April 6, 2023

Easy Smart Pay 

Napa County has become the 16^th county to join the Easy Smart Pay (ESP) program. Taxpayers in Napa County will now be able to pay their property tax in monthly installments at the lowest credit card transaction rate in the state. ESP promotes and ensures easy monthly installment payments and allows taxpayers to avoid large one-time payments and/or significant penalties, benefiting both counties and taxpayers.

For more information regarding ESP please visit: www.easysmartpay.net, contact Alan Fernandes (alan@csacfc.org) or Chase Broffman (chase@csacfc.org) if you have any questions or interest in learning more about this exciting program.

Witt O’Brien’s, Timely Reminders and Assistance:

Seven Strategies to Help California Communities Respond to Recent Storms and Prepare for the Weeks and Months Ahead. 

As Californians throughout the state continue to be impacted by the historic snow and rainfall this season, our hearts go out to those affected and those providing support. Even as responses are on-going in many areas of the state, emergency managers and civic leaders are looking toward the horizon to bring recovery into focus as quickly as possible. 

An honest self-assessment of your community’s current capacity and capability is critical to understanding how to meet today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. By taking a strategic approach to implementation of recovery programs, you will be able to effectively meet the short-, medium- and long-term needs of your community and maximize your reimbursements in the process. Moreover, your administrative costs can be fully recouped through the effective use of existing programs. 

With experience as emergency managers, city/county administrators, department directors, and budget officers, we know the minute-by-minute challenges you face. These are the questions we always begin with: 

1. Are you confident that your debris program is maximizing eligible reimbursements? 
2. Do you have the people resources, with the right experience, available to augment your own team? 
3. Are you reaching all the constituents in your communities to communicate available resources? 
4. Are you thinking about temporary housing solutions for those who FEMA programs do not help? 
5. Do you have a strategy for executing and fully documenting post-disaster damage?  
6. Are your payroll, procurement, and workorder management systems set up to easily capture and report disaster-related costs?  
7. How well are you prepared for the long haul? Does your team have the bandwidth and expertise to quickly secure state and federal reimbursement?  

If you would like assistance in addressing any of the questions above, or with your response to and recovery from the recent storms in general, contact Witt O’Brien’s at contact@wittobriens.com. One of their experts will be happy to promptly respond to assist you.