Plumas County Treasurer/Tax Collector Julie White had four items for approval before the Plumas County Board of Supervisors Feb. 6. One was approved, two were delayed, and the fourth one — paying her attorney fees — was denied.
Board approval came quickly to purchase treasury management software. Lack of such software has contributed to delays in reporting on and distributing investment funds. The decision was unanimous to authorize White to sign an agreement with Emphasys Software to purchase SymPro, a “fully integrated treasury solution.” The three-year contract is not to exceed $90,000.
Discussion of investment policy is lengthy
Approving investment policy and guidelines for the treasurer involved a long discussion focused on an advisory and oversight committee. White, who has asked for approval previously, submitted a proposal that did not include this committee. She proposed adding an advisory committee to the guidelines as soon as possible, but urged the supervisors to adopt her proposal immediately.
Plumas County Administrative Officer Debra Lucero strongly recommended including a treasury oversight committee to advise the board on investment decisions. Such a system helps ensure that the treasurer is complying with the requirements of the planned policy. Plumas County hasn’t adopted a revised investment plan since 2016, she said.
Lucero cited other considerations when adopting guidelines that do not include an oversight committee: “We are 31 months behind in reporting. We are not able to do timely reports, and this is affecting everything all the way down the road.”
Supervisor Jeff Engel floated a motion to adopt an investment policy without the oversight committee. “Maybe we’re short of a perfect score,” he said, “but we’re working to gain that total perfection.”
“The best way to do it <is> to have all the language in one piece of paper.”
Josh Brechtel, interim county counsel
His motion went without a second while board members discussed whether an investment policy that does not include an oversight committee increases the county’s liability. Board Chairman Greg Hagwood weighed in on the side of a policy that is as complete as possible. “Why not do it once right when we’re in a position to be as compliant as humanly possible?”
Interim County Counsel Josh Brechtel said including the advisory committee in the investment policy would be “the best way to do it — to have all the language in one piece of paper.”
Feather River College President Kevin Trutna, who participated via Zoom, said the monthly meeting of an advisory committee would allow hashing out some of the difficulties that have arisen with the county treasurer’s office over recent months. The college, which is part of the county investment pool, has still not received some of the interest it is due from the treasurer, he said.
Supervisor Kevin Goss eventually seconded Engel’s motion to approve the treasurer’s policy and guidelines without an advisory committee. It failed two votes to three, with Goss voting for it and Supervisors Hagwood, Dwight Ceresola and Tom McGowan voting no.
Approval of the policy and guidelines is scheduled for further discussion Feb. 13, when granting White formal authority to invest county funds is also expected to be discussed.
Discussion of attorney fees is even longer
The most contentious issue White brought to the supervisors Feb. 6 was paying her attorney fees. She is seeking a payment not to exceed $50,000.
White hired a private attorney in September after she said the county counsel’s office could no longer represent her due to a conflict of interest. Sara James, interim county counsel at that time, disputed any conflict with her office in a back-and-forth that left the issue unresolved.
Chris Bakes, White’s Sacramento-based attorney, spoke at length about multiple conflicts of interest that, he said, include Hagwood and McGowan. He asked that they recuse themselves from voting on paying his fees.
Bakes also aired a series of Sept. 28, 2023, email exchanges between Lucero and Sharon Roberts, chair of the Feather River Tourism Association board. In the emails, Roberts threatens litigation over unpaid interest on the organization’s investments in the county investment pool. “And Ms. Lucero became the messenger of the litigation threat,” Bakes said.
The emails further illustrate what he called “a conflict storm” that has denied White the services of the county counsel’s office, and forced her to seek a private attorney. Lucero, James and Brechtel all disputed parts of his narrative in testy and extensive legal disagreements.
The larger issue underlying the hour-long legal wrangling is whether county department heads and elected officials are protected by the county counsel’s office in conflicts of interest, said District Attorney David Hollister. They are expecting to have “absolute without conflict representation,” he said.
“I am just very candidly alarmed at this idea that you’re going to ask us to undertake our obligations and our responsibilities, not knowing if we’re going to have civil representation on that type of litigation,” Hollister told the supervisors.
“I think this board is the cause of this whole litigation.”
Jeff Engel, Plumas County supervisor
After witnessing the back-and-forth for nearly an hour, Supervisor Dwight Ceresola offered his observation: “It’s interesting that three attorneys can have three different takes on what the law is.”
He proposed paying the attorney fees White accrued after Jan. 1, when a state law changed, adding county treasurers to the list of officials eligible for reimbursement of private attorney fees. Ceresola opposed making payments retroactive to September 2023.
Engel was unequivocal in disagreeing: “I think this board is the cause of this whole litigation.” And he further criticized his fellow supervisors: “This board does not stand behind its employees or elected officials. I think they’re doing a disservice to the county.”
Engel’s motion to pay all of White’s attorney fees failed two votes to three, with Goss voting to approve.
