Presidents Message

SDCPOA Members,

I want to start by thanking all of the members that have taken the time to call, email or text with concerns and issues, along with possible solutions to these issues. All of these have been a tremendous help to us and have been used at the meetings that we are involved in. Being that our department is so diverse, we all have different issues and concerns and rely on our membership to continue to bring these issues forward.  Our goal this year is to increase communication with the members. Expect to receive quarterly e-blasts on relevant topics. Worksite representatives are present in nearly every location. They are available to pass information along to members and field any questions or concerns that may arise within the worksites. The current list of worksite representatives can be found on the “Members Only” section of the SDCPOA website. Additionally, monthly site visits to the worksite on a rotational basis will be occurring.

Labor Management (LM) meetings have resumed and will be held on a monthly basis with the County and Department. We hope that with LM resuming, you will see the ongoing issues that are brought to the Department executive team and County Public Safety representative, as well as what the Association is bringing up. Please be mindful that just because you do not see a particular issue on LM, that does not mean it was not brought to their attention. Sometimes issues get resolved at a lower level and it does not require us to escalate it to LM.

The SDCPOA has been working hard to find ways to lower MOT, and for the months of January and February, Chief Nelson and her executive team were able to bring the MOT down to one per month for ARCSS and YDCSS DPO’s. The SDCPOA and Chief Nelson’s goal is to bring MOT to an end. It should remain at this level until further notice. The Board will continue to press the issue of reducing and eliminating MOT and to resolve any related issues. If you experience or witness a misuse of MOT, please bring the specific example up to the Board so it can be investigated.

From September 2023 to now, over 45 new officers have been hired. Recruitment efforts have increased and retired staff have been added to assist with the backgrounds process. The Department has had multiple testing dates that have brought out over 100 potential recruits to each of the testing sessions. The Department’s goal is to hire 100 plus new officers by the end of March. Even though this is a very aggressive goal, we remain hopeful as retirements are around the corner. This aggressive recruitment and hiring will help fill current vacancies.

With the start of 2024, new laws and policies have gone into effect. Here are a few that might affect our members.

Reproductive Loss Leave- “It is County policy to grant Reproductive Loss Leave in accordance with SB 848 each fiscal year. Reproductive Loss Leave, as defined below under Qualifying Reasons, is a leave of absence due to a miscarriage, a stillbirth, a failed adoption or failed surrogacy or an unsuccessful assisted reproduction.” Please Click Here to review this policy.

Please contact me or any of the board members for proper representation if you are contacted by any of the following groups: Citizen’s Law Enforcement Review Board (CLERB), Office of Youth and Community Restoration (OYCR) and Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA). We advise you to contact us, as any interview could lead to disciplinary action against you.

Retired Medical Trust (RMT)- With retirement season coming up, many of you will have questions about the RMT. Please Click Here to see the FAQ’s document. If you have other questions, please contact me or any of the board members.

Regarding the use of Cannabis, we are waiting on the Department to bring out policy for change in law.

Additionally, we are also heading into a new legislative climate in Capitol Hill as we gear up for Legislative week in March. The SDCPOA is a part of the State Coalition of Probation Organizations (SCOPO). We hold two board seats which are filled by myself and Vice-President Veronica Limon. I would also like to share that Veronica was recently nominated and selected as the new Treasurer of SCOPO. Please join me in congratulating her as she takes her new seat. For those of you that do not know what SCOPO is, please allow me to share why this organization is important and the reason we join forces with them. SCOPO is an organization made up of Probation Organizations from the State of California. SCOPO focuses on Laws, Assembly and Senate bills that will impact our daily work. Legislators from all over our state put laws into effect that will inevitably affect how we do our jobs. SCOPO’s goal is to identify those Senate and Assembly bills and either oppose or support them. All of this is done during Legislative week, but the work does not stop there. That is where we get face time with the bill’s author. The work continues year-round and through continuous meetings with our local representatives. This is a difficult job, but a very important one. SCOPO holds general membership meetings and the SDCPOA usually hosts the second one. We invite all of you to join us in June. Please stay tuned for further details.

Lastly, the SDCPOA is adopting a new way to communicate with members via cell phone text messages. Please remember to update all of your personal information, including cell phone numbers and email addresses in the County’s PeopleSoft program.

Thank you for all of your hard work!

Jose Gutierrez

SDCPOA President