Placer Supes approve county responses to 2022-23 Grand Jury report

The Placer County Board of Supervisors approved response generated to address the 2022-23 Grand Jury report findings Tuesday. The report examined the Veterans Service Office and the county's spending on homelessness. In its deeper dive into the Veterans Service Office, the Grand Jury found the office is underfunded, it does not have adequate representatives to answer phones and process claims, its social media presence is insufficient in providing information online, veterans and their families may not be aware of the benefits available to them, as well as the Veterans Services Office staff is dedicated to veterans seeking assistance. The first recommendation was for the budget of the Veterans Service Office to be increased by Jan. 1, 2024. According to the county's response, the recommendation will not be implemented in the proposed timeline, as it does not align with fiscal-year budget timelines. "Providing adequate services to our Veterans remains a priority and therefore analysis will be conducted for potential additional funding (or positions) requests to be included in the Fiscal Year 2024-25 Health and Human Services budget," the response states of the Veterans Service Office's budget. The response noted the proposed analysis will include potential grant opportunities, identification of any available general funds, ways to increase subvention funding and braiding of funds from other Human Services programs. The response also confirms the Grand Jury's second recommendation, to add positions to process claims and answer phones by Jan. 1, 2024, has already been implemented with three staff members becoming accredited since the Grand Jury began its report. Additionally, the Grand Jury took a look at the county's spending on homelessness. Findings included the county does not clearly define or report all sources of funding or expenditures on homelessness, there is little to no communication and coordination of spending among Placer jurisdictions, funding comes from various sources and Placer jurisdictions do not have homeless budget line items that define funding and expenditures. The Grand Jury recommended a full accounting of homeless funding and expenditures be established by Jan. 1, 2024, and be provided on an annual basis, to include an annual budget. The county's response confirms the recommendation will not be implemented, as "it is not reasonable." "Fully capturing all county costs, expenses and funding related to homeless programs presents challenges and is not feasible given fragmentation of current funding streams," the response states. "Homeless services often intersect with a diverse range of other county programs, projects and services. … However, the funding for these services is not specifically tracked to identify the exact portion benefiting the homeless population." The item was approved during the board's consent agenda. According to the staff report, the responses will be provided to the Grand Jury and the presiding judge of the Placer County Superior Court.