Votes at a glance: San Diego County Board of Supervisors, Sept. 24, 2024

The Board of Supervisors took a number of formal votes during its Sept. 24, 2024 meeting. Listed below are the principal actions the board recorded during the session and their outcomes.

Votes at a glance

1) Approval of minutes: The board approved the statement of proceedings and minutes for the Sept. 10, 2024 regular board meeting and the July 17, 2024 County Fire Protection District meeting. Motion carried unanimously.

2) Consent calendar (items 1–10; Fire Protection District item 1): The board approved the consent calendar (routine items including contract and appointment reports) in a single motion. Motion carried unanimously. Public comment on consent items included questions about Liberty Station compensation agreements and Homekey housing updates; supervisors provided brief remarks on selected consent items.

3) Item 13 (behavioral health partnership with UCSD Health): The board approved an agreement to provide UCSD Health with an unsecured loan of up to $32,000,000 to create approximately 30 psychiatric inpatient beds and a crisis stabilization unit at UCSD East Campus Medical Center and established appropriations to cover facility improvements. Motion carried unanimously. (See separate article for full coverage.)

4) Fire Protection District item 2 (Ramona fire protection and ambulance fees and charges): Following public comment the board adopted an ordinance amending Article 20 of the San Diego County Administrative Code to incorporate the Ramona Fire Protection and ambulance paramedic fees and charges. Motion carried unanimously.

5) Item 11 (SB 43 implementation funding request): The board directed the chief administrative officer to send a letter to the governor requesting the resources needed to implement Senate Bill 43 (which broadens conservatorship criteria to include people gravely disabled by substance use disorder). Motion carried unanimously. (See separate article for coverage of the SB 43 discussion.)

How the board voted

All recorded motions referenced here passed unanimously by the supervisors present. The roll call in the meeting record shows the following supervisors present and recorded on roll calls and votes: Joel Anderson, Montgomery Stepp, Jim Desmond, and Vice Chair Lawson Reimer. Chair Nora Vargas was absent and presiding duties were performed by Vice Chair Lawson Reimer.

Why it matters

Several items carried budgetary implications: the approved UCSD loan obligates county reserve resources for the near term and county leaders signaled plans to seek offsetting state funding; the SB 43 request seeks state resources for an anticipated increase in treatment and detention needs tied to the law’s new criteria. The Ramona fee ordinance updates local fire/EMS fee schedules and places the fee structure in county administrative code.

Next steps and follow‑ups

- Staff will finalize loan and related documents with UCSD Health and pursue regents and regulatory approvals; county staff said they will seek state Proposition 1 funds to reduce county funding needs.

- The CAO will send the requested letter to the governor regarding SB 43 funding and return to the board with more detailed implementation estimates when state guidance and funding clarity are available.

- County staff will implement the adopted administrative ordinance for Ramona fire protection fees per the ordinance schedule.

Ending: The meeting record shows unanimous support among present supervisors for the items summarized here; supervisors directed staff to continue implementation work and to return with further details and timelines where appropriate.