Vice Mayor Whelan called the Joint City/County Work Session of May 21, 2018, to order at 4:04 p.m.
 
The County Board of Supervisors and Flagstaff City Council introduced themselves.

Others present: Deputy County Attorney Rose Winkler, City Attorney Sterling, Interim City Manager Barbara Goodrich, Interim County Manager James Jayne

Special Assistant to the County Manager Kim Musselman provided a PowerPoint presentation that covered the following:
 
CENSUS 2020 COORDINATION AND OUTREACH
CENSUS COORDINATORS
WHY DO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS CARE ABOUT AN ACCURATE CENSUS?
HOW DOES THAT BREAK DOWN IN ARIZONA?
HOW WILL CENSUS 2020 BE DIFFERENT?
ISSUES FOR COCONINO COUNTY
PREDICTIVE LOW RESPONSE SCORE BY 2014 CENSUS TRACT
ACTIONS
COMMUNITY CENSUS TEAM PROPOSED FRAMEWORK
COMMUNITY CENSUS TEAM
CENSUS KEY DATES
INTERGOVERNMENTAL PARTNERSHIP COORDINATION
CENSUS PARTNERSHIP OFFICE
 
Ms. Musselman introduced Partnership Specialist Fred Stevens Partnership Specialist. Mr. Stevens thanked the Council and the Board of Supervisors for their support of the census, the City and County are well beyond where many communities are in recognizing the importance of the census and supporting it monetarily. He indicated that Flagstaff will be getting a census office again in 2020.
 
Chairman Ryan stated that there is a great potential for an undercount in Coconino County so the work that is being done in advance is extremely important.
 
Supervisor Archuleta stated that there have been changes to the forms regarding ethnicity and race. Mr. Stevens stated that there have been questions about those questions being a detriment to the census count if people are not comfortable. It is possible that the question could cause reluctance from some to complete the forms. It is possible that the respondent could be counted as a person without completing that portion of the form.
 
Vice Mayor Whelan asked what the vulnerabilities are in the County and City right now. Mr. Stevens stated that the biggest challenge and vulnerability is the hard to count population. The census has determined that ages 18-24 are difficult to count, renters are difficult to count, and socio-economic status have influenced response rates. Looking at the population of Flagstaff, the number of students, the number of renters, and other factors make up a large portion of the population.
 
Supervisor Archuleta stated that there are parts of Coconino County that have very limited access to internet, and they are working on trying to find solutions. She stated that they are looking at having centers set up at various public buildings in those areas to help residents get access. She asked how people will be counted if they do not call in or summit the paper form. Mr. Stevens stated they set up mobile stations in areas that have good connectivity so people can come and fill out the forms online as well as get any assistance they may need with their submittal. The Bureau is looking to the committees to help address the challenges that their areas may face with creative solutions and assistance. If a person does not respond through one of the various methods, they will eventually get a knock on the door.
 
Councilmember Barotz suggested that the committee work with the university to figure out how to engage the students more than they have been in the past. Ms. Musselman stated that NAU is already at the table as part of the committee and they have some great ideas on how to engage the student population.

Fire Chief Mark Gaillard provided a PowerPoint presentation that covered the following:
 
WILDFIRE BRIEFING
WILDLAND FIRE ACTIVITY WILDFIRE WEATHER OUTLOOK
WILDLAND FIRE OUTREACH
TEAM RUBICON
OTHER OUTREACH
 
Coconino County Director of Emergency Management Todd Whitney continued the presentation.
 
WILDFIRE ACTIVITY
            COPLEY FIRE
            INDIAN MEADOWS FIRE
            TINDER FIRE
READY SET GO
TINDER FIRE VIDEO
 
Supervisor Parks stated that he had the opportunity to work with these both Chief Gaillard and Mr. Whitney on the Copley and Tinder fires; they were so professional and did a wonderful job in doing what they needed to do. He thanked Mr. Whitney who came out on the Copley fire and helped clean up the property of the gentleman who lost his home.
 
John Haro addressed the Board of Supervisors and the City Council sharing the protocols in place for APS when there are fire incidents that threaten their lines.
 
John Viktora addressed the Board of Supervisors and the City Council in support of the preparedness and treatment that is being done in the region.

Special Assistant to the County Manager Kim Musselman introduced Superior Court Division 2 Judge Dan Slayton who provided information related to the merit selection of judges.
 
Judge Slayton stated that there are three Arizona counties who have a merit selection process Maricopa, Pima and Pinal. The current process is that superior court judges run in a partisan nature. Judicial candidates must declare their political party on their nomination petition and they often invoke the assistance of their respective political parties to assist in their campaigns. There have been contested elections that have been decided at a primary level which disenfranchised about one third of the electors who were unable to vote for that party. This practice significantly reduces the partisanship needed in elections.
 
One of the means of holding judges accountable is the election process, however the current process has prohibited voters to not have a vote. If Section 40 is allowed to go to the election and pass it would allow all voters in Coconino County to vote for their judges, not just on a party basis.
 
No other rural county has taken the steps to move to a merit selection process before and he is grateful for the support of the Board of Supervisors and their willingness to engage in progressive steps to increase citizen confidence in their judiciary.
 
Councilmember McCarthy asked if candidates are picked by a selection committee in the merit system. Judge Slayton stated that they are selected by a committee. Each county has a 15-member nomination commission, five of which are attorneys that are recommended by the State Bar from each of the Supervisor’s districts. There are requirements in place about how many of the same party can be selected for the commission. The Commission solicits for applications for any vacant position and then evaluates and ranks the candidates. A recommendation is then forwarded to the Governor for consideration.
 
For seated judges there is a judicial performance review commission tasked with collecting data on judges throughout their time on the bench. At the mid-point of a term anonymous surveys will be sent out to all people who have contact with the judge in any capacity. From the survey a score is given to the judge which helps the commission determine if a judge is having difficulty in their duties. At the point of re-election, the surveys are sent out again and are considered as part of the commission’s recommendation for or against retention. Information on the results of the surveys and the comments received can be found at the Arizona Courts website. It is not a fool proof method but there is far more information that can be given to the voters then what they get now.
 
At this time the Board of Supervisors and City Council expressed gratitude to each other about working together and continuing to have joint meetings.