County board to consider recognizing Juneteenth as a holiday

The Tulare County Board of Supervisors will consider recognizing Juneteenth, June 19, as a holiday at its next meeting.

The board will consider the resolution as a scheduled agenda item at its meeting at 9 a.m. Tuesday. June 19 would become a paid holiday for county employees, beginning in 2022.

June 19, 1865 is recognized as the day when slavery officially ended in the U.S., more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas to announce the end of the Civil War and that all remaining slaves were free, thus ending slavery.

President Joe Biden signed legislation this year making Juneteenth a national holiday two days before June 19 on June 17.

The county resolution states: WHEREAS, the formerly enslaved people in Texas celebrated their freedom on Juneteenth, which today communities and organizations nationwide recognize as a day of remembrance and celebration; and WHEREAS, marking the historical legacy of Juneteenth each year honors African American ancestors who suffered the cruelty of slavery, and acknowledges the value of continuing to fight for a free, inclusive, and humane society; and WHEREAS, this Board would like to join communities across the nation in recognizing and commemorating Juneteenth as it is a celebration of liberation and achievement for African Americans and the entire country; and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, THAT THE

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF THE COUNTY OF TULARE recognize and designate June 19 of each year as a paid County Holiday in observance of Juneteenth.

The county Human Resources and Development Department made the request for the holiday.

In other business the county expects the cost of its health insurance plan for its employees to decrease by almost $1.3 million in 2022 as compared to 2021. As part of its consent calendar the board is expected to renew a series of health plans offered through the San Joaquin Valley Insurance Authority. There will be no rate increase with the following:

Anthem Blue Cross PPO, Anthem Blue Cross HDPPO, Delta Dental PPO, Deltacare HMO and VSP Vision. There will be a 9.73 percent increase for the Kaiser Permanente HMO and Deductible HMO plans and no increase for the Senior Advantage Plan.

The county will continue to provide a minimum benefit of $342.69 per pay period for more than 2,400 employees. Employees contribute whatever cost exceeds the amount provided by the county.

Also as part of the consent calendar the board is expected to approve a proposal for the county to sell property in Porterville to Habitat for Humanity Tulare-kings Counties for affordable housing on December 31.

The county will sell the tax-defaulted property at 347 W. Orange to Habitat for Humanity for $31,300. This is being done as part of the county's policy to sell tax-defaulted property at public auction for the purpose to collect unpaid taxes and to return property “to a revenue generating status.”