The Mariposa County Board of Supervisors has taken the next step toward privatizing the Mariposa-Yosemite Airport. On Tuesday, it unanimously approved an item that allows the public works department to offer a request for proposals to operate the airport.

Public Works Director Dana Hertfelder said his department is considering a fixed base operator (FBO) to run the facility. The FBO would be responsible for the day to day operations of the airport, including staffing the terminal building and managing the fuel concession, among other things.

Earlier this year, the board determined that it could not staff the terminal after March 31, 2010, because of budget constraints. It is currently being staffed five days a week. The change eliminated the general fund contribution to the airport, which is an enterprise fund.

Hertfelder said use of an FBO has been “a very effective way to manage small airports.” He said bringing in an outside party gives them a financial incentive to make the business work “It might be the way to go,” Hertfelder told the board. “It would be profitable to them.”

The public works director said he thinks the County can find someone who could be up and running by March 31. The deadline for the proposal is Jan. 6, 2010.

Citizen Rita Kidd reminded the board to consider value over price when looking at the proposals. She cautioned board members to select the business that is “the most qualified but not the least cost.”

Hertfelder said the County will keep the obligation to maintain the airport’s infrastructure, as it does now. The board voted unanimously to go forward with the RFP.

In other board action on Tuesday, the County has finally brought its building code in line with the state’s. After several tries, the board approved changes to the Mariposa County Code that ensure that there are no inconsistencies between it and the state’s newest code document.

On its consent agenda, the board voted to reject a $550,000 claim against the County made by Bryce Johnson, who had been removed from his job as a probation officer several years ago, but was recently reinstated after an administrative judge found the termination was wrongful. Citizen Ruth Catalan urged the board to end the saga once and for all.

“I really hope this board gets this straightened out,” she said. “It should have been taken care of years ago,” she added, noting that the County had spent nearly $160,000 on legal fees to fight Johnson.

“Make the people responsible for this happening pay,” she said. “I don’t like to see this County on the hook for a half-million.” Still, she said, the employee deserves more. “If I were Bryce Johnson, it would be a lot more than that.”