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Provide direction to staff on the Senior Coalition of Solano County, including their proposed revised bylaws and changes to their membership; and Consider approval of a logo for the Senior Coalition of Solano County
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Published Notice Required? Yes ___ No _X _
Public Hearing Required? Yes ___ No _X _
DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION:
The Department of Health & Social Services and the County Administrator’s Office recommends that the Board of Supervisors provide direction to staff on the Senior Coalition of Solano County, including their proposed revised bylaws and changes to their membership, and consider approval of a logo for the Senior Coalition of Solano County.
SUMMARY:
The Senior Coalition of Solano County was established on May 9, 2006. The Board of Supervisors designated the Senior Coalition of Solano County as the Board’s senior issues advisory board and adopted the current bylaws for the Coalition on May 26, 2009 (Attachment A). The most significant changes requested in these revised bylaws (Attachments B and C) include:
(1) Reducing the required number of membership representatives from twenty-seven to twenty-one, with the Board appointing fourteen of the members and each of the seven cities appointing one member each;
(2) Expanding the purpose of the Coalition to include advice and recommendations to support State and federal legislation and policies affecting seniors;
(3) Defining the role of the Secretary/Treasurer position to include maintaining the Coalition’s notes and minutes, and reporting expenses and reimbursements at membership meetings; and
(4) Creating a nominating committee to recommend candidates for consideration on the Senior Coalition.
The amended/revised bylaws, including authority for Executive Committee to approve any needed changes, were approved by the Senior Coalition of Solano County on May 1, 2020. Minor changes were made by the Executive Committee and the revised bylaws reflect a draft date of July 20, 2020.
The Senior Coalition of Solano County is also recommending the adoption of a Senior Coalition advisory board logo (Attachment D). It recently came to the attention of the Senior Coalition that the logo needed Board approval. The logo has been used on materials for several years, such as printed on promotional bags provided to attendees of the County’s annual Centenarian Event and other materials. The Senior Coalition selected this logo as it provides the opportunity to engage the community and create recognition of the work of the advisory board in an artistic, visually stimulating fashion. The logo will be used on the advisory board letterhead, marketing and branding materials.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The FY2020/21 Preliminary Budget includes $30,221 for contracted administrative support to the Senior Coalition. There is no additional financial impact to the County General Fund. The costs associated with preparing the agenda are nominal and absorbed by the Department’s FY2020/21 Preliminary Budget.
DISCUSSION:
Background
In 2005, the Senior Coalition was initiated at the request of Supervisor Mike Reagan in an effort to ensure cooperation among public and private sector agencies throughout Solano County rather than the costly duplication of efforts and the need for a countywide collaborative for matters important to seniors. The Senior Coalition held its first meeting in November 2005 with the mission to advocate for and support efforts that improve and enrich the lives of seniors living and working in Solano County.
On May 9, 2006, after receiving a briefing from the Senior Coalition on the need for a senior issues advisory board on March 24, 2006, the Board of Supervisors approved the Senior Coalition’s request to be designated as the Board of Supervisors’ senior issues advisory board to address issues affecting the senior community and to coordinate efforts or collaborative planning on broad senior issues among the seven cities and countywide agencies. It was noted that the key task for the Coalition would be the creation of a “Seniors Report Card,” providing a baseline of information on services and issues, which would become the starting gate for community action. At this time there was no other group that served the same function as the Senior Coalition.
In 2008, the Solano County Status Report on Seniors (Report) was prepared with the guidance and support of the Senior Coalition and was distributed to policymakers throughout the county with the purpose to guide decisions on services, programs and policies impacting seniors and became part of the Senior Coalitions’ public outreach efforts to educate the community on senior-related issues. The Report included demographics, economic well-being, housing, health, wellness, safety, transportation, and community engagement as a strategic planning effort to prepare for the rapidly anticipated growth in the senior population.
