Horn Named 2015 Chairman of Board of Supervisors
Supervisor Bill Horn was unanimously voted chairman of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors for 2015 in the Board’s first meeting of the new year Tuesday.
Horn officially accepted the chairmanship and gavel from Supervisor Dianne Jacob, who served as chairwoman in 2014. The Board traditionally rotates the chair’s position each year among the five supervisors.
The Board also voted unanimously to appoint Supervisor Dave Roberts vice-chairman and Supervisor Ron Roberts as chairman pro tem.
Jacob thanked her fellow Board members, County managers and employees, calling them “a great team,” and took time to note some of the County’s accomplishments of the last year.
Among those, Jacob cited: the County’s continued reputation for prudent fiscal management, punctuated by it becoming just one of nine counties in the United States to earn Triple A bond ratings from all three of the world’s major credit agencies, Fitch, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s; the opening of the County’s new Waterfront Park, which transformed “a sea of asphalt into a slice of paradise”; adding open space; improving fire protection and readiness; continuing to skillfully manage the state’s prison realignment; adding beds and rehabilitation programs to County jails; building new sheriff’s stations in Rancho San Diego and Pine Valley; relaxing regulations to promote small business; and working with local cities to help homeowners buy solar energy.
Jacob also said the County had taken on the challenge in 2014 of helping the County’s growing elderly population — by beefing up patient advocate programs for residential care facilities, taking actions to improve care and oversight of those facilities, creating a task force to investigate and prosecute crimes, and by leading a regional charge to address Alzheimer’s disease.
“With 2014 now over and with a new chair poised to fill the seat, we can be proud of how far we’ve come in the last 12 months,” Jacob said.
In accepting the chairman’s position for the coming year, Horn applauded Jacob for her leadership.
Horn will outline his own goals for the County in 2015 when he gives the annual State of the County address at 6 p.m., Feb. 10 at the County Administration Center.
In addition to outlining the County’s goals for the coming year, the Board’s chairman or chairwoman becomes the official voice of the Board. They also preside over Board meetings, appoint other supervisors to various committees and field requests from the other supervisors to place items on the Board’s agenda.
VIDEO: Watch the Board Organizational Meeting