OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Washoe County Board of County Commissioners Meeting - March 17, 2026

Meeting Portal — Tuesday, March 17, 2026
BodyWashoe County, Nevada
SessionMeeting Portal
DateTuesday, March 17, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:42:50

Transcript — Verbatim
0:05

Good morning.

0:06

It is happy St.

0:08

Patrick's Day, March 17th, 2026.

0:11

I'm gonna call the meeting to order for the Washoe County Board of County Commissioners at 10 a.m.

0:18

I would like to actually ask Chief Edwards if he would do a salute to the flag, please.

0:34

The United States of America.

0:36

And she's a very popular for which one nation under Broad Indivisible with Liberty and Justice Roll.

0:48

Thank you.

0:48

We'll move to roll call, please.

0:50

Chair Andreola present.

0:52

Vice Chair Garcia.

0:54

Commissioner Hill.

0:55

Here.

0:55

Commissioner Clark.

0:56

Present.

0:57

Commissioner Herman.

0:58

Here.

0:58

County Manager Kate Thomas.

1:00

Here.

1:00

Chief Deputy DA Mike Large.

1:02

Present.

1:03

Adam, you have a quorum.

1:04

Thank you.

1:04

We'll move now to item 3A1 invocation.

1:08

Manager Thomas.

1:11

Thank you.

1:11

This morning we are joined by Matthew Fisher, who is with the Nevada Interfaith Association and the Reno Buddhist Center to lead us in an invocation.

1:24

Thank you.

1:26

A Buddhist invocation.

1:29

Zhenjohn Joshua.

1:53

May the spiritual presence of Amida Puddha Kanon and Seishi Bodhisattvas and all enlightened ones, past, present, and future permeate this hall to send forth wisdom like flower petals falling from the sky to awaken those of us gathered.

2:08

When a spirit of wisdom and compassion, we encourage thoughtful and just decision making by the commission gathered here.

2:15

Thank you.

2:16

Thank you.

2:20

Great.

2:21

We'll move now to item item 4A1.

2:26

County manager, please.

2:27

Thank you.

2:27

Yes, this morning we have an update and a presentation from Trekkie Meadows Fire and Rescue Chief Eisenhagen, and he's also joined by Don Johnson from the National Weather Service.

2:36

They have some slides for us this morning.

2:39

Good morning.

2:40

For the record, August Eisenhagen, I'm a division chief with Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District.

2:45

I oversee the wildland fire and fuels management division.

2:48

I'm joined by Don Johnson or joined by John Don Johnson.

2:53

Can't speak this morning from the weather service.

3:03

Some of the work that was done, what we looked at locally and nationally, and then what we're looking at as we move into the 2026 fire season.

3:13

So I'll move through these slides fairly quickly.

3:16

We gave them at the Board of Fire Commissioners, but these are some of the tangibles from within the division.

3:20

It's normally fairly behind the scenes to the public, but the wild or the volunteer program is a subordinate program within the wildland division.

3:29

They focus primarily on wildland fire.

3:31

These are some stats from last fire season for them.

3:36

And then as we get into the 2026 season, these are our operational volunteers at Gurlake, Gurlach, Silver Lake, Palomino Valley, Red Rock, and South Valleys.

3:46

I will note this is our big onboarding time of year for new volunteers.

3:50

So if anybody in the community is interested in participating in volunteer firefighting, that information is on our website.

4:04

They're wildland firefighters by trade.

4:06

This is within Truckee Meadows.

4:08

But when they're not on fires, they're doing fuels management projects.

4:12

So these are some stats from over the last year of their accomplishments in the field.

4:19

And then these stats I want to go over because these are definitely more pertinent and centered around our communities, around our civilians.

4:28

So during 2025, uh the division treated 91 private parcels, uh improving defensible space.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety███████████████15%
Public Engagement██████████████14%
Wildlife Management██████████10%
Election Integrity██████████10%
Fiscal Sustainability████████8%
Environmental Protection███████7%
Law Enforcement███████7%
Procedural██████6%
Voter Engagement██████6%
Summary of Proceedings

