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In its final meeting of the year, the Placer County Board of Supervisors approved a wish list of what the county wants from the federal and state governments in 2008, and then rehired a battery of lobbyists to try to make the wishes come true. The list is much the same as those submitted in past years. From the federal government the county wants things like continued funding for the regional wastewater treatment/water reclamation project, the Children’s Health Center/Emergency Shelter, and the county’s public safety radio system.
More federal money is needed for biomass/wildfire protection programs,
methamphetamine treatment services, and a variety of road and bridge
projects. State money will be sought for such things as Williamson Act
subventions, court facilities, pensions, the above-referenced
wastewater/reclamation project, adult protective services, care for
indigent adults, and juvenile justice needs. But how does the county have success with these and dozens of other requests? Why, it hires lobbyists to do the heavy lifting. Virtually all the lobbyists have worked for the county in past years
and during the current year, and their contracts have been renewed for
next year at their current rates. Federal lobbying will cost $186,000. Holland & Knight will be paid $144,000 and Van Scoyoc Associates $42,000. State lobbying will cost $101,407. Peterson Consulting, headed by Don
Peterson, will be paid $46,411. Conservation Strategy Group is in for
$24,996 while Platinum Advisors will receive $30,000. In a memo to the supervisors, County Executive Officer Tom Miller
lauded the work of the lobbying firms and urged their retention. Other actions by the board included: — Approval of a resolution commending Steve Eubanks upon his
retirement as the United States Forest Service’s supervisor of Tahoe
National Forest. — Agreement on one-year contracts with district supervisorial aides:
Linda Brown, District 1, $62,504; Brian Jagger, District 4, $62,504;
and Collier Cook, District 5 (Tahoe area), $68,931. — Reappointment of Mike Bishop, Judy Bennett and Gayle Russell to the Penryn Municipal Advisory Council. — Reappointment of Chuck Rydell, David Keyes and Ken Gregory to the North Auburn Municipal Advisory Council. Read more on the board of supervisors’ final meeting of 2008 in the Sentinel’s next edition.
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