERE ARE SEVERAL MEDICAL TREATMENTS THAT HAVE SHOWN TO INCREASE-- TO DECREASE MORTALITY, PARTICULARLY OF INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING SEVERE DISEASE, WHO ARE VENTILATED OR ARE TRENDING TOWARDS VENTILATION. SO THOSE ARE REMDISIVIR. REMDISIVIR WAS IN A SHORTAGE SITUATION SUCH THAT THE STATE HAD THE THE BULK OF IT AND THEN DISTRIBUTED IT TO THE COUNTIES THROUGH OUR MOHAWK PROGRAM. [00:25:01] THE STATE IS MOVING AWAY FROM THAT MODEL AND IS NOW SETTING IT UP SO THAT THE INDIVIDUAL HOSPITALS CAN CONTRACT DIRECTLY WITH THE DRUG MANUFACTURER [INAUDIBLE] THAT THEY NEED FOR TREATMENT WITHIN THEIR FACILITIES. THE OTHER AND MORE-- ONE OF THE NEWER DRUGS THAT HAS SHOWN PROMISE IS DEXAMETHASONE. THIS IS CHEAPER AND MORE READILY AVAILABLE, THAN REMDISIVIR. IT'S A MORE COMMON DRUG AND IT HAS BEEN SHOWN TO REDUCE MORTALITY FOR PATIENTS ON A VENTILATOR BY ONE THIRD, WHICH IS SIGNIFICANT AND ALSO VERY PROMISING. AND BOTH OF OUR HOSPITALS ARE UTILIZING THIS DRUG AS WELL. SO NEXT IS CONVALESCENT PLASMA. I'VE SPOKEN ON THIS JUST A BIT, BUT PEOPLE WHO HAVE RECOVERED FROM COVID-19 DO TEND TO HAVE ANTIBODIES WITHIN THEIR BLOOD PLASMA THAT CAN THEN BE GIVEN TO A PATIENT WHO IS NOT RESPONDING TO OTHER TREATMENT TO HELP THEIR BODIES PRODUCE THOSE SAME ANTIBODIES. AND SO THAT IS ANOTHER TREATMENT. WE DO HAVE SEVERAL LOCAL BLOOD BANKS THAT ARE ABLE TO COLLECT PLASMA FROM COVID POSITIVE RECOVERED PATIENTS AND THEN SEND THAT PLASMA TO OUR LOCAL FACILITIES. AND THEN, OF COURSE, WE DO MONITOR VENTILATORS. VENTILATORS ARE THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF MEDICAL INTERVENTION. AND SO THAT'S WHY WE REALLY DO TRACK THE NUMBER OF VENTILATORS THAT ARE IN USE AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT. CURRENTLY IN MERCED COUNTY, ACROSS BOTH HOSPITALS, SIX PATIENTS ARE ON VENTILATORS RIGHT NOW. SO THERE'S ALSO BEEN SOME MOVEMENT ON NON-MEDICAL INTERVENTIONS. ONE OF THE MORE EFFECTIVE IS CALLED PRONING, WHICH ESSENTIALLY LAYING THE PATIENT ON THEIR STOMACH. AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, THIS IS MUCH MORE DIFFICULT WHEN A PATIENT IS INTUBATED. IT'S MUCH MORE STAFF INTENSIVE TO BE ABLE TO PLACE A PATIENT ON THEIR STOMACH WHILE THEY ARE INTUBATED, PARTICULARLY IF THE INDIVIDUAL IS OBESE. THIS IS NOT A TECHNIQUE THAT'S POSSIBLE FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE MORBIDLY OBESE. AND OBESITY IS AN UNDERLYING CONDITION THAT HAS BEEN SHOWN TO HAVE PRETTY SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS ON WHETHER-- ON THE PROGNOSIS OF SOMEONE'S ABILITY TO FIGHT COVID-19. AND A LOT OF PATIENTS JUST DON'T TOLERATE IT. THEY DON'T WANT TO LAY ON THEIR STOMACHS. THEY DON'T LIKE LAYING ON THEIR STOMACHS. IT'S UNCOMFORTABLE. AND SO IT IS ONLY SOMETHING THAT CAN BE DONE WHEN THE PATIENT IS TOLERATING IT. WELL, AND THEN IF THEY ARE AWAKE AND COGNIZANT, IF THEY WANT TO, IF THEY CHOOSE TO. BUT BOTH OF THE HOSPITALS IN OUR COUNTY ARE DOING ALL OF THESE TREATMENTS THAT I'VE DISCUSSED ON THIS SLIDE. AND WITH THAT, I WILL TURN IT BACK OVER TO DR. NANYONJO-KEMP. ANY QUESTIONS FOR DR. SULLIVAN, SUPERVISOR SILVER? I MEAN, SORRY, PAREIRA. OH, YEAH, THERE WE GO. THANK YOU. TWO QUESTIONS, I THINK MAYBE THREE, BUT-- SO CAN WE GO BACK TO THE SLIDE WITH THE POSITIVITY RATE? THERE YOU GO. SO IT JUST SEEMED-- THE POSITIVITY RATE SEEMED LOW. SO I TOOK THE NUMBER OF LABORATORY CONFIRMED CASES AND FROM JULY 13TH TO JULY TWENTY SEVENTH AND TOOK THE DIFFERENCE AND THEN DIVIDED IT BY THE CHANGE IN THE TOTAL TEST. AND IT SAYS THAT-- AND THAT NUMBER SAYS WE WERE AT THIRTY FOUR PERCENT POSITIVITY RATE. NOW I KNOW THAT'S A TWO WEEK, RIGHT? AND WE'RE DOING THE LAST SEVEN DAYS. CAN YOU EXPLAIN-- DID I DO THE MATH WRONG OR AM I NOT-- OR IS YOUR NUMBER INCORRECT? IF I MAY, I THINK SUPERVISOR, IF I'M LOOKING OVER, YOU MAY BE LOOKING AT THE SLIDE PREVIOUS TO THIS. SORRY. GO AHEAD. IS THAT ONE OF THE ONE? NO, I KNOW, I LOOKED AT THAT, BUT IT SHOWS ON THE OTHER SLIDE THE POSITIVITY RATE IS 18 PERCENT, EIGHTEEN POINT SEVEN. SO. THERE ARE DIFFERENCES IN TERMS OF HOW THIS IS CALCULATED AND SOME OF OUR FACILITIES ARE REPORTING MUCH HIGHER POSITIVITY RATES THEN THAN EVEN THIS EIGHTEEN POINT SEVEN. WE'VE HAD SOME FACILITIES REPORTING TO US THAT THEY'RE SEEING WITHIN THEIR FACILITY UP TO 50 PERCENT POSITIVITY RATE. THIS, THOUGH, IS SIGNIFICANTLY LAGGED BECAUSE ONE THING THAT WE HAVE FOUND IS THAT WE TEND TO GET POSITIVE TESTS REPORTED MORE QUICKLY THAN NEGATIVE TESTS. SO WHAT THE STATE IS LOOKING AT IS ACTUALLY SIGNIFICANTLY LAGGED AND THEN IT'S A SEVEN [00:30:04] DAY AGGREGATE. SO IT'S ACTUALLY QUITE A BIT-- IT'S NOT REFLECTIVE OF WHAT WE'RE SEEING NOW. AND YOU'RE RIGHT THAT OUR TESTING POSITIVITY RATE IS NOT GOING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. BUT THIS IS IS IT'S QUITE A BIT LAGGED BECAUSE OF THE FACT THAT WE TEND TO GET POSITIVE RESULTS QUICKER THAN NEGATIVE RESULTS. OK, AND THEN MY SECOND QUESTION IS ANYBODY IN OUR COUNTY USING THE HYDROCHLOROQUINE AS A TREATMENT? SO, ALL OF THE HOSPITALS HAVE THAT AVAILABLE, BUT MOST OF THE RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT THAT HAS HIGHER RISKS AND IS MORE HARMFUL THAN HELPFUL, PARTICULARLY THAN THE REMDISIVIR AND DEXMETHASONE. BOTH OF THOSE HAVE HAD BETTER RESULTS WITH LESS SIDE EFFECTS AND PARTICULARLY HEART PROBLEMS. HYDROCHLOROQUINE WAS RESULTING IN HEART TRAUMA. AND SO THE HOSPITALS HAVE IT AT THEIR DISPOSAL IF THEY CHOOSE TO DO THAT CLINICAL ROUTE. BUT MOST ARE CHOOSING TO DO THESE OTHER--. OK, AND THEN THERE WAS ALSO-- IT'S I THINK IT WAS AN INHALER THAT WAS LIKE [INAUDIBLE] OR SOMETHING ALONG THAT LINE. I WENT BACK IN MY PICTURES. I THOUGHT I'D CAPTURED THE NAME. BUT ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THAT TREATMENT OR NO? I HAVE NOT HEARD THAT PARTICULAR TREATMENT. OK, THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. THANK YOU, KRISTIN. I DID HAVE SOME QUESTIONS, AND I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS TOO SOON TO ASK IT, BUT WE'RE GETTING REPORTS THAT FOLKS ARE NOT GOING TO THEIR TESTING APPOINTMENT, BUT YET GETTING A CALL SAYING THEY HAD A POSITIVE. AND SO I'VE HAD QUITE A FEW CONSTITUENTS REACH OUT TO ME WITH THAT CONCERN. BUT MY QUESTION HAS ALWAYS BEEN, GIVE ME THE NAME OF THE PERSON THAT THIS HAPPENED TO, AND I HAVE YET TO RECEIVE THAT. SO I DON'T KNOW IF YOU GUYS ARE HEARING THE SAME KIND OF NEWS. AND THERE'S ANOTHER QUESTION. I THINK I BROUGHT IT UP LAST TIME. THERE'S A LOT OF FOLKS WHO ARE TESTING MULTIPLE TIMES BECAUSE THEY WANT TO GET BACK TO WORK. AND I WAS WONDERING, IS THERE A PROCESS? ARE WE-- EVEN IF THEY'RE DOING IT IN DIFFERENT AREAS, HOW ARE WE DECIPHERING WHETHER THAT'S A POSITIVE CASE GOING TO THE TALLY OR NOT? RIGHT. SO LET ME TAKE THE FIRST ONE FIRST. WE HAVE HEARD SOME REPORTS OF THAT, AND THAT'S OBVIOUSLY VERY CONCERNING TO US. AND WE ALSO HAVE BEEN ASKING FOR NAMES SO THAT WE CAN VERIFY. WE HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY NAMES AND SO--. NEITHER HAVE I. SO IT SEEMS LIKE IT MIGHT BE A RUMOR. AND OBVIOUSLY WE WE WOULD TAKE THAT VERY SERIOUSLY. AND IF THAT WERE OCCURRING, WE WOULD WANT TO KNOW. BUT WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO HAVE ANY THING TO ACTIVELY FOLLOW UP ON, AS YOU'VE MENTIONED. SO IT DOES SEEM TO BE JUST A RUMOR. MOVING TOWARDS OUR CASES, EVERY ONE OF OUR THREE THOUSAND, FIVE HUNDRED AND TEN CASES IS AN INDIVIDUAL WITH A NAME AND A BIRTH DATE. THEY ARE DEDUPLICATED EVERY DAY. THEY ARE THROUGH MULTIPLE PROCESSES. SO WE REALLY DO-- AND THEN EVERY ONCE IN A-- ON SET BASIS, WE GO BACK AND DEDUPLICATE AGAIN JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVEN'T WE HAVEN'T MISSED SOMEONE AS A RETEST. AND THAT HAS HAPPENED BECAUSE WE HAVE QUITE A FEW INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE MULTIPLE NAMES. FOR EXAMPLE, I HAVE TWO LAST NAMES AND I PICK AND CHOOSE WHICH ONE I LIKE TO USE BASED ON WHERE I AM. AND LOTS OF PEOPLE DO THAT. AND SO IF I TEST UNDER ONE NAME IN ANOTHER NAME, IT MAY TAKE US A MOMENT TO REALIZE THAT THIS IS ACTUALLY THE SAME PERSON. BUT WE'VE GOTTEN VERY GOOD AT IT. WE VERIFY BASED ON NAME AND THEN ADDRESS AND BIRTH DATE AND THEN VERY, VERY OCCASIONALLY WE'LL HAVE ONE FALL THROUGH THAT WILL THEN, WHEN WE CALL, THEY'LL SAY, OH, YEAH I RETESTED. BUT THAT HAPPENS VERY, VERY, VERY RARELY. AND THEN WE TAKE THAT PERSON OUT OF THE COUNT AND REPLACE THEM. SO ALL OF OUR THREE THOUSAND, FIVE HUNDRED AND TEN ARE INDIVIDUALS WITH INDIVIDUAL NAMES AND INDIVIDUALIZED BIRTH DATES. AND THEN IN TERMS OF OUR TESTING POSITIVITY RATE, BECAUSE A LOT OF BUSINESSES DO REQUIRE THAT THEIR EMPLOYEES RETEST TO COME BACK TO WORK, THAT'S NOT A RECOMMENDATION THAT WE MAKE, BUT SOME BUSINESS DO REQUIRE THAT, WE ACTUALLY DO THE SAME DEDUPLICATION PROCESS IN OUR TESTS AS WELL, SO WE PULL FROM OUR DATA SYSTEM THE LAUNDRY LIST OF ALL OF THE TESTS, AND THEN WE ONLY KEEP ONE PER PERSON WHEN WE'RE DOING OUR CALCULATIONS AROUND OUR TEST POSITIVITY RATE AND OUR CASES. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE], DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. MORE OF A COMMENT. I APPRECIATE YOUR ANSWER TO THAT, THAT IT'S BEEN SOMETHING THAT PEOPLE HAVE ASKED THAT QUESTION QUITE A BIT. AND I THOUGHT YOU EXPLAINED IT VERY WELL, THAT IT'S-- THEY'RE TRACKING IT AS A NAME AND A BIRTHDAY. BECAUSE THE CONCERN IS, BY SOME FOLKS, IS THAT EVERY TIME IF YOU'RE HAVING TO [00:35:06] RETEST TO GO BACK TO WORK AND YOU TEST POSITIVE A COUPLE OR THREE TIMES BEFORE YOU GET THE NEGATIVE, THAT THAT WAS COUNTING TOWARD OUR OVERALL POSITIVITY RATE. SO THANK YOU FOR THE CLARIFICATION ON THAT. MY PLEASURE. DR. SULLIVAN, YOU TALKED ABOUT THE LAG OF DATA. CAN YOU SHARE WITH US AGAIN WHAT SOME OF THOSE FACTORS MAY BE? SURE. I GUESS I'LL JUST WALK THROUGH THE WHOLE PROCESS. SO JUST SO THAT YOU CAN KIND OF UNDERSTAND THE AMOUNT OF LAG WE MAY HAVE AND WHY IT'S SO DIFFICULT TO PINPOINT WHERE DISEASE IS SPREADING AND HOW IT'S SPREADING. SO LET'S SAY THAT I, MYSELF, DEVELOP A COUGH TOMORROW. IT'S ALLERGY SEASON. IT'S, YOU KNOW, I MIGHT NOT IMMEDIATELY GO TO COVID, SO I MAY DELAY TWO TO THREE DAYS BEFORE I DECIDE TO GO GET TESTED. I PROBABLY WOULDN'T BECAUSE I'M DOING THIS CONSTANTLY, BUT LET'S JUST SAY. SO, THEN I'D WAIT TWO TO THREE DAYS TILL I GO GET TESTED. THEN I, IF I'M LUCKY, I CAN GET IN WHEN I WANT TO GET TESTED. BUT IF I'M NOT LUCKY, I MAY HAVE TO WAIT ANOTHER THREE TO EVEN SEVEN DAYS TO GET AN APPOINTMENT TO GET TESTED. THEN I GO GET TESTED. THEN IT TAKES ME FIVE TO SOMETIMES 14 DAYS TO GET THOSE TEST RESULTS BACK. NOW WE'RE AT ABOUT TWO TO THREE WEEKS FROM WHEN I FIRST STARTED DEVELOPING SYMPTOMS. SO THEN THOSE TEST RESULTS COME BACK TO ME FIRST AND THEN THEY MIGHT BE DELAYED A DAY OR TWO BEFORE THEY GET SENT OVER TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT. NOW, THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT IS IN, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD FOURTEEN HUNDRED CASES IN TWO WEEKS. WE'VE ON BOARDED 18 ADDITIONAL CONTACT TRACERS, AND DR. NANYANJO GOING TO SPEAK ON THAT IN A BIT. BUT IT STILL IS TAKING US A BIT OF TIME TO MAKE ALL OF THOSE PHONE CALLS. SO LET'S SAY IT'S BEEN ANOTHER TWO TO THREE DAYS BEFORE YOU GET A CALL. NOW I'M CALLING YOU AND I'M ASKING YOU, WHO WERE YOU AROUND TWO DAYS BEFORE YOU EXPERIENCED SYMPTOMS? THAT'S THREE WEEKS AGO. HOW WELL ARE YOU GOING TO BE ABLE TO RECALL WHAT YOU WERE DOING THREE WEEKS AGO. AND THAT'S SOME OF THE PROBLEM THAT WE'RE RUNNING INTO. THANK YOU. AND THEN THE DELAY IN RECEIVING TEST RESULTS. CAN YOU SPEAK TO THAT IN TERMS OF HOSPITALS AND THEN CLINICS AND THEN SPACES LIKE CVS THAT ARE TESTING? SURE. SO WE, I'VE SAID THIS BEFORE, I THINK HERE, BUT BASICALLY ALL ROADS LEAD TO QUEST. AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT IF IT'S NOT QUEST, IT'S QUEST OR LABCORP. MOST OF THE TESTING, NO MATTER WHERE YOU'RE DOING, IS GOING TO ONE OR TWO LARGE COMMERCIAL LABS. AND SO THERE'S A BOG DOWN NOT JUST IN THE STATE, BUT NATIONWIDE, BECAUSE THOSE LABS ARE NATIONWIDE LABS. SO HOSPITALS, MANY HOSPITALS HAVE THEIR OWN IN-HOUSE ABILITY TO TEST. BOTH OF OUR HOSPITALS DO. THAT IS THE EASIEST AND MOST RAPID WAY TO GET A TEST RETURN. AND SO THOSE ONES ARE TYPICALLY CALLED POINT OF CARE TESTS. AND THOSE RESULTS COME OUT IN ABOUT AN HOUR. BUT IF A HOSPITAL NEEDS TO SEND OUT A TEST RESULT FOR SOME REASON, THEY'RE THEN PUT INTO THE SAME QUEUE AS EVERYONE ELSE. BUT BECAUSE WE ARE SEEING THIS DRAMATIC INCREASE IN TESTING AND TURNAROUND TIME, THE STATE DID ISSUE A GUIDANCE OF PRIORITIZATION FOR WHOSE TEST RESULTS SHOULD BE PROCESSED FIRST. AND THAT PRIORITIZATION IS ANYBODY WHO'S HOSPITALIZED, ANYBODY WHO'S PART OF A SKILLED NURSING FACILITY OR OTHER CONGREGATE CARE SETTING LIKE A JAIL OR ASSISTED LIVING. AND THEN OUR HEALTH CARE WORKERS AND FIRST RESPONDERS AND THEN ANYBODY WHO IS ASYMPTOMATIC, WHICH IS WHY WE'RE SEEING SOME OF THE POSITIVES THAT WE HAVE THE FURTHEST OUT ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE JUST TESTING BASED ON A CONTACT OR SURVEILLANCE OR WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE. BUT THEY DIDN'T HAVE ANY SYMPTOMS. AND THEN WE GET THEIR RESULTS AFTER THEY'VE ALREADY--. THEY'VE ALREADY CLEARED THEIR ISOLATION PERIOD OR THEIR QUARANTINE PERIOD. THANK YOU. OTHER QUESTIONS? OK. GOOD MORNING AGAIN, I'M HERE TO PROVIDE A COUPLE OF UPDATES THAT ARE TAKING PLACE THROUGHOUT THE DEPARTMENT OPERATIONS CENTER, WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY LOCATED IN THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT. THE FIRST I'LL SPEAK OF ARE OUR OPERATIONS SECTION. WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT OF OPERATION SECTION, OUR OPERATIONAL SECTION IS DEFINITELY BY FAR [00:40:01] THE MOST INVOLVED, THE MOST BUSY. THAT'S KIND OF THE THINK TANK OF WHERE EVERYTHING IS OCCURRING AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL. SO THAT'S WHERE ALL THE DATA IS HOUSED BECAUSE OF IT'S-- THE VARIETY OF ISSUES THAT ARE ADDRESSED FOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE THAT'S REQUIRED OUT OF OPERATIONS, WE TEND TO HAVE THEM AS OUR LARGEST SECTION. THEREFORE, BECAUSE WE'VE MOVED OUT OF BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND THE IDEA, AT THE TIME, THAT WE WERE SCALING BACK BEFORE WE EXPERIENCED THIS LARGE SURGE IN OUR NUMBER OF CASES WAS TO HAVE THEM AT THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT. WE CANNOT SUCCESSFULLY ACCOMPLISH SOME OF THOSE PHYSICAL INTERVENTIONS, SUCH AS APPROPRIATE SOCIAL DISTANCING AND WHATNOT. AND SO THANK YOU TO THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR HELPING US ON BOARD STAFF FROM VARIOUS COUNTY DEPARTMENTS. OF THOSE, THOSE INCLUDE 16 CONTACT TRACERS AND INVESTIGATORS, FIVE THAT WORK PRIMARILY ON SURVEILLANCE AND DATA. AND SO IDENTIFYING WHERE OUR CASES RESIDE, WE HAVE PASSIVE AND ACTIVE FORMS OF SURVEILLANCE, SOMETIMES SYNDROMIC FORMS OF SURVEILLANCE. WE STILL ARE WORKING ON A VERY LOOSE CASE DEFINITION. AND SO FAR, OUR OPERATIONS TEAM TO BE SUCCESSFUL, WE NEED