Representing Santa Barbara County's Second District
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I'm Gregg Hart, your County Supervisor. I hope you're having a great start to the holiday season. I'm writing today to update you on some of the efforts of my office over the past several weeks. As always, please feel free to contact my office if we can be of assistance to you. You are more than welcome to call my office at (805) 568-2191, email me at ghart@countyofsb.org, or visit my website:
www.countyofsb.org/bos/hart.sbc
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Coffee with a County Supervisor
Saturday, December 14th, 9:30 -11 a.m.
Old Town Coffee
5877 Hollister Avenue
Goleta, CA 93117
Please join me for my office hours, an opportunity for us to meet, discuss your ideas for how I can best serve the community, and answer any questions that you may have about the County of Santa Barbara. I hope to see you there!
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In the late afternoon of November 25
th, a fire broke out in an area of the Santa Ynez Mountains east of the Highway 154 and East Camino Cielo Road. Powered by strong winds and dry vegetation, the fire quickly grew to more than 3,000 acres overnight, eventually burning more than 4,000 acres. As a result of the heroic work of our local first responders, neighboring residents were promptly evacuated and all homes were protected from the fire. In addition to the work of our local first responders, I’m very grateful for the work of first responders from throughout the state who provided mutual aid assistance during this emergency. As of Sunday, December 1, the Cave Fire was 90% contained. Full containment is expected in the coming days.
On Tuesday November 26
th, my colleagues and I voted to ratify a Proclamation of Local Emergency, ensuring that our first responders had the necessary resources to contain the fire. After ratifying the Proclamation of Local Emergency, I visited the burn area with public safety leaders and Assemblymember Monique
Limón
, met with local residents who had evacuated, and spoke with community volunteers who mobilized as a result of the emergency.
To mitigate the risk of a debris flow, the County’s Flood Control Division worked hard to clear out material from the San Antonio Creek debris basin to protect our community from potential Cave Fire watershed storm runoff. County agencies will continue to monitor conditions during rainfall events this week. As always, please make sure that you are signed up for emergency alerts by visiting
readysbc.org
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Community Action Plan to Address Homelessness
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As the lead agency for regional efforts to assist people experiencing homelessness, the County of Santa Barbara is currently completing Phase I of the Community Action Plan to Address Homelessness. Phase I has five goals:
1) Increase access to safe, affordable housing
2) Use best practices to deliver tailored supportive services to meet individual needs
3) Build a collective action plan and improve data sharing
4) Strengthen support systems to help residents obtain and maintain housing
5) Build provider capacity to address the needs of specific populations
Phase II of the process will work to advance these goals by developing a timeline for actions, identifying responsible parties, and developing cost estimates for new programs to help people experiencing homelessness in our community.
To read Phase I of the Community Action Plan to Address Homelessness, please
click here
. For more information about the efforts of the County's Housing and Community Development Division, please
click here
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Public Safety Power Shutoff Update
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In my short time in office, no other subject has generated more calls and emails from the public than the issue of Public Safety Power Shutoffs. Because of this, I asked Southern California Edison (SCE) to host a community forum in the Second District to provide residents with an opportunity to ask questions and voice their concerns. At the November 7
th
meeting, SCE announced that they will be rolling out a new and improved mapping system to allow customers to find out whether or not they live in areas that are being considered for Public Safety Power Shutoff operations. Additionally, SCE announced that they are working to improve notification procedures for contacting people who receive power from SCE but are not account holders. I will continue to work with the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management to make sure that the County is prepared to provide for the needs of local residents during Public Safety Power Shutoff operations. Please
click here
for information on how to prepare for a Public Safety Power Shutoff.
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On November 11th, I was honored to thank our local veterans at the annual Veterans Day event at the Santa Barbara Veterans' Memorial Building. The County of Santa Barbara is committed to serving veterans in our community. From preventing veteran homelessness to helping veterans with visible and invisible injuries, there is a lot to be done. The Veterans Services Advisory Committee exists to advise the County on how to best serve veterans. I'm currently accepting applications for appointment to the Veterans Services Advisory Committee. Please
click here
for more information on the committee. If you are interested in applying, please
click here
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Preparing for the 2020 Census
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Over the past year, the County has been preparing for the 2020 Census. Through the Complete Count Committee, the County has worked with various segments of our community to create outreach and engagement strategies that will ensure maximum participation in the 2020 Census. Data obtained from the Census is important for securing federal funding for critical services in our community, making sure that local residents have adequate representation in government, and shaping electoral districts. The 2020 Census will take place between April and June of 2020. The County is committed to ensuring that immigrants, renters, people who move often, and other historically under-counted communities are counted. For more information on our local Census efforts, please
click here.
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Sheriff's Office Holiday Donation Drive
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With the winter holiday season around the corner, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office Inmate Services Unit is conducting a donation drive. Monetary donations, gift cards, and toys are being accepted to help people who are incarcerated, and their children, during the holiday season. The Inmate Services Unit exists to help rehabilitate people who are incarcerated at the County Jail and prepare them for successful reentry into our community. Please contact Inmate Services Manager Deirdre Smith if you are interested in donating or would like more information:
das5276@sbsheriff.org.
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Interested in Serving as a Poll Worker?
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The Santa Barbara County Registrar of Voters Office is looking for volunteers to serve as Poll Workers for the March, 3 2020 Presidential Primary Election.
Poll workers will receive a stipend of $180 to $240 for working on Election Day and attending training. To be a poll worker, you must meet the following requirements:
- Be a registered voter in the State of California; or be someone who is lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States and otherwise eligible to register to vote, except for lack of United States citizenship.
- Be able to follow written and verbal instruction.
- Be available to serve on Election Day (March 3) from approximately 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. or until all of the closing procedures have been completed.
- Be available to attend a mandatory training class.
To learn more about the poll worker program and training process, please go to
http://sbcassessor.com/Elections/Pollworker.aspx
. To sign up, call 1 (844) 259-0348, or email (Santa Barbara/Goleta/Carpinteria area): sbpolls@co.santa-barbara.ca.us or (Santa Maria/Lompoc/Santa Ynez area): smpolls@co.santa-barbara.ca.us.
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Interested in Serving Our Community?
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Supervisor Gregg Hart
105 E. Anapamu Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
805.568.2191
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