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The Veterans Affairs Commission (VAC) in collaboration with Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) will review draft versions of the Veterans Monument Criteria, receive and consider input from the veteran community and identify and compose a single version of draft criteria to recommend for approval by the County Board of Supervisors (BOS), as directed by the BOS on 01/14/2025.
Timalynn Jaynes, Assistant Director of Human Services at HHSA, expressed gratitude to Commissioners Reynolds and Mullens-Becker for organizing this Special Meeting and thanked the veterans who have provided their input on the Monument Criteria to date. She recounted that at the March 13, 2025 VAC meeting, Commissioner Smith raised significant concerns about the Monument Criteria verbiage in all drafts, citing contradictions and insufficient information distributed, and that he made a motion to pause recommendations, opting instead to seek further guidance from the BOS. This motion passed with a unanimous 5-0 vote.
Jaynes emphasized that the BOS provided clear instructions for the veteran community to collaborate and resolve differences regarding the Criteria. She reminded the Commission of their responsibility to provide timely recommendations and adhere to their advisory role.
Highlighting procedural expectations, Jaynes outlined the VAC’s standard practice of distributing Agendas and documents the Friday before meetings and stressed Commissioners’ responsibility to prepare in advance. She noted that over the past two years, the Criteria had been agendized five times, yet a lack of engagement by the Commission and late-stage criticism of HHSA’s work were deemed unacceptable.
Jaynes reinforced the expectations for public servants to act with integrity and accountability, upholding public trust as outlined in the Code of Ethics. She detailed the exhaustive efforts by her staff to review materials, collaborate with stakeholders, and meet with various County offices to meet the standards required to bring to the BOS. Despite facing unfounded accusations and defamation, her team remains committed to resolving this complex matter.
Jaynes addressed fiscal constraints, explaining that Veteran Services operates on General Funds and faces budget challenges. The Veteran Services Office cannot repeatedly bring this issue to the BOS without compromising resources and programs. She urged the Commission to be mindful of the financial impacts of their decisions and to avoid reducing vital services for the veteran community.
Finally, Jaynes encouraged the Commission and the veteran community to adopt a collaborative and solution-oriented approach. She stressed the importance of compromise and resolving the Monument Criteria issue to refocus efforts on the overarching mission: serving the veteran community effectively.
Next, Jaynes reviewed the Draft Revised Veterans Monument Criteria (Redline Version) with the Commission, highlighting the changes made and explaining the reasoning behind each of them.