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Local government roundup: 02/13/2017

Greta Mart/KCBX

On this week’s local government agendas, Monterey County supervisors will consider adopting a resolution welcoming immigrants and refugees. 

The resolution points out that 30 percent of the county’s total population is foreign-born, and that large numbers of undocumented people live and work in the county. The draft resolution doesn’t mentions the word sanctuary, instead it designates Monterey County as a “Welcoming County," and declares it "a place of trust and safety for local immigrants."

Furthermore, the resolution's recitals stipulate that no county resources are used to enforce federal immigration law, and reaffirm that the county sheriff’s office does not inquire about immigration status nor participate in federal immigration enforcement raids.

The Monterey County supervisors will also vote on contributing $25,000 towards a Salinas-based study on regional farmworker housing needs. The goal is to develop an action plan to address those needs.

In Santa Barbara County, the board of supervisors will consider signing a contract for up to $950,000 with a website that provides temporary psychiatrists and nurses to the county, specifically those available to work at county facilities in Santa Maria and Lompoc.

Santa Barbara county officials will also hold a public hearing on cannabis regulations or prohibitions. Last January, the county banned all medical cannabis cultivation and dispensaries in unincorporated areas of the county. This week the board will consider developing an urgency ordinance prohibiting all commercial recreational cannabis activity for up to 22 months.

Deputy County Executive Officer Dennis Bozanich said an urgency ordinance would “assist in reducing neighborhood concerns and enforcement issues."

The passage of Prop. 64 last November legalizes recreational cannabis use, but the law gives county and city governments the power to ban retail shops or other commercial access. Tuesday's hearing will be a policy setting session on cannabis in Santa Barbara County going forward; the meeting takes place this week in the Betteravia Government Administration Building in Santa Maria. 

The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors does not have a meeting scheduled this week.