Board of Supervisors Meeting | 3.3.2026

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This board meeting included five presentations, including important updates from Grand Canyon University, Shasta College, CalTrans, and the Small Business Administration. The board passed a resolution regarding Social Work Appreciation Month.

The Small Business Association presentation highlighted the availability of low-interest loans for residents, businesses, and nonprofits impacted by the 2025 Late December Storm and/or the 2026 Early January Storm. You can learn more by clicking this link or by calling 800 659-2955.

Updates were provided by our CAO, each member of the board of supervisors, and the Tourism Funding Ad Hoc Committee.

One item was pulled from the Consent Calendar. All remaining items on the Consent Calendar were approved. Under County Matters, the board approved a two-year contract to retain Trent Tuthill as Trinity County’s CAO. The one item on the Closed Session was postponed.

A. PRESENTATIONS

A.1. Health and Human Services – CWS – Adopt a proclamation recognizing March 2026 as Social Work Appreciation Month and March 17, 2026, as National Social Work Day. No fiscal impact.

  • Presentation by H&HS Agency Staff
  • The board approved this proclamation and presented it to staff.

A.2. Clerk of the Board – Receive a presentation from Grand Canyon University Development Counselor Renee Yomtob regarding online programs and scholarship opportunities. No fiscal impact.

  • Presentation by Renee Yomtob | Redding
  • Shared information regarding her role in connecting people to educational opportunities and working alongside them throughout their time at the University.
  • Six to eight-week courses, one course at a time.
  • 100,000+ students
  • Bachelor’s and Master’s Programs
  • Transfer-friendly – GCU works well with Shasta College
  • Renee.yontob@gcu.edu
  • This link will take you to the Grand Canyon University website.

A.3. Clerk of the Board – Receive a presentation from Shasta College Superintendent/President Frank Nigro on developments at Shasta College and an introduction to Trustee Debbie Bourne, representative of Shasta College Board of Trustees, Area E (Trinity). No fiscal impact.

  • Presentation by Superintendent/President
  • Two trustees of the board also spoke about their background and roles
  • Full re-accreditation in January 2025. Second in a row.
  • Enrollment dropped 20% to 25% during the pandemic, now back to previous levels
  • Dual enrollment or online facilitated classes are offered at Trinity & Hayfork High Schools.
  • 62 students are in classes.
  • 280 other students – non-high school enrolled from Trinity County
  • 48% of all offerings in the District are online.
  • Trinity Campus – being reimagined as a student support center.
    • Tutoring, financial aid, etc.
  • Bond Extension – November 2026
    • Asks voters to extend or continue paying the tax rate currently paid on the 2002 Bond Measure A
    • Could fund enhancements to the Trinity Campus
    • $1.85 million from the bond measure used to build the Trinity Campus
  • New baccalaureate degree – Health Information Management
    • Costs $4,200 vs double and triple the costs at other CA colleges/universities
  • Contact Information for those presenting:

Frank Nigro – fnigro@shastacollege.edu

Debbie Bourne -dbourne@shastacollege.edu

Billy Miller -bmiller@shastacollege.edu

  • Transportation: Trinty transit provides free bus rides to Shasta college students, drops them of first and picks them up last.

A.4. Clerk of the Board – Receive a presentation from US Small Business Administration Public Affairs Specialist Charles Kight regarding SBA loans available to Trinity County Residents/Businesses impacted by the 2025 Late December Storm and/or the 2026 Early January Storm. No fiscal impact.

  • Presentation by SBA representative
  • Low-interest loan program – terms up to 30: business rate 4%, resident rate 2.625%, nonprofit rate 2.6%
  • No interest accrued in the first 12 months.
  • Lending.gov/disaster
  • 8006592955
  • Redding City Hall
  • April 6th deadline to apply for personal damages
  • Nov 3rd deadline for economic injury.

A.5. Transportation – Receive a presentation from Caltrans District 2 Project Manager Bill Barnes regarding project updates in Trinity County. No fiscal impact.

  • Presentation by Bill Barnes
  • Noted funding challenges that are causing shifts in the timeline for project implementation. Projects are not being dropped, just delayed.
  • Weaverville Fishwalk – doing research work now to support future design/implementation.
    • Week of April 20th… begin study work
    • Week of April 27th… three nights of closure on two roads connecting to Main Street.
B. PUBLIC COMMENT
  • Trinity Transit Schedule – concerns shared regarding people traveling to/from Willow Creek who get stuck in Weaverville either overnight or over the weekend due to schedule limitations.
  • Transparency – comments shared regarding the importance of transparency. Feels that public trust can be weakened by lack of transparency. Calls for more transparency than the minimum required by the Brown Act.
  • Mental Health – noted the informative presentation by Liz Hamilton at a previous meeting. Reminded the public of free Mental Health training available locally.
  • Emergency Communication System – request for more information regarding the ongoing challenges and the work to resolve them.
C. REPORTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS

C.1. Report from Department Heads

  • No presentations. Written reports available on the website

C.2. Report from County Administrative Officer

  • Emergency Communications System – presenting on behalf of Sheriff Saxon.
    • 100% of calls are being dispatched
    • Issues are recognized – workarounds being implemented as identified.
    • Estimates Received
      • Oregon Mountain – $65,000 is the rough estimate
      • Finalizing details of the repair plan.
      • Lead time on parts, scheduling of resources.
      • Seeking board support for the CAO to sign the order so the process can get underway.
      • $1.5 million rough estimate for total system upgrade
    • Regular updates will be provided as we move through the process.

C.3. Reports from Members of the Board of Supervisors III. Reports from Members of the Board of Supervisors

  • District 1 | Ric Leutwyler
    • Tourism Development Committee – met with Civitas Advisors to discuss our new working agreement. Terri McBrayer is providing updated data for use in our outreach efforts. I will be scheduling our first Stakeholder Workshop soon.
    • NoRTEC – co-chaired the joint board meeting in Chico last week. We have discovered challenges that are being addressed in a transparent and focused manner.
    • Emergency Communications System – worked with Lewiston VFD, Mike Cottone, and the Sheriff’s office on potential short term solutions. Updates are expected soon.
    • Behavioral Health Advisory Board – attended the February 18th board meeting. I am now the board chair for the remainder of 2026. Isabella Main is now our Vice Chair. It’s great to see our youth stepping up in such a meaningful way.
    • Economic Development – we kicked off the planning process for this year’s Economic Summit. The event will be held in Humboldt County in October.
    • CSAC | New Supervisor Institute – the first meeting of the committee established to update this program is scheduled later this month in Sacramento.
  • District 2 | Jill Cox
    • No out of county travel
    • Fire Safe Council – seeking support for large grant that will support Trinity County.
    • LAFCO – discussion regarding fire district financial needs. More to come on this. Will continue as chair for this organization.
    • First Five Commission
      • Traffic Safety – community education classes focused on children 0 to 8.
      • Community Events – exploring locations for this year’s events.
      • Electronic Referral System – to support better/quicker access to data. We are one of a handful of counties involved in a study.
      • Trinity is recognized for it’s leadership and effectiveness in this arena.
  • District 3 | Liam Gogan
    • No out of county travel
    • North Coast Resource Partnership – meeting rescheduled.
      • Next meeting on April 18th
  • District 4 | Heidi Carpenter-Harris
    • NACO Meeting in Washington, DC
      • Public Lands Caucus
        • Unintended impacts from Endangered Species Act
        • Grazing Lands – discussion about opening up federal lands for grazing
        • Fuels Reduction Projects – working toward a deeper reach into forest lands, including more timber sales
        • Wild burros and horses – expanded effort to re-home to private lands.
        • Good Neighbor Authority – looking for ways to help in a broader manner, including county roads that support the utilization of forest lands.
        • Trinity County was mentioned favorably several times by the USFS Chief.
        • SRS & PILT Funding – ongoing discussions regarding these funding sources. Jamie Green was recognized for his significant role in this arena.
      • Rural Action Committee
        • Looking for more “fly-ins” by rural county leaders when discussing the importance and impact of initiatives like SRS & PILT funding.
        • More direct funding – looking at ways that funding can bypass the state and go straight from the federal government to the counties.
        • Land Use – focusing on a stronger voice for rural counties.
      • Health – report from Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
        • Reduced Screen Time – working to reduce screen time for our youth.
        • Highly Processed Foods – working to reduce in military mess halls, schools, jails, etc.
      • Coalition of Native American Leaders – fully recognized under NACO
        • Distinguished protections in place for this group vs other groups covered by DEI
    • Governor Appointments – there are still some vacancies
    • Health &Human Services – met with staff for a deeper dive.
    • North Coast Resource Partnership – still working on funding/plans for clean up of lands impacted by illegal commercial cannabis operations
  • District 5 | Julia Brownfield
    • No out of county travel
    • Health Collaborative – mobile dental unit almost ready
    • Human Response Network – training available for people who want to drive people to appointments.
    • LAFCO – attended the meeting

C.4. Reports from Ad Hocs

  • Tourism Funding – The Trinity County Chamber of Commerce met with Two Six Digital to set the stage for collaboration throughout this calendar year. The first session will be focused on the website. We received a wonderful letter of support regarding the funding provided for the Ruth Lake Summer Festival.
D. CONSENT CALENDAR

Public Comment – None

Item D.4 – Staff requested that this be pulled for further preparations.

