If you have a project idea that provides a public safety or essential service to our community, consider applying for Measure Z funds. You can apply for Measure Z funding now through Thursday, Feb. 26. There is currently $1.65 million available to fund local project proposals.

Measure Z, Humboldt County’s Public Safety/Essential Services Measure, is a half-cent sales tax applied to most local purchases and was first passed by voters in November 2014 and renewed in 2018. Some of the public safety projects that have been funded by the Board of Supervisors include:

• Providing critical funding for fire equipment and planning services for volunteer fire departments.
• Maintaining ambulance service for K’ima:w Medical Center and Southern Trinity Area Rescue (STAR) serving communities in Hoopa and the greater Willow Creek area near Highways 299 and 36, respectively.
• Providing rural patrol and deputies by hiring additional staff in the Sheriff’s Office.
• Continuing to fight drugs by providing funding to the Fortuna Police Department (FPD) for a drug task force agent, and making schools across the Eel River Valley safer by funding FPD’s School Resource Officer.
• Continuing the life-saving funding of Genasys Protect, the county's evacuation zone map that helps officials prepare for and streamline the county’s emergency evacuation process.
• Purchase of enhanced safety equipment, including ballistic blankets, breaching kits and ballistic shields for the City of Eureka Police Department.
• Replacing equipment within the water treatment plant in the City of Trinidad to be able to continue to provide clean, safe drinking water to residents.

Application Process

Visit the county’s website to download the application documents you will need to submit to have your project considered and to submit your application online. Application requirements include:

• A description of your proposal.
• A description of your plan for sustainability in order for your proposal to carry on without relying on Measure Z funding.
• An explanation as to how the request is an essential service or for public safety.
• A proposed program budget for the project.

Please note that the Citizens’ Advisory Committee on Measure Z Expenditures will not recommend Measure Z funding for new, ongoing county staff positions. This practice was adopted by the committee in May 2023. Applications requesting funds for these positions are unlikely to be recommended.

Applications will be accepted until Thursday, Feb. 26 at 5 p.m. The Citizens' Advisory Committee on Measure Z Expenditures will begin evaluating applications at its next meeting on Thursday, March 5 at 2 p.m. and will likely finalize its funding recommendations in mid March.  

Online application submissions are preferred, however, if you cannot download the documents or access the online application, you can request a copy by contacting the Humboldt County Administrative Office at cao@co.humboldt.ca.us or 707-445-7266. Applications can also be picked up in person in Room 112 at the Humboldt County Courthouse, located at 825 Fifth St. in Eureka. 

About the Citizens’ Advisory Committee on Measure Z Expenditures

The Citizens’ Advisory Committee on Measure Z Expenditures is a nine-member body, with two more alternate seats, that advises the Board of Supervisors on the use of Measure Z funds. The advisory committee will meet each Thursday in March to review submitted applications and recommend projects for funding that make Humboldt a better, safer place to live.

View agendas and other committee materials on the Measure Z web page. You can also sign up on the county’s website to receive notifications when new meeting agendas are posted and when meetings are scheduled.

Appointments

Members of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee on Measure Z Expenditures are appointed by the Board of Supervisors. The committee is comprised of one appointment from each supervisorial district, representatives for the Sheriff’s Office and Fire Chiefs’ Association, two at-large appointments from any county district, and two non-voting alternates. The current committee members are as follows:

• First District Representative: Dylan Feierabend
• Second District Representative: Tami Trent
• Third District Representative: Ginger Campbell
• Fourth District Representative: Nicholas Kohl
• Fifth District Representative: Darcy Miller
• At-Large: Sue Long
• At-Large: Taylin Titus 
• Fire Chiefs’ Association Representative: Nick Pape
• Sheriff’s Office Representative: Sheriff William F. Honsal
• Alternate: Ron Dawson
• Alternate: Vacant