LAKE COUNTY— The Lake County Civil Grand Jury in their 2020-21 report stated that Lake County, like California and the rest of the nation, wasn’t prepared for the COVID-19 pandemic and determined that departments in the county did not know exactly what their responsibilities were under the county’s COVID ordinance. They noted that a position to enforce ordinance compliance has not been filled and that no process currently exists to guide effective response to unexpected urgent and serious county-wide challenges, among other findings
“Lessons
learned will guide our county in future challenges,” the jurors wrote adding
that effective leadership is imperative. The Grand Jury noted that reports are
completed many weeks ahead of release to allow for multiple legal reviews and
full report compilation. The state’s decision to ease many COVID-19
restrictions last month affected the organization’s recommendation that the
current ordinance be amended to accurately represent what the county is willing
and prepared to follow through on. The jurors also noted that all other
portions of their analysis remain viable and important.
In
an extensive discussion of the county’s health department work on planning a
COVID response last spring at the onset of the pandemic, the Grand Jury noted
that many counties, including the County of Lake, struggled with both the
breadth of what should be covered in a local ordinance to support extensive
compliance to the needed restrictions and safety efforts as well as how to put
in place a workable method of enforcement.
In
their discussion and analysis, the Jury wrote that “many policing agencies,
both city and county, throughout the state expressed reluctance or refusal to
be the enforcing agencies as they were already stretched quite thin on
fulfilling their normal and expected duties as well as questioning the overall
responsibility of enforcing health protocols and guidance through sworn
officers.”
Coronavirus Aid Relief and
Economic Security Act
Over
the summer of 2020, the CARES Act was enacted by the federal government which
provided (via a broad range of focusses) funds to various governmental levels
to assist in COVID-19 related support including medial and safety. According to
the report, in Lake County, two groups were put together to try and determine
the best and most probable for success means of getting the public compliance
that was integral to the communal fight against the virus. After much
deliberation, the County developed the COVID-19 Mandate Ordinance and it was
approved by the Board of Supervisors on Aug. 18, 2020 by a 4-1 vote.
Following
an unsuccessful citizen petition demanding the ordinance be rescinded, the
ordinance was free to be fully enacted in early November 2020.
The
Grand Jury noted that communications and coordination surrounding the actual
implementation of the ordinance were “non-existent.” In addition, they noted
that two departments, County Health and the Department of Community Development
were chartered, in the ordinance, to be the enforcers of the ordinance up to
and including the levying of the administrative fines.
Further,
neither of those departments was consulted as to what their responsibilities
would be or how they could manage to meet them. No directions were issued by
either the board or County administration as to what was expected or required
at the time of enactment.
Recommendations on
amendments and adoption of guidelines
Among
the Grand Jury recommendations are that all future county-wide ordinances which
designate multi-departmental involvement are discussed in advance with the
specific departments including feasibility studies, staffing needs, training
needs, and additional departmental budget to support the efforts and that an
adaptive and workable set of guidelines in dealing with unforeseen emergencies
be developed to aid future county Boards, staff and departments in addressing
governmental leadership, regulations, and public conformity.
Lake
County Record-Bee
By ARIEL CARMONA
July 22, 2021
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