The board approved all other items on the Consent Calendar as presented.

D.1. Auditor/Controller – Adopt a resolution which removes the following items from the Auditor Department’s Capital Asset Inventory Listing: Asset ID 13411, 2013 Bi-Tech Server; Asset ID 11673, 1995 Informix Software, and Asset ID 11674, 1995 Microfocus Software. No fiscal impact.

D.2. Clerk of the Board – Approve regular meeting minutes for February 3 & 17, Page 3 of 1412026, and special meeting minutes for February 10, 2026. No fiscal impact.

D.3. Clerk of the Board – Authorize the Chairman to sign a joint letter of support regarding SB 973 (Becker) – Wildfire County Coordinator Program. No fiscal impact.

D.4. Human Resources – Approve the extension of the contract with Nationwide for our preexisting Governmental 457(b) Plan Agreement. No fiscal impact.

D.5. Probation – Adopt a resolution which removes the following items from the Probation Department’s Capital Asset Inventory Listing: Asset ID 13280, Ford Crown Victoria VIN 2FABP7BV5BX112230; Asset ID 13281, Ford Crown Victoria, VIN 2FABP7BV9BX112229; and Asset ID 12798, Ford E350 Club Wagon, VIN 1FBSS31L51HA4999 Unknown revenue to the Probation Department.

D.6. Transportation – Award to Eagle Rock, Inc. the 2026 contract for Aggregates Schedules I, II, III & IV. No impact to the General Fund; $195,598.41 from the Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Account.

D.7. Transportation – Award to Thomas R Bess, Inc. the 2026 contract for Aggregates Schedule V. No impact to the General Fund; $62,301 from the Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Account.

E. COUNTY MATTERS

E.1. Board of Supervisors – Approve amendment number 3 to the agreement with Trent Tuthill extending the term to April 18, 2028 and adding additional personal leave to serve as County Administrative Officer for Trinity County. No additional fiscal impact.

Public Comment

  • Process Concerns – feels there should have been more transparency regarding this process and the reason for the recommendation to extend the contract.
  • Process Concerns – feels that public confidence is falling. Feels more transparency was called for in this process. Called for the board to be more clear about their reasons for reaching its decision. Shared information about a public framework that she has developed and is making available to all.
  • Process Concerns – shared his view that the reference to “no additional fiscal impact” is not accurate. Feels there should have been more transparency. Concerned about reference to succession planning. Requested changes to the contract.
  • Support for the process & CAO – referenced her decades of Human Resources experience. Provided her testimony regarding Trent Tuthill’s leadership strengths and impact.
  • Process Concerns – shared concern regarding contract wording. Requested more information about the process and key decision appointments.
  • Process Concerns – shared concern about the lack of transparency of the selection process.

Board Discussion

  • Supervisors shared perspective regarding the process, the opportunity to extend the contract with Trent Tuthill, the importance of succession planning, etc.
  • The board is responsible for filling two roles – the CAO and County Council.
  • The board has conducted performance reviews with CAO Tuthill throughout his time in the position.
  • The process involved closed sessions, in part, to protect the privacy of those involved.
  • Succession planning is something that all great organizations do. The commitment to funding for this purpose is long overdue. The CAO will have control of these funds to support succession planning, not only for individuals who might someday be CAO candidates, but for those who might someday be Department Head candidates – backfilling if/when a Department Head leaves or is selected as CAO.
  • Clarified that this remains an At Will position.
  • Described the thoroughness of the process, the need to protect the privacy of applicants, etc. Referenced the use of standardized questions – some for written response and some for in-person response.

Prior Closed Session Report – Chair Carpenter-Harris provided a report on previous closed session. Direction was given to staff and/or negotiators.

F. CLOSED SESSION

F.1. Government Code Section 54954.5(f) – Labor Negotiations County’s Designated Representatives: Laila Cassis, Margaret Long and SuziePage 4 of 141Hawkins Employee Organizations: Health and Human Services Unit

ADJOURN

 

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