DATE: October 17, 2017
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: Jean Rousseau, County Administrative Officer
SUBJECT: Creation of the Office of County Hearing Officer
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
TITLE
1. Conduct first hearing to amend the Ordinance Code of the County of Fresno, Title 2 - Administration, by adding Chapter 2.81, relating to the creation of the Office of the Fresno County Hearing Officer; waive the reading of the ordinance in its entirety; and set second hearing for October 31, 2017.
2. Designate County Counsel to prepare a fair and adequate summary of the proposed ordinance, and direct the Clerk to the Board to post and publish the required summary in accordance with Government Code, section 25124, subdivision (b)(1).
REPORT
Approval of the proposed Ordinance would create the Office of Fresno County Hearing Officer ("Office"), create five County Hearing Officer positions, authorize the Board to delegate appeals from administrative actions to the Office for final resolution, and refer quasi-legislative matters to the Office for recommendations to the Board.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
If the recommended actions are not approved, the Office will not be created, and matters that might otherwise be delegated to the Office shall continue to be heard by the Board of Supervisors or pursued in the civil courts.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Net County Cost associated with the recommended actions for FY 2017-18 is not expected to exceed $100,000. The Hearing Officers, experienced attorneys-at-law, would be employed as independent contractors, or part-time or full-time employees of the County. Funding for implementation of the Office of the Fresno County Hearing Officer is available in the Interest and Miscellaneous Expenditures Org 2540 to cover the Net County Cost. Savings are anticipated from the decrease in civil litigation costs; however, at this time the savings are not measurable. Therefore, no savings are included as an offset to the estimated Net County Cos...
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