The City of Portola has approved a continuation of its longstanding law enforcement relationship with the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office — this time with a three-year contract.
At its Feb. 25 meeting, the Portola City Council approved an agreement contracting for law enforcement services from the sheriff’s office with two major changes: In addition to the extension from one year to three, the agreement adds a 3% increase to the contract amount for each subsequent year.
Portola City Manager Ryan Bonk said Sheriff Chad Hermann was not available to speak at the meeting due to a training commitment, so he provided a brief overview of the agreement to the councilmembers.
The most current agreement expired June 30, 2025. Bonk said city staff discussed the agreement “at length” with Hermann, who lives in Portola. The city also participated in meetings with both PCSO and Plumas County. Attorneys from both the county and city reviewed and approved the document, as did other city staff members.
“Both parties are really excited about this potential,” Bonk said, because it eliminates the need for yearly negotiations. “It makes sense for all of us,” he said.
The 3% escalator allows an automatic, predetermined increase in the fee amount for the second and third years of the contract:
- 2025-2026: $150,000
- 2026-2027: $154,500
- 2027-2028: $159,135
Bonk said the contract will be funded by the State of California through the Citizens’ Option for Public Safety program. Portola City Finance Officer Susan Scarlett, who attended the meeting remotely, reported that the city had just received COPS funding in the amount of $172,440. She pointed out that a smaller amount will likely be distributed later in the year as a “true up.”
The COPS funding also offsets a portion of the city’s code enforcement budget. Portola’s public engagement officer, Brian Attama, enforces portions of the city’s municipal code, especially public nuisance codes, zoning codes and weed abatement, said Bonk in a follow-up email to The Plumas Sun. Enforcement is complaint-driven, meaning the city must receive a completed complaint form to initiate the process.
The two changes aside, the city’s agreement with the sheriff’s office is “essentially the same type of agreement as you’ve seen historically,” Bonk told the councilmembers.
Councilmember Jim Murphy said he has dealt with this contract for 15 or 16 years and he noted that the Plumas County Board of Supervisors has been reluctant to agree to it in the past. One of the issues is whether the sheriff’s department is legally required to provide services to the city regardless of whether there is a contract in place.
Portola City Attorney Steve Gross, who also attended the meeting remotely, said he believes the sheriff’s office is obligated to provide some limited services for the city, but that the contract includes additional services. “So I believe we do get some additional value from the contract,” he said.
Under the contract, the scope of service includes some municipal police protection services and functions customarily rendered by a city police department, including
- Enforcement of state statutes
- General traffic enforcement
- Traffic accident investigation for accidents occurring within city limits and not falling under the jurisdiction of the California Highway Patrol
- Animal control services
- All other police and law enforcement services as the sheriff deems necessary to maintain law and order in the city
Gross also reminded the council that the city provides use of the sheriff’s substation at 324 S. Gulling St. at no cost to PCSO. “I think that has been a good arrangement … over the years to provide for a law enforcement presence within the city,” he said.
The councilmembers unanimously approved the contract. The next step is approval from the county supervisors.
