Title
Receive a Cannabis Program report to support the appointment of retiree Robert Roach as a Management Specialist in the Cannabis Program for a limited term.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
1. Receive a report to approve the limited term appointment of retiree Robert Roach as a Management Specialist that is necessary to fill a critically needed function for the Cannabis Program-Compliance Inspection Process;
2. Consider request that the Board of Supervisors waive the 180-day “waiting period” for PERS retirees to return to work for the recently-retired Assistant Agricultural Commissioner;
3. Approve funding the Management Specialist position by utilizing not more than one-month of total salary savings (January 2019) for four allocated Cannabis positions approved in October 2018 but not yet filled;
4. Approve an increase appropriation in CAO-IGLA FY 2018-19 budget in the amount of $32,605 financed by a decrease in appropriations to the following departments: County Administrative Office, Health Department - Environmental Health Bureau, and Resource Management Agency; and
5. Provide direction to staff as appropriate.
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
On July 7, 2015, the Board of Supervisors adopted an Interim Ordinance (ORD #5424) to address cannabis activities in the unincorporated areas of Monterey County. In September of 2016, the Board of Supervisors created policy to encourage a local cannabis industry as part of the County’s economic development efforts, and to provide general tax revenues to fund critical County services. Implementation of this policy was made possible with voter approval of Proposition 64, effective January 1, 2018.
Monterey County voters approved a tax on cannabis products in November of 2016 which, among other services made possible the Monterey County Cannabis Program. Program coordination, implementation and oversight is provided by the County Administrative Office (CAO), Intergovernmental & Legislative Affairs (IGLA) Division. Ten County departments have key responsibilities for implementing various aspects of the program. Multiple external agencies play important roles in the success of the program as well. There are many program components to manage and most are still in development. Compliance focuses on ensuring business operators comply with local and state regulations while enforcement focuses on illegal activities. Compliance is a critical and important function. The Program has limited resources and compliance efforts would greatly benefit from an experienced leader with technical experience in regulatory programs and compliance.
The Cannabis Program Strategic Plan Goal B states: “Protect public safety, health and the environment as the cannabis industry grows in Monterey County.” In order to meet this goal, the compliance functionality is critical. To further assist the Cannabis Program, in October 2018, the Board of Supervisors approved eight additional resources for enforcement and compliance. To date, three of the eight newly allocated positions have been filled so the program has yet to be fully staffed. For various reasons, some positions are taking longer to fill than others, but all are in various stages of recruitment and selection. Following approval of the additional resources, the Cannabis Program Manager began work with the Permit Task Force to develop compliance inspection processes.
The Cannabis Program is seeking support for the appointment of retiree Robert Roach, former Assistant Agricultural Commissioner, as a Management Specialist reporting directly to the Cannabis Program Manager, to complete the development of the compliance functionality. The limited term, March - June 2019, would allow Mr. Roach time to work with the Compliance Team, standardize processes and procedures, create checklists and provide training, where appropriate and needed. (Attachment A- Management Specialist, Cannabis Technical Advisor). If time allowed, the Management Specialist would also work with the Cannabis Program on the emerging issues related to hemp.
The Cannabis Compliance team consists of staff from the Agricultural Commissioner Office, Health Department, Environmental Health Bureau, Resource Management Agency (RMA) Code Compliance and Fire Districts. The Cannabis Program has agreement to use the salary savings for the month of January 2019 to fund the limited term Management Specialist assignment, if approved. The Cannabis Departments who have agreed are the following: County Administrative Office, Health Department - Environmental Health Bureau, and Resource Management Agency (RMA) Code Compliance.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The County Administrative Office, Health Department - Environmental Health Bureau, and Resource Management Agency worked together and agreed to use a total of one month of salary savings (January 2019), from the combined departments, in support of the proposed Management Specialist position. (Attachment B-Salary Savings)
FINANCING:
The approval of the recommended actions will increase appropriation in CAO-IGLA FY 2018-19 budget in the amount of $32,605 financed by a decrease in appropriations to the following departments: County Administrative Office, Health Department - Environmental Health Bureau, and Resource Management Agency. The estimated cost of the limited term Management Specialist is $31,360.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS STRATEGIC INITIATIVES:
The Cannabis Program affects all the Board of Supervisor Strategic Plan Policy Areas towards the goal of creating a legal and responsible industry.
Related Board of Supervisors Strategic Initiatives include:
X Economic Development
X Administration
X Health & Human Services
X Infrastructure
X Public Safety
Prepared by: Joann Iwamoto, Cannabis Program Manager, (831) 796-3017
Approved by: Nicholas E. Chiulos, Assistant CAO
___________________________________________ ____________________
Nicholas E. Chiulos, Assistant County Administrative Officer Date
Attachments:
Attachment A: Management Specialist: Cannabis Technical Advisor
Attachment B: Schedule of January 2019 Salary Savings
cc: Dewayne Woods, Assistant CAO
Jose L. Garcia, Administration Finance Manager, CAO
Carl P. Holm, Director, Resource Management Agency
Elsa Jimenez, Director, Health Department
Ezequiel Vega, Assistant Director, Health Department
Irma Ramirez-Bough, Director, Human Resources
Kelly Donlon, Deputy Counsel, Office of the County Counsel