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Home My WebLink AboutBOARD STANDING COMMITTEES - 07132022 - Finance Cte Agenda Pkt FINANCE COMMITTEE July 13, 2022 9:00 A.M. To slow the spread of COVID-19, in lieu of a public gathering, the meeting will be accessible via Zoom to all members of the public as permitted by Government Code section 54953(e). Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://cccounty-us.zoom.us/j/6161369562?pwd=Zit5Tm15WU1EN1phOVlCSm0yeUx5Zz09 Meeting ID: 616 136 9562 Or by dialing (888) 278-0254 Conference Code: 894519 Supervisor John Gioia, Chair Supervisor Karen Mitchoff, Vice Chair Agenda Items:Items may be taken out of order based on the business of the day and preference of the Committee 1.Introductions 2.Public comment on any item under the jurisdiction of the Committee and not on this agenda (speakers may be limited to three minutes). 3. RECEIVE and APPROVE the Record of Action for the June 6, 2022 Finance Committee meeting. 4. RECEIVE a report on Stand Together Contra Costa and DIRECT staff on next steps 5.The next meeting is currently scheduled for August 1, 2022. 6.Adjourn The Finance Committee will provide reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities planning to attend Finance Committee meetings. Contact the staff person listed below at least 72 hours before the meeting. Any disclosable public records related to an open session item on a regular meeting agenda and distributed by the County to a majority of members of the Finance Committee less than 96 hours prior to that meeting are available for public inspection at 1025 Escobar St., 4th Floor, Martinez, during normal business hours. Public comment may be submitted via electronic mail on agenda items at least one full work day prior to the published meeting time. For Additional Information Contact: Adam Nguyen, Committee Staff Phone (925) 655-2048 adam.nguyen@cao.cccounty.us FINANCE COMMITTEE - RESCHEDULED 3. Meeting Date:07/13/2022 Subject:Receive the Record of Action for the June 6, 2022 Finance Committee Meeting Submitted For: Monica Nino, County Administrator Department:County Administrator Referral No.: N/A Referral Name: Record of Action Presenter: Adam Nguyen, County Finance Director Contact: Adam Nguyen (925) 655-2048 Referral History: County Ordinance requires that each County body keep a record of its meetings. Though the record need not be verbatim, it must accurately reflect the agenda and the decisions made in the meeting. Referral Update: Attached is the Record of Action for the June 6, 2022 Finance Committee meeting. Recommendation(s)/Next Step(s): RECEIVE and APPROVE the Record of Action for the June 6, 2022 Finance Committee meeting. Fiscal Impact (if any): None Attachments Record of Action - Finance Committee 6/6/22 FINANCE COMMITTEE RECORD OF ACTION FOR June 6, 2022 Supervisor John Gioia, Chair Supervisor Karen Mitchoff, Vice Chair Present: John Gioia, Chair Karen Mitchoff, Vice Chair Staff Present: Monica Nino, County Administrator; Adam Nguyen, County Finance Director Attendees:Gabriel Lemus, Warren Lai 1.Introductions The meeting was called to order at 9:00 AM. 2.Public comment on any item under the jurisdiction of the Committee and not on this agenda (speakers may be limited to three minutes). There was no public comment. 3.CONSIDER accepting Department of Conservation and Development's attached recommendations regarding Fiscal Years 2022-2025 Community Development Block Grant funding for Economic Development Category and Infrastructure/Public Facilities Category. Gabriel Lemus, CDBG Program Manager for the Department of Conservation & Development, presented the department's Fiscal Years 2022-2025 CDBG funding recommendations. The report was accepted and referred to the June 21, 2022 meeting of the Board of Supervisors as a consent item. There was one public comment. 4.ACCEPT semi-annual Capital Projects update. Warren Lai, Deputy Director for the Public Works Department, presented the Semi-Annual Capital Projects Update. The report and presentation were received, and Chair Gioia requested a subsequent update on electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure at the Sustainability Committee. There was one public comment. 5.The next meeting is currently scheduled for August 1, 2022. The July 4th Finance Committee meeting is canceled. 6.Adjourn For Additional Information Contact: Adam Nguyen, Committee Staff Phone (925) 655-2048, Fax (925) 655-2066 adam.nguyen@cao.cccounty.us FINANCE COMMITTEE - RESCHEDULED 4. Meeting Date:07/13/2022 Subject:Receive an update on Stand Together Contra Costa Submitted For: Monica Nino, County Administrator Department:County Administrator Referral No.: N/A Referral Name: N/A Presenter: Ellen McDonnell Contact: Ellen McDonnell, (925)335-8075 Referral History: At the FY22-23 Budget Hearing on May 10, 2022, the Board requested more information on Stand Together Contra Costa, including program history and specific data points. Referral Update: A report and presentation, including a $1.8 million budget enhancement proposal, has been provided by the Public Defender's Office for consideration. The report and presentation are attached as Attachments A and B, respectively. Recommendation(s)/Next Step(s): ACCEPT a report on Stand Together Contra Costa and DIRECT staff on next steps. Fiscal Impact (if any): No direct fiscal impact to receiving the report. However, the department is requesting a budget enhancement which, if referred to the full