Shasta board punts on planning commissioner change, hears update on H.R. 1 impacts

Shasta County supervisors made no decision on changing planning commission members this week due to uncertainty about whether a sitting planning commissioner, Steve Kerns, had been appropriately notified that he was being replaced. 

Supervisor Corkey Harmon had hoped to replace Kerns with civil engineer Kevin Butler. In statements to Shasta Scout before the meeting Harmon said he had no issue with Kerns but thought from a conversation he had more than a year ago with the commissioner that he wanted to leave his role at some point.

In an email to a reporter before the meeting, Kerns denied that claim saying if he wanted to step down he would. Nevertheless, Harmon reiterated on Tuesday that he hopes to appoint Butler to take his place. 

Supervisors Matt Plummer, Allen Long and Board Chair Chris Kelstrom all said they’d support Harmon’s desire to appoint a planning commissioner of his choice. But Plummer and Long expressed concern about the fact that Kerns did not appear to have been notified before he appeared on the board’s agenda. That was what prompted board members to push the item back to the next meeting to allow for those conversations to occur.  

Supervisors did not take issue with Butler’s prior work as an engineer for a controversial proposed gun range in Millville, noting that Kerns had similar connections due to having consulted on an environmental report for the project. As Kelstrom emphasized, any commissioner with a conflict over any project that comes before the planning commission in future would have to recuse themselves.

H.R. 1 to have major impacts on Shasta’s residents, county finances

Also on Tuesday’s agenda, Shasta Health and Human Services Agency Director Christy Coleman gave a presentation about the incoming impacts of H.R. 1, also known as President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” 

The federal budget bill, which was passed last year, made major cuts to areas including health care and food assistance. Coleman said HHSA has been having regular conversations about the bill’s impacts on the county and its residents, which are expected to hit as early as next month.

She specifically pointed out the ways the federal bill will impact CalFresh, Medi-Cal and indigent health care, outlining how requirements to confirm client eligibility are changing and explaining what the effects on the county in terms of staffing and cost to facilitate those requirements will be. 

After her presentation, Supervisor Matt Plummer asked questions regarding what the financial costs to the county will be, with HHSA officials giving a rough estimate of $6 million. Included in those costs is the potential hiring of 12 new eligibility workers who would assist with the administration of CalFresh and Medi-Cal.

Another major portion of the increased expense would come from the county’s responsibility to help pay health care costs for those who don’t have insurance and meet other qualifications. It’s an especially prevalent issue given that thousands of Shasta’s residents are expected to lose Medi-Cal coverage due to cuts to Medicaid by H.R. 1.

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