Washoe County Board of County Commissioners Meeting - March 17, 2026

The Washoe County Board of County Commissioners met on March 17, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. and adjourned at 12:43 p.m. The meeting included updates from Truckee Meadows Fire & Rescue on fuel management and fire season outlook, a presentation from the Registrar of Voters on election readiness and new initiatives, a briefing from the Bureau of Land Management on federal lands and local projects, the approval of an interlocal agreement with the City of Reno for sheriff oversight of the Reno Police Department, a financial outlook for FY2027, and direction to staff on bill draft requests for the 2027 Nevada Legislature. The board also approved consent items and routine reappointments.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved communications and reports received by the Clerk.
  • Approved roll change requests (cumulative decrease to taxing entities: $60,940.15).
  • Retroactively acknowledged a supplemental grant of $10,587.07 to the Second Judicial District Court for specialty court programs, increasing total to $1,121,787.71.
  • Approved Amendment #2 to the CrossRoads Operator contract with RISE, increasing the amount by $119,180 retroactive from March 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, to fund a STAR Mental Health Counselor and a STAR Peer Recovery Support Specialist.
  • Approved the updated Washoe County Grants Management Policy of 2026.
  • Approved a Letter of Intent for the FFY 2025 Homeland Security Grant ($213,000, no county match) for the Perimeter Platform, retroactive from October 1, 2025, to September 30, 2027.
  • Approved the reappointment of Miles Kinsler to the Washoe County Open Space and Regional Parks Commission for a term ending March 2, 2030.
  • Approved a Professional Services Agreement with DOWL, LLC for the Rancho San Rafael Amphitheater project design (60% plans) in the amount of $866,000, using ARPA funds, with a target completion of October 31, 2026.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Terry Brooks spoke about economic discrimination against the elderly, citing fixed incomes, rising healthcare and utility costs, and inflation.
  • Catherine Snediger criticized the board's approval of the 940-home Sierra Reflections development in Washoe Valley, arguing it does not blend with rural character and lacks infrastructure planning for traffic and fire access. She also questioned the lack of state permitting for chemicals/mercury.
  • Janet Butcher raised concerns about inconsistency in reappointments, noting that the TRPA appointment was tabled and opened to the public, while the Parks Commission reappointment was not. She urged the board to table item 9.
  • Todd Bailey (public comment period) requested a public information request regarding the codification of Question WC3 and criticized media transparency.
  • Ryan Vortich (Silver State Voices) expressed support for the Registrar of Voters' office, particularly for ADA compliance improvements, curbside voting, and expanded voter access.
  • Jill O'Leary called for reconciliation of the county checkbook from budgeted to actual dollars and raised concerns about transparency in grant spending, including a $436,000 homeland security grant for immigration enforcement and a state-funded mental health grant at Lakes Crossing.
  • Maureen McElroy thanked the Registrar of Voters for efforts to ensure secure and accessible elections, encouraging public education on voting processes.
  • John Kellaran (final public comment) defended the interlocal agreement with the City of Reno, praising Sheriff Balam's leadership and criticizing Commissioner Clark's previous characterization of the arrangement as a "side hustle."
  • Janet Butcher (final public comment) reiterated concerns about inconsistency in reappointments and expressed frustration over lack of transparency regarding the Reno Police Department investigation, referencing unsubstantiated rumors.

