TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Christine Briceño, Chief Human Resources Officer
REPORT BY: Joy Cadiz, Staff Services Manager
SUBJECT: Resolution Amending the Table and Index of Classes, Departmental Allocation List for Planning, Building, and Environmental Services, and Appropriate Personnel Policies
RECOMMENDATION
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Adopt a Resolution to amend the Table and Index of Classes, the Departmental Allocation List for Planning, Building, and Environmental Services, and appropriate personnel policies. (Fiscal Impact: $26,869 Expense; General Fund; Budgeted; Discretionary)
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BACKGROUND
The Planning, Building, and Environmental Services Department (PBES) requested, and collaborated with Human Resources to develop the new PBES Geographic Information Systems Strategy & Policy Officer (GSPO) management classification. This elevated role replaces the existing GIS Departmental Coordinator and addresses an urgent, strategic business need to formalize and strengthen leadership over PBES’s mission-critical GIS capabilities. The allocation is currently vacant.
GIS has evolved from a technical tool to a core policy and planning instrument, directly informing regulatory decisions, environmental review, and long-range planning within PBES. The GSPO classification is warranted by three key factors:
1. Policy Alignment: Ensures GIS strategy directly aligns with PBES’s primary policy objectives, maximizing the impact of geospatial analysis on land use and environmental policy.
2. Critical Initiative Support: Provides essential continuity, technical oversight, and strategic direction for major County initiatives, including the upcoming General Plan Update and the Baseline Data Report, which rely heavily on complex spatial data integration.
3. Risk Mitigation and Efficiency: Serves as the central liaison, reducing departmental duplication, enhancing data access, and providing vital leadership for the County’s emergency response mapping and damage assessment tools.
Establishing the GSPO position ensures strong, consistent internal leadership, supports succession planning, enhances operational efficiency, and positions the County to meet future demands for data-informed decision-making.
The PBES budget has adequate, available budget to cover the increased salary and benefits cost for the remainder of the fiscal year assuming a January 2026 start date, utilizing the budgeted allocation for the existing Coordinator position and salary savings from departmental vacancies.
Requested Action:
1. Adopt a Resolution to amend the Table and Index of Classes to add the PBES GIS Strategy & Policy Officer, the Departmental Allocation List for Planning, Building, and Environmental Services, to add 1.0 FTE PBES GIS Strategy & Policy Officer and delete 1.0 FTE GIS Departmental Coordinator, and appropriate personnel policies, effective December 16, 2025.
FISCAL IMPACT
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Is there a Fiscal Impact? |
Yes |
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Is it currently budgeted? |
Yes |
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Where is it budgeted? |
17000-00 Planning |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification |
GIS within PBES has evolved from a supporting role to a critical component of land use planning, data analysis, and decision making which requires a management-level job classification with a greater scope of responsibility and authority. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
The increased cost of salary and benefits for the remainder of the fiscal year is approximately $26,869. The annualized increase in salary and benefits is approximately $58,217 and will be budgeted accordingly. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
Not approving this request would jeopardize the successful execution of initiatives and affect strategic planning and service delivery, while also significantly increasing costs and reliance on consultants. |
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Additional Information: |
County Initiative: Elevate County Service and Workforce Excellence |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulations 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable.