Measure U for Fresno County

Over the past few weeks, I've received questions from multiple people about Fresno County's Measure U, which is on the November ballot for all Fresno County voters.  Actually, I'm receiving only one question - "Should I vote yes or no?"  In short, vote Yes.

For a longer explanation, keep reading.

Measure U contains four items.  They are housekeeping items to update the Fresno County Charter.  Together, as a single measure, it seems awkward an confusing.  It may have been less confusing to have each item stand alone, each within it's own Measure on the ballot, but writing and adding a Measure on a ballot costs money.  Four different Measures would cost four times as much.

Of the four items in the Measure, one item deals with the office of the County Surveyor.  I am a Professional Land Surveyor.  That's why I'm getting the questions.  (The other three items, while not surveyor related, are similar housekeeping items necessary to help streamline future County functions.)

As the County Charter is now written, and has been for many years, the Fresno County Public Works Director is the County Engineer and the County Surveyor.  The State of California requires any person using the title of Engineer or Surveyor to be licensed by the State Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists (http://www.bpelsg.ca.gov/) in that field of practice.  This means that, by State Law, the County Public Works Director, by definition of the County Charter, must be both a Licensed Civil Engineer and a Licensed Land Surveyor.

Prior to 1982, a Licensed Civil Engineer could practice Land Surveying.  Any Licensed Civil Engineer who obtained his or her license before 1982 can still practice Surveying by being grandfathered into said practice.  Suffice to say, those Engineers who obtained their licenses nearly 34 years ago are getting fewer and farther between.  Engineers who obtain both licenses are also few in number, and even fewer of them have the desire to work for a Government Agency.

This brings us to the purpose of this portion of the Measure: the separation of the County Surveyor from the Public Works Director.

The current Director of Public Works is dual licensed.  He is both a Civil Engineer and a Land Surveyor.  As such, the separation is not immediately necessary.  There will be a problem, however, when it comes time to recruit a replacement when the present Director retires.  There will be few candidates, if any, legally qualified to accept the position, and at that point, it will be too late to put the Measure on the ballot.

This Charter revision needs to be made before it's needed.  The purpose of this amendment is to allow the Director of the Department of Public Works and Planning to appoint a County Surveyor other than himself.

The argument against Measure U, which was penned by The San Joaquin Valley Taxpayers Association, was officially filed with the County Clerk on August 17 (Link).  The argument states that "...when a vacancy recently arose, there was no problem attracting qualified candidates".  Fresno County was lucky to find a qualified candidate within the Fresno area, but had he not been interested in the position, there may have been a large problem.  The County does have a problem attracting legally qualified candidates, due to the way the County Charter is written, and the impositions State Law has on that Charter.  This can only be remedied by amending the Charter.

The argument also states that "There is NO reason the change the current charter and potentially pay two people to do what one person does now."  It should be made clear that the Public Works Director for Fresno County is not a one person job.  One person directs the Department, but he has more than thirty Licensed Engineers (Civil and Traffic) and four Deputy County Surveyors on staff to assist him.  Amending the Charter will only be a changing of hats and titles within the Department of Public Works and Planning.

In closing, contrary to other opinion, these items are housekeeping items necessary to help streamline future County functions.  There IS a looming problem with the way the Charter is written now.

Vote Yes on Measure U.

2016 Kerman Harvest Festival

The 2016 Kerman Harvest Festival was a real treat.  The Festival is always well attended and the carnival atmosphere with music, food, rides, exhibits, food, community booths, and more food, is always fun.  Did I mention the food?

A highlight of the Festival is the Parade.  Most of the community turns out for it, either by participating in it or supporting from the roadside.  Usually, my family and I try to get there early to get a good spot to see the every parade entrant.

However, this year was different.  This year, we wouldn't be able to see the parade from the sidelines.  As a sitting member of the current City Council, I would be riding on the City Council float.  Then, as a Candidate for City Council, the whole family would be walking in the parade.  Thankfully, the City Council float was fairly close to the beginning of the parade, and the Candidates (and my family), were relatively near the end of it.  They were spaced far enough apart to give me enough time to run back to the beginning of the route in time to walk with my family.

After the parade, we were able to attend the Festival, have some food, see friends, make new friends, ride the rides, and eat more food.  Did I mention the food?

Kevin & daughter on the Kerman City Council float.

View of the community in attendance from the City Council Float.

The Kerman City Council and family members.
(L to R) Kevin Nehring, Mayor Pro-tem Gary Yep
Rhonda Armstrong, Mayor Stephen Hill, and Bill Nijjer
(Photo by Scott Toste)

The Family in the staging area prior to walking in the parade
as a Council Candidate.

