Report to Mayor and City Council
Tuesday, August 03, 2021
Consent
SUBJECT:
Title
CONSIDER A RECOMMENDATION FROM THE LEGISLATIVE AD HOC COMMITTEE FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO SUPPORT AB 33 (TING); SUPPORT AB 361 (RIVAS); SUPPORT SB 5 (ATKINS); AND OPPOSE SB 478 (WIENER) (CITY COUNCIL)
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I. SUMMARY
This item transmits a recommendation to the City Council from the Legislative Ad Hoc Committee, consisting of Mayor Davis-Holmes and Councilmember Cedric Hicks, for the City Council to consider supporting Assembly Bill 33 (Ting), supporting Assembly Bill 361 (Rivas), supporting Senate Bill 5 (Atkins), and opposing Senate Bill 478 (Wiener). Should the City Council concur with some or all of these recommendations then staff will transmit the advocacy letters (included as Exhibit 1) to the appropriate elected officials by the time they return from their summer recess on August 16, 2021.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. SUPPORT AB 33 (Ting), SUPPORT AB 361 (Rivas), SUPPORT SB 5 (Atkins), and OPPOSE SB 478 (Wiener).
2. AUTHORIZE staff to transmit the respective advocacy letters as included in Exhibit 1.
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III. ALTERNATIVES
TAKE another action deemed appropriate by the City Council and consistent with applicable laws.
IV. BACKGROUND
Upon the recommendation of an Ad Hoc Committee consisting of Mayor Davis-Holmes and Mayor Pro Tempore Dear, the City Council approved an agreement with Kiley & Associates for federal legislative advocacy on January 26, 2021, and approved an agreement with Joe A. Gonsalves & Son for state of California legislative advocacy on March 2, 2021. Since then the City Council and the Legislative Ad Hoc Committee have directed staff and our legislative advocates to identify bills that may impact the City of Carson and to recommend appropriate advocacy strategies. Preparing and transmitting these letters supports that effort. The California State legislature will be returning from its summer recess on August 16, 2021 and these letters, if approved, will be transmitted to the officials by the time they return to their offices.
Recent legislative efforts include preparing and submitting funding requests for priority City projects to Congresswoman Barragan, Assemblymember Mike Gipson, and Senator Diane Feinstein; collecting letters of support for City funding requests; developing and submitting letters of support/opposition on various legislation; and liaising with state and federal agencies including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the United States Treasury, and the California Governor’s Office. The Legislative Ad Hoc Committee and staff will continue to monitor current legislation and report back to the City Council for input as needed.
Summaries of the 4 bills and recommendations related to this item are included below:
SUPPORT AB 33 (Ting) Energy Conservation Assistance Act of 1979: energy storage systems and electric vehicle charging infrastructure: Native American tribes
The Energy Conservation Assistance Act of 1979 authorizes a school, hospital, public care institution, or unit of local government to submit an application to the Energy Commission for an allocation for the purpose of financing all or a portion of the costs incurred in implementing a project, which includes an energy audit, energy conservation and operating procedure, or energy conservation measure in an existing or planned building or facility, an energy conservation project, or a technical assistance program. Current law requires the Energy Commission to approve only those applications for projects that will recover costs through savings in the cost of energy to the eligible institution during the repayment period of the allocation. Current law creates the State Energy Conservation Assistance Account, which is continuously appropriated to the Energy Commission for purposes of the act. This bill would require the Energy Commission, in administering the account, to provide grants and loans to local governments and public institutions to maximize energy use savings, expand installation of energy storage systems, and expand the availability of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, including technical assistance, demonstrations, and identification and implementation of cost-effective energy efficiency, energy storage, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure measures and programs in existing and planned buildings or facilities.
SUPPORT AB 361 (Rivas) Open meetings: local agencies: teleconferences
Existing law, the Ralph M. Brown Act requires, with specified exceptions, that all meetings of a legislative body of a local agency, as those terms are defined, be open and public and that all persons be permitted to attend and participate. This bill, until January 1, 2024, would authorize a local agency to use teleconferencing without complying with the teleconferencing requirements imposed by the Ralph M. Brown Act when a legislative body of a local agency holds a meeting during a declared state of emergency, as that term is defined, when state or local health officials have imposed or recommended measures to promote social distancing during a proclaimed state of emergency held for the purpose of determining, by majority vote, whether meeting in person would present imminent risks to the health or safety of attendees, and during a proclaimed state of emergency when the legislative body has determined that meeting in person would present imminent risks to the health or safety of attendees, as provided.
SUPPORT SB 5 (Atkins) Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2022
This bill would enact the Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2022, which, if adopted, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $6,500,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law. Proceeds from the sale of these bonds would be used to fund affordable rental housing and homeownership programs. The bill would state the intent of the Legislature to determine the allocation of those funds to specific programs. This bill would provide for submission of the bond act to the voters at the November 8, 2022, statewide general election in accordance with specified law.
OPPOSE SB 478 (Wiener) Planning and Zoning Law: housing development projects
The Planning and Zoning Law requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to notify the city, county, or city and county, and authorizes the department to notify the Attorney General, that the city, county, or city and county is in violation of state law if the department finds that the housing element or an amendment to that element, or any specified action or failure to act, does not substantially comply with the law as it pertains to housing elements or that any local government has taken an action in violation of certain housing laws. This bill would prohibit a local agency, as defined, from imposing a floor-to-area ratio standard that is less than 1.0 on a housing development project that consists of 3 to 7 units, or less than 1.25 on a housing development project that consists of 8 to 10 units. The bill would effectively reduce local control over land use by prohibiting a local agency from imposing a lot coverage requirement that would physically preclude a housing development project from achieving the floor-to-area ratios described above.
V. FISCAL IMPACT
There are no particular fiscal impacts associated with this item however the City’s legislative advocacy efforts are intended in part to secure funding to support the programs and initiatives of the City. Direct costs to the City can typically be offset to the extent that funding is received.
VI. EXHIBITS
Proposed Advocacy Letters (pgs. 4 - 12)
Prepared by: Sharon Landers, City Manager and Michael George, Assistant to the City Manager