Measure P - Butte County
Shall the measure amending Article X, Sections 2 and 8 of the Butte County Charter to separate the office of the Director of Public Works from the office of the Road Commissioner be adopted?."Yes" Votes Needed to Pass: 50% +1 (majority) of the total votes cast on the measure by eligible voters.Impartial Analysis of Measure P.Measure P was placed on the ballot by the Butte County Board of Supervisors. It is a Charter Amendment. If approved by the voters, the measure would amend the Butte County Charter (Charter) to separate the offices of the Director of Public Works and the Road Commissioner so that the offices could be, but would not be required to be, held by two different people. Article X, Sections 2 and 8, of the Charter currently requires that one person fill both roles..In addition, the measure would eliminate the requirement that the Director of Public Works be a civil engineer, that he or she have at least three years of actual experience in road construction, and that he or she reside in the County during service as Director of Public Works. The measure would also establish the office of the Road Commissioner as defined in Streets and Highways Code section 2006. .Passage of Measure P requires approval of a majority of the voters voting on the measure. .A "yes" vote is a vote in favor of the proposed charter amendment..A "no" vote is a vote against the proposed charter amendment. .s/Brad J. Stephens, Butte County Counsel.Argument in Favor of Measure PThis measure would amend the Butte County Charter to improve staffing flexibility for the County Department of Public Works. Currently, the Director of Public Works is responsible for two independent functions: managing the Department and managing the specialized duties of County Road Commissioner. When Butte County's Charter was first adopted in 1916, the responsibilities of the County Public Works Department were primarily focused on building and maintaining roads and bridges. Over time, the Department's scope of responsibilities drastically increased to include the oversight of the Neal Road Recycling and Waste Facility, Floodplain Administration, Grading, Stormwater Management and various special assessment districts that provide services such as fire protection, flood prevention, and snow removal..This broadening of scope has made it increasingly difficult for a single individual to effectively manage the department's breadth of programmatic, administrative and budgetary functions, in addition to effectively fulfilling the specialized technical engineering mandates required of a Road Commissioner under state law. Further, recruitment for such a broad role has proven challenging..Under the proposed structure, the County could appoint a Director of Public Works to provide executive leadership, strategic direction, and fiscal oversight and appoint a registered civil engineer as the Road Commissioner/County Engineer, focusing specifically on the safety and integrity of County infrastructure.. This amendment would not increase staffing. Rather, it would provide flexibility for the County to either recruit and appoint a Director of Public Works who serves in both capacities or separate the functions into a Director of Public Works and designate another staff person as Road Commissioner/Engineer. The measure will amend Article X, Sections 2 and 8 of the County Charter. .s/Andy Pickett, Butte County Chief Administrative Officers/Sheri Waters, Butte County Director Human Resources.Argument Against Measure P.No argument against was filed.
