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Orange County Supervisor Janet Nguyen outlines local funding plans, animal-shelter reforms and kratom ban in Seal Beach update
Summary
Orange County Supervisor Janet Nguyen told the Seal Beach City Council the county is directing funding to storm channel repairs, library renovations and John Wayne Airport projects, described reforms at the county animal shelter, and urged cities to adopt a county kratom ordinance to restrict sales to people under 18.
Orange County Supervisor Janet Nguyen delivered an update to the Seal Beach City Council on county projects and initiatives affecting the city, including planned storm-channel work, library and airport investments, reforms at the county animal shelter, and a county ordinance prohibiting kratom sales to people under 18.
Nguyen said the county will invest in storm channels and other flood-mitigation work in her First District over the next seven years, and that the Orange County Public Library system will put $10.8 million into library renovation and maintenance in the district. She said John Wayne Airport is slated for $102 million to rehab a taxiway and about $600 million in capital improvements over the next three years.
The supervisor described county support for the San Gabriel River Trash Mitigation Project and said the county is working with federal and state partners to find funding for sand replenishment along the coast. "If we can bunch some of our cities and the county's effort together, collectively we can bring in some of these fundings for sand replenishment or helping out on the coastal side of our district," Nguyen said.
Nguyen outlined reforms she helped advance at the Orange County animal shelter, which she said is now open seven days a week, publishes monthly data on intake and outcomes, and requires veterinary medical records for animals in shelter care. She also said the county has added a full‑time public information staffer to work with cities and the public.
On elections integrity, Nguyen recounted a case in which an animal was registered and cast a vote, and said county staff have matched about 7,000 animal-license records against the voter file to find and correct nonhuman entries. She said the county is directing the registrar to notify cities to share local animal-license files for further matches.
Nguyen urged Seal Beach and other cities to adopt the county's kratom ordinance and described kratom as an emerging public-health threat in youth. "If the state doesn't wanna do it, let's do it here and let's show leadership that we can do it," she said, urging cities to ban kratom sales to people under 18 and to ban specified derivatives.
She also summarized the county's work to restore public trust following the conviction of a former supervisor who misused pandemic relief funds; she said the Board of Supervisors will authorize a forensic audit of county COVID spending and the former supervisor's expenditures.
Nguyen closed by listing upcoming county outreach events and offering her office's contact information for residents seeking assistance or information: (714) 834-3110; nguyen@ocgov.com.
Why it matters: Nguyen's update links county investments and regulatory actions to local priorities in Seal Beach — shoreline and storm infrastructure, library upkeep and airport projects — and signals county-level public-health and election-integrity efforts that could require cooperation from city staff and elected officials. The kratom ordinance and animal-shelter reforms have direct local impact if municipalities adopt or coordinate with county policy.
What's next: Nguyen said county staff will work with Seal Beach on grant opportunities and that the county will continue outreach on fentanyl and kratom at town halls and health events.