TO NARROW DOWN SOME OF THE REQUIREMENTS SO WE KNOW WHAT TO QUALIFY AND QUANTIFY WHEN IT COMES TO CERTAIN ELEMENTS OR METRICS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. WE ALSO HAVE ON BOARDED SUCCESSFULLY TWO SUPERVISORS AND TWO SUPPORT STAFF. JUST SPEAKING TO WHAT DR. SULLIVAN MENTIONED BEFORE IN TERMS OF WHAT GOES INTO THE OPERATION, THAT ALSO IS ACCOMPANIED WITH THE COPIOUS AMOUNT OF PAPERWORK, YOU KNOW, WHETHER FOLLOW UP OR ALL OF THAT INFORMATION THAT GOES INTO THE CASE COUNT COMES IN THE FORM OF EITHER A LAB OR A CONFIDENTIAL [INAUDIBLE] REPORT OR SOME OTHER WAY OF GETTING THAT INFORMATION. AND ALSO WE HAVE PROTOCOLS. SO HOW DO WE KEEP CONSISTENCY WHEN YOU HAVE SO MANY PEOPLE COMING ON BOARD AND PEOPLE TRANSITIONING OUT? HOW DO YOU KEEP THE VALIDITY OR THE INTEGRITY OF THE WORK THAT'S BEING CONDUCTED? AND SO A LOT OF THESE THINGS HAVE TO BE PROCESSED AND PUT INTO A PROTOCOL AND DONE SYSTEMATICALLY. AND THEN YOU ALSO HAVE TO HAVE PEOPLE OVERLOOK TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S BEING DONE WELL. SO IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH THAT SUCCESSFULLY, I'D LIKE TO THANK THE HSA DIRECTOR DR. [INAUDIBLE] BROWN FOR ALLOWING US TO MOVE INTO THE HSA ANNEX. THAT HAS BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL. HERE WE HAVE SOME PICTURES OF SOME OF THE STAFF WHO ARE LOCATED THERE. HERE'S THE BUILDING AND THEN THE CUBICLES THAT THEY SET UP FOR US. SO WE'RE VERY APPRECIATIVE OF THAT. UNFORTUNATELY, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HAS REALLY IMPACTED SOME OF THE TEAM BROUGHT ON BOARD IS WHERE WE, IN THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT AS WELL AS PEOPLE WE ON BOARD, ARE SOMETIMES CONTACTS TO LATER CONFIRMED CASES. SO WE'RE EXPERIENCING A FLUX OF INDIVIDUALS WHO'VE BEEN ON BOARDED FOR JUST A VERY SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME AND UNFORTUNATELY HAVE TO NOW BE OFF BECAUSE THEY'RE ENTERING THEIR OWN QUARANTINE PERIOD OR HAVE BEEN EXPOSED TO SOMEBODY OR HAVE TESTED POSITIVE. AND SO WE'RE TRYING TO ALSO CONTROL THAT WHILE WE'RE STILL WORKING THROUGH THIS OPERATION. AND PUBLIC HEALTH IS NOT ALONE, DEPARTMENTALLY, IN EXPERIENCING AN EVER RISING NUMBER OF CASES DEPARTMENTALLY. AND SO TRYING TO MANAGE ALL OF THAT HAS BEEN TAXING AS WELL. SO CONTACT TRACING. THERE WAS A [INAUDIBLE] ARTICLE THAT WAS PUBLISHED LAST WEEK, WHICH WAS UNFORTUNATELY PRETTY INFLAMMATORY AND SPOKE TO MERCED COUNTY AND THE LACK OF CONTACT TRACING BEING CONDUCTED THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. AND THAT IS NOT TRUE. WE DID WRITE A REBUTTAL TO THAT ARTICLE. AND FURTHERMORE, WE'RE, I FEEL, EXONERATED TO A LARGE, LARGE DEGREE BY AN ARTICLE PRINTED OUT FROM THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE THROUGH OUR SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AT THE STATE, DR. MARK GALLI. AND IT'S AT THE BASE OF THAT SLIDE WHERE IT SAYS "AT THE LEVEL OF TRANSMISSION WE'RE SEEING ACROSS THE STATE, EVEN A VERY, VERY ROBUST CONTACT TRACING TEAM IN EVERY SINGLE COUNTY WILL HAVE A HARD TIME REACHING OUT TO EVERY CASE. POSITIVE INDIVIDUALS CAN HELP BY ACTING AS THEIR OWN CONTACT TRACERS." AND SO I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO LIST THE STEPS THAT GO INTO CONDUCTING CONTACT TRACING. AGAIN, SPEAKING TO WHAT WAS STATED EARLIER WITH RESPECT TO THE TIMELINE THAT YOU'D HAVE FROM MEMORY RECALL AND MAKING SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, ESPECIALLY AS THERE HAS BEEN A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF REOPENING THROUGHOUT THE STATE, IT'S HARD FOR PEOPLE TO RECALL WHAT'S HAPPENED THE WEEK PREVIOUS, THREE DAYS PRIOR. AND SO, YOU KNOW, AND THEN THEY'LL OVERLOOK SOMETHING. AND SO THE MEMORY RECALL IS QUITE LOW. AND SO IT'S MORE OF A PARTNERSHIP THAT'S TAKING PLACE, AND THE STATE HAS RECOGNIZED TOO, THAT TO THE LEVEL OF CONTACT TRACING THAT THEY MAY HAVE KEPT IN SOME OF THEIR REQUIREMENTS DID NOT MAKE SENSE FOR AS WIDESPREAD COMMUNITY TRANSMISSION AS WE'RE SEEING THROUGHOUT THE STATE. YOU KNOW, EVERY CONTACT TRACER WOULD HAVE TO CONTACT, DEPENDING ON THE PERSON THAT YOU'RE DEALING WITH, HUNDREDS OF INDIVIDUALS, AND THAT WOULDN'T EVEN CAPTURE THE FULL BREADTH OF WHO THAT POSITIVE CASE HAD BEEN AROUND. SO WITHIN MERCED COUNTY, WHAT TAKES PLACE IN OUR CONTACT TRACING [INAUDIBLE] IS FIRST, WE CONTACT THE COVID-19 POSITIVE CASE. AGAIN, I'M NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH ALL THE PROTOCOLS AS TO HOW WE RECEIVED THAT POSITIVE [00:45:01] CASE, BUT WE RECEIVE IT, A PHONE CALL PLACED TO THAT INDIVIDUAL. WE IDENTIFY THE PLACES AND THE LOCALES THAT THE POSITIVE CASE VISITED DURING THEIR PERIOD OF INFECTION. AGAIN, IF SOMEBODY DELAYS GOING IN TO GET A TEST, THOUGH THEY'RE NOT FEELING GOOD AND IT GETS WORSE BEFORE IT GETS BETTER. SO SOME PEOPLE HAVE WAITED UP TO FOUR OR FIVE DAYS THINKING THAT I REALLY THOUGHT IT WAS ALLERGIES. THAT'S THE ONE THING THAT WE CONSISTENTLY HEAR THE ONSET OF IT FEELS LIKE ALLERGIES, PRESSURE AROUND THE SINUSES. SO DURING THAT PERIOD OF INFECTION THAT INCLUDES WORKPLACES, HEALTH CARE FACILITIES, ET CETERA. IF THEY'VE GONE TO CONGREGATE SETTINGS. THE SKILLED NURSING FACILITIES ARE NOT THE ONLY CONGREGATE SETTINGS THAT WE HAVE THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY OF MERCED. THERE'S INSTRUCTION PROVIDED TO THAT POSITIVE CASE TO ISOLATE WITH THEIR HOUSEHOLD AND THEY'RE PROVIDED WITH RESOURCE INFORMATION. A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE SAY, WELL, WHAT CAN I DO? WHAT SHOULD I DO? I'M GOING TO BE AT HOME. DEPENDING ON THE INDIVIDUAL, PEOPLE WILL TELL YOU TO YOUR FACE OUT, ACTUALLY IT WAS ONE OF OUR FIRST CASES, NO, I'M GOING TO STAY HOME. NO BIG DEAL. NO PROBLEM. I MEAN, THIS PERSON WOULD NOT STAY SITUATED FOR THE LIFE OF US. THIS WAS AT A DIFFERENT TIME PERIOD. BUT EVEN THOUGH PEOPLE ARE PLACED UNDER AN ISOLATION OR QUARANTINE PERIOD, SOME OF THEM DON'T ADHERE TO IT. BECAUSE SOME OF THE MYTHS OR SOME OF THE MISINFORMATION BEING CIRCULATED, DON'T FEEL IT'S REAL. DON'T FEEL IT'S A BIG DEAL. DON'T FEEL I DON'T EVEN FEEL THAT BAD. BUT YOU NEVER KNOW THE PERSON THAT YOU MAY BE EXPOSING. THEY MAY NOT FEEL THAT GREAT AND THEY MAY END UP HOSPITALIZED OR INTUBATED OR EXPERIENCE A FATALITY. AND SO THAT'S WHY IT'S AN ALL OR NOTHING APPROACH. AND WE SPOKE ABOUT THAT LAST TIME DURING OUR BOARD MEETING. ADVISE A CASE TO NOTIFY THEIR CONTACTS TO QUARANTINE AND TEST. SO ISOLATE FOR THAT 14 DAY PERIOD. CONTACT THE WORKPLACE OF THE POSITIVE CASE TO INFORM OF THAT POSSIBLE EXPOSURE TO OTHERS AND ADVISE ON THE PROCESS FOR IDENTIFYING CONTACTS OF POSITIVE CASES. AND THEN IF THE CASE DID NOT DEVELOP AT THE WORKPLACE, CALL THE APPROPRIATE SETTING OR SETTINGS TO INFORM ALSO OF POSSIBLE EXPOSURE. SO THOSE ARE THE STEPS THAT ARE TAKEN. ANY QUESTIONS BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD ON THAT? THANK YOU, REBECCA. I DID HAVE A QUESTION. WE HAD AN ARTICLE IN THE PAPER NOT TOO LONG AGO ABOUT THE FIFTY TWO MILLION DOLLARS BEING SPENT ON A STRIKE TEAM HERE IN THE CENTRAL VALLEY. YES, I SAW THAT AS WELL. DID THEY INFORM YOU, FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND, IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE CONTACT TRACERS BEING PROVIDED TO THE COUNTIES HERE IN THE VALLEY? I'M NOT SURE IF WE AS COUNTY, OUR OWN COUNTY, RECEIVED THOSE RESOURCES. THEY'RE MEANT TO DEPLOY THROUGHOUT THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY REGION. AND SO SIMILAR TO WHAT WE HAVE AT THE STATE HOSPITAL IN PORTERVILLE, WHILE IT'S A RESOURCE AVAILABLE TO US, NOT ONE WE CONTROL. UNDERSTAND. SO I JUST WANT TO KNOW, HOW DO THEY IMPLEMENT THAT WITHIN-- [INAUDIBLE] COORDINATED WITH OUR CONTACT TRACING? TO BE DETERMINED. OK. I DON'T HAVE ANY-- DO YOU HAVE AN UPDATE ON THAT? OK, I APPRECIATE THAT. SO PART OF THE CONFUSION IS THAT THE STATE HAS MADE A DISTINCTION BETWEEN CASE INVESTIGATION AND CONTACT TRACING IN TERMS OF RESOURCES, SO WHEN THEY SAY THEY HAVE CONTACT TRACERS, WHEN WE SAY WE HAVE A CONTACT TRACER, THEY DO ALL OF THIS. WHEN THE STATE SAYS THEY HAVE A CONTACT TRACER, THEY WILL ONLY CALL THE CONTACTS. THEY WON'T ACTUALLY CALL THE POSITIVE CASE. AND THAT'S NOT INCREDIBLY HELPFUL FOR US BECAUSE WE REALLY NEED THE-- WE HAVE THE BACKLOG IN CALLING THE POSITIVE CASES. AND THAT'S NOT UNIQUE TO OUR COUNTY. THAT IS MANY COUNTIES HAVE COMMUNICATED THAT TO THE STATE. AND SO THEY ARE LOOKING AT CROSS TRAINING THOSE RESOURCES TO BE ABLE TO DO THE FULL CONTACT TRACING AS DESCRIBED HERE, AND NOT JUST THE LAST STEP OF IT. BUT AND SO WE'VE REQUESTED THAT. BUT THEY DON'T HAVE THOSE RESOURCES AVAILABLE AS OF YET. BUT WE ARE PREPARED FOR WHEN THEY DO HAVE THAT LEVEL OF RESOURCE AVAILABLE TO US BECAUSE WE ARE ALREADY ON BOARDED ALL OF OUR CONTACT INVESTIGATORS TO THE STATE PROGRAM, THE STATE CALLING DATABASE SYSTEM THAT THEY USE AND THEIR STATE PEOPLE ARE REQUIRED TO USE THAT. SO WE'VE ALREADY CLEARED THAT HURDLE AND INTERNALLY ARE USING THE SAME SYSTEM SO THAT WE CAN SEAMLESSLY ACCEPT THOSE RESOURCES WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE. THANK YOU. I ALSO DID WANT TO KIND OF CAPITALIZE ON THAT STATEMENT AS WELL, IS THAT IT IS-- THE STATE HAS THEIR OWN SYSTEM AND THEY SERVE AS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO THE COUNTIES. BUT IT'S NOT UNUSUAL THAT TWO OF THE SAME THINGS TAKING PLACE ARE BEING CONDUCTED DIFFERENTLY. AND I THINK IT'S INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT FOR A COMMUNITY TO BE AWARE OF THAT AS WELL. WE SERVE AS KIND OF A FACILITATOR OF THE REQUIREMENTS THAT THEY PROVIDE TO US. BUT A LOT OF THESE DECISIONS ARE NOT SOLELY AT THE COUNTY'S DISCRETION. [00:50:01] THEY HAVE OUR DATA. THEY DICTATE TO US WHAT IT IS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO WITH THAT DATA AND WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO PLACE US. AND SO EVEN SOMETHING LIKE THEY'RE STOOD UP HOSPITAL THAT THEY HAVE IN PORTERVILLE. WE, YOU KNOW, THE WAY THE MOST OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH DIRECTORS EVEN FOUND OUT ABOUT IT. WE FOUND OUT FROM OUR OTHER COUNTERPARTS, NOT NECESSARILY FROM THE STATE. AND SO SOMETIMES THERE IS THAT DISCONNECT IN SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION THAT YOU WOULD THINK IS READILY AVAILABLE. YOU KNOW, WE ARE STILL WAITING FOR THINGS TO BE POSTED THAT WE SPOKE OF MORE THAN A WEEK AGO. SO, OK. SO THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF CHATTER COMMUNITY WIDE WITH RESPECT TO YOUTH SPORTS AND THE STATE SCHOOL GUIDANCE. SO WE HAVE ATTENDED MANY CONFERENCE CALLS WITH THE STATE. PROBABLY, AND I'M NOT FIBBING WHEN I SAY THIS, GREATER PART OF TWO TO THREE MONTH PERIOD THAT THEY HAVE STATED THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE SCHOOL GUIDANCE THAT IS GOING TO BE POSTED AND WE REMAIN WAITING. AND SO BECAUSE-- WHILE THEY STATE SOMETHING BETWEEN THE CONVERSATION AND BY THE TIME THE GUIDANCE IS ISSUED, THE TWO MAY DIFFER, WE'VE DECIDED TO TAKE THE APPROACH OF WAITING UNTIL THAT INFORMATION IS POSTED. AND FOR THOSE THAT WE FEEL ARE NOT GOING TO SHIFT FROM THE ORIGINAL RECOMMENDATION, TRYING TO IMPLEMENT SOME OF THOSE. AND I THINK IT'S INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT TO CLARIFY THAT HERE, BECAUSE WE'VE RECEIVED-- I'VE RECEIVED IN MY EMAIL, QUITE A FEW OPINIONS OR RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW WE SHOULD APPROACH THIS. THIS IS NOT A DECISION THAT IS MADE BY US. AND I BRING THAT UP BECAUSE WE'RE NOT JUST BEING SCRUTINIZED AT THIS POINT. WE ARE BEING HYPER SCRUTINIZED AT THIS POINT. WE CANNOT AFFORD-- WE DON'T HAVE THE LUXURY OF MAKING SIMPLE MISTAKES. THE STATE IS AWARE THERE HAVE BEEN A NUMBER OF ISSUES THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE AND HAVE ARISEN THROUGHOUT THE PAST TWO TO THREE WEEK PERIOD. THAT MAKES IT MORE DIFFICULT FOR THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO BE ABLE TO DO THEIR JOB WHEN WE HAVE COMMUNITIES OPERATING DISTINCTLY BECAUSE WE'RE ONE SINGULAR HEALTH DEPARTMENT FOR THE COUNTY. AND SO WHEN WE'RE ASKED ABOUT HOW DID THIS HAPPEN, WHAT IS YOUR RESPONSE? WHILE PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED, I ASK THAT SINCERELY, THEY BEAR WITH US BECAUSE WE SERVE AS THAT FACILITATOR, THAT PASS THROUGH, OF THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS. WE DID NOT PUT OURSELVES ON THE STATE WATCH LIST. WE DIDN'T DEVELOP THIS DATA OR CREATE THIS DATA. WE DID NOT BRING COVID HERE. WE'RE DOING OUR BEST TO MAKE SURE THAT WE APPROACH FROM A THOUGHTFUL AND CONSISTENT MANNER. AND I WOULD SAY THAT, ON THIS PODIUM, WE HAVE NOT MADE RECOMMENDATIONS OR STATEMENTS THAT HAVEN'T YET NOT COME TO FRUITION. AND SO I'M VERY CONFIDENT IN THE RECOMMENDATIONS WE KNOW, THE KNOWLEDGE THAT WE HAVE, THE TEAM WE HAVE BACKING IT. AND I JUST ASK THAT THEY UNDERSTAND THAT WE'RE DOING THE GUIDANCE OF THE STATE. THESE ARE NOT SOLELY OUR DECISIONS. SO WITH THAT BEING SAID, WE ARE STILL WAITING ON THE STATE'S GUIDANCE FOR YOUTH SPORTS. THERE HAVE BEEN A NUMBER OF STATEMENTS. WE ARE AWARE OF OTHER COMMUNITIES PUTTING THINGS IN PLACE. BUT AGAIN, I DON'T THINK IT'S WORTH PUTTING 30 PLUS MILLION DOLLARS ON THE LINE BECAUSE WE WANTED TO RUSH AHEAD BY A WEEK OR TWO. THE CRITERIA FOR K THROUGH 12 SCHOOLS. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THE STATE MADE VERY CLEAR DURING ONE OF OUR CONVERSATIONS IS THAT THEY WOULD ALLOW FOR A WAIVER TO BE SUBMITTED FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS. SO PROVIDED THAT THERE'D BE ADEQUATE SOCIAL DISTANCING, SOME OF THOSE PREVENTATIVE MEASURES IN PLACE, MASK GUIDANCE BEING ADHERED TO, THERE WAS A LOT OF AGREEMENT THAT THERE IS A HUGE BENEFIT, ESPECIALLY FOR THAT AGE RANGE BEING PRESENT IN SCHOOL. AND GOING BACK TO WHAT DR. ASADI STATED EARLIER, THERE IS A BENEFIT ALSO TO BEING PRESENT IN SCHOOL, NOT JUST HAVING EDUCATION, BUT BEING PRESENT TO RECEIVE THAT EDUCATION. UNFORTUNATELY, BECAUSE WHERE WE STAND ON OUR COUNTYWIDE METRICS, WE'RE NOT EXTREMELY CONFIDENT THAT EVEN WITH THE SUBMISSION OF A WAIVER, THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE GRANTED BECAUSE OUR NUMBERS ARE ACTUALLY GOING IN THE REALLY WRONG DIRECTION AT THIS POINT. AND SO UNLESS WE'RE ABLE TO BRING SOME OF THOSE PARAMETERS DOWN, BECAUSE RIGHT NOW WE'RE FAILING ALL BUT VENTILATOR'S. AND THAT'S BECAUSE-- SOME OF THAT HAS TO DO WITH THE LEVEL OF ACUITY THAT WE HAVE THROUGHOUT OUR HEALTH CARE SYSTEM HERE. BUT SOME OF THAT IS THAT THAT'S NOT THE METRIC THEY'RE GOING TO BE BANKING EVERYTHING ON. AND SO IN ORDER FOR THIS TO HAPPEN AND GIVE THE SCHOOLS THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT THEY WOULD NEED ADMINISTRATIVELY TO WORK WITH THEIR SYSTEMS, THEIR UNIONS, THEIR BOARDS, THEIR TEACHERS ASSOCIATIONS AND MAKE THIS SOMETHING POSSIBLE, WE WOULD HAVE TO BRING SOME OF THOSE PARAMETERS TO WITHIN ACCEPTABLE LIMITS, EITHER BE MEETING OR EXCEEDING THOSE PARAMETERS, AND WE'RE FAR FROM DOING THAT. THEY HAVE MADE-- THE STATE, THEY-- HAVE MADE THE OPTION OF DISTANCE LEARNING AVAILABLE FOR THOSE COUNTIES ON THE WATCH LIST EARLIER STATED. THERE ARE THIRTY SEVEN COUNTIES, SO THERE ARE QUITE A FEW CHILDREN THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA WHO WOULD HAVE TO MATRICULATE FROM HOME. AND THE WAIVER IS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS, AGAIN, FOR IN-PERSON INSTRUCTION OR HAVING A HYBRID APPROACH TO LEARNING. [00:55:02] THAT WAS ALSO SOMETHING AVAILABLE. BUT, YOU KNOW, AND HAVING OUR OFFLINE DISCUSSIONS WITH THE STATE AND EVEN INTERNALLY, WE'RE NOT SUPER CONFIDENT THAT WE'RE THERE YET AS A COUNTY. AND THE WAIVER IS ONLY AVAILABLE TO THE COUNTY ONCE THE COUNTY HAS BEEN OFF THE MONITORING LIST FOR AT LEAST A 14 DAY PERIOD. SO IT'S NOT JUST COMING OFF, ITS REMAINING OFF FOR AT LEAST A TWO WEEK INTERVAL, AND IT'S ISSUED BY THE LOCAL HEALTH OFFICER, DR. SANDOVAL. IT'S ONLY AVAILABLE FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS TO OPEN FOR IN-PERSON INSTRUCTION, AND IT'S REQUESTED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT OR WHOEVER THE EQUIVALENT IS IN THE PRIVATE OR CHARTER SCHOOLS, IN CONSULTATION WITH LABOR, PARENT AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS. SO IT'S THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT UNDER THE HEALTH OFFICERS [INAUDIBLE] RESPONSIBILITY TO REVIEW THE EPIDEMIOLOGIC DATA AND CONTINUE TO REPORT THAT BACK UP TO THE STATE. AND THEN ALSO THERE ARE THESE ONGOING DISCUSSIONS AND CONSULTATIONS WITH THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AS THE PROCESS UNFOLDS. SO WITHOUT ANY DELAY, I'LL GO FURTHER UNLESS THERE ARE QUESTIONS ON THIS SLIDE. OK, SO I WANTED TO TAKE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK ABOUT SOME OF THE COMMUNITY OUTREACH EFFORTS THAT WE HAVE HERE IN MERCED COUNTY. THERE'S BEEN SO MUCH COLLABORATION. I'D LIKE TO THANK THE CITIES, ESPECIALLY THE CITY OF MERCED AND OUR COUNTY EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR PARTNERING IN DEVELOPING SOME OUTREACH MATERIAL AND REALLY WORKING OUTSIDE OF YOUR STANDARD OPERATIONAL HOURS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY WERE SUCCESSFUL. SO SOME OF THE COMMUNITY OUTREACH EFFORTS HAVE BEEN AROUND CERTAIN SUBPOPULATIONS. WE SEE THAT THE GREATEST NUMBER OF CASES FOR THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN REPORTED TO THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT EXIST AMONGST LATINOS. THERE HAVE BEEN A LOT OF COMMUNITY OUTREACH EFFORTS TOWARDS THAT POPULATION, ESPECIALLY IN THE MONOLINGUAL COMMUNITY, BECAUSE WE RECOGNIZE THE SOCIAL ISSUES END UP BEING PROBLEMATIC IN TERMS OF DEVELOPING THAT RAPPORT AND TRUST. AND SO WITH SOME OF OUR PREVENTION PROGRAMS UNDER AMALIA MADRIGAL, WHO IS THE DIVISION MANAGER OVERSEEING THAT UNIT, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF OUTREACH ACTIVITIES CONDUCTED. AND IN CONJUNCTION WITH CENTRAL VALLEY OCCUPATIONAL [INAUDIBLE]. THERE HAVE BEEN A NUMBER OF EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS THAT HAVE BEEN PRODUCED. THERE'S BEEN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE HISPANIC CHAMBER. AND I ALSO WOULD LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT THANK OUR HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY. I SAW MARY ELLEN. YES, WHO WE'VE DONE AN EXTENSIVE AMOUNT OF PARTNERSHIP AS WELL THROUGH OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS. SO THANK YOU, MARY ELLEN. THERE HAVE BEEN FACEBOOK LIVE BROADCASTS THAT HAVE BEEN PLANTED-- OR POSTED-- ON SOME OF OUR PAGES. THERE'S AN OUTREACH PLAN UNDER DEVELOPMENT FOR THE HMONG POPULATION, HMONG COMMUNITY. SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS AND PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS. A LOT OF THIS OUTREACH ACTIVITY HAS TAKEN PLACE SINCE THE BEGINNING OF JULY AND WE'RE CONTINUING TO MOVE FORWARD WITH IT. SOME OF THE STATISTICS IN TERMS OF THE OUTREACH, WHAT HAVE OUR NUMBERS BEEN? HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE WE REACHED? THAT ACTUALLY WILL BE ON THE SUBSEQUENT SLIDE. BUT THE COVID-19 KITS THAT HAVE BEEN DISTRIBUTED BY COMMUNITY, THERE HAVE BEEN A TOTAL OF A LITTLE UNDER THREE THOUSAND KITS THAT HAVE BEEN DISTRIBUTED. AND SO THAT INCLUDES MASKS. WE ARE BIG PROPONENTS OF PEOPLE WEARING MASKS OR FACE SHIELDS OR ANYTHING THAT PROTECTS THEM FROM COMING INTO CONTACT OR SPREADING ANY TYPE OF DISEASE THEMSELVES. AND THE OUTREACH ACTIVITIES ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO BE ONGOING. THAT'S BEEN IN PLACE AGAIN SINCE THE BEGINNING OF JULY AS WELL. THE CAMPAIGNS THAT ARE UNDERWAY THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY INCLUDE MASK UP, READY TO OPEN, MR . DAVID [INAUDIBLE] SPOKE ABOUT THAT DURING OUR LAST BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MEETING TWO WEEKS AGO. THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE REACHED IN THE POST VIEWS ARE, TO THE RIGHT, THIRTY THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED SEVEN THOUSAND. THE NUMBER OF INTERACTIONS, THE NUMBER OF POST CLICKS, THE CLICKS THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE OVER THE POST. STAY SAFE, STAY OPEN WAS A CAMPAIGN THAT'S BEEN AROUND PROBABLY FOR THE LONGEST PERIOD OF TIME VIA FACEBOOK, THERE'S BEEN OUTREACH TO ONE HUNDRED THIRTY ONE THOUSAND INDIVIDUALS, TWENTY FIVE THOUSAND VIA INSTAGRAM. AND THE NUMBER OF INTERACTIONS HAS BEEN JUST SHY OF FIFTEEN THOUSAND AND ONE HUNDRED ON INSTAGRAM. AND SO THAT SPEAKS VERY LOOSELY TO SOME OF THE OUTREACH EFFORTS THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF PARTNERS, INCLUDING MERCED CITY FIRE AS WELL AS OUR SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT, WHO ARE CONDUCTING OUTREACH ACTIVITIES AS WELL. THE PLAN WAS, ABOUT A MONTH AGO, TO GIVE THE OVERALL PICTURE OF WHAT IT IS THAT WE'VE CONDUCTED, BUT WE'VE SINCE SHIFTED JUST BECAUSE OF THE NUMBER OF CASES WE'RE SEEING. SO WITHOUT FURTHER DELAY, WE'LL NOW OPEN UP FOR ANY QUESTIONS THE BOARD MAY HAVE. QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? [01:00:01] RIGHT, SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION, BUT I DO HAVE A THANK YOU. OH, OK, I'LL TAKE THAT. IS THAT, OK? YES, I WILL GO OUT PROTOCOL. NO. ANYWAYS, YOU KNOW, JUST OVER THE LAST FIVE MONTHS THAT WE'VE REALLY BEEN IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL THIS, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY EARLY ON I HAD, YOU KNOW, I GUESS SHARED SOME FRUSTRATIONS. AND ANYWAYS, BUT AS I LOOK BACK, I JUST WANT TO RECOGNIZE THE WORK THAT THE THREE OF YOU DO WITH YOUR TEAMS AND THAT I APPRECIATE IT. AND I THINK THE CITIZENS APPRECIATE IT. AND, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ARE SCARED AND FRUSTRATED AND, YOU KNOW, AND THERE'S NOT A LOT OF DATA. I MEAN, WE HAVE DATA. BUT, YOU KNOW, MOST PEOPLE DON'T BELIEVE THAT LIKE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE NATIONWIDE THAT HAVE DIED FROM COVID REALLY DIED FROM COVID. RIGHT. AND THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. AND SO IT'S BEEN A TUMULTUOUS, I GUESS, PROCESSION. BUT ANYWAYS, I JUST PERSONALLY WANTED TO THANK YOU PUBLICLY FOR DOING SUCH A GREAT JOB AND WORKING SO HARD AT DOING WHAT YOU DO. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. I GREATLY APPRECIATE IT ON BEHALF OF THE DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE IT HAS BEEN A LOT OF WORK AND THESE OUTBREAKS DON'T LAST FOR MORE THAN A COUPLE OF MONTHS FOR A LONG OUTBREAK. AND THIS HAS BEEN AN OUTBREAK FOR ALL OF 2020. AND I JUST, AGAIN, REALLY WANT TO COMMEND THE TEAM FOR OUR HIGHS AND OUR LOWS HAVE BEEN WITHIN A MANAGEABLE RANGE. AND THAT'S HARD TO ACHIEVE DURING AN OUTBREAK OR ANY TYPE OF OF GLOBAL CRISIS WHICH WE'RE NOW SEEING OCCURRING. WE'VE TAKEN HITS THAT HAVE HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH COVID-19, BUT THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF GRACE AND TACT. WE'VE HAD THE HONOR OF ONBOARDING HEALTH OFFICER DR SALVADOR SANDOVAL, WHO IS AN INSTITUTION IN MERCED COUNTY AND HAS GIVEN JUST AS MUCH, IF NOT MORE, FOR THE NUMBER OF HOURS THAT HE VOLUNTEERED EARLY ON. SO IT REALLY, REALLY, TRULY MEANS A LOT. AND THANK YOU FOR THAT. SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. THANK YOU, BECKY. AGAIN, UNDERSTANDING NOW MORE WHEN I CHALLENGE A LOT OF YOU FOLKS WITH THE DATA, UNDERSTANDING THE DATA THAT YOU'RE RECEIVING IS ALL THE DATA THAT YOU HAVE TO WORK WITH. SO I WOULD LET YOU KNOW THAT I HAVE A KNOWLEDGE THAT. ONE THING THAT I'VE BEEN TRACKING ON MY OWN, AND I'VE SHARED THIS WITH DAVID AND OUR CEO AND I'VE BEEN DOING TRACKING THE NUMBERS REPORTED DAILY BY PER CAPITA. AND WHAT'S INTERESTING, WHAT I'M SEEING BY TRACKING IT THAT WAY, IT LOOKS LIKE THE HOTBED BREAKOUT RIGHT NOW IS LIVINGSTON, FOLLOWED BY HILMAR, WINTON AND DELHI. AND WHAT'S INTERESTING ABOUT THAT, AND ACTUALLY CEO BROWN BROUGHT IT TO MY ATTENTION, IS THREE OF THOSE FOUR TOP PER CAPITA AREAS ARE ALL BASICALLY IN THE NORTH VALLEY TOUCHING STANISLAUS COUNTY, WHERE WE KNOW THEY HAVE A CONSIDERABLE LARGER OUTBREAK THAN WE HAVE. ACTUALLY IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THEIR COUNTY, WHICH IS TURLOCK AND IT TOUCHES--. EXACTLY. AND SO BESIDES WINTON, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF INTERACTION FROM WINTON WHO TRAVEL NORTH AND THEIR COMMUTING PATTERNS. SO I WONDER, IS THERE A FOCUS THAT WE'RE-- IS THERE ANY KIND OF UNISOM WORKING WITH STANISLAUS COUNTY OR IS THERE LIKE AN EDUCATIONAL PROCESS TO LET THOSE COMMUNITIES KNOW THAT-- AND WE KNOW THAT LIVINGSTON, HILMAR AND DELHI DO A LOT OF THEIR SHOPPING AND A LOT OF THEIR BUSINESS IS CONDUCTED IN STANISLAUS COUNTY. I JUST WONDER IF THERE'S-- IS THERE AN EFFORT OR HAVE YOU GUYS IDENTIFIED THAT ISSUE? WE HAVE. ACTUALLY WEEKLY, EVERY WEEK, THERE'S THREE CALLS WITH ALL THE PUBLIC HEALTH LEADERSHIP OF ALL THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY COUNTIES. AND TRUTHFULLY, EVERYBODY IS JUST SO SLAMMED AND INUNDATED THAT WHILE WE DO HAVE A SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY PUBLIC HEALTH CONSORTIUM WHICH TRIES TO HELP US IDENTIFY WHAT IT IS THAT WE COULD DO UNIFORMALLY, THE AMOUNT OF RESOURCES REALLY UNDERWHELMS THAT AMOUNT OF REQUESTS THAT WE RECEIVE. AND SO WE HAVE TO PRIORITIZE AND PICK AND CHOOSE WHAT WE'RE GOING TO MAKE A PRIORITY. AND ONE THING THAT WE HAVE DONE IS TRY TO START SHARING INFORMATION. BUT EVEN THAT SYSTEM OF SHARING DEPENDS ON SO MANY OTHER THINGS. IT'S JUST THIS HUGE COORDINATION. AND SO WE HAVE BEEN OUTREACHING TO STANISLAUS COUNTY. AS YOU KNOW, I CAME FROM STANISLAUS COUNTY, SPOKE TO THEM LAST WEEK. BUT WE'RE TRYING TO BE REALISTIC WITH THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE AND THE AMOUNT WE CAN DO TO TRY AND MAKE PROMISES WE CAN KEEP. TOTALLY UNDERSTAND. BUT WHAT'S INTERESTING, THOUGH, IN THE CONVERSATIONS WE HAVE WITH OUR CONSTITUENCY, IT SEEMS LIKE THE FINGERS ARE ALWAYS POINTING TO THE CITY OF MERCED OR TO THE CITY OF ATWATER. WHENEVER I LOOK AT IT, I THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT-- AND HILMAR, BEING A RURAL COMMUNITY AS WELL AS LIVINGSTON AND DELHI, IT JUST SEEMS LIKE THE WAY I'M DOING MY NUMBERS, THE FOCUS NEEDS TO BE WHERE WE'RE HAVING A LOT OF THE MIGRATION HAPPENING ACROSS THE COUNTY LINE RIGHT THERE. AND WE UNDERSTAND, YEAH, THERE ARE NO BOUNDARIES. [01:05:01] WE DON'T HAVE KIND OF LIKE ANY TYPE OF ENFORCEMENT AGAINST PEOPLE CROSSING BORDERS. THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS THAT WHEN ONE CITY OR ANY CITY, AND THAT MAY BE A LOT OF THOSE COMMUNITIES ARE SMALL, A LOT OF THOSE PEOPLE WE DO KNOW ACTUALLY TRAVEL TO OTHER CITIES TO WORK TO ALSO GATHER WITH INDIVIDUALS AND WHATNOT. AND THEY LIVE AT HOME. THOSE ARE PRETTY BEDROOM COMMUNITIES FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM. AND SO WHILE WE EMPHASIZE, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE NARRATIVE THAT'S BEING SHARED, IT DOES NOT HELP, I GUESS IS THE BEST WAY TO SAY IT. AND WE DO LOOK AT ABSOLUTE VALUES. I 100 PERCENT AGREE. IF YOU LOOK AT IT FROM A CAPITAL RATE AND THE PERCENTAGE AND THE PROPORTIONAL INCREASE, WE UNDERSTAND THAT. BUT WHEN IT COMES TO THE ABSOLUTE VALUES, WE'RE SEEING THE ABSOLUTE VALUES, AS YOU SAID, IN MERCED AND ATWATER. AND WE'RE ALSO SEEING SOME OF THE INFORMATION BEING REPORTED BACK THAT THERE'S A NUMBER OF CONTRIBUTING FACTORS IN THOSE AREAS AS WELL. DIFFERENCE BEING THE CITY OF MERCED HAS REALLY, I FEEL, RISEN TO THE OCCASION. AND I THINK THEY'VE DRAWN FROM THAT AS AN EXAMPLE IN TERMS OF LET'S DO SOME EDUCATION, LET'S DO SOME OUTREACH ACTIVITIES, LET'S MAKE SURE PEOPLE ARE AWARE. AND IT DOES TAKE A WHOLE VILLAGE. IT'S NOT JUST ONE UNCOORDINATED OPERATION AND THEN WITH THE CITY. WE NEED EVERYBODY INVOLVED IN THIS. THIS IS A COUNTY WIDE RESPONSE. THIS IS NOT A PUBLIC HEALTH RESPONSE. THIS IS A PUBLIC HEALTH DISEASE. WE'RE IN CHARGE OF IT BECAUSE IT'S A COMMUNICABLE DISEASE THAT FALLS UNDER OUR GOVERNMENTAL AND OUR LEGAL STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS. BUT IT REQUIRES EVERYBODY'S INVOLVEMENT TO REALLY GET THIS THING UNDER CONTROL. AND I APPRECIATE DR. ASADI FOR WHAT SHE STATED EARLIER, BECAUSE THAT ECHOES QUITE A BIT OF THE FRUSTRATION WE FEEL WHERE WE'RE KIND OF HANDICAPPED FROM BEING ABLE TO DO ANYTHING. AND THAT REALLY DOES BECOME A SIGNIFICANT POINT OF CONTENTION. I'LL SPEAK ON THAT PROFESSIONALLY AND PERSONALLY. AND SO JUST TWO WORDS. WE'VE GOT TO DO BETTER. JUST DO BETTER COLLECTIVELY. AND IN THAT DYNAMIC THAT I'VE BEEN TRACING TOO, WHAT'S INTERESTING IS-- AND IT SEEMS LIKE ONE OF THE COMMUNITIES AND MAYBE IT'S BECAUSE OF OLIVIA, IN PLANADA, THE GRAND AREA, WHO ARE SEEM TO BE THE MOST CONCERN. AND THEY ARE THE FARTHEST AWAY FROM STANISLAUS COUNTY AS A COMMUNITY AND THEY ARE THE LOWEST OUT OF THAT MATRIX. AND THOSE NUMBERS CONTINUE TO SHIFT AND WILL SHIFT. AND I REALLY AM QUITE SCARED. AND I OFTEN THINK, YOU KNOW, THIS IS MY STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS, BUT THAT COULD WE HAVE SAID IT DIFFERENTLY? COULD WE HAVE BEEN A BETTER EXAMPLE, COULD IT HAVE BEEN MESSAGED IN A WAY THAT PEOPLE REALLY UNDERSTOOD IT? AND UNFORTUNATELY, WE'RE FINDING A LOT OF THINGS THAT ARE FOREIGN TO US, ESPECIALLY THE AMOUNT OF MISINFORMATION. AND SO AS MUCH AS WE CAN EMPHASIZE WHAT WE KNOW IS VALID, SCIENTIFIC, TRUE AND EXPECTED, WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO THAT EVERY TIME WE'RE AT THIS BOARD. WELL, BECKY, YOUR EXPERIENCE AND A SMALL PART OF US MAKING A DECISION ON EVERY ITEM WE VOTE ON UP HERE ALL THE TIME. OH, YEAH. YOU'RE GOING TO OWE ME AFTER THIS. YOU GOT IT AGAIN FOR SURE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. BROWN, DID YOU HAVE A COMMENT BEFORE WE GO TO SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]? I WAS JUST GOING TO ADD THAT, ON THAT OUTREACH PIECE, SINCE WE HAVE LOOKED AT THAT INFORMATION RELATED TO PER CAPITA, WE ARE HAVING CONVERSATIONS INTERNALLY HOW TO HAVE SOME STRATEGIC, YOU KNOW, FOCUS OR OUTREACH TO THOSE COMMUNITIES, SPECIFICALLY THIS WEEK WITH OUR READY TO OPEN CAMPAIGN. YOU KNOW, WE'RE USING OUR FIRE GROUP, CAL