Behind Closed Doors, Santa Clara County Quietly Appointed A New CEO

By Tran Nguyen, San Jose Spotlight

November 1, 2022

Santa Clara County elected leaders quietly appointed a new county executive two weeks ago behind closed doors — without a public process.

The county publicly announced last Thursday that longtime CEO Jeff Smith — often a controversial figure in local government — is retiring on July 1. But county leaders failed to mention that supervisors had apparently appointed James Williams, the county’s attorney, to replace Smith during a closed-session meeting on Oct. 17.

The move is generating backlash from community leaders who urged a public hiring process. Williams is considered a county insider, longtime bureaucrat and ally of Smith. To many, his appointment signifies more of the same leadership in one of the South Bay’s most powerful agencies.

After approving the appointment in closed session, the Board of Supervisors today will consider approving an agreement with Williams. He is expected to receive a 10% raise over Smith’s salary — bringing his compensation to $460,373 annually. He’ll also accumulate up to 2,592 hours of accrued vacation, according to the agreement.

A coalition of more than 30 nonprofits, including SOMOS Mayfair and Sacred Heart Community Service, signed a letter late Monday demanding the community be involved in the hiring process of the next county CEO.

“We request you conduct a public process for community members to engage in the hiring process and express their priorities in terms of qualifications of the next County Executive and the importance of hiring someone who can represent our diverse community,” the letter says.

One of those groups is the Silicon Valley Minority Business Consortium. Its CEO said the county chose someone who hasn’t worked directly with Silicon Valley’s diverse communities.

“I’m very disappointed in the Board of Supervisors on the process that they’ve taken because the community had not had a chance to weigh in on this in any way, shape or form,” Walter Wilson told San José Spotlight. “James Williams is a well respected attorney but the community has never worked with him.”

Santa Clara County Assessor Larry Stone told San José Spotlight the process for hiring Williams has been “nontransparent and unorthodox.” Stone, who’s served as assessor since 1994 under four county executives, said he’s never seen the decision to hire such a critical position rushed this way.

“It’s certainly not an open, transparent or deliberative process by any stretch of the imagination,” Stone said. “It’s such an important decision to hire the chief executive officer of the entire county — 23,000 employees, 1.9 million residents, $11.7 billion budget — there should be an open, transparent process to make this decision.”

Stone suspects the decision was rushed possibly because of the election next week that could shake up two seats on the Board of Supervisors. Supervisor Mike Wasserman is terming out and Supervisor Cindy Chavez’s seat could open up if she wins the San Jose mayor’s race.

“If the county is committed to hiring only the best and the brightest, then you have to seek the best and the brightest,” Stone added. “You have to try to find them. This is entirely unorthodox and not consistent with the history of the county.”

Smith, 69, has spent 42 years in public service. He took the job as the county’s top administrator in 2009.

Smith told San José Spotlight last week he’s ready to call it quits after nearly 14 years as the county executive. He also revealed he is battling Parkinson’s disease.

The announcement that Smith is retiring in July drew praise from county leaders.

“I believe that Santa Clara is the only county whose CEO is a doctor, lawyer and former elected official,” said Supervisor Mike Wasserman, who serves as president of the board. “We have benefited greatly from his expertise, leadership and vision. We wish him all the best in retirement.”

But Smith’s leadership is marred by controversy and scrutiny.

The county faced two years of tense negotiations that nearly led to a strike of 400 doctors. The doctors criticized Smith’s leadership as tone deaf and dismissive, complaining about dire working conditions that pushed them to a breaking point. Residents — and some officials — lambasted Smith over the county’s plan to build a costly new jail instead of a mental health facility. And Smith led the county through the COVID-19 pandemic as Santa Clara County became the first in the U.S. to issue shelter-in-place orders and launch widespread testing and vaccinations.

Williams has been a steadfast figure in Smith’s administration, serving as a face of authority amid the county’s evolving COVID-19 health orders that were first applauded then criticized for being too stringent. Williams, who was appointed county counsel in 2016, oversees an office with more than 200 employees. He’s worked for the county since 2010.

Watch today’s Board of Supervisors meeting here. Williams’ agreement is item No. 41.

This story will be updated.

Reporter Jana Kadah contributed to this story.

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