Board, as presented could cost up to $1.8 million. Attachments Attachment A - Stand Together Report Attachment B - Stand Together Presentation 1 CONTRA COSTA COUNTY PUBLIC DEFENDER Ellen McDonnell Public Defender MEMORANDUM DATE: JULY 13, 2022 TO: CONTRA COSTA COUNTY FINANCE COMMITTEE SUPERVISOR KAREN MITCHOFF, CHAIR SUPERVISOR JOHN GIOIA, VICE CHAIR FROM: ELLEN MCDONNELL, PUBLIC DEFENDER SUBJECT: STAND TOGETHER CONTRA COSTA During the Board of Supervisor’s May 10, 2022 Budget Hearing, the Board directed staff to present to the Finance Committee detailed information regarding the outcomes and programmatic needs of Stand Together Contra Costa for its consideration related to the funding request. This report contains information responding to those inquires. I. INTRODUCTION Stand Together Contra Costa provides no-cost rapid-response support, civil deportation defense legal services and clinics, immigrant rights education and training, and direct-service support for immigrant individuals and families in Contra Costa County. Unlike criminal proceedings, immigrants facing deportation proceedings who cannot afford to hire a private immigration firm are NOT provided an attorney free of charge by the federal deportation authorities. This leaves thousands of Contra Costa families, left to navigate the rigors of the complex deportation system without legal assistance. Stand Together Contra Costa protects the due process rights of our immigrant community members by providing no-cost attorneys to represent those facing deportation without the resources to hire a private immigration trial lawyer. Our program takes a community-based approach to providing timely and accurate workshops and legal clinics targeted to our immigrant community members. As a public- private initiative managed by the Office of the Public Defender in partnership with nonprofit organizations and community members, the current coalition agencies include, Bay Area Community Resources, Jewish Family and Community Services East Bay, and the Immigration Institute of the Bay Area (formerly International Institute of the Bay Area). II. CONSULTATIONS Stand Together Contra Costa conducts free legal consultations and intakes for Contra Costa’s vibrant immigrant community members, providing community members with a comprehensive screening and accurate legal advice about their immigration situation. These screenings serve as intakes for potential indigent immigrant families in need of help with upcoming deportation proceedings, while also providing critical free legal consultations with trained immigration attorneys for marginalized and hard to reach immigrant populations. At our events, and through the use of our hotline, we screen potential residents who may need representation in deportation proceedings and provide critical free legal consultations followed by referrals to appropriate service providers where community members need other assistance such as affirmative immigration legal services, clean 2 slate services, referrals to county health providers or EHSD services, and assistance with WIC and other safety net benefits. STCC has completed 2,511 FREE legal consultations since launch in 2017. Due to lack of staffing capacity, there are currently 101 clients who have recently been screened but have been placed on waiting list for representation in their upcoming deportation hearings. III. LEGAL SERVICES (CLINICS, CONSULTATIONS, AND REMOVAL-DEFENSE REPRESENTATION) Stand Together Contra Costa conducts no-cost legal clinics in safe and familiar community settings to provide immigrants and their families with individualized legal consultations and structured and customized referrals. Through our program, Contra Costa community members detained by ICE are eligible to receive no-cost legal representation in pursuing bond or release, and to receive legal representation in removal defense and applications for relief before the Executive Office of Immigration Review (Immigration Court). Program outreach continues by holding consultation clinics and attending community events to offer free legal advice to immigrants. Our Removal Defense Team continues to provide excellent professional legal representation in on-going deportation proceedings. Services offered since our launch in 2017 include: • Representation in 152 removal proceedings in Immigration Court o 82 cases are ongoing o 70 cases have closed • 2,511 free legal consultations have been completed o Outreach/Community Engagement • 2,735 community members served to date by bundling legal consultations with public education, and safety net services offered by partner agencies throughout the County. IV. DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION Racial breakdown of Stand Together Contra Costa removal defense clients: • Latino/a – 91% • Indigenous – 5% • Asian/Pacific Islander – 2% • Black – 2% • Middle Eastern – 1% Socioeconomic Status of removal defense clients: All clients are screened for financial eligibility at intake to determine whether they have the personal financial ability to hire a private immigration deportation defense attorney. Country of Origin of removal defense clients: • El Salvador – 34% • Mexico – 19% • Guatemala – 12% • Honduras – 12% • Nicaragua – 12% • Venezuela – 4% • Peru – 2% • Cameroon – 1% • Laos – 1% 3 • Turkey – 1% • Uganda – 1% • Vietnam – 1% Stand Together Contra Costa provides services to all who live, work, or go to school in Contra Costa County. All removal defense