FIRE, TO START TO GO OUT AND USING THE LOCAL STATIONS TO START WORKING IN THE COMMUNITIES. AND WE ORDERED USING CARES ACT DOLLARS, A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF FACE MASKS AND GAITERS AND EDUCATION MATERIAL THAT'S JUST COMING AVAILABLE THIS WEEK THAT'LL BE DISTRIBUTED ACROSS THE COUNTY. SO WE'RE GOING TO START TO USE THAT TYPE OF AREA TO BE ABLE TO TRY TO-- AND SO WE ARE TAKING A LOOK AT THOSE COMMUNITIES RIGHT NOW. THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. THANK YOU, CHAIR. JUST WANTED TO GO BACK AND TOUCH ON JUST THE INTERVIEWING, THE 14 CONTACT TRACERS, I THINK THAT'S A STEP IN THE RIGHT--. WANT ME TO GO BACK? NO, I JUST WANT TO BRING IT UP AGAIN. I KNOW YOU BROUGHT IT UP, BUT I JUST IT'S IMPORTANT. I DO-- I'M WITH YOU, WAS A LITTLE BIT FRUSTRATED WITH THE TONE OF THE ARTICLE THAT CAME OUT OF CAL MATTERS IN TALKING WITH YOU FOLKS OVER AT PUBLIC HEALTH AND I JUST, YOU KNOW, IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS WHERE YOU WONDER IF THEY ALREADY HAD THEIR STORY WRITTEN BEFORE THEY ACTUALLY INTERVIEWED US. I'M ALMOST SURE THAT WAS THE CASE. AND SO I HAVE NOT-- I'M GLAD I KNOW THAT BEHIND THE SCENES WE WORKED WITH THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE AND THE STATE STAFF TO LET THEM KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING SO THAT THEY WEREN'T HEARING THIS ARTICLE AS BRAND NEW. AND SO I WANT TO THANK YOU GUYS FOR THAT. AND IF I MAY COMMENT, THEY CAME OUT IN SUPPORT BASED ON THAT. AND THEY TOLD US: WE UNDERSTAND THE SITUATION. AND IT WAS VERY DESTRUCTIVE. FOR ALL THAT WORK THAT WE DO, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE VERY HIGHLY EDUCATED PEOPLE HERE. I HAVE MY TERMINAL DEGREE IN EPIDEMIOLOGY. AND I WAS TOLD IT'S JUST TOO BAD YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. [01:10:02] I WAS LIKE, OH, WELL, YOU KNOW, I HAD TO REMAIN CALM. YEAH. BUT IF I COULD HAVE REACHED THROUGH FIBEROPTICS, WHEW. I'D HAVE LOVED TO BEEN A LITTLE FLY ON THE WALL FOR THAT. BUT THANK YOU. AND, YOU KNOW, I'M GOING TO SAY IT AGAIN IS THIS IS SOMETHING BECAUSE I THINK WE'VE ALL WENT THROUGH OUR DEGREES OF WHAT WE THOUGHT THIS DISEASE WAS GOING TO BE. NONE OF US REALLY KNEW. WE WERE DRAWING ON ALL KINDS OF RESOURCES TO COME UP WITH CONCLUSIONS ON WHAT WE THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO DO. UM, AND I REMEMBER YOU SAYING THIS MONTHS AGO NOW, IS YOU GUYS ALL MIGHT BE DONE WITH COVID, BUT COVID IS NOT DONE WITH YOU. AND IT'S REAL. I MEAN, YOU KNOW, PERSONALLY, I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE FOLKS OVER THAT ARE DOING THE MOBILE TESTING SITE IN LOS BANOS. YOU KNOW, MY MOM JUST RECENTLY TESTED, UM, THANK GOD THAT I REPORT-- I DON'T THINK SHE'D BE-- I THINK SHE'D BE OK WITH ME SAYING SHE CAME BACK NEGATIVE. UM, BUT IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS WHERE EVEN THOUGH SHE IS CONVINCED SHE DIDN'T HAVE IT, I COULD TELL THAT YOU TALK ABOUT THE MENTAL HEALTH ASPECT OF IT, THE CHANGE IN, UM, HER DEMEANOR FOR THE FIVE DAYS THAT WE WAITED TO GET THE RESULTS AND THEN AND WHEN THE EMAIL ACTUALLY CAME TO ME. AND SO I CALLED HER SUNDAY MORNING AND SAID, HEY, YOUR RESULTS CAME BACK AND THEY ARE NEGATIVE AND YOU COULD ALMOST HEAR THE RELIEF OVER THE PHONE. AND SO THOSE FOLKS ARE DOING A GREAT JOB OVER THERE. I ACTUALLY WENT OUT ON MONDAY, A WEEK AGO MONDAY, WHEN THEY WERE THERE FOR THEIR FIRST DAY AND JUST KIND OF WENT AND CHECKED IT OUT. THEY WERE TWEAKING A FEW THINGS JUST ON LOGISTICS, ON HOW YOU GET IN AND GET OUT. BUT-- AND THE TURNAROUND TIME ON THAT ONE WAS, UH, FIVE DAYS. SO I'M OPTIMISTIC AND HOPEFULLY MORE FOLKS, AND I'LL PUSH IT OUT ON SOME OF MY SOCIAL MEDIA STUFF AGAIN TO REMIND FOLKS THAT THAT'S AN OPTION. AND IT'S RIGHT THERE IN LOS BANOS. AND THIS ISN'T THE ONE WHERE THEY SWAB YOUR BRAIN. THEY JUST-- YOU SWAB INSIDE YOUR NOSE AND THEY'RE ABLE TO DO IT. SO, AGAIN, I KNOW I'VE SAID IT. I APPRECIATE MY COLLEAGUES SAYING IT, THANK YOU GUYS FOR WHAT YOU DO. AGAIN, YOU GUYS ARE ALWAYS, NO MATTER WHAT YOUR NEWS IS, SOMEBODY IS NOT GOING TO BE HAPPY WITH IT. BUT I KNOW YOU GUYS GOT A JOB TO DO AND YOU'RE DOING WELL AT IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. I THINK I WOULD LIKE TO COMMENT ON THE CAL [INAUDIBLE] ARTICLE AS WELL, AS THEY CALLED ME WITH SOME OF THE QUESTIONS AND IT WAS VERY LEADING. I DIDN'T HAVE MUCH ROOM TO GO EITHER WAY. THEY HAD ALREADY-- THE WRITER WAS ALREADY DETERMINED THE OUTCOME THAT SHE WANTED OUT OF THAT ARTICLE. AND SO BY THE TIME I WAS DONE WITH IT, I WAS SO FRUSTRATED IN THE CONVERSATION THAT I WALKED AWAY FROM IT. SO. AND I WAS ACTUALLY TRYING TO AVOID TO TALK TO HER FOR A LONG TIME, TRYING TO GATHER INFORMATION. SO I HAD IT. BUT SHE HAPPENED TO CALL ME AND GIVE ME--. AND I UNDERSTAND. THANK YOU FOR THAT. I UNDERSTAND BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, BUT HOW WE DID IT, IT WAS DEVASTATING TO THE TEAM, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE IT WAS PATENTLY FALSE. AND THAT WAS THE FRUSTRATING THING IS THAT WE KIND OF KNEW THE DIRECTION WE WOULD LAND, BUT WE FELT IT WAS APPROPRIATE TO TAKE THAT COURSE AND TRY AND PUT IN AS MUCH AS WE CAN TO HAVE IT REBUTTED. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? IN THE MIDST OF A CRISIS, A PANDEMIC, THERE IS GOING TO BE THAT HICCUP. AND IT'S NOT HOW YOU FALL, IT'S HOW YOU GET BACK UP, YOU KNOW. SO DUST OFF, KEEP MOVING. IT WAS THE THING FOR SEVEN DAYS. AND NOW THERE'S OTHER THINGS AND WE'VE GOT A JOB TO DO AND WE'RE GOING TO STAY THE COURSE ON THAT. THANK YOU. I DO HAVE A FEW THINGS. FOR STAFF, IN OUR NEXT COVID UPDATE FOR THE WATCH LIST METRICS. CAN YOU COLOR CODE RED OR GREEN? THANK YOU. AND THEN THE COUNTY AND OUR PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT HAS DONE MORE GRASSROOTS COMMUNITY OUTREACH EFFORTS, AND I'D LIKE TO ASK STAFF TO SPEAK TO THAT A LITTLE BIT. AND BEFORE I DO THAT, THOUGH, I HAVE ASKED STAFF BEFORE AND WILL ASK AGAIN FOR ALL COUNTY STAFF TO CONTINUE ADOPTING THESE GRASSROOTS MORE COMMUNITY OUTREACH EFFORTS IN OUR REGULAR CONVERSATIONS AND OUR REGULAR OPERATIONS. SO, STAFF, COULD YOU SPEAK TO SOME OF THE PARTNERSHIPS THAT WE HAVE FORMED WITH LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS, WHETHER THEY BE BUSINESSES OR NON-PROFITS, AROUND CONTACT TRACING AND OUTREACH TO NEIGHBORHOODS WITH HIGHER NUMBERS OR MORE RURAL NEIGHBORHOODS? AND IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION TODAY THAT WOULD BE GREAT, IF NOT, THE NEXT UPDATE WOULD BE APPRECIATED. I'M GOING TO BRING UP MS. [INAUDIBLE] HERNANDEZ, WHO CAN GIVE SPECIFICS. [01:15:01] THANK YOU. AND I CAN GO QUICKLY OVER SOME OF THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE'VE REACHED OUT AND WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH. WE HAVE REACHED OUT TO THE LAO FAMILY AND WE'VE HAD SUCCESS IN CONNECTING. WE DID WORK WITH THE [INAUDIBLE] ON CONNECTING US WITH SOME OF THE HMONG LEADERS AND WE WORKED WITH [INAUDIBLE] TO DO A LOT OF THE OUTREACH THAT THEY HAVE SET THERE. AND MOST RECENTLY, WE ARE GOING OUT TO THE COMMUNITY TO DO DIRECT EDUCATION TO OUR EMPLOYERS THERE AS WELL. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. YEAH. ARE THERE FOLKS IN THE ROOM THAT YOU'VE FORMED PARTNERSHIPS WITH? YES, ABSOLUTELY. WE'RE WORKING WITH THE CEO'S OFFICE AS WELL AS HSA TO DO THIS WORK. OK, AND WHAT ABOUT CENTRAL VALLEY OPPORTUNITY CENTER? CENTRAL VALLEY-- WE ARE IN THAT PROCESS OF DOING THAT PARTNERSHIP. AND SO IT'S A CONTRACT IN PLACE, ONCE THAT CHECKS IN PLACE, WE CAN DO MORE EDUCATION WITH THEM. OK, THANKS. AND THEN TODAY, STAFF IS DOING EDUCATION WITH THE HISPANIC CHAMBER AND HAVE OFFERED TO ALL OF THE BUSINESSES TO DO EDUCATION ON SITE. AND THE EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS WILL BE POSTED ON OUR WEBSITE AND SHARED WITH OUR BUSINESSES ON EDUCATION AROUND COVID AND WHAT THEY CAN DO WHILE THEY'RE AT WORK. THANK YOU. [INAUDIBLE] AND THEN SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. JUST TO ADD TO THAT. YES, ON YOUR AGENDA TODAY IS A CONTRACT WITH CENTRAL-- CVOC CENTRAL VALLEY OPPORTUNITY CENTER, TO HELP WITH THAT OUTREACH. IN ADDITION, WHERE WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING PUT TOGETHER YET, BUT WE'RE REACHING OUT TO OTHERS, YOU KNOW, EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, UNITED WAY OR OTHERS THAT CAN ALSO BE ABLE TO ASSIST WITH OUTREACH. I THINK SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE] WHAT YOU SAID AS FAR AS WHAT'S BEEN SUGGESTED TO ME FROM NUMEROUS SOURCES IS IT IS DOES HAS TO BE MORE OF A GRASSROOTS BECAUSE I'M SORRY, GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY TRYING TO HELP PEOPLE. IT'S BEEN A CHALLENGE. AND SO WE ARE TRYING TO FIND OTHER RESOURCES CHAMPIONS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY THAT CAN HELP WITH THAT, YOU KNOW, TO HOPEFULLY PERSONALIZE IT MORE FOR THE VARIOUS COMMUNITIES. ADDING TO THAT AND MAKING IT PERSONAL, USING DATA TO REALLY TELL THE STORY AND LINKING A FACE TO THAT. SO WE ARE ALSO WORKING WITH OUR OPS TEAM TO IDENTIFY INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE WILLING TO SHARE THEIR STORY. WE DO HAVE ONE PERSON POTENTIALLY, TOO, THAT AFTER THEY'RE OUT OF QUARANTINE, THEY'LL BE ABLE TO SHARE THEIR STORY BECAUSE THEY WERE ONCE NOT BELIEVERS AND NOW THEY ARE. AND WE ARE DOING TARGETED EDUCATION DEPENDING ON THE DATA THAT WE SEE. SO HOPEFULLY YOU'LL SEE MORE COMING OUT FROM THE TEAM. THANK YOU. AND THEN A REQUEST FOR DR. NANJAYO OR MAYBE MR. [INAUDIBLE], IF HE'S HERE, WHAT IS OUR MESSAGE TO THE COMMUNITY? SO WE'VE DONE-- WE'VE LAUNCHED OUR CAMPAIGN IN OUR UPDATE TODAY AND IN OUR FUTURE UPDATES, IF WE COULD QUICKLY INCLUDE OUR MESSAGE TO THE COMMUNITY, THAT'D BE GREAT. OK. YES, WE WILL. SO BRIEFLY TODAY, REAL QUICK AND THEN IN THE FUTURE. SO ARE YOU SPEAKING TO THE MASK UP MERCED INITIATIVE? YES. FANTASTIC. YES. SO WE HAVE LAUNCHED THE MASK UP MERCED COUNTY INITIATIVE. WE DID IT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE SIX CITIES. SO WE HAVE LOGOS CREATED FOR EACH COMMUNITY AS WELL AS THE CITIES IN ENGLISH, SPANISH AND HMONG. AND SO I JUST GOT NOTIFICATION THAT THE BILLBOARD WENT UP ON NINETY NINE AND RIGHT OFF NINETY NINE WITH THE CITY OF MERCED'S BILLBOARD. SO IT SAYS MASK UP MERCEDE COUNTY. WE ARE WORKING AS CEO BROWN MENTIONED EARLIER, WE HAVE A LARGE ORDER OF MASKS AND GAITERS THAT WILL BE DISTRIBUTED THROUGH THE EFFORTS OF THE BUSINESS EDUCATION THROUGH CAL FIRE, AS WELL AS THE PARTNERSHIPS THAT MS. MADRIGAL HERNANDEZ SPOKE OF EARLIER. SO THOSE WILL GET DISTRIBUTED OUT AS WELL AS SOME OUT TO THE CITIES TO GIVE OUT. THAT HAS ALSO BEEN IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE READY TO OPEN CAMPAIGN, WHICH, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE BEEN PARTNERING WITH THE CITIES ON THAT AS WELL, TO GET THAT MESSAGE OUT ON THE BUSINESS SIDE, TO GET, YOU KNOW, THE WINDOW CLINGS IN THEIR BUSINESSES, SO THE EMPLOYEES AND THE CUSTOMERS KNOW THAT THAT BUSINESS IS TAKING IT SERIOUSLY AND IT'S A SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR BOTH. THANK YOU. SO WE'RE ASKING RESIDENTS TO MASK UP. MASK UP. YES. WASH THEIR HANDS, STAY HOME. PRACTICE SOCIAL DISTANCING. ABSOLUTELY. SIX FEET. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. WOULD THE BOARD LIKE TO TAKE A FIVE, 10 MINUTE BREAK? FIVE MINUTES. GOOD. FIVE MINUTES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. WELCOME BACK, EVERYONE. WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND MOVE ON WITH THE MEETING AND I'LL [CONSENT CALENDAR] [01:20:04] TURN IT OVER TO STAFF. NEXT IS APPROVAL OF CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS ONE THROUGH 13. PLEASE NOTE, A 4/5 VOTE IS REQUIRED ON ITEMS 10 AND 13. BEFORE I TAKE A MOTION, CEO BROWN? JUST FOR THE BOARD AND FOR THE RECORD, A CLARIFICATION. ITEM NUMBER THREE IS A CONTRACT EXTENSION. THE RECOMMENDATION MENTIONS TO GO THROUGH DECEMBER 31ST OF TWENTY. AND WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THERE IS A WHAT I CALL A TYPO IN PART OF THE CONTRACT THERE AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE ACTION THAT THE BOARD HAS TAKEN IS UNDERSTAND, SO WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO CORRECT THAT AFTER THE FACT. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? MOTIONED BY SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA? PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU. AND RECORD THE VOTE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO WITH ONE ABSENT, SUPERVISOR ESPINOSA COULD NOT BE HERE TODAY. NEXT IS BOARD ACTION PUBLIC [BOARD ACTION] WORKS ITEMS 14 THROUGH 17. PLEASE NOTE A FOUR FIFTHS VOTE IS REQUIRED ON ITEM 16 AND 17. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE] IS ON [INAUDIBLE] COMMISSIONER. OK, LET ME HAVE STAFF ANNOUNCE IT. NEXT IS AG COMMISSIONER ITEMS 18 THROUGH 24. THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. YES, I WAS GOING TO MAKE THE MOTION, BUT IT'S NOT QUITE LOADED YET, BUT I JUST WANT TO COMMEND THE AG COMMISSIONER ON GIVING US ALL THESE CONTRACTS. THEY'RE VERY SIMILAR IN NATURE, UM, AND BRINGING THEM ALL AT ONCE AS A PERSON THAT HAS TO GO THROUGH AND READ ALL OF THEM AND MAKE SURE EVERYTHING'S CORRECT AND KNOWS WHAT HE'S VOTING ON. IT MAKES IT A LOT EASIER WHEN YOU'RE SEEING A LOT OF THE SAME CONTRACT ALL AT ONE TIME. SO I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THAT. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. YEAH I WAS ACTUALLY GOING TO ASK WHO IS THE AG COMMISSIONER HERE IN THE BUILDING? AND I SEE THAT HE IS HERE. SO WELCOME. AND AGAIN, I'D LIKE TO SAY THE SAME THING THAT MY COLLEAGUE HAD SAID. GOOD JOB ON GETTING THESE ALL UP HERE IN FRONT OF US. BACK TO SUPERVISOR SILVER. OK, SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL, DID YOU HAVE ANOTHER IT POPPED UP. OH, OK, THANK YOU. IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE], SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. ONE MORE TIME SUPERVISOR. GREAT, THANK YOU. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS HEALTH, ITEMS TWENTY FIVE AND TWENTY SIX. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE]. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU. RECORD THE VOTE. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND RECOVERY SERVICES, ITEMS TWENTY SEVEN AND TWENTY EIGHT. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. [01:25:03] MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY ITEM TWENTY NINE. THANK YOU. DO STAFF HAVE COMMENTS REAL QUICK? THANK YOU. STILL MORNING. MORNING. [INAUDIBLE] BROWN, THE HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY DIRECTOR, AND IT IS WITH GREAT PLEASURE TO OUR MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, JIM BROWN, CEO AND [INAUDIBLE] SENT ME FOR [INAUDIBLE] OUR COUNTY COUNCIL. IT IS A GREAT PLEASURE THAT I STAND BEFORE YOU TO INTRODUCE OUR NEW VETERAN OFFICER. FIRST, I WANT TO APOLOGIZE FOR TAKING THE [INAUDIBLE] COMING FORTH. WHEN WE HIRED RALPH, I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PANDEMIC. HE STARTED ON MAY 30TH, AND I THINK HE CAME RUNNING IN AND DEALING WITH THE HOMELESS AND OUTREACH CHANGES. SO I WANTED TO APOLOGIZE PUBLICLY FOR NOT BRINGING THIS ITEM BEFORE TODAY, BUT WITHOUT FURTHER DELAY, I WANT TO INTRODUCE MR. RALPH SILVA RODRI--. HOLD ON. TO THE MEMBERS. LET ME GIVE YOU A LITTLE ABOUT HIS BACKGROUND. RALPH IS A MILITARY AND WORK [INAUDIBLE] IS AS FOLLOWS. HE PROUDLY SERVED IN THE U.S. MARINES. HE SERVED IN YUMA, ARIZONA, FROM 1998 TO 2000. HIS MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY WAS THE SOPI ADMINISTRATION. WHILE THERE, HE WAS MERITORIOUSLY PROMOTED AS THE LANCE CORPORAL AND HE RECEIVED HIS CERTIFICATION CERTIFICATE OF ACCOMMODATION AND COMPLETED THE FORMAL MILITARY COURT LEADERSHIP COURSE. HE SERVED IN MOUNT FUJI, JAPAN, FROM 2000 TO 2001. HIS MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY WAS SUPPLY ADMINISTRATION. HE, WHILE STATIONED IN JAPAN, HE SERVED AS A GOOD CONDUCT-- HE RECEIVED A GOOD CONDUCT MEDAL. [INAUDIBLE] SERVICE DEPLOYMENT MEDAL, MERITORIOUS MASK, CERTIFICATE AND COMMENDATION AND COMPLETED HIS CORPORAL COURSE ONE DASH ZERO TWO. SERVED IN FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, FROM 2002 TO 2005 AS THE WAREHOUSE CHIEF SUPPORTER OF 14 WESTERN STATES WITH SUPPLIES AS WELL AS DEPLOYED TO IRAQ. RALPH IS CURRENTLY THE VICE PRESIDENT OF BOTH THE ATWATER YOUTH SOCCER LEAGUE AND ATWATER [INAUDIBLE] COMPETITIVE SOCCER CLUB. I KNOW I SEE YOU SHAKING YOUR HEAD. RALPH HAS ALSO VOLUNTEERS-- HE VOLUNTEERS TO COOK AT THE VETERANS AT THE WINTON VFW. RALPH ALSO WORKS WITH MERCED HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY SINCE TWENTY SEVENTEEN. HIS POSITION WAS A FAMILY SERVICES REPRESENTATIVE, PROCUREMENT SPECIALIST, STAFF SERVICES ANALYST, AND WAS PROMOTED TO NOW THE NEW VETERANS OFFICER. SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, I WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE RALPH TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AND TO THE COMMUNITY OF MERCED, CALIFORNIA. GOOD MORNING, BOARD. I JUST WANT TO SAY I'M VERY HUMBLED AND I'M VERY HAPPY THAT I WAS TRUSTED WITH THIS POSITION. I FEEL LIKE THIS A JOB THAT I CAN'T FAIL AT. THIS IS A POPULATION THAT IS VERY DEAR TO MY HEART AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO ACCOMPLISH THIS MISSION. THE VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES DESERVE THE VERY BEST, AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I'M GOING TO GIVE THEM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I BELIEVE SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL HAS A COMMENT. YEAH, NO QUESTION OR COMMENT. BUT I JUST WANT TO-- RALPH [INAUDIBLE], I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR STEPPING UP AND SERVING OUR VETERANS. VERY PROUD OF THAT. JOHN [INAUDIBLE] AND RICKY POWELL HAVE TWO PREVIOUS VSOS HAVE NOTHING BUT GREAT THINGS TO SAY ABOUT YOU. VETERANS ARE VERY DEAR TO MY HEART. I DO EVERYTHING I CAN. YOU HAVE MY NUMBER. CALL ME ANYTIME YOU NEED HELP FOR ANYTHING AND REALLY APPRECIATE YOU, MARINE, FOR STEPPING UP TO DO THIS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU, WELCOME. THANK YOU. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA, PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. RECORD THE VOTE, PLEASE. [01:30:16] THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ITEM 30. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA, THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS ELECTIONS ITEMS THIRTY ONE AND THIRTY TWO. PLEASE NOTE THERE'S BEEN A CHANGE TO ITEM THIRTY ONE. THE SUMMARY STATES THAT FUNDS MUST BE EXPENDED BY DECEMBER THIRTY FIRST TWENTY TWENTY AND MEET THE FEDERALLY MANDATED TWENTY PERCENT MATCH REQUIREMENT. THE TWENTY PERCENT MATCH REQUIREMENT IS NO LONGER REQUIRED. ON THE SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS PARAGRAPH FOUR OF THE SUPPORTING RESOLUTION WILL BE MODIFIED TO REMOVE REFERENCE TO THE TWENTY PERCENT MATCH REQUIREMENT AND WILL READ AS FOLLOWS, WHEREAS THE FUNDS MUST BE EXPENDED BY DECEMBER THIRTY FIRST, TWENTY TWENTY. THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. BARBARA LEVY, ASSESSOR CLERK, RECORDER REGISTRAR VOTERS. AS WAS JUST MENTIONED, I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE AWARE THAT THE BOARD'S AGENDA ITEM AND THE RESOLUTION MENTIONED THAT MATCH, WHICH IS TYPICAL FOR ELECTION FUNDING. HOWEVER, THAT AS OF YESTERDAY, WAS REMOVED. THE MATCH REQUIREMENT WAS REMOVED FOR THE CORONAVIRUS FUNDING. AND IN ADDITION, YESTERDAY WE DID RECEIVE OUR AMOUNTS FOR THIS FUNDING, WHICH WE HAD NOT RECEIVED IN TIME FOR THE AGENDA ITEM. BUT MERCED WILL RECEIVE JUST OVER THREE HUNDRED AND THIRTY TWO THOUSAND IN FUNDING FOR A GOOD PORTION OF THE ELECTION RESPONSE TO CORONAVIRUS AND IN ADDITION, ALMOST SIXTY ONE THOUSAND FOR OUR OUTREACH AND EDUCATION EFFORTS FOR THE CHANGE TO THE ALL MAIL ELECTION AND THE-- SOME OF THE CHANGES WE NEED TO MAKE AGAIN TO INCORPORATE THE CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE. AND WITH THAT, THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM MS. LEVY? THANK YOU. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT TO SHERIFF ITEMS THIRTY THREE AND THIRTY FOUR. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR PEREIRA. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES ITEM THIRTY FIVE. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. SUPERVISOR PAREIRA, THANK YOU. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS EXECUTIVE OFFICE ITEMS THIRTY SIX THROUGH THIRTY EIGHT. PLEASE NOTE A 4/5 VOTE IS REQUIRED ON ITEM THIRTY SIX. THANK YOU. AND I'M GOING TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION FOR THIRTY SEVEN AND THIRTY EIGHT, SEPARATE FROM THIRTY SIX. DO WE NEED TO DO THAT? THE--. WE NEED TO DO THEM ALL SEPARATELY. OK, AND DO 37, 38, 37, YES. MOTION BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. SURE. ALEXANDRA, THANK YOU. WOULD YOU COMMENT ON THIRTY SEVEN? [01:35:16] DEPUTY COUNTY EXECUTIVE OFFICER. WITH THE RISING COVID-19 CASES WITHIN OUR COUNTY NOW MORE THAN EVER, INCREASED STRATEGIES ARE NEEDED TO PROMOTE PREVENTION AND SAFETY MEASURES WITH THE GOAL OF REDUCING OUR COMMUNITY SPREAD. AS IDENTIFIED EARLIER IN DR. NANJANYO-KEMP'S PRESENTATION, OUTREACH AND EDUCATION HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS ESSENTIAL MITIGATION STRATEGIES. IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR SIX CITIES, WE'VE LAUNCHED SEVERAL COORDINATED CAMPAIGNS, INCLUDING MASK UP MERCED COUNTY, ENCOURAGING ALL COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO WEAR CLOTH FACE COVERINGS WHILE IN PUBLIC AND THEN ALSO READY TO OPEN, GEARED TO SUPPORT OUR BUSINESS COMMUNITY. IN ADDITION, PUBLIC HEALTH HAS INTENSIFIED THEIR EFFORTS BY PROVIDING DAILY OUTREACH EVENTS HELD THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY, AS MENTIONED EARLIER. AND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HSA, THE OUTREACH TEAM HAS PROVIDED THOUSANDS OF MASKS, SANITIZERS AND EDUCATION MATERIALS TO OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS. TO COMPLEMENT THESE CURRENT EFFORTS AND TO AMPLIFY OUR REACH THROUGHOUT OUR DIVERSE COMMUNITY, PARTNERING WITH COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS IS KEY. THIS CONTRACT WITH CENTRAL VALLEY OPPORTUNITY CENTER, ALSO KNOWN AS CVOC, WILL BUILD ON CVOC'S ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN THE AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITY TO PROVIDE OUTREACH AND EDUCATION TO FARM WORKERS, LABOR CONTRACTORS AND TO OUR MIGRANT CAMP RESIDENTS. IT IS MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE JORGE [INAUDIBLE], THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF CVOC, TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT OUR PROGRAM. THANK YOU, ALEXANDRA. GOOD MORNING, SUPERVISORS. GOOD MORNING, MERCED COUNTY STAFF. FORGET WHAT COUNTY I'M IN SOMETIMES. I GET TO DO THIS THREE DIFFERENT TIMES FROM [INAUDIBLE] ALL THE WAY DOWN TO MADERA. NONETHELESS, AS ALEXANDRA MENTIONED, MY NAME IS JORGE [INAUDIBLE] JUNIOR. I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF CENTRAL VALLEY OPPORTUNITY CENTER. WE ARE A-- I'D LIKE TO SAY, A SMALL COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATION OUT IN WINTON CALIFORNIA. HOWEVER, WE DO PROVIDE SERVICES FROM STANISLAUS COUNTY ALL THE WAY TO MADERA COUNTY. THE OPPORTUNITY THAT YOU HAVE BEFORE YOU TODAY WITH ITEM THIRTY SEVEN-- THIS IS A SCALED UP VERSION OF AN OUTREACH PROGRAM THAT CVOC HAS BEEN DOING FOR DECADES. PRESENTLY, WE ARE DOING THIS FROM MAY THROUGH THE END OF THE YEAR. WE GO OUT INTO THE FIELDS AND WE FEED FARM WORKERS. WE DO HAVE A CULINARY COOKING PROGRAM IN WINTON, WHICH SOME OF YOU ARE AWARE OF. SO WE PREPARE MEALS AND WE GO OUT INTO THE FIELDS AND WE USE THAT MEAL AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO EDUCATE FARM WORKERS ON A WIDE RANGE OF SERVICE. THIS YEAR, THE FOCUS HAS BEEN ON COVID-19. WE HAVE BEEN DOING PPE DISTRIBUTIONS IN THE FIELDS. WE ALSO ARE DOING TUTORIALS ON HAND WASHING AND THE PROPER WAY TO USE A FACE COVERING. WE ALSO DISTRIBUTE EDUCATION MATERIALS THROUGH CERTIFIED ORGANIZATIONS LIKE THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA AND THE CDC. AND WE ARE ALSO TRACKING INFORMATION AS FAR AS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS THAT WE ARE GETTING FROM FARM WORKERS. AND THERE IS A LOT OF FEAR IN THE FARM WORKER COMMUNITY, AS YOU KNOW. THE OPPORTUNITY BEFORE YOU ALLOWS US TO EXPAND ON OUR EXISTING PROGRAM SO WE WILL BE ABLE TO GO OUT INTO THE FIELDS ON A DAILY BASIS AND TARGET THE MAJOR COMMUNITIES IN MERCED COUNTY. AND AS YOU SAID EARLIER, SUPERVISOR DANIEL, THAT THAT NORTHERN PART OF OUR COUNTY THAT BUTTS UP TO STANISLAUS COUNTY, I KNOW VERY WELL. LIKE I SAID, I GET TO DO THIS THREE DIFFERENT TIMES. AND THAT IS A VERY BIG FOCAL POINT, NOT JUST HERE IN MERCED COUNTY, BUT ALSO FOR STANISLAUS COUNTY AS WELL. WITH THAT SAID, I WILL POINT OUT ONE MORE ASPECT IN THAT CVOC HAS BEEN DOING THIS IN MERCED COUNTY FOR OVER FORTY ONE YEARS NOW. AND WE ARE PROUD TO BE ABLE TO BE A RESOURCE FOR THE COMMUNITY AND LOOK FORWARD TO PARTNERING NOT ONLY WITH PUBLIC HEALTH, BUT WITH HSA AND ALL OF OUR SAID COUNTY AS WELL. I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT OR ANYTHING ABOUT SAY . THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. ALL RIGHT. GOOD TO SEE YOU HERE. A LITTLE PREVIEW OF LIFE TOGETHER, BUT IT'S AMAZING HOW WE'RE SERVING THE COMMUNITY NOW IN A DIFFERENT CAPACITY. YEAH, IT'S GREAT, ISN'T IT? I FEEL REALLY GOOD ABOUT YOU TAKING ON THIS AND GOING BACK TO WHERE YOU SAID THE NORTHERN PART OF THE COUNTY AND STANISLAUS. SO ARE YOU DOING THE SAME TYPE OF STUFF-- STANISLAUS COUNTY PARTNERING WITH YOU TO DO THIS AS WELL AS MAYBE MADERA COUNTY? SO THIS JUST BROADENS WHAT YOUR OUTREACH IS GOING TO BE? BECAUSE WE GET A LOT OF THE FOLKS GOING BACK AND FORTH--. WHEN I WAKE UP EVERY MORNING, THAT IS MY HOPE. YEAH. UNFORTUNATELY, MERCED COUNTY IS TAKING ACTION, WHEREAS THE OTHER COUNTIES THAT WE'RE SERVING ARE STILL TALKING ABOUT TAKING ACTION AND THAT IS A CROSS THAT I HAVE TO BEAR. BUT I HOPE THAT WE DO MAKE PROGRESS. [01:40:02] TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE, IN STANISLAUS COUNTY THERE'S COMPETING TASK FORCE AND COMMITTEES AND YOU HAVE A LOT OF ESTABLISHED COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS THAT THINK THEY HAVE THE RIGHT WAY TO DO IT. AND THEN YOU HAVE ANOTHER OPINION AND THERE'S A LOT OF BACK AND FORTH STILL GOING ON, SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. SO I HOPE TO BREAK THROUGH THAT GLASS AND AND DUPLICATE WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO, HOPEFULLY HERE IN MERCED COUNTY. I'D LOVE TO BE ABLE TO HELP WITH THAT. YEAH, GREAT. AND PLEASE CALL SUPERVISOR [INAUDIBLE] AND LET THEM KNOW THAT WHAT WE'RE DOING AND HOW WE'RE LEADING THE WAY ON THAT. THAT'S AN EASY CALL. AND THAT'S A THAT'S A GREAT CHAMPION RIGHT THERE. IT'S JUST THE FEW OTHER ONES THAT I HAVE TO CONVINCE. OK, THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING. AND WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. MY PLEASURE. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? NO. I DID HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH YOU IN DETAIL LAST WEEK, SO I REALLY APPRECIATE LEARNING A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU DO AND WHAT YOU PLAN TO DO WITH THIS PARTNERSHIP. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MY PLEASURE, I'M HERE TO SERVE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. WE HAVE A MOTION BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA AND SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. HOLD ON. I HAD-- MY APOLOGIES. I HAD A MOTION BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. SECOND BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL EARLIER. IS THAT GOING TO BE A PROBLEM? OK. OK, THANK YOU. THIS WASN'T IN THE SYSTEM. OK, PERFECT. THANK YOU. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. RECORD THE VOTE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. THEN ITEM NUMBER ITEM THIRTY SIX. [INAUDIBLE] MADAM CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. THE EFFECTS OF COVID ARE FAR REACHING AND EVER EVOLVING, TOUCHING NEARLY EVERY PART OF OUR DAILY LIVES. AS WE CONTINUE TO MONITOR THIS NEW CLIMATE, PLANNING FOR THE HEALTH OF OUR COMMUNITY, INCLUDING PHYSICAL HEALTH, MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH, ECONOMIC HEALTH IS PARAMOUNT. THE ECONOMIC DOWNTURN CAUSED BY THIS GLOBAL PANDEMIC HAS SUBSTANTIALLY IMPACTED THE FISCAL LANDSCAPE AT THE FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL. THESE IMPACTS EXTEND TO THE COUNTY'S BUDGET, INCLUDING THE AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES TO PROVIDE ESSENTIAL PROGRAMS AND SERVICES. WE ARE FOCUSED ON FINDING A WAY TO MAINTAIN THESE SERVICES TO ENSURE THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF OUR LOCAL COMMUNITIES DURING THE RECOVERY AHEAD. WITH UNCERTAINTY STILL LOOMING WITHIN THE FEDERAL AND STATE TERRAIN, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE REMAIN FISCALLY PRUDENT AND LOOK FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING SOURCES THAT ARE GENERATED LOCALLY AND TO STAY LOCAL TO ADDRESS OUR LOCAL NEEDS. PRIOR TO COVID, THE BOARD EXPRESSED PRIORITIES IN LONG TERM AREAS, INCLUDING EMERGENCY AND SAFETY SERVICES, COMMUNITY SERVICES AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. OTHERWISE, QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUES. FUNDING THESE PRIORITIES, ALONG WITH MAINTAINING VITAL COUNTY SERVICES AND COVID RECOVERY, WILL BE EXTREMELY CHALLENGING WITHOUT SECURING AN ADDITIONAL REVENUE SOURCE. TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE NEEDS AND PRIORITIES OF THE COMMUNITY, STAFF WORKED WITH THE FIRM TO CONDUCT LOCAL INDEPENDENT PUBLIC OPINION RESEARCH IN THE SUMMER OF 2019 AND AGAIN IN JUNE THIS YEAR DURING THE IMPACTS OF COVID. SOME OF THE TOP COMMUNITY PRIORITIES IDENTIFIED IN THE RESEARCH INCLUDE MAINTAINING NINE ONE ONE EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND FIRE PROTECTION SERVICES, PROTECTING AND MAINTAINING SHERIFF RESPONSE TIMES, PREVENTING VIOLENT CRIME AND GANG ACTIVITY, KEEPING PUBLIC SAFE SPACES SAFE AND CLEAN, ENSURING ALL FUNDS ARE USED ONLY WITHIN THE COUNTY AND ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS. THE RESEARCH POLLING IDENTIFIED THAT SEVENTY FIVE PERCENT OF THE RESIDENTS POLLED RECOGNIZE THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL LOCAL FUNDING. IN ADDITION, THE POLLING SHOWED THAT THERE IS A MAJORITY SUPPORT FOR A ONE HALF CENT SALES TAX MEASURE IN ALL FIVE DISTRICTS. AS A RESPONSE TO THE COMMUNITY FEEDBACK RECEIVED, AN ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF THE NEED TO ENHANCE ECONOMIC RECOVERY EFFORTS WHILE ALSO ADDRESSING LONG TERM NEEDS, STAFF HAS SCHEDULED THIS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION, POSSIBLY PLACING A LOCAL CONTROLLED SOURCE OF REVENUE THROUGH A GENERAL SALES TAX ON THE NOVEMBER BALLOT FOR THE VOTERS TO DECIDE. BY PLACING A TEMPORARY FIFTEEN YEAR ONE HALF CENT SALES TAX MEASURE ON THE NOVEMBER BALLOT, APPROXIMATELY 17 MILLION WOULD BE GENERATED ANNUALLY IF APPROVED BY THE VOTERS. THIS FUNDING WILL ENHANCE ECONOMIC RECOVERY AND MAINTAIN ESSENTIAL COUNTY SERVICES WHILE IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR THE COMMUNITY. TO APPROVE, THE MEASURE REQUIRES A SIMPLE MAJORITY OF VOTERS, 50 PERCENT PLUS ONE, TO ENACT. THESE FUNDS WOULD BE LOCALLY GENERATED, LOCALLY CONTROLLED, SPENT ACCORDING TO GUIDELINES, AND COULD NOT BE TAKEN BY THE STATE OR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. IF APPROVED BY THE VOTERS, STAFF WILL COME BACK TO THE BOARD TO APPROVE THE CREATION OF AN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, WHICH WILL SAFEGUARD THE USE OF THESE FUNDS AND ENSURE TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE LIFE OF THE MEASURE. SO IN REVIEW, STAFF IS REQUESTING THE BOARD TO CONSIDER A RESOLUTION CALLING FOR AN ELECTION TO BE HELD IN THE BOARD'S JURISDICTION ON NOVEMBER 3RD TWENTY TWENTY FOR THE PURPOSE OF SUBMITTING TO VOTERS A GENERAL TAX MEASURE TO ESTABLISH A RETAIL TRANSACTION [01:45:05] AND USE TAX AT THE RATE OF ONE HALF CENT PER DOLLAR FOR A PERIOD OF 15 YEARS. FURTHER UNDER THIS CONSIDERATION IS FOR THE BOARD TO CONSOLIDATE THIS ELECTION WITH A STATEWIDE GENERAL ELECTION TO BE CONDUCTED ON THE SAME DATE AND TO PREVENT THE ELECTIONS DEPARTMENT TO PROVIDE ELECTION SERVICES. AT THIS POINT, WE WOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR ANY QUESTIONS. WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE QUESTIONS. THIS IS NOT BEEN A-- THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN IN THE WORKS AND LOOKING AT FOR A WHILE. WE KNOW THE TIME AT THIS POINT. THERE'S A-- COVID IS NOT GOOD. AND AGAIN, THIS IS JUST ONE OF THE POSSIBILITIES, AS THE BOARD HAS ASKED US, TO LOOK AT OPTIONS ON HOW DO WE KIND OF LOOK AT SOME OF THOSE LONG TERM NEEDS THAT YOU AS A BOARD HAS EXPRESSED INTEREST IN CONSIDERING. THANK YOU. QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD. THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, CHAIR. YEAH, THIS IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT WE DID PUT IN OUR LONG TERM GOALS. AND WE KNOW THAT OUR SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT AND I RECEIVED A LOT OF EMAILS WHERE THEY ARE REALLY CONCERNED ON ARE WE GOING TO INCREASE ENFORCEMENT OR GIVE-- BUT NO, THIS WAS MORE FOCUS ON INFRASTRUCTURE. AND I KNOW THAT WE'RE GOING WITH THE GENERAL SALES TAX OPPOSED TO A SPECIFIED MEASURE TO WHERE THESE FUNDS NEED TO GO. AND I WAS REALLY ON BOARD AT THE BEGINNING ON A SPECIFIC ITEM, BECAUSE I THINK ONE THING ABOUT MERCED COUNTY IS WE ARE VERY RESILIENT. AND IF WE OFFER UP AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO KEEP THE FUNDS LOCAL AND BUILD IT OURSELVES AND MAKE IT HAPPEN, MERCED COUNTY DEFINITELY STEPS UP AND THEY WANT TO DO THAT. WE SAW THAT WITH MEASURE B THIS LAST TIME. OUR ROADS WERE TO A POINT WHERE WE HAD NO MONEY COMING IN. THERE'S NO WAY WE COULD FIX THEM. AND MERCED COUNTY STEPPED UP AT 70 PERCENT, YOU KNOW, TO VOTE IN MEASURE B BECAUSE THEY NEED TO GET THE ROADS FIXED. AND FIRST THING WE HAVE AND EVERYBODY WANTS THEIR ROADS FIXED THE SAME TIME. WITH THE GENERAL SALES SALES TAX, IT'S JUST REALLY HARD BECAUSE THE WAY I LOOK AT IT, IT'S ONLY-- THIS SALES TAX IS ONLY AS GOOD AS EVERY TWO YEARS OF WHO'S SITTING IN THESE SEATS. I HAVE A LOT OF CONFIDENCE WITH THE FOLKS WHO ARE SITTING UP HERE WITH ME NOW AND MY COLLEAGUES, BECAUSE THESE ARE OUR FOCUSES AND WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO MAINTAIN. THIS IS-- WE KNOW WE NEED A FASTER RESPONSE TIMES FOR OUR SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT. AND WE KNOW THE CASTLE LOCATION WOULD BE THAT, ESPECIALLY WITH THE ATWATER MERCED EXPRESSWAY BEING THERE, THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO RESPOND COUNTY WIDE FROM A CENTRAL LOCATION A LOT FASTER EVERYWHERE. I KNOW I'M JUST TALKING OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD RIGHT NOW, BUT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN ROLLING IN MY BRAIN FOR A LONG TIME WITH THIS TAX MEASURE. I DON'T LIKE TAXES, BUT I KNOW IF THE COUNTY KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT IT'S GOING FOR AND IF IT'S SOMETHING THAT THEY WANT TO VOTE ON AND THEY ALL GET TOGETHER, THEY DO RALLY TOGETHER TO COME UP WITH THAT PARTICULAR ITEM. THIS ONE-- I KNOW THE VOTE NOW IS JUST TO PUT IT ON THE BALLOT. I WOULD LIKE TO, AND I DON'T KNOW WHERE MY COLLEAGUES ARE ON THIS, BUT I WOULD LIKE FOR THE WHOLE BOARD TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS DISCUSSION. AND WITHOUT, NOTHING AGAINST YOU, CHAIR, BUT WITHOUT OUR CHAIRMAN HERE, I DON'T THINK WE CAN HAVE A FULL ON ROBUST DISCUSSION. AND I THINK, I KNOW IT TAKES A FOUR FIFTHS TO GET IT THERE, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE FIVE VOTES ON THIS ITEM. SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. YOU KNOW, I DON'T-- I'M NOT A TAX GUY. I THINK THAT FOLKS IN MERCED COUNTY, CALIFORNIA AND THE UNITED STATES PAY A LOT OF MONEY IN TAXES. AND UNFORTUNATELY, BECAUSE OF INEFFICIENCIES, SOMETIMES WE DON'T ALWAYS GET WHAT I THINK WE'RE PAYING FOR. BUT I WILL SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, WITH THE EXAMPLE OF MEASURE V, LOCAL FOLKS HAVE TAKEN A LOOK AT THEIR ISSUES AND WHAT THEY WANT FIXED AND HAVE DECIDED TO TAX THEMSELVES. AND I BELIEVE THAT THE MONEY IS STAYING LOCAL. WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE REBUILDING ROADS THAT WE DRIVE ON. RIGHT. AND SO I, YOU KNOW, I GUESS AT TIMES, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE TO HAVE TAX INCREASES. BUT I GUESS ULTIMATELY HERE, YOU KNOW, A HALF CENT SALES TAX WOULD WOULD RAISE [01:50:04] APPROXIMATELY TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY MILLION DOLLARS. AND, YOU KNOW, AND I THINK WE COULD EASILY SPEND THAT MUCH MONEY JUST FIXING THE STUFF THAT WE ALREADY HAVE. AND BUT A HALF CENT, I THINK IS IS A LARGE AMOUNT. I THINK, YOU KNOW, PERSONALLY, I WOULD FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE AT A QUARTER OR A THIRD OF A PERCENT. YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO REPLACE OUR DOWNTOWN JAIL. EVERYBODY HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THAT, YOU KNOW, AND THAT COMES AT A PRICE OF-- DEPENDENT ON WORK CONSTRUCTION COSTS ARE AT THE TIME. BUT I MEAN, IT COULD BE BETWEEN 30 AND 40 MILLION DOLLARS. AND I DON'T THINK WE'RE GOING TO GET THAT KIND OF MONEY OUT OF THE STATE. AND SO IF, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE SERIOUS ABOUT IMPROVING THAT FACILITY, IT NEEDS SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 13 AND 15 MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF UPGRADES ON IT RIGHT NOW, AND THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT REALLY SAFE FOR THE EMPLOYEES THAT ARE WORKING THERE OR ACTUALLY FOR THE INMATES THAT ARE INCARCERATED THERE. AND, YOU KNOW, AND I THINK WE HAVE AN OBLIGATION REALLY TO BOTH TO KEEP PEOPLE SAFE IF WE CAN. AND SO IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO PUT 13 TO 15 MILLION DOLLARS INTO AN OLD FACILITY THAT I THINK WAS BUILT IN THE 60S, IF I REMEMBER RIGHT. AND THAT'S BACK WHEN YOU KNOW, THOSE KIND OF HONOR AMONG CRIMINALS. AND THAT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE THE CASE ANYMORE. SO ANYWAYS, I GUESS I'M, YOU KNOW, MY THOUGHTS ARE, IS THAT, YOU KNOW, A QUARTER TO A THIRD OF A CENT WOULD PROBABLY BE MORE PALATABLE TO ME, AND THAT WOULD GIVE US MONEY TO DO THE THINGS LIKE REPLACING THAT JAIL, MAYBE MAKING SOME IMPROVEMENTS TO SOME FIRE FACILITIES. AND THEN THE COUNTY HAS ONE HUNDRED, AND WELL, IF YOU TAKE OUT THREE BUILDINGS, THE COUNTY HAS AN ADDITIONAL ONE HUNDRED AND TEN BUILDINGS THAT ARE OFTENTIMES AND-- OR MANY OF THEM ARE IN DESPERATE NEED OF REPAIRS AND IMPROVEMENTS. AND, YOU KNOW, I COULD GO DOWN THE LIST AND, YOU KNOW, AND WE STILL COULD USE MORE MONEY FOR ROADS, YOU KNOW. BUT ANYWAYS, SO I'D BE, YOU KNOW, SOMEWHAT SUPPORTIVE OF A MEASURE IF IT WAS A DIFFERENT DOLLAR AMOUNT. AND THEN I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IF IT COULDN'T BE ALLOCATED FOR SPECIFIC ITEMS AND BECOME A MEASURE VERSUS A GENERAL TAX. YOU KNOW, I'M UP FOR MORE DISCUSSION AND HEAR WHAT MY OTHER COLLEAGUES HAVE TO SAY AND IT MIGHT CHANGE A LITTLE BIT, BUT ANYWAYS THAT'S KIND OF WHERE I'M AT RIGHT NOW. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. SO, YOU KNOW, I GET IT. NO ONE LIKES TO TAX, MYSELF INCLUDED, BUT THE CHALLENGES IS REALLY FINDING A WAY TO FUND NECESSITIES THAT HAVE THE LEAST IMPACT ON OUR RESIDENTS. AND A SALES TAX DOES THAT. AND YOU KNOW, MIKE MOFFITT IN AN ARTICLE ENTITLED ECONOMICS OF SALES TAX NOTED THAT THE BIGGEST ADVANTAGE TO SALES TAX IS THAT THEY HAVE THE SMALLEST NEGATIVE IMPACT ON THE ECONOMY PER DOLLAR COLLECTED. AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT ONLY THE COUNTY PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN THE COUNTY THAT ARE SUPPORTING IT, BUT IT'S EVERYBODY THAT PASSES THROUGH OUR COUNTY. THEY STOP AND BUY GAS. THEY WOULD CONTRIBUTE TO THAT, YOU KNOW, TO THAT DOLLAR AMOUNT THAT'S COLLECTED ANNUALLY. AND SO WHERE IT IS FOR ME IS OBVIOUSLY THE TIMING IS JUST HORRIBLE. I WANT FOLKS TO UNDERSTAND THAT THIS ISN'T SOMETHING THAT WE JUST MAGICALLY CAME UP WITH BECAUSE CORONAVIRUS HAPPENED. THIS JUST ADDS TO PROBLEMS THAT ARE ALREADY BEEN IDENTIFIED. AND WHEN I TALK ABOUT PROBLEMS THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED, THESE ARE OUR CAPITAL. THESE ARE DEFERRED MAINTENANCE. THE COUNTY OWNS A LOT OF BUILDINGS. AND I THINK WE'RE DOING A PRETTY GOOD JOB OF TRYING TO KEEP UP. BUT I THINK THAT WE'RE NOT QUITE THERE. I THINK THAT SOME OF THESE TURN INTO LEGAL ISSUES WHEN, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO GET THESE BUILDINGS INTO ADA COMPLIANCE AND WE'RE GOVERNMENT. AND, YOU KNOW, IT TAKES US A LITTLE BIT LONGER AND IT COSTS A LITTLE BIT MORE MONEY. AND SO WHEN I LOOK AT ALL THESE THINGS, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT FIRE STATIONS, THAT THERE'S ONE PARTICULAR FIRE STATION OUT THERE, WHERE LITERALLY YOU CAN SEE THE INSIDE FROM THE OUTSIDE BY LOOKING THROUGH THE WALLS. RIGHT. THESE ARE ALL THINGS THAT THAT HAVE BEEN ON THE LIST AND AS A COUNTY SUPERVISOR, YOU'RE SENT HERE TO TRY TO COME AND SOLVE PROBLEMS. AND THE SOLUTION IS, IS THAT CURRENTLY, WITH THE DOLLARS THAT WE HAVE COMING IN, WE CAN'T AFFORD TO DO THOSE PROJECTS. AND THESE AREN'T PROJECTS THAT, AGAIN, THAT WE JUST MADE UP. THESE ARE PROJECTS THAT ARE ON A CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM THAT NEED TO BE DONE AT SOME [01:55:03] POINT. HOW WE GET THERE, TO ME, THE CLEANEST WAY, IS WITH THE SALES TAX MEASURE. BUT AGAIN, IT GOES BACK TO WHY WE LIVE IN THE GREATEST COUNTRY ON EARTH. THE VOTERS GET TO DECIDE. IT'S NOT A DECISION THAT WE WOULD BE MAKING TODAY OR IF WE POSTPONE IT, IS TO PUT THIS ITEM ON THE BALLOT. OUR JOB IS NOT TO ADVOCATE ONE WAY OR THE OTHER, BUT TO EDUCATE FOLKS ON WHAT IT IS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO RECEIVE FOR THIS MONEY THAT THEY WILL BE CONTRIBUTING TO THIS SALES TAX MEASURE. AND THEN THEY SEND A MANDATE BACK TO US AS THE ELECTED OFFICIALS THAT SAYS, YOU KNOW, IF THEY AGREE, THEY PASS THE MEASURE AND WE MOVE FORWARD ON THESE PROJECTS THAT WE'VE LISTED OUT THERE. AND IF THEY DON'T AGREE, THEY SAID THAT YOU NEED TO TIGHTEN YOUR BELT AND TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW YOU'RE GOING TO DO MORE WITH LESS. AND I JUST WANT EVERYBODY TO GO INTO IT EYES WIDE OPEN IS THAT, AGAIN, THESE AREN'T PROJECTS-- THEY'RE NOT DREAM PROJECTS THAT WE'RE JUST MAKING UP. MY COLLEAGUE JUST BROUGHT UP ABOUT THE DOWNTOWN COUNTY JAIL THAT THERE'S 15 MILLION DOLLARS. AND JUST LIKE ANYTHING WHEN YOU REMODEL SOMETHING, IF WE GET THE ESTIMATE TODAY, IT'S 15. BY THE TIME WE GET DONE, IT'S 20 MILLION DOLLARS TO DO DEFERRED MAINTENANCE ON A FACILITY THAT'S NOT WORTH IT. SO DO YOU SPEND THE 40 MILLION TO BUILD A BRAND-- AND I KNOW THESE ARE BIG NUMBERS AND IT'S A LOT OF MONEY TO AN INDIVIDUAL, BUT DO YOU SPEND 40 MILLION DOLLARS BUILDING A NEW PROJECT OR SPEND 20 MILLION DOLLARS REALLY TRYING TO REHAB A FACILITY THAT EVEN WHEN YOU GET DONE SPENDING THE 20 MILLION DOLLARS, YOU STILL DON'T HAVE A MODERN FACILITY. YOU JUST HAVE A FACILITY THAT WE'VE TRIED TO WORK OUT SOME OF THE BUGS. BUT BACK TO WHERE I WAS GOING WITH THIS, IS THAT IF THE VOTERS SEND THE MANDATE BACK, THEY HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT SOME OF THESE PROJECTS HAVE TO BE DONE. THEY ARE OUT OF OUR CONTROL. AND THAT MEANS THAT WE CUT OTHER SERVICES. THERE'S OTHER PROGRAMS THAT HAVE TO BE CUT. IT'S-- WE ARE HEAVILY RELIANT ON STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO HELP US WITH STUFF. IT'S OUR MONEY. IT'S OUR TAX DOLLARS THAT WE SEND TO THE FEDS THAT WE SEND TO THE STATE. AND HOPEFULLY OUR REPRESENTATIVES TRY TO DO A GOOD JOB OF BRINGING THOSE BACK TO US. BUT I DON'T KNOW OF ANOTHER WAY TO DO IT. I'M ALWAYS OPEN TO DISCUSSION IF SOMEBODY HAS A BETTER WAY. BUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT-- NOT SO MUCH NOW, IT'S COMING MORE FROM US UP HERE THROUGH EMAILS THAT WE'RE RECEIVING. BUT WE HAVE-- WHEN WE WERE HAVING OUR REGULAR PUBLIC MEETINGS, THERE'S CONSTITUENTS THAT COME UP HERE TIME AFTER TIME AND THEY WANT MORE SERVICES. THEY WANT MORE SERVICES, THEY WANT MORE SERVICES. AND, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, I YET TO FIND THAT MONEY TREE, YOU KNOW, IN THE BACK OFFICE. IT ALL HAS TO BE PAID FOR SOMEHOW. AND I KNOW THAT COMES ACROSS AS, YOU KNOW, IT'S PROBABLY STUFF THAT FOLKS DON'T WANT TO HEAR. BUT I'M JUST TRYING TO KEEP IT REAL WITH WITH PEOPLE. IT'S-- WE'RE SENT HERE TO DO A JOB. I DON'T LIKE TAXES. AGAIN, I WILL SAY I THINK A SALES TAX IS THE FAIREST TAX. IT'S SPENT UPON YOUR-- YOU PAY BASED UPON YOUR SPENDING PATTERNS AS OPPOSED TO IF YOU GO AFTER A PROPERTY TAX MEASURE, IT DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTS, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE IN THE INDUSTRY THAT I GREW UP IN, IN THE AG INDUSTRY. RIGHT. YOU KNOW, IF THEY SAY ON A ON A PROPERTY TAX BOND THAT YOU WOULD-- IT WOULD COST THE AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD FIFTY DOLLARS A YEAR. YEAH, BUT IF YOU'RE A FARMER, A RANCHER, IT DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTS. SO I THINK THE SALE-- AND THERE'S FOLKS THAT'LL MAKE THE ARGUMENT THAT, YOU KNOW, IT AFFECTS PROBABLY SOME OF THE FOLKS THAT DON'T HAVE AS MUCH. BUT, YOU KNOW, I GO BACK TO, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THE BASIC SERVICES. THE ESSENTIAL-- YOU KNOW, YOUR FOOD, IF YOU GO THE GROCERY STORE, YOU DON'T PAY SALES TAX ON GROCERIES, RIGHT? NOW, IF YOU CHOOSE TO GO TO MCDONALD'S AND BUY IT AND IT'S PREPARED FOR YOU, THEN YOU DO PAY SALES TAX ON THAT. SO I KNOW THERE'S NOT A PERFECT ANSWER. I KNOW THE TIMING'S NOT GREAT. BUT WHEN WE LOOK AT WHAT'S OUT IN FRONT OF US AND THEN YOU ADD COVID ON TOP OF THAT AND WHAT THAT'S DOING, NONE OF US REALLY KNOWS. NONE OF US HAVE BEEN THROUGH THIS BEFORE. I JUST THINK THAT IT'S NOT-- IT WOULDN'T BE RIGHT FOR US TO NOT OFFER SOMETHING UP. AND AGAIN, MY JOB IS JUST TO EDUCATE FOLKS. THE VOTE TODAY, IF IT TAKES PLACE TODAY OR LATER, IS TO PUT THE BALLOT, PUT THE MEASURE ON THE BALLOT AND LET THE VOTERS DECIDE AGAIN. THAT'S WHY WE LIVE IN THE GREATEST COUNTRY ON EARTH. WE DON'T GET TO SIT UP HERE AND JUST SAY WE'RE DICTATORS AND YOU'RE GOING TO PAY THIS. NO, YOU ACTUALLY GET TO DECIDE ON IT. SO THAT'S MY COMMENTS FOR NOW. YOU KNOW, UM, LET'S-- LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING EVERYBODY ELSE'S. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. YEAH, THANK YOU. I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF THE EMAILS I'VE RECEIVED ON THIS. [02:00:01] SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF CONFUSION ON IT WHERE IT'S NOT A PROPERTY TAX. THIS IS A SALES TAX. ONE THING I DO LIKE ABOUT SALES TAX, AND I THINK SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA SAID, IT'S THE LOWEST IMPACT ON EACH PERSON, BASICALLY. AND ANOTHER GOOD THING ABOUT IT IS EVERYBODY'S PARTICIPATING IN THIS INSTEAD OF JUST, YOU KNOW, THE HOMEOWNERS OR LANDOWNERS. SO EVERYBODY SEEMS TO BE PARTICIPATING IN THIS TAX. IT'S JUST-- IT'S THE TIMING OF IT. IT'S THE-- I CAN GET UP HERE AND TELL YOU EVERYTHING BAD ABOUT TAXES. BUT I THINK MY COLLEAGUE HIT IT PERFECTLY WHERE THIS IS FOR THE CONSTITUENCY TO DECIDE WHETHER THEY WANT THIS OR NOT. UM, I JUST WISH WE HAD A LITTLE MORE TEETH ON WHAT THE PROJECTS ARE, BECAUSE WHEN IT'S PRESENTED IN THE WAY THAT IT IS, I MEAN, IT'S ONLY AS GOOD AS WHOEVER'S UP HERE VOTING ON IT, LIKE I SAID EARLIER. I HAVE CONFIDENCE IN MY COLLEAGUES HERE THAT WE HAVE IN THE DECISIONS THAT WE WILL MAKE BECAUSE OUR PRIORITIES HAVE BEEN ALIGNED, AND THIS IS BASED OFF OUR PRIORITIES. BUT AT ANY TIME DURING THESE 15 YEARS, IT CAN CHANGE. AND SOME OF THE STUFF THAT WE SAW THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE IS NOT GOING TO GET DONE. SO AS YOU CAN SEE, I AM ALL OVER THE PLACE ON THIS. I APOLOGIZE. I'M JUST UP HERE RAMBLING. BUT THIS IS A HARD THOUGHT. BUT I WOULD FEEL BETTER, THOUGH, IF WE HAD ALL FIVE OF US UP HERE VOTING ON THIS AND DISCUSSING IT, BECAUSE RIGHT NOW, IF ONE OF US DISSENT, IT GOES AWAY. SO I DON'T KNOW IF I SHOULD MAKE A MOTION TO CONTINUE THIS ITEM AND FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION WITH OUR CHAIRMAN INVOLVED IN THE DISCUSSION. THANK YOU. WE HAVE A SECOND OR SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA COMMENT. IT IS A COMMENT AND I GET IT. BUT THAT'S-- ELECTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES. AND IT'S THE DEMOCRATIC PROCESS THAT, IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, EVERY TWO YEARS, EACH POSITION IS FOUR YEARS, BUT EVERY TWO YEARS THE BOARD COULD CHANGE. AND I HAVE CONFIDENCE IN MY CONSTITUENTS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO ULTIMATELY, THEY'RE THE ONES THAT GET TO HOLD US ACCOUNTABLE TO THE THINGS THAT WE SAY THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO. AND WHEN YOU'RE UP FOR REELECTION, IF YOU'RE NOT DELIVERING ON WHAT YOU SAID YOU'RE GOING TO DO, I WOULD, AT LEAST FOR ME, I WOULD EXPECT THAT YOU DON'T VOTE ME BACK IN. IF I TELL YOU ONE THING AND DO ANOTHER THING, YOU HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO NOT VOTE ME BACK IN. AND SO I PUT A LOT MORE FAITH IN MY CONSTITUENTS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO SEND THE RIGHT PERSON HERE WITH THEIR PRIORITIES. AND, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S NOT JUST ONE OF US THAT'S MAKING THAT DECISION. IT'S A GROUP. SO, AGAIN, THERE'S STILL A LOT OF DISCUSSION THAT COULD BE HAD AROUND THIS. AND, UM, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR FROM EVERYBODY. AND THEN AFTER THAT, I WOULD BE GLAD TO SECOND SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL'S MOTION. THANK YOU. I WILL SPEAK. I HAVE JUST A FEW ITEMS TO SHARE, AND I AGREE THAT WE-- IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO EDUCATE FOLKS. MY EXPECTATION FOR THIS BOARD AGENDA ITEM IS THAT THE BOARD RECEIVE A FULL PRESENTATION ABOUT THE HISTORY AND WHAT GOT US HERE. THE COUNTY CONDUCTED TWO SURVEYS, ONE PRE COVID AND ONE DURING COVID. SO SEPTEMBER TWENTY EIGHTEEN AND JUNE TWENTY TWENTY. AND MY THOUGHTS ARE THAT THE PUBLIC NEEDS TO SEE THE RESULTS OF THOSE SURVEYS. WE ALL SUPPORT INCREASING TRANSPARENCY AND INCREASING OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO WEIGH IN. BUT THE BOARD AGENDA ITEM ALSO REFERENCES BOARD PRIORITIES. AND I UNDERSTAND THAT STAFF WORK WITH ALL MEMBERS OF THE BOARD AND THAT THEY KNOW-- THEY COULD SENSE WHAT THE BOARD PRIORITIES ARE. OUR LAST FORMALIZED BOARD PRIORITIES WERE IN TWENTY SEVENTEEN. THEY ARE NOT LISTED ON OUR WEBSITE, ON OUR BOARD OF SUPERVISORS WEB PAGE. AND SO WHEN THE PUBLIC IS DOING RESEARCH AROUND THIS AND THEY WANT TO LOOK FOR THE BOARD PRIORITIES, THEY CAN'T FIND IT. AND THE FORMALIZED BOARD PRIORITIES IN TWENTY SEVENTEEN WERE ACTUALLY PRIOR TO SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA COMING ON BOARD. SO THE COMMENT MADE BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL THAT EVERY TWO YEARS THE COMPOSITION OF THE BOARD MIGHT CHANGE IS VERY TRUE. I'D ALSO LIKE TO SEE DATA FROM THE MERCED COUNTY'S WEB BASED COMMUNITY SURVEY SEPARATE FROM THE TWO SURVEYS CONDUCTED BY A CONSULTANT. AND SO I'M GETTING THAT INFORMATION FROM THE BOARD AGENDA ITEM. AND IF, REAL QUICKLY, BACK TO THE BOARD PRIORITIES, IF THIS IS GOING TOWARDS CAPITAL [02:05:04] IMPROVEMENTS, IT NEEDS TO STATE THAT. I DON'T SEE A REFERENCE IN HERE ABOUT CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS UNLESS I MISSED IT. AND THEN MY EXPECTATION IS ALSO A PRESENTATION FROM OUR CONSULTANT, FM3, ABOUT THE SURVEY RESULTS. I THINK I STATED THAT EARLIER. AND THIS IS PROPOSED, I DON'T LIKE THE LANGUAGE THAT BALLOT MEASURE TAX AND ORDINANCE, THE PROPOSED MEASURE QUESTION TO BE SUBMITTED TO VOTERS. THAT'S VERY BROAD, VERY GENERAL. AND THE TITLE OF THIS IS GOING TO BE, OR THE PROPOSED TITLE IS MERCED COUNTY EMERGENCY RECOVERY AND ESSENTIAL SERVICES MEASURE. AND NOWHERE IN HERE ARE WE SHARING WHAT THE EMERGENCY IS. YES, WE CAN DEFINE ESSENTIAL SERVICES, BUT FOR THE COMMUNITY TO VOTE ON THIS AND NOT KNOW WHAT THE EMERGENCY IS, WE'RE DOING A DISSERVICE. SO I DO SUPPORT CONTINUING THIS ITEM. I HAVE A MOTION BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL AND A SECOND BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA TO CONTINUE THIS MEETING WITH THIS ITEM. AND I SEE OUR COUNTY COUNCIL. DO YOU WANT TO MAKE A COMMENT BEFORE? SURE. THIS CAN BE TABLED OR CONTINUED TO ANOTHER MEETING . IT COULD BE EITHER CONTINUED TO A SPECIAL MEETING TO BE CALLED BY THE CHAIR OR A MAJORITY OF THE BOARD AT A TIME TO BE DETERMINED OR AT A DATE CERTAIN IN THE FUTURE. THAT'S SORT OF YOUR CHOICE. CAN YOU CLARIFY OUR OPTIONS? SO IN TERMS OF TIMELINE AND--. WELL, MY UNDERSTANDING, AND BARBARA'S HERE IN THE AUDIENCE TO CONFIRM, THE MEASURE HAS TO BE SUBMITTED TO THE REGISTRAR VOTERS BY AUGUST 7TH. SO A SPECIAL MEETING OR CONTINUED MEETING WOULD HAVE TO BE HELD BEFORE THEN. THANK YOU. CAN YOU DEFINE FOR THE PUBLIC AS WELL WHAT THE TIMELINE IN TERMS OF WHAT IT MEANS WHEN WE SAY CONTINUE THE MEETING VERSUS A SPECIAL MEETING VERSUS THE NEXT MEETING? THERE'S REALLY NOT A LOT OF DIFFERENCE. A SPECIAL MEETING JUST REQUIRES A LITTLE MORE OUTREACH PRIOR TO HAVING IT. A CONTINUED MEETING, IF IT'S WITHIN FIVE DAYS IS A-- WE DON'T HAVE TO DO AS MUCH OUTREACH. UH, IF I MAY, I THINK THAT ONE OF THE DIFFERENCES, TOO, IS ON A CONTINUED MEETING, YOU WOULD HAVE TO SET A TIME AND DATE AT THE SAME TIME, WOULD YOU NOT COUNSEL? WHERE IF YOU JUST SET A SPECIAL MEETING THAT WOULD GIVE FLUX. I MEAN, EITHER WAY FROM STAFF IS OK, BUT THAT WOULD GIVE FLEXIBILITY IN TRYING TO IDENTIFY A TIME OR DATE. THAT'S CORRECT. SO A SPECIAL MEETING, YOU COULD HAVE MORE FLEXIBILITY. THE OTHER DIFFERENCE I SHOULD STATE IS THAT A CONTINUED MEETING LIMITS THE CONSIDERATION ON THAT MEETING TO THIS ITEM ONLY. NOTHING ELSE CAN BE DISCUSSED. SO IF YOU CONTINUE THIS ITEM TO A DATE CERTAIN, THEN THAT'S ALL THAT CAN BE DISCUSSED AND DECIDED ON AT THAT MEETING OR AT THAT CONTINUING MEETING. THANK YOU. SO I HEARD THE MOTION BEING CONTINUE THIS ITEM. CAN THE MAKER OF THE MOTION RESTATE YOUR MOTION? OH, SORRY. THANK YOU. UM, I'LL LOOK TO MY COLLEAGUES. I WAS GOING TO REFER TO FRIDAY AT NINE A.M., BUT IF THAT TIME DOES NOT WORK OUT WITH ALL THE COLLEAGUES, I'D BE WILLING TO MAKE IT AT A DIFFERENT TIME. I WILL HAVE TO CONDUCT AS A CALL IN OR A ZOOM ON THAT AS I WILL BE OUT OF TOWN MOVING MY CHILDREN BACK TO MERCED COUNTY. OK, SUPER. [INAUDIBLE]. UH, AND AS FAR AS IN SOME OF THE INFORMATION, IF IT WAS SET FOR FRIDAY AT 9:00, WE AS STAFF COULD PUT TOGETHER SOME INFORMATION RELATED TO THE HISTORY AND RELATED TO THE POLLING. HOWEVER, I'M NOT SURE THAT THE CONSULTANT WOULD BE AVAILABLE, YOU KNOW, FRIDAY AT 9:00. UM, WE ARE CHECKING WITH THEM. THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THEY MAY BE AVAILABLE ON FRIDAY AT 11:00, BUT THAT'S STILL KIND OF SOFT RIGHT NOW. OTHERWISE, WE HAVE NO OTHER CONFIRMATION OF WHEN THEY MIGHT BE AVAILABLE. OK, IF THE BOARD IS FINE WITH IT, WE DON'T HAVE TO HAVE FM3. SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. THANK YOU. I GUESS, FOR ME IS IF WE CONTINUE IT TO A SPECIAL MEETING THAT GIVES US FLEXIBILITY TO [02:10:02] NOT HAVE TO SET A DATE AND A TIME RIGHT NOW, IF IT'S A COUPLE HOURS, GETS SOMEBODY HERE, DOESN'T GET SOMEBODY HERE. SO, UM, I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT STAFF COULD, YOU KNOW, FIGURE OUT AMONG THE BOARD MEMBERS WHAT A GOOD DATE AND TIME IS, UNLESS YOU PREFER IT TO BE HARD SET. I'M GOOD EITHER WAY. UM. STAFF IS ALWAYS FLEXIBLE AND WILL WORK AS FAR AS THE WAY THE BOARD WANTS TO APPROACH THIS. WE WOULD SAY TRYING TO IDENTIFY SCHEDULES, AS YOU KNOW, CAN ALWAYS BE A CHALLENGE. WE KNOW OF A COUPLE OF YOU THAT HAVE INFORMED US THAT THEY ARE GOING TO BE OUT OF TOWN DURING THE NEXT WEEK OR SO. AND SO THERE'S PROBABLY, FROM A STAFF PERSPECTIVE, IT'S PROBABLY BETTER TO JUST GET SOMETHING DEFINITIVE, IF POSSIBLE AT THIS POINT, IF IT WORKS. IF THIS DOESN'T WORK WITHIN THE BOARD'S CALENDAR, FRIDAY AT 9:00, PLEASE SPEAK UP. AND THEN I WOULD SUGGEST A SPECIAL MEETING AND THEN WE JUST TRY TO WORK THAT THROUGH. FRIDAY AT 9:00 WORKS FOR ME. HOW ABOUT MY COLLEAGUES? WELL, SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. AND THEN WE'LL GET TO SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. YEAH, FRIDAY, FRIDAY AT 9:00 WORKS FOR ME AS WELL. HOWEVER, IF SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL ISN'T HERE, WHICH IS REALLY NO DIFFERENT THAN FOUR PEOPLE TODAY. SO I KNOW YOU CAN CALL IN, BUT THAT'S NOT ALWAYS THE SAME. UM, MONDAY, AUGUST 3RD. DOES THAT WORK BETTER? DO WE HAVE SUPERVISOR ESPINOZA'S AVAILABILITY? I HAD JUST REACHED OUT TO HIM RIGHT DURING THE BREAK AS FAR AS HOW FRIDAY WOULD WORK, HAVE NOT WORKED, TALKED WITH HIM REGARDING MONDAY. IF IT IS MONDAY, WE WOULD SUGGEST THAT, UH, IT WOULD BE SET AS A SPECIAL MEETING BECAUSE I THINK THERE'S A LIMIT. I THOUGHT I HEARD COUNSEL SAY FIVE DAYS RELATED TO CONTINUING. SO IF MONDAY WORKS BETTER FOR THE BOARD, THEN WE WOULD SUGGEST JUST HAVING US RE AGENDIZE IT AS A SPECIAL MEETING. OK, SO WITH THE SPECIAL MEETING, JUST CLARIFICATION FROM COUNTY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING, WE DO NOT HAVE TO SPECIFY A DATE AND TIME, CORRECT? NO, YOU COULD JUST--. SUPERVISOR LOR, I BELIEVE YOU COULD JUST SAY CONTINUE THIS TO A SPECIAL MEETING WITHIN THE, UH, BASICALLY PRIOR TO AUGUST 7TH, PRIOR TO THE DEADLINE TO CONSIDER THE MEASURE. OK, THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. SURE. IF I NEED TO AMEND MY MOTION TO DO THAT, UM, THAT WOULD BE SUFFICIENT. SO, UM, CONTINUE ITEM TO A SPECIAL MEETING STRIKING OUT FRIDAY, 9:00 A.M.. CORRECT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. ANY LAST QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. CAN WE VOTE ON THE VOTE LINKS OR DO WE WANT A VERBAL-- OK, CAN WE DO A ROLL CALL VOTE? SUPERVISOR SILVIERA, DID YOU HAVE A COMMENT BEFORE? OK, THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. ROLL CALL, VOTE. SORRY. GO. AYE. SUPERVISOR LOR. YES. SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. YES. SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. AYE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS BORDER ACTION OR-- I'M SORRY, BOARD INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ITEMS THIRTY [BOARD INFORMATION & POSSIBLE ACTION] NINE AND 40. IT'S BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? SEEING NONE. PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU. PLEASE RECORD THE VOTE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT, WE'LL MOVE ON TO OUR SCHEDULED ITEMS. [SCHEDULED ITEMS] THE FIRST IS FROM COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. IT'S A PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER GENERAL VACATION OF F STREET AT THE MID CALIFORNIA INTERNATIONAL TRADE DISTRICT AT CASTLE. GOOD AFTERNOON, MADAM CHAIR AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. MARK [INAUDIBLE], DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. THE PURPOSE OF THIS PUBLIC HEARING IS FOR YOU TO ACCEPT PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE VACATION OF F STREET BETWEEN AIR FLIGHT DRIVE AND ACADEMY DRIVE AT CASTLE PURSUANT TO THE CALIFORNIA [02:15:05] STREETS AND HIGHWAYS CODE. THIS SMALL SECTION OF ROAD BEING PROPOSED FOR A VACATION IS APPROXIMATELY THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTEEN FEET IN LENGTH AND WILL NOT NEGATIVELY IMPACT CIRCULATION AT CASTLE. IN FACT, THE VACATION WILL LEAD TO GREATER SAFETY AS MANY VEHICLES CURRENTLY