Y2K Verdict : Grand Jury Warns Some West County Cities Less Prepared Than Eastern Neighbors

Some of western Ventura County’s cities are less prepared to cope with the possible Y2K computer crisis than the east county and should take immediate action to catch up, the Ventura County Grand Jury has warned.

Officials in all 10 of the county’s cities have drawn up plans to correct the potential problem, according to a study conducted by the grand jury and released Wednesday. But Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley are way ahead of others in completing activities necessary to avoid Y2K-related problems, the report concludes.

The report indicates Santa Paula and Port Hueneme may be lagging in their preparedness and notes that Ventura has expressed concern on inadequate staffing to deal with the potential problem. Other cities fall somewhere between, the report found.

Testing for computer failures and development of emergency plans to deal with potential problems must be completed well before a Dec. 31 deadline, grand jurors recommended in the report.

“Time is of the essence. . . . In the case of the Year 2000 project, there can be no forgiveness about deadline,” the report states.

The 1998-99 grand jury decided to tackle the issue because of fears nationwide that potential computer failures at year’s end could trigger widespread power and sewage failures as well as other public safety problems. Analysts say a glitch is possible because many computer systems may not be able to distinguish the year 2000 from 1900.

Marvin J. Reeber, the grand jury foreman, said officials in county government and in Thousand Oaks have been leaders in carrying out preparedness plans. Thousand Oaks began its efforts four years ago and is nearly done.

Vern Holzwarth said testing of the county government’s vast computer systems is 95% complete.

“Everything has been remediated and fixed,” said Holzwarth, the county’s manager in charge of Y2K compliance. “We are just testing, testing, testing.”

Some smaller cities, however, appear to be having a tougher time. Port Hueneme and Santa Paula reported they had not yet developed contingency plans in case of a failure, the report states.

And Ventura reported it was concerned the city did not have enough technical workers to handle both Y2K duties and the daily workload.

Santa Paula City Manager Peter Cosentini challenged the report’s finding, saying municipal officials are up to speed in bringing computers into compliance--despite having a small staff.

“If we had Thousand Oaks’ resources, we would be ahead on things too,” Cosentini said. “We have taken a categorical look at this and we will be ready.”

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Port Hueneme City Manager Dick Velthoen said his tiny city is quickly closing any gap. A task force has been meeting for six months and earlier this week the city’s financial system was declared Y2K compliant, Velthoen said.

Ventura city officials declined to comment, saying the city would respond to the grand jury report later this month.

The grand jury’s Y2K survey was one of several reports made by the outgoing panel in its final report. Other recommendations issued in the report include:

* Urging the county Board of Supervisors to televise its board meetings to increase the public’s ability to learn about their government.

* Publishing two county budget books in a simplified, easy-to-use version for the public and a sophisticated one for use by county fiscal managers.

* Instructing county officials to more frequently review the 46 special districts that deal with everything from water to cemeteries to determine whether any have outlived their usefulness.

In their report, the grand jurors took the unusual step of issuing a commendation. They applauded county supervisors for supporting plans to build a juvenile justice center to replace the aging, overcrowded facility in Ventura.

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And they heaped praise on Judge Steven Z. Perren and Probation Agency Director Cal Remington for bringing attention to the problem.

“They have gone the extra mile to make this happen,” Reeber said. “Judge Perren particularly is so dedicated to this issue and feels so strongly about it. We just felt kudos were due.”

The 19-member panel issued several interim reports during the year that dealt with such issues as attorney pay, school safety and Oxnard’s Planning Department. Wednesday’s report concluded the tenure of the 1998-99 grand jury.

The watchdog panel convenes each July 1 and spends the next 12 months investigating public complaints and the activities of local governments, which are required to respond to recommendations. Grand jurors also return criminal indictments.

A new volunteer panel was sworn in Wednesday. Reeber, 67, a retired businessman, said he was retained for a second year and will again serve as foreman.

“It’s a very interesting and worthwhile experience,” he said. “If one is going to donate to society, this is a great way to do it.”