Tag Archives: kevin carunchio

Local News

Inyo County Counsel Retiring

County Counsel Announces Retirement

Independence – Marge Kemp-Williams has announced that she will retire as the County Counsel for Inyo County on December 30, 2015.

After meeting with the Board of Supervisors on August 21, 2015, to confirm what the Supervisors want her to work on between then and December 30, Kemp-Williams advised the Personnel Director that she intended to retire at the end of the year to spend more time with her family.  Ms. Kemp reached retirement age in 2014.

Kemp-Williams joined Inyo County in 2013, after serving as the Senior Deputy County Counsel in Colusa County for a little over five years.  Her roots were in private practice where she represented businesses and public entities after graduating from the University of Wisconsin thirty-two years ago.

“The private-public mix Marge brings to the table has benefited the County well,” said Chairman of the Board of the Board of Supervisors Matt Kingsley. “Marge brings insights to business transactions and contract construction that enables her to work with the Board and County Administrator to re-evaluate prior approaches to realizing Board goals.”

“Her strict construction of the law provides a solid foundation for analyzing the issues facing the County, while her open mind allows creativity in responding to those issues,” added Kevin Carunchio, Inyo County Administrator.

The County Counsel is appointed by the Board of Supervisors. Carunchio said the County will commence the recruitment process to hire a new County Counsel this week. He said this would include giving the Board of Supervisors an opportunity to evaluate executive recruitment firms to assist in the process.

Kemp-Williams has agreed to work with the County until her successor is found, but expressed a strong hope that would occur by January 2016.  Between now and then, she will continue her dedication and commitment to reaching the legal goals she has set with the Board.

inyo county news, kevin carunchio, marge kemp williams, inyo county administrator
Community News, Local News

LADWP shutting off irrigation May 1

LA cutting off water to lessees Friday

The Inyo Board of supervisor invited everyone to the table to talk water.  A water workshop was scheduled as part to their regular meeting Tuesday.  Monday night Inyo supervisors were made aware of notice passed along to local LADWP lessees that irrigation would halt Friday, May 1st.  The Los Angeles Department of water and power giving lessees less than a weeks notice of their directive.  Inyo County Administrative Officer Kevin Carunchio responds.

“ Most of the LADWP lessees in the area, received communication that all irrigation water, weather supplied by surface water like creeks, canals, or pumped from the ground, will be shut off May 1st. Obviously that spells nothing but disaster, economic, agriculture and environmental disaster. For the lessees and for the wildlife that lives on those leases, and for the ascetics of the Owenes Valley.”

The Inyo County CAO and the board of supervisors see the move by the LADWP as a clear violation of the long term water agreement.

“Yesterday the board met and authorized correspondence and appropriate legal action. The board did move forward with the workshop, and had a spirited, constructive, and heart felt conversation about how to use the water the dwp has said it will leave in the valley.” Said Caruchio.

Inyo Supervisor Rick Pucci opened yesterdays workshop by questioning the LADWP’s willingness to work cooperatively in light of their bold step to cut irrigation waters.  Carunchio sees the move as an unfair blow to Owens Valley agriculture.  “Everyone there yesterday recognizes the need for reductions of water use, that’s just a reality in this type of drought year, but to heap it all on agriculture does not seem wise or fair. When you look at it, some of the ag leases are the biggest win,win situations out there in terms of environmental enhancement, wildlife habitat, dust control and economic influx”

Citing pending litigation, LADWP officials did not comment directly on the topic at Tuesdays workshop.

cover photo by Gary Young.

inyo county news, drought 2015, kevin carunchio, rick pucci, ladwp
Local News

Inyo Supervisors Approve 7 AT routes

Inyo Adventure Trails System gets the Green Light

After nearly 11 hours of testimony and public comment Thursday, the Inyo Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 approving the Eastern Sierra ATV Adventure Trails System Project.  The primary goal of the project is to link off highway vehicle users with goods and services located in Inyo County communities.  Inyo County Administrative Officer Kevin Carunchio indicates that the action taken by the board of Thursday gives the OK to a plan that was substantially reduced from the projects original plan

Thursdays public hearing began at 10am in the Independence legion hall and continued throughout the day, wrapping up just before 9pm.  After receiving several reports and hearing from the public the board took formal action to move forward with the seven routes.

Routes include, Bishop #5, Brown’s Town to Poleta OHV area, Bishop #6, Pleasant Valley Campground to Horton Creek Campground, Bishop #7, Pleasant Valley Campground to Tungsten City, Bishop #9, Brown’s Town to Bir Road, Bishop #15, Britt’s Diesel to Poleta OHV Recreation Area, Independence #1, Independence Inn to Betty Jumbo Mine Road, and Lone Pine #1, Boulder Creek RV Park to N. Fork Lubken Canyon/BLM road.
Carunchio says that adding future routes would require a lengthy process

The link to the Inyo County Planning departments Adventure Trials Web site

http://inyoplanning.org/projects/AdventureTrails.htm

AdvTrails_OverallMap

inyo county news, adventure trails project, bishop news, kevin carunchio, eastern sierra news
KIBS/KBOV Announcements, Local News

Adventure Trails Hearing Re-Scheduled

The Inyo Adventure Trails Public Hearing has been set

The Public Hearing for the Adventure Trails project currently scheduled for December 30, 2014, in Independence has been rescheduled to January 22, 2015, at 10 a.m. in Independence. Due to threats of litigation surrounding the project, the postponement is necessary to provide more time for the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) to provide the County with guidance about the ability of all five members of the Board of Supervisors to participate in the decision making process.
Originally scheduled for December 2nd, the Public Hearing was cancelled and re-scheduled for December 30th when a recent Fair Political Practices  Commission (FPPC) regulation governing conflict of interest determinations for elected officials created uncertainty about the ability of members of the Board of Supervisors to vote on the Adventure Trails project. Out of an abundance of caution, the County cancelled the meeting and rescheduled the Hearing to allow time for the FPPC to provide a legal opinion.
Last Friday, Inyo County Counsel Marge Kemp-Williams was  contacted by an FPPC representative who indicated that FPPC’s due date for providing the County with a ruling is January 12, 2015.
Based on this information, Ms. Kemp-Williams advised that it would be prudent to wait for FPPC guidance. Ms. Kemp-Williams explained that, without a ruling from the FPPC, each member of the Board of Supervisors will need to make an individual decision about their ability to participate in the vote.  If more than two Supervisors declare a conflict and recuse themselves from the decision making
process, in order to ensure a quorum of the Board exists to make the legally required decision, those Supervisors declaring a conflict would have to draw straws to determine which of the disqualified
Supervisors will be selected to create a quorum to participate in the decision despite their declared conflict. The same process will be employed if the FPPC opines that three or more Supervisors cannot vote in the process. As a matter of law, if only three members of the Board of Supervisors – a quorum – are available to vote on a decision, then the decision must be approved by all three
Supervisors.
“If it turns out only three members of the Board of Supervisors are able to vote on the Adventure trails project, it will require a unanimous vote, instead of a majority vote,” said County
Administrator Kevin Carunchio. “There is an overriding need to use every opportunity to ensure that each member of Board of Supervisors has the best possible information on which to determine their ability to participate in the decision making process and maintain the integrity of the Adventure Trails project.”
Carunchio acknowledged that nobody was pleased with the need to cancel the December 2nd meeting, and some people did not agree with the decision to schedule the hearing on December 30th.
He also recognizes that there may be others who may not be happy with the need to reschedule the meeting.

adventure trails, inyo county, kevin carunchio, fppc, marge kemp-williams