San Bernardino County Municipal Code Art. III Other Elective County Officers

Article III applies to all elective County officers other than the Members of the Board of Supervisors. The elective County officers shall be:

Assessor

Auditor

Coroner

County Superintendent of Schools

District Attorney

Public Administrator

Recorder

Sheriff

Tax Collector

Treasurer

Each elective County officer shall have the power and perform the duties now or hereafter prescribed by the general law, except as otherwise provided in this Charter or by an ordinance adopted pursuant to this Charter, and shall have and perform such other powers and duties as are prescribed in this Charter or by ordinance adopted pursuant to this Charter.

The term of office of each elective County officer is four years. All elective County officers shall be elected at the general election at which the Governor is elected, and shall take office at noon on the first Monday after the first day of January next succeeding their election and shall hold office until their successors are elected or appointed and qualified, unless sooner removed as provided by this Charter. All such elective County officers shall be nominated and elected in the manner provided by general laws for the nomination and election of such officers.

The Board of Supervisors may, by ordinance, consolidate any two or more County offices or may separate any offices now or hereafter consolidated. In the event of consolidation of an elective office with an appointive office, such consolidated office shall be filled in the same manner in which the elective office is filled.

Any elective County officer may be removed from office in the manner provided by law. Any elective County officer other than a Supervisor may be removed by a four-fifths vote of the Board of Supervisors, for cause, after such officer has been served with a written statement of alleged grounds for such removal, and such officer has been given a reasonable opportunity to be heard in the way of explanation or defense.

For the purposes of this section, cause is defined as: a flagrant or repeated neglect of duties; a misappropriation of public property; a violation of any law related to the performance of the officer's duties; or a willful falsification of a relevant official statement or document.

If there is a vacancy in an elective office, the Board of Supervisors shall within 60 days of the effective date of the vacancy either appoint a replacement or call a special election. Nomination and election of the elective County officer shall be as provided in Section 303.

If the effective date of the appointment is no less than 130 days from the statewide general election at which the United States President is elected, the appointment is provisional to the first Monday after the first day of January next following the election. When making the appointment, the Board of Supervisors shall call for a special election for this office for the remaining term and shall order the special election to be consolidated with such statewide general election. The special election shall be a single-winner election. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes is elected.

If the effective date of the appointment is less than 130 days from the statewide general election at which the United States President is elected, then the appointee shall serve the remainder of the term of the office.

If the Board of Supervisors does not make an appointment and instead calls a special election, the special election shall be held on the next established election date, as defined in Division 1 (commencing with Section 1000) of the Elections Code, that is no less than 130 days from the date that the special election is called. When calling a special election to be held on the next established election date that is no less than 130 days from the date that the election is called, the Board of Supervisors may authorize the election to be conducted wholly by mail, provided that the special election is not held on the same date as a statewide primary or general election or is not consolidated, as defined in Elections Code section 10400, with any other election. The special election shall be a single-winner election. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes is elected.

If the Board of Supervisors does not make an appointment or call a special election within 60 days of the effective date of the vacancy, then a special election shall be held to fill the vacancy. The special election shall be held on the next established election date, as defined in Division 1 (commencing with Section 1000) of the Elections Code, that is no less than 130 days from the 60th day after the effective date of the vacancy. In the discretion of the Register of Voters, the special election to be held on the next established election date that is no less than 130 days from the 60th day after the effective date of the vacancy may be conducted wholly by mail, provided that the special election is not held on the same date as a statewide primary or general election or is not consolidated, as defined in Elections Code section 10400, with any other election. The special election shall be a single-winner election. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes is elected.

If an election is required pursuant to this section and the date of such election as required by one of the preceding paragraphs of this section would be less than 180 days from the statewide primary election vacant office, then notwithstanding such preceding paragraph, the regular nomination and election process shall be followed pursuant to Section 303.

Staff members of the elective County officers, at the level of assistant department head or its equivalent level, shall serve in the unclassified service at the pleasure of the appointing elective County officer and in that elective officer's sole discretion. Except for the offices of Sheriff and District Attorney, qualifications for all staff members in the unclassified service of elective County officers shall be established by the elective County officer and approved by the Board of Supervisors. The persons to be appointed as Undersheriff shall be certified by the California Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) and the persons to be appointed as Assistant District Attorney shall be a member in good standing of the State Bar of California. This section shall not apply to the staff of the County Superintendent of Schools.

Beginning January 1, 2025, the base salary for the elective County officers, except (1) those covered under Section 309, (2) the County Superintendent of Schools, and (3) Members of the Board of Supervisors, shall be set by the average of the base salaries paid to officers holding the most similar position in the following California counties: Orange, Riverside, Los Angeles, San Diego and Ventura. In calculating the base salary of the elective County officers, the salary paid to the individual holding the most similar office in the five identified counties to the elective County officer shall be used, regardless of whether the position has been consolidated with other elected offices or appointed positions. The base salary of the County officers shall be set based upon this section, regardless of whether the elective County office has been consolidated with other elective County offices in Section 301 or appointed positions. The base salary shall be adjusted annually on January 1 as provided in this paragraph.

The individuals holding the positions of Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector and Assessor-Recorder on November 5, 2024, shall not have their base salary reduced pursuant to this Section, and shall receive base salary increases of 4% annually on January 1 while they occupy that specific elective County office, including any future consecutive elected terms.

Beginning January 1, 2025, in addition to base salary, the elective County officers shall receive compensation and benefits pursuant to the Salaries and Working Conditions of the County-Wide Elected Officials Ordinance, as amended or replaced by ordinance approved by the Board of Supervisors.

The salary and benefits that elective County officers are eligible to receive shall be posted on the County website and accessible from a link located on the home page of the County website.

Beginning January 1, 2025, the base salary for the County Sheriff and District Attorney shall be the average of the salaries paid to the Sheriff and District Attorney in the following California counties: Orange, Riverside, Los Angeles, San Diego and Ventura. In calculating the base salary of the County Sheriff and District Attorney based on the salaries in the five identified counties, the salary paid to the individuals holding the offices of Sheriff and District Attorney in those counties shall be used, regardless of whether the position has been consolidated with other elected offices or appointed positions. The base salary of the County Sheriff and District Attorney shall be set based upon this section, regardless of whether the elected office has been consolidated with other elective County offices or appointed positions. The base salary shall be adjusted annually on January 1 of each year as provided in this paragraph.

Beginning January 1, 2025, in addition to base salary the County Sheriff and District Attorney shall receive compensation and benefits pursuant to the Salaries and Working Conditions of the County-Wide Elected Officials Ordinance, as amended or replaced by an ordinance approved by the Board of Supervisors.

The salary and benefits that the County Sheriff and District Attorney are eligible to receive shall be posted on the County website and accessible from a link located on the home page of the County website.