Solano County is months away from launching a new website, closing in on one of the Board of Supervisors’ top priorities in recent years.
The Solano County Annual Report was presented to the board during its regular meeting Tuesday. The report gave the board an overview of progress made on county priorities in 2023, including progress on the new website, making commitments with time-sensitive federal funds and implementing a new property tax system.
The report celebrated a new program to reduce maternal mortality among Black mothers by training certified doulas, who provide guidance and support during birthing.
The program is run by First 5 Solano Children and Families Commission, in partnership with the county’s Health and Social Services and Aliados Health. The program certified 14 doulas in 2023.
Also highlighted was the purchase of Beverly Hills Elementary School in Vallejo, which is being converted into an early learning and childcare center that will ultimately accommodate up to 300 children. Conversion work is expected to be completed in 2026.
The report, presented by County Administrator Bill Emlen and board chair Mitch Mashburn, was broadly divided into three areas of focus: community stewardship, fiscal responsibility, and improving health and well-being of the community.
Emlen credited the board for committing all the $86.9 million given to the county from the American Rescue Plan Act. The law has a deadline of the end of 2024 for all funds to be committed, and they must be spent by the end of 2026.
Working toward glitch-free system
A new property tax system was launched in 2023, the first time in 40 years changes had been made to the collection system.
“Not without glitches, because of the connections between that system and all of the departments that are involved with it,” Emlen said. “But, I think we’re making significant progress at this point in addressing those and the system is fully operational,” Emlen said.
The site includes current and historical data on assessed property values, property tax data, payment history, and other online functionality. It coordinates data between the county’s Treasurer-Tax Collector-County Clerk, Auditor-Controller and Assessor-Recorder offices.
In its community stewardship section, the annual report noted success in creating an Ag Pass program in the county, which trains and certifies commercial farmers to access their property during evacuations to care for livestock or crops. In its first year, 70 passes were issued.
A consultant for the new county website was hired last summer. The new site will be more streamlined, incorporate more modern web tools and improve the overall experience. The site will launch later this year.