Time to Heed the Grand Jury

Each year the Orange County Grand Jury, as part of its watchdog function, evaluates county government and its policy-making Board of Supervisors.

That can be a frustrating job for a group dedicated to community service, especially if members look back at studies and recommendations of previous grand jury panels. The problems tend to be the same, year after year. So do some of the recommendations.

This year the grand jury decided to get outside help. It commissioned four professors to do a study on the organizational effectiveness of county government.

The study was not kind to the county board on a number of counts. But the underlying problem it found was “the inability of county government to take action to deal with important longer-term countywide issues.” The professors found excellent planning being done but said the “paper plans” are not being translated into action.

Some of the obvious problems are inadequate jail space, traffic congestion, settling on a new airport site and controversies over land-use and development. Other serious problems include homelessness, and the impact of the AIDS crisis and the new immigration law on county agencies. The supervisors were also criticized for not providing enough leadership in addressing countywide and regional views.

The report was tough on the board. And in many respects, deservedly so. The county has every right to expect more leadership and action from the supervisors.

The jury’s observations and recommendations are important. But perhaps more important is the way the study is handled now that it has been completed and sent to the supervisors. The board is not obligated legally to follow grand jury recommendations, so the panel’s only real strength is in arousing the public to support its recommendations.

Will the current panel’s recommendations disappear into the files along with those of grand juries past? Probably. Anticipating this, the new study suggests that the next grand jury “keep the spotlight” on the issues raised this year with the help of a newly formed “blue-ribbon “ panel of citizens.

Both recommendations have been tried before with little success. But they are worth trying again, and again. As the professors noted, “organizations, like individuals, resist change.” The glare of the public spotlight should help discourage such resistance.