clients served by Stand Together Contra Costa to date are Contra Costa residents. V. TYPES OF DEPORTATION (“REMOVAL”) DEFENSES Stand Together Contra Costa provides no-cost legal representation to indigent immigrants who are facing deportation proceedings, also known as “removal” proceedings. Deportation or removal proceedings occur when the federal government initiates legal action to attempt to forcibly remove someone from the United States. All of our represented clients are facing deportation or “removal” proceedings. The various types of relief from deportation sought in Stand Together Contra cases: • Asylum – 79% • United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (ex. U visa, family adjustment, waivers) – 12%Cancellation of Removal – 9% VI. PRIOR CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS 17% (28 of 163) of Stand Together Contra Costa clients have prior criminal convictions, while 9% (15 of 163) have been public defender clients. VII. OUTCOMES The program has prevailed in 79% of its deportation defense cases since its inception in 2017. This means that, thus far, 79%, or 55 of the 70, families with competed cases represented by Stand Together Contra Costa were granted the right to remain in the United States. In addition to providing legal representation in deportation proceedings, Stand Together Contra Costa also provides high quality professional legal consultations with immigration attorneys for our immigrant community, so that all can fully understand their legal rights and options. Since the program’s inception, Stand Together Contra Costa has provided 2,511 free professional legal consultations to immigrant families in Contra Costa. VIII. IMMIGRATION LEGAL SERVICES AND PUBLIC DEFENDER OFFICES IN CALIFORNIA Offering in house immigration legal services in Public Defender’s Office’s is considered a best practice in holistic defense. Currently, 16 of the 33 Public Defender Offices in California have immigration attorneys on-staff (Alameda, Contra Costa, Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernadino, Santa Clara, Fresno, Marin, Monterey, Napa, San Francisco, Sonoma, Ventura, Yolo, Santa Cruz). A comprehensive review of staffing models across all offices is not available, but some examples of in- house immigration unit staffing at Public Defender’s Offices include: • Alameda County Public Defender: 7 Immigration attorneys plus legal support staff • San Francisco County Public Defender: 9 Immigration attorneys plus legal support staff • Los Angeles County Public Defender: 9 Immigration attorneys plus legal support staff From Stanford Law Review: “Public defender offices that we studied in California that take on deportation defense have found it to be an effective and efficient way to advocate for their clients. Through plea bargaining and representation in the criminal case, public defenders have already gathered facts and legal research needed to defend their clients from conviction-based deportation. Nationally, many offices that have welcomed bringing deportation defense into the fold of public defense have adopted an approach known as holistic defense. In this advocacy model, public defenders 4 work in teams with social workers, immigration lawyers, and other team members to provide services beyond the confines of traditional criminal representation. Holistic defense is particularly amenable to incorporating civil immigration representation because the multidisciplinary team can work to seamlessly deliver a broader menu of services from the very first client meeting.” IX. THE ONLY PRO BONO DEPORTATION DEFENSE PROGRAM IN CONTRA COSTA COUNTY Stand Together Contra Costa is the only program providing pro bono deportation defense legal services in Contra Costa County. Stand Together Contra Costa current has three deportation defense attorneys to serve the entire county (1 public defender removal defense attorney, 2 Jewish Family and Community Services removal defense attorneys). X. PROGRAM HISTORY Although the program was launched in the context of the wave of anti-immigrant sentiment and policies that accompanied the Trump presidency, the need for these critical services has not abated with the new federal administration. In fact, the number of NEW deportation filings this year is the highest in recorded US history. The numbers bear this out locally with unprecedented numbers of Contra Costa residents being newly placed into deportation proceedings. In the three-month period between March and May of this year alone, 533 Contra Costa residents have been newly placed into removal proceedings. Click here for more information found on the Syracuse University immigration statistics website. (https://trac.syr.edu/phptools/immigration/addressrep/) Tragically, 85% of these community members newly placed into deportation proceedings do not have attorneys (447). These numbers are historically high and are consistent with historically high numbers of new deportation filings in the previous quarter of the federal fiscal year. New filings are on a pace to be the largest amount of new deportation cases in history. Noting the backlogs and unprecedented filings, the Department of Homeland Security is opening a new deportation processing center (“Immigration Court) in Concord this year. Federal immigration agency seals lease deal for big Concord expansion (eastbaytimes.com). The new deportation processing center will have twenty immigration “judges,” almost doubling the Bay Area’s deportation courtrooms (San Francisco has 25 “judges” currently). The wait list for removal defense services for Stand Together Contra Costa remains at over 100, and data from Syracuse University shows that there are thousands of Contra Costa residents that have pending deportation cases without the services of an attorney. The numbers are growing every day and we know from our own cases and from our outreach work across the County that U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) continues to conduct enforcement actions throughout Contra Costa County (usually arresting residents as they are leaving their homes in the morning to go to work or school). The fear among Contra Costa’s immigrant community of ICE separating families has not been diminished by the change in federal executive branch leadership given these on-going and increasing deportation arrests and filings. 5 XI. LINKS TO PRIOR STCC REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS: July 10, 2018 – Board of Supervisors Item Request #34338 • Board Order: Agenda Item Request (cccounty.us) o Attachments: 34338_Stand Together Contra Costa Project Status Report.pdf (cccounty.us) August 1, 2019 – • Attachments: Stand Together Contra Costa Project Status Report September 12, 2019 – Community Corrections Partnership (CCP) Community Advisory Board (CAB) Meeting Presentation • CCP/CAB Agenda: _09122019-2269 (ca.gov) July 28, 2020 Board of Supervisors Item Request #42645 • Board Order: Agenda Item Request (cccounty.us) • Attachments: 42645_STCC Report FY19-2020 - FINAL.pdf (cccounty.us) October 16, 2020 – Community Corrections Partnership / Community Advisory Board • Attachments: STCC Report FY19-2020 November 12, 2020 – Community Corrections Partnership / Community Advisory Board Meeting • CCP/CAB Agenda and Presentation: _11122020-3029 (ca.gov) December 3, 2021 – Community Corrections Partnership / Community Advisory Board Agenda Packet • STCC Report FY20-2021 BOS & CPP • Deportation Consequences Infographic • Keeping Families Together Client Testimonials • Welcome Dinner Report • G4G_Contra-CostaV4 • Project Status Presentation for 12.3.21 CCP Stand Together Contra Costa Ellen McDonnell,Public Defender •Stand Together Contra Costa (STCC) is a collaborative partnership between the County and community-based organizations to provide immigrant legal services, community outreach, and public education to ensure immigrant families have access to accurate information •The vast majority of indigent immigrants lack legal representation as attorneys are not provided by immigration courts •Through STCC our county protects due process rights by providing no-cost attorneys to represent indigent clients facing deportation 2 •2,511 legal consultations conducted since program inception in 2018 •152 clients provided representation since 2018 •70 cases closed (79% Success Rate) •82 cases ongoing •101 clients currently waitlisted •2,735 clients served through community outreach from Jul-Dec 2020 3 PROGRAM INFORMATION DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION 4 •Race/Ethnicity •91% Latino •5% Indigenous •5% Other (Asian/Pacific Islander, African American & Middle Eastern) •County of Origin •34% El Salvador •19% Mexico •12% Nicaragua •12% Guatemala •12% Honduras •11% Other (Venezuela, Peru, Cameroon, Vietnam, Laos, Uganda, Turkey) DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION 5 •Representation is provided to indigent individuals who live, work, or attend school in Contra Costa •To date ALL clients have been County residents •Approximately 9% of all STCC clients have also been public defender clients COURT OUTCOME INFORMATION 6 •Various types of relief are sought in deportation cases: •79%Asylum •12% United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) •9% Cancellation of Removal •STCC has 79% success rate in deportation defense •55 out of 70 of the families represented were granted the right to remain in the U.S. DEPORTATION DEFENSE SERVICES 7 •Counties •Contra Costa: 1 attorney plus support staff •Alameda: 7 attorneys plus support staff •San Francisco : 9 attorneys plus support staff •Community Based Organizations •Stand Together Contra Costa is the only program that provides pro bono deportation defense in Contra Costa County •Statewide •16 of the 33 County Public Defender offices have immigration attorneys on-staff plus various support staff UNPRECEDENTED NEED 8 •In 2021 over 1.7 Million migrants were seeking asylum in the United States1 •7,982 Contra Costa residents have pending deportation cases1 •85% of residents newly placed in deportation hearings are without an attorney1 •101 clients are currently on the STCC waiting list in need of representation •Due to extreme backlogs and unprecedented filings, the Department of Homeland Security is opening a new deportation processing center (“Immigration Court”) in Concord 1 Syracuse University –https://trac.syr.edu/phptools/immigration/addressrep/ CURRENT PROGRAM OPERATIONS 9 •1 Public Defender attorney ($256k) & 2 Non-Profit partner attorneys ($189k) •FY 22-23 budget is $1.06 Million funded entirely by AB109 funds •Attorneys are at maximum capacity with a pending caseload of approximately 126 active clients FUNDING REQUEST 10 To sufficiently address the growing need, $1.8 Million is requested to provide services •3.0 Deputy Public Defenders III -$791k •3.0 Legal Assistants -$350k •2.0 Client Services Specialists -$283k •CBO contracts (Community Engagement Specialists) -$376k