Over the years, the Senior Coalition has raised awareness around senior issues including fall prevention, fraud and financial abuse, elder abuse, senior poverty, importance of active aging, mini-medical school events, and assistance with the Annual Centenarian Event. However, many other agencies/organizations now also provide similar information, support and outreach to seniors in our communities, including Napa Solano Area Agency on Aging (N/S AAA), Solano Transportation Agency, cities within the county, and Health and Social Services Older and Disabled Adult Services division.
On April 23, 2019, the Board reviewed the original purpose and mission of the Senior Coalition, including membership representation, and direction in light of the restructuring of the Napa/Solano Area Agency on Aging that occurred in FY2018/19. With the County becoming the administrative entity for the mandated N/S AAA, there are now overlaps between the N/S AAA and its advisory committee, and the Senior Coalition, as well as other organized groups. While some overlap between the N/S AAA and the Senior Coalition may improve coordination between the two entities, the elimination of overlapping appointments may provide opportunities for groups to focus on separate key senior issues.
The N/S AAA is responsible for distribution of funds received from the California Department of Aging for Planning Service Area 28 Older Americans Act services. These services include providing meals, information and assistance, caregiver support, activities related to preventative health and ombudsman services to seniors in both Napa and Solano counties. In 2019, the Public Health Departments in Napa and Solano counties executed a comprehensive senior needs assessment which included focus group discussions, key informant interviews, a survey, mortality data analyses and data from publicly available resources. Using the information gathered, and guidance documents specific and in accordance with the Older Americans Act of 2006 and the California Department of Aging, the N/S AAA updated the 2020-2024 Four-Year Area Plan for PSA 28 which commenced on July 1, 2020. The N/S AAA Advisory Council, established in 2019, work with N/S AAA staff to develop and implement the Four-Year Area Plans, and their duties include reviewing service providers and advocating on behalf of seniors. Top priorities include advocacy to expand transportation services for seniors, addressing older adult housing issues, nutrition and home delivered meals, access to services and resources, including outreach to underserved populations in residential care, providing information in multiple languages, expanding fall prevention resources, and developing emergency preparedness resources for older adults.
Additionally, other organizations/agencies have established committees/groups that focus on various types of outreach to seniors including Solano Mobility (a joint effort between N/S AAA and Solano Transportation Authority), the Network of Cares’ Solanocares4seniors (a one-stop online resource on topics and services for seniors, such as, prescription assistance, abuse prevention, and fall prevention), Senior Roundtables/Forums (in the cities) which provide an opportunity for city governments and community organizations to network and support senior issues, and many non-profits such as Faith in Action and others.
Per the current bylaws, the Senior Coalition shall consist of up to 27 members with the Board appointing 20 members and each of the seven cities appointing one member each. Membership includes supervisorial appointments (5) and interested community and senior service provider members (15). A quorum of a majority of the seated members is required to conduct business; however, regular attendance of the membership has been difficult to maintain resulting in the inability to conduct business. The Senior Coalition is proposing to reduce the required number of membership representatives from 27 to 21, with the Board appointing 14 of the members and each of the seven cities appointing one member each. A reduction in the membership may help with meeting the quorum requirement and the ability to conduct business.
The Senior Coalition is also recommending as part of their Purpose “to provide advice, recommendations and/or support of state and federal legislation or legislative policies that affect seniors.” However, this statement is unclear as to if the request is for authority to support all legislation that affects seniors, and this would not be consistent with Board established procedures. Per the Board’s adopted Advisory Board Principles and Policies, advisory boards are encouraged to provide advice, suggestions and recommendations to the Board of Supervisors on legislative issues through established procedures and consistent with Board policies and priorities.
