Last year they looked at the safety of water valves on the South Coast Conduit, the difficult circumstances under which Cuyama’s Community Services District operated, problems paying parking tickets at the Sheriff’s Office, the county’s Emergency Operations Center, and the oak protection ordinance. This coming year, if scrutinizing those sorts of issues raises your curiosity, you might want to apply to the County Grand Jury for 2016-2017.
Sitting on the Grand Jury is open to citizens who’ve lived in the county for at least a year, are over the age of 18, have good records, and can give roughly 25 hours per week. As well as issues involving county departments, the jury is sometimes empaneled to review criminal allegations, financial issues, or investigate complaints from the public. Applications can be downloaded at sbcgj.org or by calling the Jury Services offices in Santa Barbara at (805) 882-4530 or Santa Maria at (805) 614-6464. Applications are due by May 6.