Lassen County Public Improvement Corporation

BLM Building

Deputy CAO Tony Shaw

Grand Jury Herlong Report- 2014

Contact Kan We Help

Richard Egan

County Administrative Officer

Lassen County Treasurer 1999-2014

Hired: Effective 2/25/14

Contract expires: March 10, 2020

(February 9, 2018 the Board of Supervisors authorized an additional 1 year extension)

700 Forms

Powers & Duties of the CAO

Kan We Help puts Supervisors on notice

about making up fake positions 

Watch March 24, 2014 video  Part 2: 2:51 mark

Watch April 15, 2014: Vander Ploeg convinced Egan that his title was Chief Executive Officer

Former Lassen County Treasurer is named CAO after Martin Nichols was fired. The County Board of Supervisors hired Mr. Egan with a guaranteed salary of $170,000 for two years. Mr. Egan, a career County employee, can retire in 3 1/2 years.

Coincidentally, the term of his contract, FOUR YEARS

Supervisors make corrections Kan We Help found

in CAO's

Second Contract Amendment

Lassen County CAO Richard Egan

 suddenly leverages an extension to his Contract?  

Three months after the Supervisors hired Egan they had to amend his contract. For reasons yet to be explained, Egan wanted the title of CEO (Chief Executive Officer) but Lassen County only could hire a Chief Administrative Officer.  Kan We Help filed many complaints, with Lassen County, that there was NO CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER POSITION AND EGAN HAD TO STOP SIGNING OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS WITH THAT TITLE.  Thus the need to have the May 13, 2014 Amendment. 

CAO Egan's original contract expires on February 25, 2018 .  Paragraph 2: Term states that Lassen County must notify Egan by February 25, 2017 if they did not intend to renew Egan's contract. 

If no notification was given by February 25, 2017,

Egan's contract is

automatically extended one year.

So why do they need this second amendment ?

Egan's salary is well above $170,000 now.

When will the Supervisors sneak in a pay raise for Egan?

KAN WE HELP WILL MONITOR THIS VERY CLOSELY

Lassen County's CAO Richard Egan

is not the first to get richer

by way of a County office

Egan's 700 Forms for the last two years

[Kan We Help discovered that Egan has held stock in the Lassen Irrigation District and never reported it]

Chapman out, Egan in 

Lassen County Treasurer/CAO Richard Egan

Diverted $5,077,312.81

of the LCPIC dollars

to

"UNASSIGNED VENDOR"

from 2003 to 2011

WHO DID EGAN PAY?

*The 1989 $6,675,000 Certificate of Participation (COP) loan cost the taxpayers $11,121,884.41

[*Based on public records from 1993-2011].

Slush fund

Lassen County Public Improvement Corporation

Lassen County Supervisors

$90,000 Exploration of  Borrowing $4 million dollars

for Pet Projects

May Have Hit a Huge Snag

Left to right: Former District Attorney now County Counsel Bob Burns, CAO Richard Egan at BOS meeting in Bieber. CA

Lassen County CAO Richard Egan  hesitant and rambling

about "the use" of the $4,000,000 loan

Supervisors year after year have had the "cash" to finish capital projects but have failed year after year on promises to County Departments

Decaying Jail Building

Decaying Health and Human Services buildings

Decaying Cemeteries

Decaying infrastructures in the County

Decaying Animal Control Shelter

Supervisors have yet to take a VOTE on borrowing $4,000,000

They must first look at the "Surplus" each year in the Budget and start looking at finishing projects

that effect the everyday lives of the citizens of Lassen County.

Shhhhh...Rancher Richard Egan hired a Deputy CAOO

Lassen County CAO Richard Egan mentioned that he had hired Tony Shaw as his "Assistant -to-the- CAO as the.... last comment before the December 16, 2014 Board of Supervisors meeting was adjourned. Julie Morgan was the "Assistant-to-the-CAO"?  So what is up? 

Well, it turns out that CAO Richard Egan hoped no one would notice his "slight-of-hand".  Tony Shaw was actually hired as Deputy CAO and started January 5th. 

Richard Egan did not have the courtesy (to the public or the Board) of placing this new County employee on the December 16, 2014 Agenda as an introduction/approval of his new "relief" CAO.  Egan didn't even place this new County Employee on the January 13, 2014 Agenda. This was not an oversight but a deliberate attempt to hide the fact that he had hired Tony Shaw?????

THIS IS NOT A GOOD SIGN

FOR BEGINNING A NEW YEAR

THE TAXPAYERS NOW PAY RICHARD EGAN $175,000 A YEAR TO RANCH

Stay Awake Mr. Egan.....

That coffee (?) is not going to help.

It's a Zzzzzzzzzzzzz  Moment

You have two idiots now

 that love to hear themselves talk

CAO Richard Egan

Confronted with

Judges Letter

CAO Egan admits he wrote judges letter

CAO admitted today that Judge Verderosa did not author the April 16, 2014 letter. This letter appeared on the May 13, 2014 Board of Supervisors Agenda (Agenda I-1). Chairman Wosick adjourned the meeting without discussing this Agenda item. Kan We Help attempted to get this re-scheduled but the CAO insisted that it had been discussed.  The Audio and Video recordings confirmed that Agenda I-1 was just skipped. 

Full story with documents

Richard Egan

Salary: $174,000

Benefits: $43,000

Highest Paid Lassen County Administrator

in

Lassen County History

Supervisors hired Egan to do a job

Egan accepted the job knowing full well what his duties were

LASSEN COUNTY SUPERVISORS

HAVE

NO INTENTION

OF

CREATING A

CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN

Major Lassen County land owner/rancher and now County Administrative Officer has no intention of creating a "CIP"  for Lassen County.

