A group of San Mateo County residents is asking the public to take a short, anonymous and confidential survey to provide details about what the public knows about the county sheriff’s office, according to information provided by the group in an email.
The group, called Fixin’ San Mateo County (FxSMC), describes itself as a local grassroots, organization seeking public participation and “working to enact meaningful civilian oversight of the county Sheriff’s Office,” according to the group’s website.
The purpose of the survey is to provide county officials, the public and the press with an idea of what county residents know and understand about the Sheriff’s Office and how they feel about civilian oversight, said Nancy Goodban in an email.
The goal, the group said, is to establish “effective civilian oversight of the sheriff’s office and creation of an inspector general in San Mateo County,” much like other counties and cities in the state, she said.
Currently, the Board of Supervisors supervises the county sheriff. In 2020, a law – SB 1185 – allowed for the creation of an oversight committee to assist the Board of Supervisors in that task. It would also allow for the appointment of an inspector general. The committee would listen and respond to public concerns and make recommendations, Goodban said.
A list of resources related to the topic is provided by the group and is available here.
The survey is available in English, Mandarin, Samoan, Spanish, Tagalog and Tongan. You can find the SurveyMonkey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r
For more information, visit the group’s website here.
