Board of Supervisors Meeting | 6.6.2026

by | Jun 8, 2026 | Get Involved, Stay Informed, Your Opinion Matters

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This board meeting included two presentations: a proclamation recognizing June 2026 as Elder Abuse Awareness Month and an update from the U.S. Forest Service. Updates were provided by our CAO, Sheriff, and each member of the Board of Supervisors.

All items on the Consent Calendar were approved. Under County Matters, the board approved five items. The closed session included two items.

 

A. PRESENTATIONS

A.1. Health and Human Services – Adult Services – Adopt a proclamation recognizing June 2026 as Elder Abuse Awareness Month. No fiscal Impact.

  • Staff Presentation – strong message about the importance of awareness, of listening, and of supporting those experiencing neglect and/or abuse.
  • The board approved this proclamation and presented it to staff.

A.2. Clerk of the Board – Receive an update from U.S. Forest Service representatives regarding matters of interest in Trinity County. No fiscal impact.

  • Bowerman Timber Sale – 650 acres. Work continues in this area.
  • Hayward Camp Ground – great progress is being made.
  • Fire Fighting Readiness Reviews
  • Secure Rural Schools Act – setting up the resource advisory commission to assist in directing funding. Applications are available.
B. PUBLIC COMMENT
  • General Plan/Zoning Code – shared concerns that more transparency is needed regarding this work. Requested for more clarity regarding the changes proposed to existing code.
  • Zoning Code – offered appreciation for the lengthy time commitment made by the board and planning commission. Referred to previous/similar engagements related to commercial cannabis code. Mentioned the collaboration that took place between seemingly opposed parties during this process. Asks that opt-outs are carefully addressed during this process, with a focus on non making changes that damage what has been working.

 

C. REPORTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS

Report from Department Heads

  • Sheriff Saxon
    • Siskiyou Academy – three graduates last Friday, all beginning work with the department.
    • Staffing – testing and recruiting continues for additional open roles
    • Emergency Communication System
      • Brief history provided regarding the system, access to funding, hiring of Day Wireless, inventory and repair priorities, initial repairs to Oregon Mountain,.
      • Additional Problems – another key component on Oregon Mountain failed, leading to a significant worsening of communications.
      • Quick Resolution – Day Wireless was on site within 24 hours, located, programmed and installed a replacement part at night in the rain.
      • Ongoing Efforts – collecting information on additional parts so that we can attempt to stay ahead of future failures.

C.2. Report from County Administrative Officer

  • State Budget Update – June 15th is the deadline for adoption. Significant differences remain to be settled. HR1 continues to be a big point of discussion.
  • County Budget – preliminary budget will be presented during the next meeting.
  • Trindell Board Meeting – membership has stabilized. Rates….
  • North State Cooperative Library….
  • RCRC | Jail Medical – Trinity is participating in the northern region as part of an evaluation being led by consultants. The focus is on streamlined, consistent, and effective delivery of medical support.

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

  • District 1 | Ric Leutwyler
    • CSAC Legislative Conference – I missed the first day due to our Zoning Code Listening Session. I lleft for Sacramento the next morning to attend the CSAC board meeting and then participated in a meeting with State legislators.
    • NoRTEC – attended the board meeting last week in Anderson. Weekly meetings continue. More time will be required in the coming months as the Executive Director of NoRTEC resigned yesterday. We moved quickly to confirm an interim director and are now working to initiate a recruiting process.
    • Sierra Nevada Conservancy – participated in sub-region meeting last week. A tour is scheduled tomorrow for board members and the public. The board will meet on Thursday.
    • USDA Funding Initiative – Graham Knaus, CEO of CSAC, is working with USDA representatives with a goal to bring $250 million to the North State. He needs project examples to share during his meetings.
    • California Jobs First – participated in the update session last week. Requested a list of applications to support USDA funding initiative.
    • Emergency Communications – I joined CAO Tuthill, Sheriff Saxon, and Chief Colby for a community meeting in Lewiston regarding Emergency Communications. Reports of a fully missed call last week led to reports from several volunteer fire departments about worsening communications. This was the first I had heard of problems since work was done on Oregon Mountain. Based on detailed data provided by the Lewiston Volunteer Fire Department, and more general input from other departents, we were able to quickly determine that a duplexer was damaged between May 14th and 15th. Sheriff Saxon’s team quickly engaged Day Wireless and we had someone working on equipment within 24 hours. The system is reportedly working much better now. This situation amplifies the importance of clear, consistent reporting of problems from the field. If earlier instances of problems had been reported, we likely could have avoided the missed call.
  • District 2 | Jill Cox
    • Election – shared that she was able to feed her own ballot into the polling machine
    • No out of county travel
    • RCRC meeting out of town coming up.
    • State Parks | Prop 4 dollars – still uncertain how funds will be allocated. She is pursuing additional information and guidance so that we can participate.
  • District 3 | Liam Gogan
    • Memorial Day Service | Hayfork – joined other supervisors and Sheriff Saxon in honoring fallen soldiers. Offered appreciation to Chief Probation Officer, Ruby Fierro for her team’s efforts to spruce up the cemetery prior to this event.
    • Zoning Town Hall Meeting – meeting scheduled 6.11 at 6:00 PM at the Roderick Senior Center.
  • District 4 | Heidi Carpenter-Harris
    • Memorial Day Services – shared the importance of this event to her. Visited the Hmong Memorial that is also in Hayfork.
    • North Coast Air Quality – participated in the board meeting
    • NACO RAC Meeting – Provided a brief update regarding key items
    • Big Ranch Project – …
  • District 5 | Julia Brownfield
    • Zoning Code Sessions – thanked everyone, including the public.
    • District 4 Tour – joined Supervisor Carpenter-Harris for a tour of her district.

