Sheriff’s massage chairs may lead to more scrutiny of county spending - Palo Alto Daily Post

[mnews]

Rep. Jackie Speier. AP file photo from Oct. 15, 2018.

BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ
Daily Post Staff Writer

San Mateo County Supervisor Jackie Speier want to keep a closer eye on spending by county employees following the news that Sheriff Christina Corpus tried to buy 10 massage chairs with tax funds.

Speier is proposing a resolution the supervisors will review on Tuesday (May 20) that all county purchases be reported quarterly by county Controller Juan Raigoza.

“It creates transparency and accountability,” Speier told the Post.

Currently, contracts over $200,000 are presented to the board for approval, according to county spokeswoman Effie Milionis Verducci. All other purchases are not reported, which is what Speier wants to change.

Wants ‘wholesale look’

During the April 22 meeting, Speier said she wanted “a wholesale look” into procurement procedures by all county departments.

The massage chairs were mentioned after discussing spending $4.2 million in state funds to replace and upgrade two-way radios in the sheriff’s office. Supervisors approved the expenditure for the radio equipment.

After the meeting, Sheriff’s spokeswoman Gretchen Spiker said the chairs were purchased to support the wellbeing of the employees who work long hours protecting and serving the community.

The sheriff’s request for 10 chairs was reduced by the county purchasing department to just two chairs. Each one cost $6,670 for a total of $13,340, according to Spiker.

Speier was also unhappy that Corpus, whom she supported in the 2022 election, didn’t appear during the meeting to answer questions about the radios. She asked Undersheriff Dan Perea if Corpus approved the request herself. Perea told her he would get an answer and return to the supervisors.

Previous big buys

In March, the Post reported that she purchased two soft-serve ice cream machines for employees in the county jails.

In January, the Post reported that Corpus had purchased a $74,000 conference room table. The 22-foot by 10-foot table includes 12 “cooling fans” in the legs and 10 “lockable access doors.” At the time, county Supervisor David Canepa said it may be the most expensive table in San Mateo County’s history.

Corpus did attend the following meeting in May, when the supervisors voted unanimously to approve a set of procedures that will determine whether she will be removed under Measure A, which 84% of voters approved in March. Measure A changes the county charter to give the supervisors authority to fire the sheriff who has been accused of intimidation, retaliation, jailing a critic, racial and homophobic comments, dishonesty and conflicts of interest.