TRAVEL IN THE WRONG DIRECTION ON THIS ROAD. THIS REQUEST COMES FROM THE OWNER. I'VE SEEN FIRSTHAND THIS UNSAFE SITUATION AND BELIEVE THAT IT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO LEAD TO UNNECESSARY COLLISIONS AS ACTIVITY IN THIS SECTION OF CASTLE CONTINUED TO GROW. THERE ARE SEVERAL OTHER NEARBY ROADS THAT WILL CONTINUE TO ALLOW ACCESS TO SURROUNDING BUSINESS SHOULD THE BOARD ELECT TO VACATE THIS PARTICULAR ROAD. CONSISTENT WITH THE CODE, ALL PROPER POSTINGS WERE MADE AND NO PUBLIC COMMENT HAS BEEN RECEIVED IN ADVANCE OF THIS PUBLIC HEARING. AT THIS POINT, STAFF RECOMMENDS THE FOLLOWING: OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING, CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING AND ADOPT THE RESOLUTION APPROVING THE VACATION. I WILL BE PLEASED TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. BEFORE WE OPEN TO PUBLIC COMMENT OR A PUBLIC HEARING, DOES THE COUNTY OR DOES THE BOARD HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR STAFF? THANK YOU, CHAIR. AND I CAN SAY NOT ONLY THE FOLKS [INAUDIBLE] A WITNESS THAT I WITNESS THAT MANY TIMES MYSELF, AND IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S A LOT OF FOLKS WHO COME OUT, WHETHER IT'S CUSTOMERS OF HSA OR CUSTOMERS OF GOLDEN VALLEY HEALTH SERVICES, THEY ENTER AT-- GO A WRONG WAY ON THAT PARTICULAR ROAD AND THEN WHEN THEY ENTER INTO TOWARDS THE PARADE GROUNDS, THEY ACTUALLY MAKE A LEFT TURN, WHICH IS ANOTHER ONE WAY WHERE THEY'RE GOING THE WRONG WAY AGAIN, WHICH ACTUALLY CREATES A BIGGER HAZARD WHENEVER THEY-- IT'S A LITTLE MORE TRAVELED IN THAT AREA. SO I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY I WOULD RECOMMEND SUPPORTING THIS. SO THANK YOU. [INAUDIBLE]. DID YOU HAVE A COMMENT? OK, THANK YOU. YES, YES. AT THIS TIME, I'D LIKE TO OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING AND ACCEPT ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS. THANK YOU. SEEING NO PUBLIC COMMENTS, I'D LIKE TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING. PLEASURE OF THE BOARD. SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL . YES, MADAM CHAIR, I'D LIKE TO RECOMMEND ADOPT THE RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING GENERAL VACATION OF F STREET FROM AIR FLIGHT DRIVE TO ACADEMY DRIVE APPROXIMATELY THREE HUNDRED FIFTY FEET IN LENGTH AT THE MID CALIFORNIA INTERNATIONAL TRADE DISTRICT AT CASTLE. THAT IS THE MOTION. THANK YOU, AND IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR. AYE. OPPOSE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES FOUR ZERO. NEXT, WE HAVE ANOTHER PUBLIC HEARING FROM COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO CONSIDER A PROPOSED ORDINANCE APPROVING A DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT DA 19 DASH ZERO ZERO ONE, A PROJECT CONSISTING OF ONE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED THIRTY SIX PROPOSED HOME SITES LOCATED BETWEEN SOUTH STATE HIGHWAY 33 AND SOUTH HILLDALE AVENUE, NORTH OF THE CALIFORNIA AQUEDUCT, INCLUDING APPROXIMATELY POINT TWO MILES OF LAND NORTH OF THE DELTA MENDOTA CANAL. MORNING, MADAM CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. I'M STEVE MAXY, DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR PLANNING FOR THE COUNTY. THE ITEM BEFORE YOU IS ADOPTION OF AN ORDINANCE APPROVING A DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT FOR APPLICANTS AKT CENTINELA INVESTORS LLC AND RCI [INAUDIBLE] PARKWAY THREE FORTY EIGHT LLC, WHO TOGETHER ARE DEVELOPERS FOR WHAT IS KNOWN AS THE PARKWAY RESIDENTIAL PROJECT IN CENTINELA. BECAUSE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS ARE ADOPTED BY ORDINANCE, COUNTY CODE AND STATE LAW BOTH REQUIRE THAT A PUBLIC HEARING IS HELD FOR CONSIDERATION OR APPROVAL OF DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT. THE PROPOSED AGREEMENT WOULD CREATE VESTED RIGHTS IN PROJECT APPROVALS, ADDRESS IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROPOSED PROJECT AND ITS ASSOCIATED INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS, AND SET THE PROJECT ON A MORE DEFINITE TIMELINE. GIVE SOME MORE DEFINITION TO HOW THE PROJECT WILL DEVELOP FOR THE COMMUNITY AND IDENTIFY SPECIFIC BENEFITS TO THE COUNTY. THE PRIMARY REASON BEHIND THE APPLICANTS REQUEST FOR THIS DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT IS TO VEST THREE ALREADY APPROVED SUBDIVISION MAPS FOR A LONGER TERM. THOSE THREE SUBDIVISION MAPS WERE APPROVED BETWEEN 2003 AND 2005 AND HAVE BEEN EXTENDED MULTIPLE TIMES BY STATEWIDE LEGISLATION, AS WELL AS DISCRETIONARY DECISIONS BY THE COUNTY'S PLANNING COMMISSION IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SUBDIVISION MAP ACT. THESE MAPS, ALL THREE MAPS, HOWEVER, ARE NEARING THE POINT OF EXPIRATION, WITH NO FURTHER [02:20:01] EXTENSIONS AVAILABLE ON ONE OF THE THREE MAPS AND ONLY ONE MORE YEAR OF EXTENSION ON THE OTHER TWO. WITH THIS DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT, THE COUNTY WOULD PRESERVE THE POTENTIAL FOR THESE. IT'S ACTUALLY FIFTEEN HUNDRED AND EIGHTY EIGHT UNITS TO DEVELOP, WHICH WOULD SUPPORT HOUSING SUPPLY GOALS IDENTIFIED IN THE COUNTY'S HOUSING ELEMENT THAT'S CURRENTLY IN PLACE. WITHOUT THIS DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT, THE DEVELOPER WOULD BE REQUIRED TO RESUBMIT TENANTED MAP APPLICATIONS, WHICH WOULD INCLUDE CONSIDERATION BY THE PLANNING COMMISSION. THE DEVELOPER HAS ALREADY CONSTRUCTED SOME INFRASTRUCTURE, PARTICULARLY ROADS IN THE PROJECT AREA, AND HAS BEEN WORKING DIRECTLY WITH CENTINELA WATER DISTRICT TO SECURE WATER SERVICE, WHICH DOES APPEAR IMMINENT. WHILE THE PROJECT DOES SEEM TO BE PROGRESSING, THERE ARE A HANDFUL OF CHALLENGES THAT ARE DELAYING THE START OF CONSTRUCTION AND THEREFORE THE DEVELOPER HAS INDICATED MORE TIME IS NEEDED AND THE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT IS A VEHICLE FOR DOING SO. TO ENSURE THE PROJECT WOULD CONTINUE TO PROGRESS AND MEET COMMUNITY EXPECTATIONS, THINGS WOULD CONTINUE TO MOVE ALONG. THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT DOES HAVE SOME PERFORMANCE MILESTONES. BOTH THE TWO YEAR AND THE FIVE YEAR MARKS. IF THE PROJECT DOESN'T HIT EITHER OF THOSE MILESTONES, THE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT AND VESTED MAPS WOULD EXPIRE. AND FINALLY, I DO WANT TO NOTE THE PLANNING COMMISSION CONSIDER THIS DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT AT ITS JULY EIGHTH PUBLIC HEARING WHERE THE COMMISSION RECOMMENDED BOARD APPROVAL AND ADOPTION OF THE ORDINANCE. SO WITH THAT, THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS FOR THE BOARD AFTER WAITING FOR THE READING OF THE ORDINANCE, WOULD BE TO HOLD THE PUBLIC HEARING AND THEN TAKE ACTION ON FUNDING THE PROJECT EXEMPT FROM FURTHER ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND THEN ADOPTING THE APPROVE-- EXCUSE ME, ADOPTING THE ORDINANCE, APPROVING THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT. WITH THAT I'M AVAILABLE FOR ANY QUESTIONS. AND THE APPLICANT IS IN ATTENDANCE TODAY AS WELL. THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. I MOTION TO WAIT FOR THE READING. THANK YOU, IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA TO WAIT FOR THE READING. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR. AYE. OPPOSED. THANK YOU. MOTION CARRIES FOUR ZERO. NEXT, I'D LIKE TO OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING AND RECEIVE TESTIMONY FROM THE PUBLIC. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD. THANK YOU. AKT DEVELOPMENT AND SPECIFICALLY PARKWAY SOUTH AND AKT CENTINELA INVESTORS ON THIS APPLICATION. THANK YOU, SUPERVISOR LOR AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, FOR ALLOWING ME TO ADDRESS ON THIS ISSUE. I'M ALSO HERE WITH NADIA ACOSTA, WHO IS WITH MILLER STAR OF REGALIA AND SERVES AS OUR LEGAL LAND USE COUNSEL ON THIS MATTER. I WANT TO START OFF BY THANKING STEVE MAXY, DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT. I WANT TO THANK TIFFANY [INAUDIBLE] WITH THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT AND ALSO JEFFREY GRANT WITH THE COUNTY COUNCIL. FANTASTIC, TREMENDOUS. VERY PROFESSIONAL REPRESENTATIVES OF YOUR COUNTY THAT HELPED US NAVIGATE THIS PROCESS AND BROUGHT THIS FORWARD THROUGH PLANNING COMMISSION AND ALSO TODAY. SO WITHOUT THEIR EFFORT, I REALLY DO APPRECIATE THEIR WORK ON THIS MATTER. I REALLY HAVE NOTHING TO ADD. I DO AGREE WITH MR. MAXY'S STAFF REPORT. WE APPRECIATE THE RECOMMENDATION FOR SUPPORT FROM STAFF AND ALSO THE RECOMMENDATION FOR SUPPORT FROM PLANNING COMMISSION AND REALLY LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR SUPPORT TODAY. BOTH NADIA AND I ARE HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC? SEEING NONE. I'D LIKE TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING, AND I BELIEVE WE CAN DO ITEM NUMBER FIVE, SIX AND SEVEN IN ONE MOTION. NUMBER SIX, CORRECT. OK, SO WE HAVE TO DO NUMBER SIX SEPARATELY. SO LET'S JUST DO FIVE, SIX AND SEVEN SEPARATELY. OH, SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. I DON'T THINK WE HAVE TO TAKE A FORMAL ACTION ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION'S RECOMMENDATION. IT'S A RECOMMENDATION. SO I'M GOING TO SKIP OVER THAT ONE AND I'M GOING TO MAKE A MOTION TO DETERMINE THAT THE PROPOSED ORDINANCE AND ASSOCIATED DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT ARE EXEMPT FROM FURTHER ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW UNDER SECTION 15, 162 SUBSEQUENT [INAUDIBLE] AND MAKE THE DECLARATIONS OF THE [INAUDIBLE] GUIDELINES. THANK YOU. IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. OPPOSED. THANK YOU. MOTION CARRIES FOUR ZERO. SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. MADAM CHAIR, I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO ADOPT THE PROPOSED ORDINANCE APPROVING THE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT D.A 19 DASH ZERO ZERO ONE. THANK YOU. IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA, SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR. AYE. OPPOSED. THANK YOU. MOTION CARRIES FOUR ZERO. [02:25:06] NEXT FROM PUBLIC WORKS IS A SECOND READING OF A PROPOSED ORDINANCE. CONDUCT A SECOND READING OF AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER FIVE POINT SIX FOUR OF THE MERCED COUNTY CODE IN SUPERCEDING ORDINANCE 1970 ENTITLED USER CHARGE RATES FOR ZONES OF BENEFIT, WHICH WOULD SET COUNTY SERVICE AREA NUMBER ONE USER CHARGE RATES AT THEIR CURRENT RATES FOR FISCAL YEAR TWENTY TWENTY ONE. THANK YOU. QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR STAFF. SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. I'M SURE I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO WAIT FOR THE READING OF THE PROPOSED ORDINANCE AND DON'T WE DO THAT SEPARATELY? I THINK IT SAYS-- AND, THAT MEANS I CAN DO IT ALL IN ONE SO AND ADOPT THE ORDINANCE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IT HAS BEEN MOVED BY SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA SECONDED BY SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR. AYE. OPPOSED. THANK YOU. MOTION CARRIES FOUR ZERO. NEXT IS BOARD REPORTS. [REPORTS/BOARD DIRECTION] SUPERVISOR SILVEIRA. AND I DON'T HAVE A LOT TO REPORT ON TODAY. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS DISCUSSION OF THE FULL BOARD REGARDING THE TAX MEASURE. AGAIN, NOT TO BEAT A DEAD HORSE HERE, BUT IT'S JUST-- I THINK THAT IT'S WE HAVE TO BE CAUTIOUS IN THAT WHEN IT BECAUSE THOSE FROM A SPECIAL SALES TAX TO GENERAL SALES TAX IS WHEN YOU START TO BE VERY SPECIFIC AS TO HOW YOU ARE SPENDING IT. AND I THINK THAT PART OF IT IS IF IT GOES FORWARD AND YOU DEVELOP AN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, IT HELPS YOU TO HOLD TO THOSE THINGS THAT YOU SAID YOU WANTED TO DO WITH IT. BUT LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT DISCUSSION AND REALLY, THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO REPORT. I DID GO TO A MEETING DOWN FOR THIS [INAUDIBLE] VALLEY WATER INFRASTRUCTURE AUTHORITY ACTUALLY WENT TO AN IN-PERSON MEETING IN FRESNO COUNTY. I THANK SUPERVISOR MÉNDEZ DOWN THERE FOR HOSTING THAT, UM, JUST TO REPORT OUT TO THE BOARD. WE'RE STILL OPERATING UNDER FUNDS THAT ARE ALREADY IN OUR CONTRACT AND WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE ON TO ANOTHER YEAR. AGAIN, I WANT TO REMIND EVERYBODY THAT THE TESTING SITE IN LAS BANOS IS UP AND OPERATIONAL. AND AS REPORTED OUT BY PUBLIC HEALTH STAFF THIS MORNING, NOT ALL OF THOSE APPOINTMENTS ARE BEING FILLED. SO TO MY CONSTITUENTS IN DISTRICT FIVE, FOR SOME OF YOU MAY BE CLOSER TO GET TO MERCED, BUT FOR MOST OF YOU, IT'S CLOSER TO GO TO LAS BANOS AND GO TO THE COUNTY'S WEBSITE AND GO TO MY FACEBOOK PAGE. AND WE HAVE LINKS TO-- ACTUALLY THE FACILITY TO BE ABLE TO REGISTER. AND WITH THAT, THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR PAREIRA. THANK YOU. SUPERVISOR MCDANIEL. THANK YOU, CHAIR. FIRST OF ALL, I'D LIKE TO JUST MENTION THAT I'D LIKE TO ADJOURN THIS MEETING AND IN MEMORY OF BUTCH HUGHES, LEGENDARY BASEBALL COACH, UH, I THINK ANY OF US WHO ATTENDED MERCED COLLEGE, WE PROBABLY HAD HIM IN A CLASS AND HE WAS A GREAT MENTOR, GREAT GUY, VERY ACTIVE IN THE COMMUNITY AND LIKE TO SAY BUTCH, IF YOU'RE LISTENING RIGHT NOW, I WAS WORKING ON ONE PROJECT WITH YOU. I VOWED TO CONTINUE WORKING ON THAT PROJECT AND TO HIS SON, WALTER WILL CONTINUE WORKING ON THE OTHER PROJECT THAT WE INTENDED AS WELL. DIDN'T HAVE A WHOLE LOT GOING ON. IT SEEMS LIKE WE ARE-- WHAT I DO LIKE IS WE ARE MORE FOCUSED ON COUNTY BUSINESS. WE'RE BACK TO CONSTITUENT SERVICES. CONSTITUENCIES ARE REACHING OUT AND HAVING THAT DIALOG WITH US. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN MISSING DURING THIS WHOLE COVID CRISIS. UM, SO I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE STARTING TO CONTINUE THAT BUSINESS. IT WAS GIVING UPDATES AT THE ATWATER CITY COUNCIL MEETING LAST NIGHT THAT KIND OF REMINDED ME THAT MERCED COUNTY IS STILL MOVING FORWARD WITH OUR PROJECTS [INAUDIBLE] MERCED EXPRESSWAY, UM, THE THIRTY PERCENT COMPLETION OF THE CAMPUS PARKWAY AND ALL THE OPPORTUNITIES WE HAVE GOING ON AT CASTLE. SO JUST TO LET FOLKS KNOW WE ARE STILL WORKING ON YOUR BEHALF AS A COUNTY, IT'S JUST NOT ALL COVID. WE MIGHT NOT BE AS VERBAL AS WE WERE BEFORE, BUT THE WORK IS CONTINUING. AND PLEASE, CONSTITUENCY CALL IF YOU HAVE ANY ANY CONCERNS. WE ARE STILL OPEN FOR BUSINESS AND CAN HELP YOU. DON'T BE AFRAID TO CALL. YOU DON'T GET COVID OVER THE PHONE. THANK YOU CHAIR. THANK YOU. [INAUDIBLE] BROWN. THANK YOU. COUNTY COUNCIL. YES, THANK YOU. TWO THINGS QUICKLY. WHEN WE COME BACK FOR PRESENTATION ON THE TAX MEASURE, COULD STAFF PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW BETWEEN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A GENERAL AND SPECIAL FOR THE PUBLIC'S INFORMATION. THANK YOU. AND THEN ALSO I HAVE FREE CLOTH FACE COVERINGS FOR THE PUBLIC, IF YOU WOULD LIKE ONE, OR [02:30:05] A FEW, PLEASE REACH OUT. AND I'LL DEFINITELY MAIL THEM OUT TO YOU. WITH THAT, I'D LIKE TO ADJOURN THE MEETING. THANK YOU. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.