Board actions, Sept. 23 – Welcome to San Bernardino County

A "San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors Meeting Actions" banner with five members standing in front of the County Government Center. — *The Board of Supervisors took several actions during its regular board meeting on Sept. 23.*

Board supports community projects across San Bernardino County using discretionary funds

The Board of Supervisors approved more than $3.4 million in discretionary funding allocations through the District-Specific Priorities Program, including:

$3 million from Vice Chair and Fifth District Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr.’s discretionary fund to the San Bernardino City Unified School District to support the Curtis Middle School Field of Dreams Project, which includes planning, designing and constructing a multi-use Little League baseball field in San Bernardino.

$323,000 from Baca, Jr.’s discretionary fund to the City of Rialto for the Gym Improvement Project at the Carl Johnson Center and the Outdoor Court Renovation and Conversion Project at Fergusson Park.

Approximately $43,000 from Second District Supervisor Jesse Armendarez’s District-Specific Priorities Program to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department for remodeling and soundproofing two interview rooms at the Fontana Station. One room will be designated as a soft room for sensitive interviews involving children and families.

$22,500 from Board of Supervisors Chairman and Third District Supervisor Dawn Rowe’s District-Specific Priorities Program to the City of Loma Linda to support a new Restaurant Grant Program, offering three $10,000 grants to encourage sit-down restaurants in Loma Linda.

$10,000 from Armendarez’s District-Specific Priorities Program to the Regents of the University of California for the From the Garden to the Kitchen Program, which teaches residents how to grow and preserve food through Master Gardener and Master Food Preserver classes.

These targeted investments reflect the board’s strong commitment to fulfilling the Countywide Vision by addressing the diverse health, safety, educational and wellness needs of our communities.

State funding allocation supports health services for foster youth

The board approved San Bernardino County Public Health’s acceptance of over $6.5 million from the California Department of Health Care Services to administer the Health Care Program for Children in Foster Care for the period of July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026. The board also authorized the submission of Public Health’s 2025–26 Integrated Systems of Care Division plan, which outlines an estimated $5.4 million in program expenditures for that period.

This funding will support medical, dental, mental health and developmental coordination services for approximately 6,700 foster children in San Bernardino County. The program will provide public health nurse case management and interdisciplinary collaboration with Children and Family Services to connect foster youth with the services they need. Costs will be reimbursed based on actual expenditures, up to the full allocation amount, and no local match is required.

Expanded mobile crisis response services

San Bernardino County Behavioral Health has secured an approximately $8.5 million contract with Valley Star Behavioral Health, Inc. to provide mobile crisis response services countywide from Oct. 1, 2025, through Sept. 30, 2028. Under the agreement, Behavioral Health will deliver after-hours crisis support (6 p.m. to 8 a.m.)—including telehealth, text and phone-based interventions—in the West Valley, Central/East Valley, High Desert, East Desert and Mountain regions.

The service is designed to support individuals, families and caregivers experiencing mental health emergencies and will be available 365 days a year. Behavioral Health anticipates serving approximately 1,200 unique clients annually at an average cost of over $2,300 per client. Funding for the services will come from the Mental Health Services Act and the federal Medi-Cal Mobile Crisis Benefit, with no impact on county discretionary general funding.

This investment in mobile crisis response services helps to advance the Countywide Vision by ensuring equitable and accessible behavioral health care services across all communities to improve public health outcomes and strengthen collaborative systems of care.

Grant awards support homeless services and insurance fraud prosecution

County Homeless Services is receiving an approximately $298,000 Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) from the California Department of Housing and Community Development to support rapid rehousing and homelessness prevention services throughout the county. Administered by the Department of Behavioral Health, the grant term runs from Sept. 1, 2025, through Aug. 31, 2027. ESG funds will support housing relocation and stabilization services, short- and medium-term rental assistance, and administrative costs. Services will be coordinated with existing Continuum of Care efforts.

The San Bernardino County District Attorney is receiving a grant of approximately $3.3 million from the California Department of Insurance to fund the investigation and prosecution of workers’ compensation insurance fraud cases in San Bernardino County. The funding, which covers the period of July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, will support staffing costs for existing investigators and attorneys, fund the addition of a new paralegal position, and provide over $263,000 for operating expenses including outreach, training and indirect costs. No matching funds are required. The program is part of a regional anti-fraud consortium and plays a critical role in preventing insurance premium inflation caused by fraudulent claims.

County broadens career opportunities through internships and training programs

The county continues to reinforce its workforce development efforts by building and expanding partnerships with local colleges and universities, including:

Arrowhead Regional Medical Center will enter into a non-financial affiliation agreement with United States University to provide clinical training for nursing students from Oct. 28, 2025, through Oct. 27, 2030. The partnership will offer students valuable real-world training in a high-volume hospital setting, helping them fulfill degree and licensure requirements while supporting the medical center’s mission to develop a skilled health care workforce for the region. The agreement does not involve county funding.

ARMC will also partner with Marshall B. Ketchum University through a nonfinancial affiliation agreement to provide optometry students with hands-on clinical training at the medical center from Oct. 1, 2025, through Sept. 30, 2030. The agreement will ensure students gain essential clinical competencies required for licensure and future employment while supporting the county’s commitment to building a highly qualified local health care workforce. No county funding is associated with this agreement.

San Bernardino County Behavioral Health will renew a non-financial memorandum of understanding (MOU) with San José State University for a student internship program benefiting graduate and undergraduate social work and behavioral health students. The agreement will support student placement at county-operated behavioral health facilities, where interns will gain supervised fieldwork experience in mental health, case management and clinical services.

Through dynamic internship and training partnerships in health care and behavioral health, the county is proactively investing in the next generation of public service professionals in alignment with the Countywide Vision.

Revenue agreement for Detector Dog Program

County Agriculture/Weights & Measures is obtaining a revenue agreement with the California Department of Food and Agriculture for approximately $188,000 to fund inspection services through the Detector Dog Team Program. The agreement, effective July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, will enable Agriculture/Weights & Measures to continue operating its specialized inspection team to detect unmarked plant materials entering the state through parcel shipping centers.

The program, staffed by a trained dog-handler team, conducts pest surveillance to prevent the introduction of harmful pests and diseases that pose a risk to California agriculture and the economy. When the dog alerts their handler to a suspicious package, it is opened and inspected. Plant samples showing signs of pests are sent to the department’s diagnostic lab. If confirmed as a regulated pest, actions may include rejection, destruction or return of the item to the sender. This agreement supports the county’s ongoing partnership with the department since 2006 and reflects a proactive, cost-neutral approach to protecting the state’s environmental and agricultural resources.

Additional County Update News – September 25, 2025