The Mendocino County Board of Supervisors has given the go-ahead to a plan to offer a $20,000 hiring bonus for deputies recruited from outside the department. According to Sheriff Matt Kendall, “lateral transfers” have a higher success rate than hiring right out of the academy and cost less than putting someone through the academy. The board’s approval puts Mendocino County on par with many other local agencies that offer substantial hiring bonuses. The board also considered how the signing bonus distribution would be structured, in order to retain the newly hired officers.