PUBLIC SAFETY FIRST: Committee To Recall Supervisor Velazquez

Public safety is the county’s core responsibility. Families depend on stable leadership for fire protection, law enforcement, and emergency readiness. Under Supervisor Velazquez we have seen:

Missed state deadlines that have triggered loss of local housing control.
Zoning for 4,000 homes — five times the state requirement!
Fire funding fights that created instability and cost taxpayers millions.
Cuts to already strained public safety budgets.
Reduced transparency and oversight.

Personal attacks on members of the public.
Political division escalating instead of collaboration.

Secretive meetings and prolonged conflict created instability and uncertainty for firefighters and residents, with a lack of collaboration that created tension among local government. Supervisor Velazquez, as a leader in the fire contract negotiation:

• Ignored urgent calls to prioritize and fund public safety — instead dragging talks out.
• Held closed door meetings — excluding the Fire Chief and City Managers.
• Attacked fellow officials — choosing division over collaboration.
• Disrespected first responders — belittling firefighters & distorting facts.
• Pushed unsafe policies — reducing staffing and attempting to 'brownout' fire stations.
• Underfunded fire protection — County using 40% of Fire Services but only paying 16%.
• Silenced the public — dismissing community concerns as “misinformation.”

Supervisor Velazquez repeatedly claimed the County couldn’t afford to pay its fair share of the Hollister Fire contract, insisting on only $1.1 million additional. When the cities tried to negotiate a fairer share, he walked away from talks, threatening to create a separate county fire department — and suddenly “finding” $6.5 million to fund a system that would provide less fire protection at higher cost.  That threat of a new county fire department was used to strong-arm the firefighters and cities into agreement.

That wasn’t collaboration. It was coercion.

Since then, Supervisors Velazquez has continued pushing cuts for essential services, trying to silence oversight,  reduce transparency, and ignore the people he serves.

• Defunding the Sheriff’s Department — despite Grand Jury findings of critical understaffing, he slashed budget and reduced staffing, delayed crucial communication upgrades, and left deputies in hand-me-down vehicles from other counties.
• Eliminating the Public Information Officer — reduced transparency and cut off a vital source of community updates.
• Gutting the Civil Grand Jury — an attempt to slash their budget from $70,000 to $17,000 (crippling one of the last public means to hold government accountable) was thwarted by a Superior Court Judge, who forced them to fund it properly.
• Wasteful fiscal spending — political projects funded and millions spent on consultants instead of prioritizing funding for public safety.
• Attempted sweeping ag zoning changes without notifying farmers — no town halls, no outreach. After a packed meeting with leaders from the Farm Bureau, Cattlemen's Association, ranchers, and other local leaders, the board backpedaled — but the proposal remains on the table.

For years Ignacio Velazquez has branded himself as a “slow-growth” leader. But he has never really delivered on that promise — the city saw massive housing growth during his 10 years as Mayor of Hollister. Now, as Supervisor, he has us heading in the opposite direction towards massive growth.

• Missed  Housing Element deadline from the State, which triggered Builder’s Remedy laws  and seven projects filed to build over 2600 homes, with the ability to bypass local controls and create unchecked sprawl on county land.

• Finally completed the Housing Element, but Supervisor Velazquez and his 'slow-growth' majority on the Board approved zoning for 4,000 new homes!  That is 500% more than required by the state.  This zoning allows development that will drive up traffic and place heavy strain on roads, utilities, and public services.

Supervisor Velazquez' actions don’t match his words.  
This isn’t slow-growth.
It’s reckless, unplanned growth caused by failed leadership.

Supervisor Velazquez has not prioritize public safety. He has not lived up to his claims to slow growth and protect infrastructure. Instead we see funding for political projects and millions wasted on consultants — while ignoring the real needs of the community.

San Benito County deserves a leader who:

✅   Listens to the community
✅   Protects and prioritizes public safety
✅   Respects transparency and oversight
✅   Serves the people, not himself.