C.4. Reports from Ad Hocs

• Tourism Funding

  • The Trinity County Chamber of Commerce is scheduling the next session with Two Six Digital. The “Must Do Marketing Tactics for Small Businesses” session is tentatively scheduled on June 9th at 11:00 AM.
  • The next quarterly meeting is being scheduled later this month. This will provide information regarding efforts and results for the prior quarter and planned efforts with anticipated results for the upcoming quarter. The
D. CONSENT CALENDAR
  • Public Comment – none
  • The board approved all items on the consent calendar as presented.
E. COUNTY MATTERS

E.1. Community Development – Environmental Health – Receive an update from Trinity County Environmental Health (TCEH) regarding the process of forming a Local Area Management Plan (LAMP) with the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board (NCRWQCB) and provide direction to staff regarding future LAMP actions. Unknown fiscal impact.

  • Kristy Anderson | Director of Environmental Health
    • Kelsey Cody | North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board
    • Presentation materials are included in the agenda packet
    • Review of current status and history associated with LAMPs
    • Expect at least one year to review application
    • Anticipate increased staffing requirements if LAMP is pursued. This includes for preparation and administration of the program.
    • The NCRWQCB can approved advanced systems when necessary.
    • Limitations – identified project types that could not be approved even with a LAMP.
    • Funding Options – presented data collected. Most points back to the Clean Water State Revolving Funds, which requires a 50% match. The timeline for a project using these funds is estimated at 10 years.
    • Staff recommendation is to not pursue the LAMP, due to costs, staff limitations, and limited numbers of situations which have surfaced that require alternative systems. Also noted increased county responsibility and potential impacts on property owner.
  • Board Questions
    • Estimated number of instances – Kristy noted two denials in Lewiston. Noted examples of rejecting ADU requests in the East Weaver section. Noted examples of failures that might require special approvals. We don’t have an estimate for the county.
    • Outside Support – Kelsey Cody provided information:
      • Indicates the regional board can assist in situations in which there is substantial (vs complete) conformity to requirements. This does not constitute a permit, would have to be in writing, could allow repair of a failed system in certain circumstances.
      • State involvement in new systems/permits is a minimum of $1,500 per year. These also require more extensive and expensive monitoring and reporting, can require public hearings. Issuing this type of a permit to individual homeowners is not the norm for this organization.
      • Whole house incinerators – these remain in the county’s arena since it doesn’t have water impact.
      • Larger/shared systems could potentially be approved by the regional board.
    • Tracking Needs – asked how we can more effectively track the volume and types of needs that would support a LAMP
    • Application Costs – while the application can be done without consulting support, it is a big lift and a consultant would likely be needed due to complexity and staff limitations.
    • Drew Plebani presented additional thoughts about how we might be able to move forward, including hiring someone to help identify alternatives that could be implemented without a LAMP.
  • Public Comment
    • Solution Oriented Approach – need this to address development and housing goals.
    • Support offered for pursuing the LAMP. Noted there are increasing numbers of situations in which repair or replacement of old systems will not be allowed.
    • Support offered for pursuing the LAMP. Shared that he believes there are more needs than are being stated. Encouraged engagement with other counties that have implemented a LAMP. Noted that some changes to zoning, setbacks, etc. make it tougher for property owners to move forward.
  • Board Discussion
    • Survey – suggested that staff initiate a survey of realtors, contractors, and land owners, to gather information about the volume and characteristics of needs for alternative approaches. This could include properties that can’t be developed, existing systems that would not be allowed to be repaired or replaced, etc.
    • Alternatives – suggested that we pursue options like incinerators, shared systems, etc.
  • Board Direction to Staff
    • Initiate a survey that will inform further board discussions. The survey should gather specifics (APN, specific challenge – such as setbacks, perk-test results, etc.). Separately, gather information regarding alternatives, such as incinerators and regional board support in the absence of a LAMP. Bring the results to the board within 60 days. Staff time estimated to be at or below 10 hours.

