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2 <br /> Board Organization <br /> a. Election of Board of Commissioners' Chair and Vice-Chair <br /> Vote for Chair of the Board of Commissioners: <br /> 7 votes cast for Jamezetta Bedford (Amy Fowler, Sally Greene, Jean Hamilton, Earl <br /> McKee, Renee Price, Anna Richards) <br /> Jamezetta Bedford became the new Chair of the Board of Commissioners. <br /> Vote for Vice Chair of the Board of Commissioners: <br /> 4 votes cast for Earl McKee (Amy Fowler, Earl McKee, Renee Price, Anna Richards) <br /> 3 votes cast for Sally Greene (Jamezetta Bedford, Sally Greene, Jean Hamilton) <br /> Earl McKee became the new Vice Chair of the Board of Commissioners. <br /> Chair Bedford chose to have the Commissioners share announcements or comments at <br /> this point in the agenda. <br /> Commissioner Richards said she attended the Justice Advisory Council where they <br /> received a presentation on the mental health system and the process for voluntary and involuntary <br /> commitment. She said it underscored how much the county needs a diversion facility. <br /> Commissioner Price expressed thanks to the Board for the opportunity to serve as the <br /> Chair for two years. She expressed special thanks to Chair Bedford for serving as Vice Chair <br /> with her. She said she attended the Hillsborough holiday parade on the previous day and there <br /> were many people in attendance. <br /> Vice Chair McKee said in the previous week he had the opportunity to speak at the <br /> Voluntary Agricultural Breakfast. He said the Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) program has <br /> been in place for 30 years and has enrolled about 17,000-plus acres. He thanked the Board for <br /> electing him as Vice Chair. He thanked Commissioner Greene for choosing to run for Vice Chair <br /> of the Board, and said that a split-vote is an indication of the strength and depth of leadership on <br /> the Board. <br /> Commissioner Hamilton echoed Vice Chair McKee's comments that a split-vote is a sign <br /> of the Board's strength and that the Board works well together. She said she looks forward to the <br /> leadership of Chair Bedford and Vice Chair McKee to improve the functioning of the Board and to <br /> serve the residents of Orange County to the best of their ability. <br /> Commissioner Greene expressed congratulations to Chair Bedford and Vice Chair <br /> McKee. She said she attended the NCACC legislative meeting and introduced the five priorities <br /> that the Board had previously discussed. She said the NCACC chose three priorities: digital <br /> infrastructure, school capital funding, and Medicaid expansion. She said there was a lot of <br /> discussion on one of the Board's priorities, racial equity and criminal justice, which ultimately was <br /> not on the final list of priorities. She said that each member county of NCACC gets one vote, and <br /> this was a reminder of the rural bias of the organization. <br /> Commissioner Fowler said she attended the Justice United meeting on November 17t" <br /> where the need for increase mental health services for the Latinx community was highlighted. <br /> She said at the December 1 st Alliance meeting, it was determined that the go-live date for tailored <br /> plans was on April 1, 2023. She said that because of the date change, she can continue to serve <br /> on the Alliance board until February. She said that later in the agenda the Board was to discuss <br /> replacing her on the Alliance board due to a potential conflict of interest, but the date change <br /> meant that the Board would not need to make the decision until a future business meeting. She <br /> said that Alliance held town hall meetings in each county to discuss the tailored plans, and that <br /> Orange County had the highest turnout. She said at the December 2nd JCPC meeting, they <br /> reviewed the survey completed by youth being served by the court system in order to prioritize <br />