Reno, Nevada. Oct. 8, 2013. The Washoe County Board of Commissioners held its regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday, Oct. 8, and took action on items including: selected 11 candidates to advance to panel interviews for the position of Washoe County Manager; continued the  review of Nevada Assembly Bill 46 (AB 46); directed staff to continue negotiations and financing for the Regional License and Permit Program; acknowledged the achievement of an international financial reporting award; approved new snow removal equipment for Incline Village and Washoe County; received donations for the renovation of the McGee Center; discussed the Nevada Medical Marijuana Act; accepted several grants for Senior Services’ meals programs; appointed David Silverman to the District Board of Health; and adopted and executed several resolutions and proclamations.

Search for Washoe County Manager: Item 12.  The Washoe County Manager search began in early August and has entered the final stage of the recruitment process which is the selection. The search, conducted by Ralph Andersen & Associates (RAA), generated 57 applicants, four of whom later withdrew their applications for consideration. No additional resumes will be accepted as the evaluation of resumes has now been completed. The resumes of all applicants were presented to the Board for their independent review. This review narrowed the field to 11 candidates which represents all the individuals identified by the Board members. Commissioners directed that the following final candidates advance to interview panels set for Oct. 17 & 18 for further screening.

The 11 candidates are:

Rick Benson, County Administrative Officer, Mariposa County, CA; Jeff Fontaine, Executive Director, Nevada Association of Counties; Bonnie Hammersley, County Administrator, Muskegon County, MI; Mike Maslak, Chief Fiscal Officer, Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, CA; Greg Mathews, Director, Syringa Management Services, WA; Lee Niblock, County Administrator, Marion County, FL; Jim Nichols, Assistant City Manager, City of Midland, TX; Jamie Saives, J3 Chief of Staff and Operations Support Division Chief, United States Cyber Command, MD; Kevin Schiller, Director, Department of Social Services, Washoe County, NV; John Slaughter, Acting Assistant County Manager, Washoe County, NV; and Bill Thomas, Assistant City Manager, City of Reno, NV.

Next Steps in the Recruitment Process for Washoe County Manager: 

• Panel interviews (not including Board):  A total of six panels made up of community stakeholders, business, local and regional government entities, employees, elected/appointed department heads, and union representatives are currently being organized. Interviews will take place over a two-day period of time Thursday, Oct. 17 and Friday, Oct. 18.
• Public reception/meet & greet: Thursday, Oct. 17 beginning at 5:30 or 6 p.m. (final details pending). Light refreshments will be served. The reception is open to the public and will be at Harrah’s Reno in the Bill Harrah Room.
• Board of County Commissioners’ interviews: Tuesday, Oct. 22 in a regularly scheduled meeting.
• Final Selection, negotiations, and contract approval by the Board: Tuesday, Nov. 12 during a regularly scheduled meeting.

AB 46 (School Funding Bill) Update: Item 29. Commissioners continued their detailed review and preparation for the third and final workshop regarding AB 46 set for 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 15. AB 46 will also be discussed at regularly scheduled County Commission meetings on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month through the end of the year. Agendas for these meetings will be posted in advance on the Washoe County website. All meetings will take place in the Washoe County Commission Chambers at 1001 East Ninth Street in Reno. For a list of frequently asked questions about the school funding bill, including how citizens can voice their opinion and monitor the process, view Washoe County's AB 46 FAQs.

The bill could impose additional taxes that would generate funding for certain school repairs and maintenance in the Washoe County School District. The school capital needs initiative proposes to increase sales tax by ¼ of 1 percent in Washoe County and property tax by 5 cents per $100 of assessed value in Washoe County. The Board’s authority to impose the new taxes depends on getting approval of 4 of the 5 County Commissioners by Jan. 1, 2014.

Regional License & Permit Program: Item 19. Commissioners directed staff to continue with vendor contract negotiations, financing and an interlocal agreement to develop an online, citizen-centric and automated solution for business licensing and permits. Over the past year, the combined efforts of the City of Reno, Washoe County and the Washoe County Health District have been to implement a platform to share resources and provide savings for a regional solution to community and business needs in regard to permits. “This has been an amazing cooperative effort among us,” said Laura Schmidt, the County’s Chief Information Management Officer for Technology Services. “We will save approximately $400,000 and we are very excited about this collaborative program and its potential benefits for our region and our economy. Allowing for business licensing and permitting anywhere and anytime is responsive, responsible and essential.” 