Nehring for Kerman City Council (Photo by Scott Toste)

Nehring for Kerman City Council (Photo by Scott Toste)

Yard signs and bumper stickers

The eagerly awaited* and highly anticipated* campaign bumper stickers have arrived!  They are a perfect compliment to any yard sign.  Let us know if you'd like a sign, sticker, or both.

Thank you for your support!

"Nehring for Kerman City Council"

Show your support with both!

 (*eagerly awaited and highly anticipated by me and my campaign manager, anyway)

Election 2016

Lora and Kevin Nehring at the
2014 Kerman Harvest Festival Parade

I ran for Kerman City Council in 2014.

It was an incredible learning and eye-opening experience for me, and the campaigning took me very far from my comfort zone.  While I'm proud to say that I made a run for public office, it was an experience - the campaigning - that I was not particularly interested in experiencing again.

I knew I could do the job as a City Council member and I believed I could make a difference, however, other Candidates were elected to the Council and I was fine with that.  I had a position on the Kerman Planning Commission; a position well within my comfort zone and area of expertise.  I was happy to stay.

This past June, after my appointment to the Council, I stepped down from my position as Planning Commission Vice Chair, and assumed my assigned duties as a Council member.  I've found it to be a job I can do to the benefit of the City and Community.  A place where I CAN make a difference.

While I accepted this appointment as a seasonal occupation, words of encouragement from Mayor Stephen Hill, Mayor Pro-tem Gary Yep, and Council members Rhonda Armstrong and Bill Nijjer made me begin to reconsider the temporary nature of this appointment.  After talking with other members of the Community, City Staff, and most importantly, my Family, I have decided to run for the Kerman City Council in the 2016 General Election.

This afternoon, the appropriate papers were filed with the City of Kerman and the County of Fresno for my candidacy.

Oddly enough, as uncomfortable as the 2014 campaign was for me, I find myself looking forward to it again.

Here we go.

Thank you for your support!

Appointment

The City of Kerman has recently had the unfortunate event of losing a great friend and City Councilman to an out-of-State job opportunity. Nathan Fox, who was 3+ years into his four-year City Council term, received an incredible job offer working for the State Department in Washington D.C. While we, as a community - and more particularly myself as a friend - hate to see him go, we certainly wish him and his family the best on their new endeavors in an exciting new chapter of their lives.

Nathan's leaving left a vacancy on the City Council. I was asked by multiple people, including Councilman Fox, to submit my name as a temporary replacement to complete his term through the end of 2016.

I did submit my name - with a bit of hesitancy - for the Council's consideration, as did two other very qualified individuals. I do not say that lightly. I am a firm believer in qualification based selection. It is in the City's best interest that qualified people are in key positions to manage the City. I do feel that I may have been the least qualified of the three applicants, as, among other things, they both have previous City Council experience. I shared those feelings with the Council multiple times.

Discussions and deliberations took nearly eight (8) hours spread over the course of three Council meetings. I was told, within minutes of the beginning of the first meeting that I would not be selected; that my services were better served on the Planning Commission, where I presently serve as Vice Chair. I am OK with that as I am comfortable on that Commission, and I do feel that I am qualified to be there. I appreciated the Council's candor.

As the meetings went on - the first, second, and third meeting - the Council had arrived at a stalemate with two Council-members each voting for one of the other applicants. The City's Legal Counsel reminded the Council that one applicant needed a total three votes - half plus one of all of the seats on the Council - to be selected. The Council was also reminded that they were nearing the end of the State mandated 60 day period for a replacement. Putting it to a public vote was not an option as the next nearest election will be in November, only seven weeks before the end of the term. Flipping a coin was discussed, but it's not allowed - actually prohibited in State Law - as a method of Council appointment. The City Council had to come to a decision.

It was suggested that the Council-members come to a compromise. Since they each couldn't select the applicant they wanted, they should each select the person they didn't want so the City could get back to business. (In the interest of full disclosure, the compromise was suggested very respectfully. My description is only an attempt to add a bit of levity to a drawn out process.) Long story short, I received votes from three of the Council-members where I had received none in the past two meetings.

On May 18, 2016, I was appointed to the Kerman City Council to fulfill the remainder of Councilman Fox's term through the end of 2016. As a result, I've had to step down from my position on the Planning Commission, and the City Council will now be tasked with selecting a Planning Commission replacement to fulfill the remaining two and a half years of my three year term, and the Commission will be tasked with selecting another Vice Chair.

At the end of 2016 and the end of my short City Council term, I will reapply for another three year term on the Planning Commission. That is, if the Commission will take me back. I can only hope that the City Council finds me qualified.

Wish me luck.