Grand jury urges LAFCo oversight

The Santa Cruz County civil grand jury this week urged the county’s 92 special districts offer greater “transparency to the public.”
A jury investigation concluded that some districts don’t operate according to bylaws and parliamentary procedures, as required by state law, and the jury urged that the countywide Local Agency Formation Commission enforce those laws.
A special district is an independent government entity formed for a single purpose, such as a fire protection, recreation, water service or cemetery district.
The jury’s annual report, issued Thursday, June 25, suggested establishing a repository of documents required of each district, making them available for public inspection.
The jury said most large districts “appear to be professionally run, complying with the applicable statutes and the concerns of their constituents in fulfilling their intended purpose.
“However, smaller districts operating with far less or no staff and often volunteer members of their governing boards may fall into gray areas of minimal compliance.”
The investigation was started after the jury received a complaint about the operation of one district, which was not identified.
“It was found that the district in question (formed in the late 1950s) had no written bylaws and to have only recently adopted parliamentary procedures (to) guide their meetings and operations,” the jury reported.
“The combination of lack of formal procedures, bylaws and a mission statement led to ongoing problems and resulted in a breeding ground for hostility among the public and some members of its board.”
Jurors said it would be “appropriate” for LAFCo to “expand its application and review process to include submission and retention of special district governing documents.”
While the grand jury has no enforcement power, the LAFCo board and the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors are required to respond to the report within three months.