Hide in Plain Sight

The June 10, 2014 Board of Supervisors  Agenda placed creating new positions, new titles, new pay at the end of their Agenda. Why? Because they do not want the public to be present.

Public Entities typically change titles of staff when they want to give HUGE pay raises. CAO Egan rewarded only Cheryl Douglas. Egan pulled Regina Schaap's new "job description" and pay raise. Julie Morgan, Assistant to CAO, was also not rewarded.

 The Supervisors approved Agenda Item H8. CAO Richard Egan requests that $102,000be added annually to the County's budget so he can hire a Deputy CAO. Someone to replace him when this rancher/CAO is........absent ?

THE CAO KNOWS THERE IS LOTS OF MONEY FOR HIM TO DO THIS

BUT

NO MONEY WILL BE CONSIDERED

FOR CRITICAL COUNTY

IMPROVEMENTS AND REPAIRS

Until Certain conditions are met: 

Begging and/or Favors 

That is how Lassen County Government rolls

Lassen County Board of Supervisors

Drop "CEO" in Richard Egans Title

Kan We Help stated very clearly their objections to the Board of Supervisors creating a fake Title for the County Administrator.

HISTORY

Ordinance 473 created the position and duties of "County Administrative Officer". The April 22, 1997 Ordinance 473 B amended this Ordinance to further define the "County Administrative Officer" duties and position. Supervisor Chapman and Dahle were absent Ordinance 473-C was approved on February 10, 1998. Supervisor Dahle voted against this amendment. Ordinance 473- D is missing in action however Ordinance 473-E allowed the County Administrative Officer" to conduct annual evaluations of Department Heads. Supervisor McCain voted against this amendment and Supervisor Dahle was absent.  

CONSEQUENCES

Kan We Help pointed out, to CAO Richard Egan and the Lassen County Board of Supervisors, that any document Mr. Egan signed as CEO or any other nonexistent-title, would be subject to being voided.

The County or Mr. Egan cannot enter into any agreement that does not have a "legal" context.

CAO/CEO does not exist.

Ordinance 562, approved on February 8, 2005, created a "bargaining unit" of one, County Administrative Officer. Supervisor Chapman voted against this.. This not only effected Mr. Egan's ability to negotiate future contracts, but his ability to receive his CalPers benefits. CalPers does not recognize a Lassen County CEO.  The Lassen County Administrative Officer receives all benefits given to Department Heads

LOL (laugh out loud)

CAO (County Administrative Officer)

CAO/LOL

Apparently anyone can make up a fake title for the Lassen County Administrative Officer

but let's just humor him and not tell him that he legally can only use

COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER.

Powers & Duties of the Lassen County CAO

Even though he prefers to be called officially

COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER/aka chief executive officer, county executive officer, chief of the lassen tribe......etc. etc,

Confusion ? Yes, a little

but when is Egan going to realize that it was originally a joke.

There are no Powers & Duties for a Lassen County

"chief executive officer"

It is a definition.

 The definition for the County Administrative Officer

Most likely if you asked a fifth grader to read "2.25" below, they would be able answer what was a title and what is the definition correctly. We would really like to believe that our County government is smarter than a fifth grader................? We sincerely hope that Richard Egan is smarter than a fifth grader.

The County has clearly listed the powers and duties

of their CAO

Powers & Duties of the Lassen County CAO

Suddenly, the Supervisors and Richard Egan, out of the blue, think they can make up a new Title, a new County position.

Well, they can't

Could this possibly, be as simple as to, have something to do with the

DREADED Capital Improvement Plan. 

This plan is a mandatory duty of the CAO.

Could the Supervisors be that dumb as to think by changing Richard Egan's title that this DUTY does not apply to him?

After decades of hiring and firing CAO's

Now, Lassen County has a CAO that has to have TWO titles?

The California Constitution determines the Title:

"County Administrative Officer"

CRUEL PARTING SHOT

AT

LASSEN COUNTY

Rhetta Vander Ploeg isn't that great of an attorney but she should know that the "County Administrative Officer" is a California Constitutionally created County position.

Vander Ploeg even convinced former County Treasurer, Richard Egan, that he could use CEO (Chief Executive Officer) which is a position that does not exist.

County Counsel Vander Ploeg even put CAO/CEO in Egans contract to make it look legitimate but the joke has gone far enough. Vander Ploeg has advised CAO Egan that he can sign public documents with CEO.

The County of Lassen has clearly followed the California Constitution when it created Title 2, Chapter 2.06.015

CAO powers and duties

A "DEFINITION" OF A POSITION cannot CHANGE THE CONSTITUTIONAL TITLE

NICE JOKE VANDER PLOEG, BUT IT MAY BE TIME TO SAY GOOD-BYE NOW

Watch March 24, 2014 video  Part 2: 2:51 mark

Watch April 15, 2014: Vander Ploeg convinced Egan that his title was Chief Exective Officer

KAN WE HELP has asked the Board of Supervisors, three times now,  to refrain from using the title/position (CEO) that does not exist.

Any one that wants out of their County Contract could void it and ask for damages because the County of Lassen does not have and never will have a position of "Chief Executive Officer". 

If Chairman Wosick signed as President of the Board of Supervisors, the document would be rendered moot.

If County Counsel signed a County document as Chairman of the County Whoha Department, it would be rendered void.

 YOU SIMPLY CANNOT MAKE UP TITLES