Working with the Department of Health and Social Services (the assigned supporting department to the Senior Coalition), recommendations on legislative issues can be submitted to staff in the County Administrator’s Office for the Legislative Committee’s consideration. The County Administrator’s Office provides staff support to the Board established Legislative Committee. Items for consideration can then be placed on the Legislative Committee’s next agenda. Information on the Legislative Committee can be found online on the Board of Supervisors’ webpage under ‘Legislative Affairs,’ including scheduled meeting dates and times. Meetings are currently scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on September 7 and 21. The Board’s Legislative Committee reviews all legislative recommendations/proposals and presents their recommendations to the full Board of Supervisors. Additionally, each year in the fall, the Board approves federal and state legislative platforms and departments, working with committees they support, provide input into the development of the platforms.
Bylaw revisions include redefining the role of the officer position of Secretary to Secretary/Treasurer and defining the revised role in the bylaws. The Secretary/Treasurer would maintain notes/minutes of meetings, provide clerical support, present minutes at meetings for approval/adoption, and report expenses and reimbursements. The Senior Coalition assists and/or hosts senior outreach events throughout the year, including the Annual Centenarian event. Costs for these events often include refreshments and other event costs which are covered through financial donations. The non-profit Faith in Action has provided the fiduciary responsibility for receipt of these donations and the accounting of expenditures; however, this process is not consistent with current County practices and needs to be revisited. Staff will review and return to the Board with proposed options on how to manage donations for the Coalition’s various events.
The Senior Coalition is also recommending the selection of two at-large members to their Executive Committee, which can be interpreted as a current member of the Coalition or someone separate from the current appointed membership. This is ambiguous and to avoid any confusion, staff recommends the bylaws are not revised to include the proposed revision and remain as is currently approved which is two additional members of the Coalition.
ALTERNATIVES:
The Board could choose any or a combination of the following alternatives:
Bylaws
1) Approve the revised bylaw changes as currently proposed by the Senior Coalition; however, staff recommends that the Board provide direction.
2) Not approve the revised bylaw changes as currently proposed by the Senior Coalition and ask the Senior Coalition to revise any or all sections and return to the Board for consideration.
Membership
1) Keep membership as is with up to 27 members with one appointee from each supervisorial district and seven city appointments; and remaining 15 members appointed by the Board of Supervisors representing the categories of legal/law enforcement, community-based organizations, and health, mental health and medical, and seniors; however, the Senior Coalition has had difficulty with meeting quorum requirements.
2) Reduce membership to 17 members with two appointments from each of the supervisorial districts and one appointment from each of the seven cities within the county.
3) Reduce membership to 12 members with one appointment from each of the supervisorial districts and one appointment from each of the seven cities within the county.
Legislation
1) Revise bylaws to reflect guidance provided in the Board’s adopted Advisory Board Principles and Policies, which encourages advisory boards to provide advice, suggestions and recommendations to the Board of Supervisors on legislative issues through established procedures and consistent with Board policies and priorities as departments and advisory committees individually do not have authority to advocate, send letters in support on issues that the Board has not taken a position.
Officer Position of Secretary
1) Not approve changing the title of Secretary to Secretary/Treasurer and to define the role of the Secretary as providing clerical support to the Coalition, including maintaining notes and minutes which reflects the normal duties of an advisory board’s secretary position.
Logo
1) Not approve the logo recommended by the Senior Coalition; however, the logo has been used on materials for several years, including materials used in the promotion of the annual Centenarian Event.
Senior Issues
1) To disband/inactivate, consolidate and/or reorganize the Senior Coalition to better facilitate coordination and collaborative planning on broad senior issues throughout the county.
2) Designate another organization, such as the mandated Napa Solano Area Agency on Aging, as the senior issues advisory board to the Board of Supervisors.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
H&SS, the department providing administrative support and overseeing contract management to the Senior Coalition, worked with the Senior Coalition of Solano County and the contracted Senior Coalition Coordinator on this agenda item. The County Administrator’s Office and County Counsel reviewed the Senior Coalition’s proposed revised bylaws and provided the Board with alternative actions.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
APPROVE DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION