NEW CAO TAKES REINS; VENTURA COUNTY FACES CHALLENGES; THAT'S NOT UNIQUE, SAYS BAKER.Byline: David Greenberg The creator of this article, or someone who has substantially contributed to it, may have a conflict of interest regarding its subject matter. It may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia's content policies, particularly neutral point of view. Staff Writer David Baker David Baker may refer to:
In a brief interview, Baker said he has kept abreast of local issues since winning the supervisors' unanimous endorsement to succeed retiring CAO Lin Koester, so he was ready to tackle the job when he arrived early Monday at the Hall of Administration. Among the toughest challenges facing Baker is the lingering lin·ger v. lin·gered, lin·ger·ing, lin·gers v.intr. 1. To be slow in leaving, especially out of reluctance; tarry. See Synonyms at stay1. 2. mental health care crisis, which has cost Ventura County $15.3 million to settle allegations of fraudulent Medicare billing. ``My experience and knowledge about county governments in California is that they are all dealing with major issues,'' said Baker, 50. ``Most of them have something to do with finances. So it's not really surprising to me that Ventura County has its share of challenges.'' In a controversial move last month, the Board of Supervisors opted to use state tobacco settlement money to make the first of five $3.1 million annual installments to the federal government. Some health service advocates wanted the money used for tobacco education in schools and hospital care for people made ill by smoking. Before he left San Joaquin San Joaquin (săn wäkēn`), river, c.320 mi (510 km) long, rising in the Sierra Nevada, E Calif., and flowing W then N through the S Central Valley to form a large delta with the Sacramento River near Suisun Bay, an arm of San Francisco Bay. County, however, Baker said he devised a plan to use that county's annual tobacco allotment for capital projects, including the replacement of a portion of the county hospital to bring it up to seismic standards. Baker left his $128,000-a-year post as San Joaquin County's top administrator on Nov. 12, after nearly six years of service, to take the $157,788-a-year position here. San Joaquin County has a $770 million budget and 6,500 employees serving 550,000 residents. Ventura County operates on a $955 million budget with 7,200 employees serving nearly 800,000 residents. Baker said he does not yet have a plan to address the failed merger of the Human Services Agency and the Behavioral Health Behavioral health was first used in the 1980's to name the combination of the fields mental health and substance abuse. As an example, an organization serving both mental health and substance abuse clients might refer to its practice as behavioral health or Department, which supervisors approved and later dissolved dis·solve v. dis·solved, dis·solv·ing, dis·solves v.tr. 1. To cause to pass into solution: dissolve salt in water. 2. . In addition to the $15.3 million already lost, the state Department of Mental Health continues to withhold with·hold v. with·held , with·hold·ing, with·holds v.tr. 1. To keep in check; restrain. 2. To refrain from giving, granting, or permitting. See Synonyms at keep. 3. most of the $5.3 million for the county's Systems of Care operation. ``I think this is a very capable county that over time will be able to resolve these issues,'' Baker said. ``It's also a challenge that the board has already been addressing for some time now. There's a lot of work that's gone on.'' CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO (color) David Baker - Began new job Monday |
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