Ready for a crash course on a local regulatory agency? Grab your reading glasses, some coffee, and buckle up, this one is a doozy.
UPDATE: This post has been updated to include a statement from Jennifer Stephenson, Executive Officer of San Benito LAFCO
Intro to LAFCO
What is LAFCO?
LAFCO stands for Local Agency Formation Commissions and are local regulatory agencies formed in 1963 to:
- encourage the orderly formation of local governmental agencies
- preserve agricultural land resources
- promote adequate public services
- discourage urban sprawl
LAFCO in San Benito County is comprised of 2 commissioners from the Board of Supervisors (Kollin Kosmicki and Dom Zanger), 1 commissioner from the City of Hollister (Mayor Roxanne Stephens), 1 commissioner from San Juan Bautista (Mayor Leslie Jordan), and one public member commissioner (Currently Vacant). More on San Benito LAFCO can be found here.
What are LAFCO’s responsibilities?
As stated above LAFCOs does have a few main objectives but many responsibilities and authority including: oversight of local government agencies including special districts, joint power authorities, city sphere of influences studies, regulation of annexations/boundary changes, initiation of special district consolidations, out of agency service agreements, and service reviews.
It is important to note that LAFCO is not a land use authority and has no say over proposed development specifically. In fact commissioners are beholden to LAFCO law and LAFCOs are prohibited from imposing terms and conditions which “directly regulate land use, property development, or subdivision requirements.” That power still rests with cities and counties respectfully.
What is an MSR?
An MSR (or Municipal Services Review) is a state-required comprehensive study of services within a designated geographic area. For Example, City of Hollister or Sunnyslope Water District.
Recent San Benito County LAFCO Updates
New Commissioners Vote to Remove Public Member
[This is largely a recap from the February 13th LAFCO Meeting which can be watched here.]
At the Februray 13th, 2025 commission meeting a surprise item was added to the agenda. Newly elected LAFCO chair, Commissioner Kollin Kosmicki, had added to the agenda an item to discuss removal of Public Member Commissioner Richard Bettencourt and Public Member Alternate Elia Salinas.
The meeting started off with a surprise announcement that Commissioner Bettencourt had decided to resign, rather than be removed by the commission. This followed with public comment honoring Mr. Bettencourt for his 14 years of service, Ms. Salinas for her 4 years of service and asking the board to reconsider. As a result of Mr. Bettencourts resignation, Ms. Salinas took over as the Public Member.
LAFCO Executive Officer Jennifer Stephenson also strongly urged against the consideration of removal of both the public member and public member alternate. She stated that continuity among the board is important given the complexity of the issues at hand. The board already has 3 new members in Kollin Kosmicki, Roxanne Stephens, and Dom Zanger. Acting as chair of the board of Supervisors, Kosmicki and the board of supervisors removed Supervisor Angela Curro from her LAFCO appointment prior to the end of her term. This would make 4 out of 5 commissioners new this year.
Commissioner Stephens mentioned that it is good to have a change in representation and that this not a “display of not getting along.” While Former Commissioner Salinas mentioned it’s not about new perspective but about an accurate interpretation of LAFCO law.
After an emotional plea from the public, fellow commissioner Leslie Jordan, and against the advisement of LAFCO Executive Officer, the commission voted 3-1 with Kosmicki, Zanger, and Stephens voting for removal and commissioner Leslie Jordan voting against.
Ms. Salinas mentioned during the meeting that no public member in state history had been removed. We were also unable to find any instances of public member removal. El Dorado County had discussed the potential in 2021 due to code of conduct violations but ultimately did not decide to do so.
The Public Member position is now open for applications. You can find the applications here and submit them to the clerk of the board at 481 Fourth Street Hollister, CA 95023.
Statement from Jennifer Stephenson, Executive Officer at San Benito LAFCO:
Although staff did not recommend the removal of the Public Member and Public Member Alternate for the reasons discussed in the meeting, the final decision rests with the Commission. These positions exist at the discretion of the remaining Commission members as the appointing authority. The Commission deeply appreciates the time and dedication that Richard Bettencourt and Elia Salinas have devoted to their community throughout their years of service, as was passionately expressed by the public during the meeting. Ideally, they will continue to share their knowledge and experience of LAFCO by participating in LAFCO meetings as members of the public.
Wastewater MSR Comes Into Focus
The recently completed wastewater MSR includes a treasure trove of information on water/wastewater services in San Benito County. The report, over 200 pages, includes solutions to jurisdictional issues, suggestions for orderly services, and even the suggested dissolution of a jurisdiction. (If you’d like to watch a video presentation on an MSR, look here,)
Recently at the January LAFCO Meeting Commissioners Kosmicki, Zanger, and Stephens voted to pause the MSR report and hold off on a public hearing. An MSR is a report detailing suggestions LAFCO could take but are not necessarily a mandate to act. The objection came from a suggested solution that the city of Hollister act as regional wastewater plant, which would create a geographical area that the plant would serve. The report outlines that this could be a catalyst for urban sprawl.
While there were several alternative solutions offered in the MSR, the “regional plant” option seemed to draw ire from the new Commissioners at both the January and February meeting. Commission Chair Kollin Kosmicki stated he was in favor of keeping the agreement between the city and county regarding providing services for development of areas adjacent to the city.
There are several other suggestions including forming a JPA, the city forming a subsidiary district that would allow the city to contract outside of City limits to an extent, county buy in of the wastewater plant and more. The commission reconvened an adhoc to identify potential further solutions. A public hearing will likely be forthcoming and we plan to update you with a date once it is set.
Why Pay Attention? (My Take)
Unfortunately, the first two meetings of the new commission have been largely negative, focusing on removing members and revoking invites to special districts. We hope the board can move forward on a more positive path. The recently completed MSR (a legally mandated process) authorized by the previous board is the most comprehensive document to come out of the agency. The new commission is simply charged with doing something with it. Adopting its findings is not a mandate for agencies involved to act nor is it a mandate for LAFCO itself to act (this comes from the executive officers presentation viewable in this video). The city will still have its own individual MSR and say, as will Sunnyslope, SJB, the County, etc. The document kick-starts the MSR process for all other jurisdictions involved. We should have our fingers crossed that the new commission can further the work of the previous commission and put to bed the debates over resources and jurisdictions in the county.
Further, we should all take the time to pay attention to LAFCO given the impacts it could have on the area. This commission will also likely have input on the creation of a fire district should one be created. With LAFCO charged with major decisions over the next year including annexations and orderly service updates, it does serve as a place where residents can learn about the policies that impacts everything from wastewater services to sphere’s of influence and beyond.
Stay tuned for more…
The San Benito Blueprint 
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