INTERNAL OPERATIONS COMMITTEE
Meeting Date: February 17, 2026
Subject: Measure O Committee
Submitted For: Lewis Broschard, Fire Chief, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District
Referral No: 26/3
Referral Name: Advisory Body Recruitment
Presenter: Aaron McAlister, Deputy Fire Chief
Contact: Aaron McAlister, Am@cccfpd.org
REFERRAL HISTORY
In 2016, Measure O, a supplemental revenue initiative for the Rodeo-Hercules Fire Protection District (RHFPD) was successfully passed by the residents of that Fire District, i.e., City of Hercules, unincorporated Town of Rodeo and surrounding unincorporated areas (“RHFPD Area”) (see Attachment A). The supplemental revenue provided approximately $2.725M in additional funding to the district for FY 24-25.
The ordinance (Attachment A) to establish the supplemental revenues included a requirement that the RHFPD establish a 2016 Special Tax Funding Replacement Measure Independent Oversight Committee (“Measure O Committee”). The Measure O Committee shall actively review and publicly report on the collection and proper expenditure of the taxpayers’ monies within the RHFPD Area alone, in accordance with the stated purposes of the Measure O Parcel Tax as detailed in Section 4 of the Ordinance enacted by Measure O:
The proceeds of the special tax funding replacement measure imposed by this ordinance shall be placed in a special account or fund to be used solely for any lawful purpose permissible to Fire Districts pursuant to California Health and Safety Code §13800 et seq., including but not limited to enhancing the level of fire prevention, emergency fire protection and paramedic response services through increasing staffing levels to operate and maintain the [RHFPD’s] fire stations, maintaining and when necessary replacing fire protection and lifesaving equipment and apparatus to optimal levels of function and performance, and to fund capital improvements.
RHFPD established the Measure O Committee with five members and retained that membership up to the date of its dissolution and annexation with the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District (CCCFPD). RHFPD established bylaws for the Measure O Committee. These bylaws allowed for the committee to be comprised of no less than three seated members, all of whom must be residents of the RHFPD Area, and one must be a registered voter and resident of Hercules and one must be a registered voter and resident of Rodeo.
CCCFPD intends to enact similar bylaws (Attachment B) for the Measure O Committee as those enacted by RHFPD.
The Measure O Committee members do not receive any compensation for their service. Committee members are appointed by the Board for a term of two (2) years or three (3) years, with the initial committee membership and subsequent terms outlined in the proposed bylaws.
Committee meetings are convened, at a minimum, twice per year and are planned to be held at Fire Station 76 in Hercules, which is the location used by the former RHFPD.
REFERRAL UPDATE
Pursuant to the annexation of the RHFPD by the CCCFPD and the approved LAFCO resolution, the CCCFPD must:
1. Create a Measure O Committee to replace the former RHFPD Measure O Committee to carry out the requirements for oversight as outlined in the Measure O Ordinance.
2. Adopt the bylaws for the newly established Measure O Committee.
3. Choose the number of seats for the committee, as previously deemed appropriate by RHFPD.
4. Adopt the Measure O Committee Ethics Policy (Attachment C).
RECOMMENDATIONS
The Fire Chief recommends establishing a Measure O Committee, adopting the attached proposed bylaws for the Measure O Committee (Attachment B) and proposed Measure O Committee Ethics Policy (Attachment C), establishing five seated positions for the committee, and designating that the Internal Operations Committee will be responsible for screening applications for the seats. As the committee generally only meets twice per year and can carry out their responsibilities with a minimum of three members in attendance, it is not recommended to appoint alternates to the committee.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with this action outside of the staff time required to manage the committee meetings, post agendas and meeting minutes, and other duties that may be required to facilitate and schedule meetings.