E.2. Auditor/Controller – Adopt a policy updating the County’s Credit Card Program, Policies and Procedures effective July 1, 2026. No fiscal Impact.

  • Christine Gaffney | Auditor Controller – presented this matter. Mentioned that the travel policy will govern whether gratuities are reimbursable. Plans call for the travel policy to be presented later in June. If reimbursement of gratuities is authorized in the travel policy, then an amendment to this policy can be processed.
  • Public Comment – none
  • The board approved this matter as presented, with a direction to staff to include reimbursement of gratuities in the new travel policy, within appropriate limits and approvals.

E.3. County Administrative Office – Discuss and/or provide direction to staff regarding a potential change in the job description and salary range for the County Librarian classification and methods to provide library services. Unknown fiscal impact.

  • CAO Tuthill – presented this matter. Asking for board direction to inform development of the 2026/2027 fiscal year budget. The MOU arrangement to share this role with Humboldt County is no longer available.
    • Options Presented
      • Adjust job description, move from management unit to general unit. This would equate to a $50,000 net increase in budgeted costs.
        • This could lead to a reduction in staffing/funding for other locations as this person could work in multiple locations.
      • Pursue a shared arrangement with another party. One potential source has been identified.
      • Contract with a company that provides this type of service on an outsourced basis. This would have lower direct costs, but additional administrative costs. This would mean all positions are outsourced.
    • Staff Recommendation:
      • Advertise new position based on revised job description. See if we can fill the role with this approach.
      • Pursue the MOU approach if the position can not be filled.
    • Nonprofit Approach – briefly discussed the option of turning over assets to a nonprofit, with very low cost leases of facilities, and funding through the county to support operations without the requirement for a librarian that meets specific standards. More information is needed to determine negative impacts of leaving the “state free library” status/network.
    • Retired Librarian and/or Shasta College option.
  • Public Comment
    • On behalf of her daughter who is a librarian in Trinity Center, shared uncertainty about how this would impact staff at the various library locations.
    • Supports funding for a qualified librarian to meet state requirements. Also emphasized the importance of existing staff at all locations.

E.4. County Administrative Office – Pursuant to the County Fee Waiver Policy, find that the Trinity County Fair Association`s Annual Fair provides a public benefit and approve their application for waiver of County fees, waiving the Solid Waste fees in part. Potential loss of revenue in an amount of up to $8,604 to the Solid Waste Enterprise fund.

  • CAO Tuthill – presented this matter
    • The Solid Waste Department is already stretched due to funding limits, increasing fuel and labor costs, etc.
  • Public Comment
    • Fair Board Member (and staff member) shared that they will be hosting the fair again this year, though it will be on a less grand level. She indicated that every dollar will help.
  • Board Discussion
    • A motion was made to approve the total waiver request.
    • The board approved staff’s recommendation to split the costs, waiving $5,084 vs the total amount of $8,604.

E.5. Transportation – Adopt a resolution approving the FY 26/27 List of Projects/Work Plan for funding from the Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Account (RMRA).  $2,878,561 revenue to the Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Account (RMRA).

  • Panos Kokkas | Director of Transportation – presented this matter
  • Public Comment – none
  • Board Discussion
    • The board approved this matter as presented.
F. CLOSED SESSION

F.1. Government Code Section 54954.5(c) – Conference with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation No. of Cases: One Lewandowski v. County of Trinity, et al. (Case No. 2:24-cv-01697-JAM-JDP)

F.2. Government Code Section 54954.5(e) – Public Employee Evaluation: County Counsel

ADJOURN

 

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