VARGAS RE-ELECTED AS CHAIR OF SUPERVISORS
Official begins second term; Robbins-Meyer departs as chief administrative officer
Nora Vargas was unanimously re-elected chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors by her colleagues Tuesday, and the county’s longtime top executive finally departed nine months later than planned.
Helen Robbins-Meyer’s departure, after more than a decade as chief administrative officer, leaves the county still in search of someone to oversee its more than $7 billion budget and 20,000-person workforce. Her deputy, Sarah Aghassi, will take the helm temporarily until supervisors hire a permanent successor.
Vargas became only the second person in recent decades to be chosen to lead the board for two consecutive terms. Typically, the position rotates annually; that changed during the pandemic, when Nathan Fletcher was named to the post two years in a row.
“As budgets tighten throughout the state, we must be diligent and smarter with our resources, prioritize the health and safety of our residents and support local businesses,” Vargas said Tuesday, as supervisors met for the first time this year.
Supervisor Terra LawsonRemer will remain vice chair and Supervisor Joel Anderson chair pro tem. The vice chair has full authority to act if the chair is absent or unable, while the chair pro tem steps in if neither of the other two can.
Vargas was the first Latina elected to the board in 2020 and the first Latina selected as board chair last year. Though they don’t always agree with her, all of the supervisors applauded her leadership.
“I really appreciate that you’ve taken consideration of all our constituents — not just your district, but all of our districts — through your leadership,” Anderson said.
Supervisors also signed off Tuesday on dozens of appointments determining who among them will serve on the transit agency and other boards, commissions and committees.
Among them, Monica Montgomery Steppe joins the Metropolitan Transit System board, while Vargas and Anderson will continue to serve on the San Diego Association of Governments.
Tuesday was also RobbinsMeyer’s last day, more than nine months after she first was supposed to retire. She had been asked to stay on longer after Fletcher’s plans to resign as supervisor put on hold the search for a new CAO.
The CAO reports to the Board of Supervisors, executing
policy, managing labor agreements and negotiations and directing operation of county departments spanning health, land use, finance and more. RobbinsMeyer was the first woman to serve in the role, the culmination of a 26-year career with the county.
On Tuesday, she noted the job required balancing the needs of all taxpayers, county employees and vulnerable constituencies who rely on county services.
“I can’t always please all of them at the same time, and I do my best to please them all in a balanced approach,” she said. “I think the only way you can do that is with integrity, compassion and respect. And that’s what
I’ve tried to model throughout my career.”
As the board has restarted its search for a successor in recent months, it has come under pressure to make the process more transparent and let the public weigh in.
“The CAO has the power to shape how our regional housing crisis will be addressed, advise on how our county can step in to support a massive influx of refugees and determine how workers in San Diego can have greater access to local protections and resources,” Anjleena Kour Sahni, a researcher and policy advocate with the Center on Policy Initiatives, said at the Dec. 12 special board meeting. “They set the tone for how equity and racial justice will be prioritized and decide the standards and culture for county operations across more than 40 departments.”
Her organization, a San Diego nonprofit that advocates for economic justice in the workplace, has asked residents to urge the board to give the community a voice in the selection process, including by hosting public forums and including community members on hiring committees.
Many who spoke during two special meetings held by the board in the last month to discuss the CAO hire asked for the same.
Vargas said during Tuesday’s meeting that the board will ensure that there is public participation in the hiring process. A job description is available on the CPS HR Consultant website at cpshr.us/recruitment/2304.