Financial Reporting Award: Item 9.C. Commissioners acknowledged the achievement of the Popular Annual Financial Reporting (PAFR) Award from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) of the U.S. and Canada for Washoe County’s PAFR for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012. “This award for the effort to make our financial position and results more accessible and understandable to our citizens through PAFR means our report met the GFOA program standards for creativity, presentation, understandability and reader appeal,” said Cynthia Washburn, Washoe County’s Comptroller and Interim Finance Director. The PAFR is available on the Washoe County Finance website.

New Equipment for Snow Removal: Item 16. The Board approved the purchase of new snow removal equipment to replace 11 pieces of existing equipment scheduled for replacement and no longer under warranty. The new equipment will be more efficient and will be used primarily for road maintenance and snow removal operations in Washoe County and Incline Village.

Donations for CARES/SART Program: Item 13. Washoe County District Attorney Dick  Gammick updated Commissioners on the proposed Child Advocacy Center (CAC) inside the Charles M. McGee Center which is scheduled to open in 2014. The innovative Center will be designed to ensure the health and safety of child victims. The Center will also house the Child Abuse Response & Evaluations/Sexual Assault Response Team (CARES/SART) Program, reducing the burden on the victims. The District Attorney’s Office received donations of used furniture from the Transportation Security Administration division of the Department of Homeland Security for the proposed CAC. Community Chest also donated the connectivity/wireless backbone equipment, valued at $24,400, for the renovation. The CAC is a collaborative effort by the Washoe County D.A.’s Office, the Reno Police Department, the Sparks Police Department, the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office, the CARES/SART program and the County’s Department of Social Services. View the D.A.’s presentation. 

Nevada Medical Marijuana Act: Item 23. The Board received a report and overview of the Nevada Medical Marijuana Act (SB 374).  Citing concerns that the State of Nevada Health Division has yet to adopt the necessary regulations for medical marijuana establishments, Commissioners directed staff to draft a resolution that would temporarily prohibit Washoe County from accepting applications for business licenses, zoning applications and other permits or applications necessary to operate medical marijuana establishments in Washoe County.  At the same time, the Board directed staff to continue to monitor the State’s progress on developing its regulations and to continue the analysis and background work necessary to develop the ordinances, policies and procedures necessary to implement SB 374 once the State Health Division has approved medical marijuana regulations. The Board is scheduled to discuss the issue again on Nov. 12, 2013.

Commissioners directed staff to continue developing ordinances, policies and procedures for Senate Bill 374 but Washoe County will not currently accept or consider any applications for land use, business licenses, building permits or requests to operate or otherwise license or permit any of the medical marijuana establishments as contemplated by SB 374.

Grant Awards for Senior Services: Item 17. The Board accepted grant awards from the Nevada Aging and Disability Services Division for the Congregate Meals and Home Delivered Meals programs. Washoe County Senior Services anticipates providing more than 256,000 meals over the next year to senior citizens over the age of 60 in the community. 

Silverman Appointed to District Board of Health: Item 14. Commissioners appointed Reno resident David Silverman to a four-year term with the District Board of Health. The Board is composed of seven members, which includes two representatives each from Reno, Sparks and Washoe County and one physician licensed to practice medicine in Nevada. The District Board of Health, through the Washoe County Health District, has jurisdiction over all public health matters in the Health District and Board members serve four-year terms. Silverman is a general partner and the executive chef for the Silver Peak Restaurant and Brewery.

Resolutions & Proclamations: Items 5-8. Commissioners resolved to support the Northern Nevada Future Connectivity Segment of Interstate 11 and the Intermountain West Corridor extension from the north edge of metropolitan Las Vegas to the northern border of Nevada, a route which will utilize a corridor through northwestern Nevada and Washoe County. The Board also adopted and executed a Resolution of Accomplishment for Washoe County’s fourth place award in the 2013 Center for Digital Government’s Digital Counties Survey, which recognizes leading examples of counties using information and communications technology. Commissioners proclaimed Oct. 2013 as National Community Planning Month in Washoe County to recognize the value of planning and those in the planning process who create and maintain livable and sustainable communities throughout the area. The Board also proclaimed Oct. 6-12, 2013 Fire Prevention Week in Washoe County.

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