Membership Monday

July 5, 2021

What motivates you to work hard?

I am not afraid to admit that I am obsessed with our operations and believe in watching every detail. Walt Disney was quoted as saying, “There’s no magic in magic. It’s all in the details.” In my opinion, elections require extreme attention to detail, and my motivation centers on continual improvement. I wake up early every morning and think about the day before, asking myself, “How can we make today better than yesterday?”

May 31, 2021

Please describe your role with your County:

As Assessor, I am responsible for producing the annual assessment roll. Our mission is to provide exceptional customer service while accurately and fairly assessing all real and business property in a timely manner. With 528,705 assessable roll units, the work performed by the 266 appraisers, auditors, and other professionals on our team generates nearly $6 billion in property tax revenue annually, with $1 billion alone benefiting the County’s general fund.

May 17, 2021

Please describe your role with your County:

I am the elected Treasurer-Tax Collector for Monterey County. I oversee a department that consists of three units: Property Tax, Revenue Division, and Treasury.

The Property Tax Division collects all property tax, transient occupancy taxes (TOT), and commercial cannabis business taxes. The Revenue Division functions as an in-house collection service for various departments but mainly focuses on the collection of court-ordered fines and fees. Finally, the Treasury Division is the bank for the county, schools, and most special districts. We manage all types of banking services while overseeing a $2.2 billion pooled investment portfolio.

April 5, 2021

Please describe your role with your County:

I wear so many hats, it is a challenge to describe them all. My primary role is to be our CAO’s backup, represent management during labor negotiations, serve as a rotating Emergency Operations Center director and support the CAO department teams in the successful execution of their work. Currently, my other duties as assigned (A.K.A. hats), include project managing a Cannabis ordinance change project and covering analyst liaison roles for several departments until capacity is realigned.

March 8, 2021

Is your glass half-full, or half-empty?

I am an eternal optimist, so I would say half-full, but sometimes you need to ask yourself why the glass is only half-full. Either you aren’t doing everything you can and operating at your highest level of efficiency, or you might be using the wrong glass.

February 22, 2021

Please describe your role with your County:

At the Sutter County Museum we have two full-time staff members and one part-time. My title is Director/Curator, but our staff is so small I do many things- everything from organizing exhibits, planning educational programs, and promoting the museum to buying for our gift shop, managing our farmers market, and cleaning our fountain. If it needs doing, I’m likely the person doing it.

February 1, 2021

Please describe your role with your County.

As Deputy Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) and the Budget Director for Butte County, I serve as a liaison between a number of County Departments and the CAO and function as the Budget Director for the County. In my role as Budget Director I oversee the budget process, debt management and general fund financial forecasting.

January 4, 2021

What makes your county special?

San Francisco is the only combined City and County in California. It is also a place that has long captured the imaginations of people around the world, a favorite movie location from Hitchcock to the Avengers. San Francisco has been at the center of some of the great social movements of the last half century and our local government has led on issues ranging from LGBT rights to tenant and worker protections to climate change. From the Gold Rush until today, it has been a city where people have come to make their fortunes, pursue their dreams and change the world.

November 30, 2020

What motivated you to enter public service?

As the Director of General Services I oversee the following departments; Solid Waste, Siskiyou Power Authority, Flood Control, Airports, Transportation/Bus service, Facilities, and Communications.

I am relatively new to public service, having about three years under my belt, with the last nine months being in my current position. But, it is fascinating to see the inner workings of local governments and how larger State and Federal decisions influence us here in Siskiyou County.