Discussion Items

  • Truckee Meadows Fire & Rescue Update: Chief Isernhagen and NWS meteorologist Don Johnson presented on fuel management and 2026 fire season outlook. Key stats: 91 private parcels treated for defensible space in 2025, 1,200+ burn permits issued, 5,000+ piles burned, and 1,700+ personnel days on fire assignment. The region experienced a "warm snow drought" with early snowmelt and high soil moisture, leading to a potentially severe fire season. The board discussed the dual risk of abundant fine fuels and dry forest conditions.
  • Registrar of Voters Presentation: Registrar McDonald outlined election preparations, including voter roll maintenance (55,501 inactivated, 25,012 canceled), precinct adjustments, a voter transparency project with cryptographic hashing, new ballot marking devices, ADA curbside voting (a Nevada first), and automatic signature verification software with a conservative threshold of 72. The office will have 22 early voting sites and 50 election day sites, including a super center at Reno-Sparks Convention Center. The warehouse moved to 655 Longley Lane, with a new headquarters planned for 2027. The board commended the office's progress.
  • BLM Presentation: State Director Raby and District Manager Dow discussed federal lands management, including emergency permitting (NEPA streamlined to 14-28 days), grazing permit renewal regulations, solar project Dodge Flat 2 (200 MW, decision by late May 2026), and partnerships for target shooting, OHV areas, and abandoned vehicle removal. Washoe County received $4.2 million in PILT payments in 2024.
  • Financial Outlook FY2027: Budget Director Cook presented the mid-year review and FY2027 outlook. Key points: revenue growth is outpaced by cost growth; departments requested $46 million in additional general fund support; structural deficit persists due to limited new development growth. CPI and GDP data are stable but subject to geopolitical risks. The county received GFOA's Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the 24th year and was featured in Government Finance Review for innovative service delivery. The board discussed priority-based budgeting and fiscal sustainability. No formal action was taken; the item was for discussion only.
  • Interlocal Agreement with City of Reno (Item 11): The board approved an agreement authorizing the Washoe County Sheriff to designate an acting Chief of Police for Reno and other staff. Sheriff Balam stated that Undersheriff Corey Solferino was appointed acting chief on March 9, 2026, following senior staff being placed on leave. The city will reimburse up to $2 million. The board expressed support for regional collaboration, though Commissioner Clark questioned the process. The item was moved up on the agenda and approved unanimously.
  • Bill Draft Requests for 2027 Legislature (Item 12): Government Affairs Liaison Caden Smotevich presented three BDR proposals: (1) requiring local governments to reimburse counties for costs from erroneous billing files (to be submitted to NACO); (2) allowing counties to use up to 3% of 911 surcharge revenues for administration; (3) recommending the Tahoe legislative committee study equitable distribution of transient lodging tax revenues for public transit in Incline Village/Crystal Bay. The board also discussed potential BDRs for funding for CARES campus (regional cost-sharing) and permanent supportive housing. The board directed staff to pursue all three proposals and investigate the additional topics.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Items: Approved unanimously (motion by Commissioner Hill, second by Vice Chair Garcia).
  • Block Vote (Items 9 & 10): Approved unanimously (motion by Commissioner Herman? The transcript shows motion by someone, second by Commissioner Hill).
  • Interlocal Agreement (Item 11): Approved unanimously (motion by Commissioner Hill, second by Vice Chair Garcia).
  • Bill Draft Requests (Item 12): Approved unanimously to move forward with all three BDRs as outlined, plus investigation of additional topics (motion by Commissioner Hill, second by Commissioner Herman).
  • Financial Outlook (Item 7C1): No formal action taken; presentation acknowledged. The board reopened for public comment, but none was offered, and no motion was made.

Note: The meeting began at 10:00 a.m. and concluded at 12:43 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for April 14, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning. It is happy St. Patrick's Day, March 17th, 2026. I'm gonna call the meeting to order for the Washoe County Board of County Commissioners at 10 a.m. I would like to actually ask Chief Edwards if he would do a salute to the flag, please. The United States of America. And she's a very popular for which one nation under Broad Indivisible with Liberty and Justice Roll. Thank you. We'll move to roll call, please. Chair Andreola present. Vice Chair Garcia. Commissioner Hill. Here. Commissioner Clark. Present. Commissioner Herman. Here. County Manager Kate Thomas. Here. Chief Deputy DA Mike Large. Present. Adam, you have a quorum. Thank you. We'll move now to item 3A1 invocation. Manager Thomas. Thank you. This morning we are joined by Matthew Fisher, who is with the Nevada Interfaith Association and the Reno Buddhist Center to lead us in an invocation. Thank you. A Buddhist invocation. Zhenjohn Joshua. May the spiritual presence of Amida Puddha Kanon and Seishi Bodhisattvas and all enlightened ones, past, present, and future permeate this hall to send forth wisdom like flower petals falling from the sky to awaken those of us gathered. When a spirit of wisdom and compassion, we encourage thoughtful and just decision making by the commission gathered here. Thank you. Thank you. Great. We'll move now to item item 4A1. County manager, please. Thank you. Yes, this morning we have an update and a presentation from Trekkie Meadows Fire and Rescue Chief Eisenhagen, and he's also joined by Don Johnson from the National Weather Service. They have some slides for us this morning. Good morning. For the record, August Eisenhagen, I'm a division chief with Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District. I oversee the wildland fire and fuels management division. I'm joined by Don Johnson or joined by John Don Johnson. Can't speak this morning from the weather service. Some of the work that was done, what we looked at locally and nationally, and then what we're looking at as we move into the 2026 fire season. So I'll move through these slides fairly quickly. We gave them at the Board of Fire Commissioners, but these are some of the tangibles from within the division. It's normally fairly behind the scenes to the public, but the wild or the volunteer program is a subordinate program within the wildland division. They focus primarily on wildland fire.

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