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HomeMy WebLinkAbout021122-05.1 REGIONAL, STATE AND FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE UPDATE 2022 LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY The 2022 California state legislature reconvened on January 3, starting the second year of California’s two-year legislative session. The Legislature historically introduces over 2,000 bills each year. The last day to introduce bills in the 2022 session is February 18. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact the state as most legislative personnel are still working remotely. The state is expected to continue efforts to achieve housing affordability by introducing laws that spur housing production and supersede local land use authority. This year the Assembly is expected to introduce a package of bills based on a series of statewide meetings held with select stakeholder’s last fall. The Town will continue advocacy efforts both individually and as a part of work with the Tri-Valley Cities (TVC) to further policy issues and positions that affect our communities. These efforts include continuing to work with Townsend Public Affairs to advocate for and promote TVC interests at both state and federal levels. The number of bills being introduced in the state legislature having the potential to further erode cities’ local control has increased significantly. The Town continues to expand advocacy efforts and public outreach to counter these measures through advocacy resources including: • Town of Danville Legislative Framework (Attachment A) • Tri-Valley Cities Legislative Framework (Attachment B) • Legislative Committee of the Danville Town Council • Monthly Town Council Legislative Updates • Legislative Advocacy page on the Towns’ website • Legislative Advocacy updates in the Danville Quarterly Newsletter 2021 LEGISLATIVE SUMMARY The California State Legislature (legislature) opened the 2021 legislative session with approximately 2,200 active bills as of February 21, the last day for bills to be introduced during the session. There were 770 bills passed into law during the legislative session. 2 Danville Town Council Legislative Committee The Danville Town Council Legislative Committee was created by Town Council in December 2019 to allow for more faster, more in-depth response to certain legislative actions, and to allow the Town to advocate in ways that are specific to Danville. The Committee meets monthly. In 2021 the Committee acted on the following bills: SB 6: (Caballero) The Neighborhood Homes Act (Oppose) This bill, the Neighborhood Homes Act, authorizes residential development on existing lots currently zoned for commercial office and retail space that are not adjacent to industrial use zones. SB 6 failed to make it out of the Senate. Senate Bill 8: (Skinner): Housing Crisis Act of 2019 (Oppose) This bill extends the expiration date of SB 330 the Housing Crisis Act, from 2025 to 2030. Aimed at streamlining housing production, the bill freezes development fees upon a builder’s submission of a preliminary application, caps the number of public hearings for a development and prohibits local agencies from any actions that would reduce housing capacity. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. Senate Bill 9: (Atkins) California Housing Opportunity & More Efficiency Act (Oppose) This bill allows for ministerial approval of a proposed housing development containing 2 residential units within a single-family residential zone if the proposed development meets certain requirements. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. Senate Bill 10: (Wiener) Planning and Zoning: Housing Development: Density (Oppose) This bill authorizes a city to zone any parcel for up to 10 units of residential density if the parcel is in a transit rich area, jobs rich area or urban infill site. The bill removes the ability of voters to pass a ballot initiative to override these decisions. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. Assembly Bill 215: (Chiu) Planning and Zoning Law: Housing Element; Violations (Oppose) Starting with the upcoming housing element revision, this bill would require the department to determine the relative progress toward meeting regional housing needs of each jurisdiction and COG, as specified. The bill would require the department to make this determination based on the information contained in the annual reports submitted by each jurisdiction, as specified. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. 3 Assembly Bill 602: (Grayson) Development fees: impact fee nexus study (Oppose) This bill requires that impact fee nexus studies must: a) identify the existing level of service and the proposed new level of service and explain why the new level of service is appropriate; and b) include information in the nexus study that supports the local agency's actions establishing, increasing, or imposing a fee. The bill requires HCD to create an impact fee nexus study template and authorizes local jurisdictions to use the template. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. Sales and Taxation Senate Bill 792: (Glazer) Sales and use tax: returns: online transactions: local jurisdiction schedule (Support) This bill requires qualified retailers to include a schedule with their sales tax returns that reports the gross receipts from sales to each local jurisdiction where goods are shipped or delivered to a purchaser in that jurisdiction and requires retailers to track and report the city or zip code where the purchaser resides to the CDTF. Applies to businesses that has transacted sales exceeding $50 million in the previous calendar year. Bill vetoed by Governor. Environment Senate Bill 619: (Laird) Organic Waste Reduction regulations (Support) This bill relates to SB 1383. The bill would require the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery until January 1, 2023, to only impose a penalty on a local jurisdiction, and would require a penalty to only accrue, for violation of the regulations if the local jurisdiction did not make a reasonable effort, as determined by the department, to comply with organic landfill reduction goals under SB 1383. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. AB 843: (Aguiar-Curry) California Renewable Portfolio Standard Program: renewable feed in-tariff: Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff program: community choice aggregators. (Support) This bill would allow Community Choice Aggregators (CCAs) to access BioMAT program, an existing state program that supports the development of renewable bioenergy electricity projects. Bioenergy is generated from organic waste and helps divert waste from landfills. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. Public Safety Assembly Bill 988: (Bauer-Kahan) Mental Health: Mobile crisis support teams: 988 crisis hotline (Support) This bill would require the Office of Emergency Services to take actions to implement the hotline system, designating a 988-crisis hotline center or centers to provide crisis intervention services and crisis care coordination to individuals accessing the 988 hotline. Bill failed to pass the Senate and will be reintroduced in 2022 session. 4 SB 210 Automatic license plate recognition systems: use of data (Oppose) Existing law authorizes CHP to retain ALPR license plate data for no more than 60 days unless the data is being used as evidence or investigation of a felony.  This bill would require the destruction of ALPR data within 24 hours if it does not meet hot list requirements and auditing of these practices.  Bill held in Senate and will be reintroduced as a 2-year bill. Transportation Assembly Bill 43: (Friedman) Traffic Safety (Support) Bill authorizes a local authority, to lower posted speed limits by 5 mph pursuant to a traffic survey if a street is designated as high injury. Bill was signed by Governor and chaptered into law. Senate Bill 548: (Eggman) Tri-Valley Regional Rail Authority: transit connectivity (Support) This bill would require the Tri-Valley-San Joaquin Valley Regional Rail Authority to be considered a rail transit district, thereby exempting the authority from specified provisions related to regulation by counties and cities regarding building, zoning, and related matters. Bill signed by Governor and chaptered into law. Public Utilities Senate Bill 556: (Dodd) Street light poles, traffic signal poles: small wireless facilities attachments (Oppose) This bill requires local governments to make space available to telecommunications providers without recognizing local authority to manage the public right-of-way preserved in federal law. FCC regulations explicitly enable local governments to ensure that such installations meet appearance and design standards, maintain traffic safety, protect historical resources' integrity, and safeguard citizens' quality of life. Bill vetoed by Governor. Town of Danville Legislative Framework The Town of Danville Legislative Framework was reviewed by the Legislative Committee meeting in September. A proposed update under the Community Safety section will be reviewed at the February 22, 2022, Legislative Committee meeting for approval. Grant Funding The Town’s earmark requests for the Traffic Signal Modernization Project ($1 million) and the Iron Horse Trail Pedestrian Improvements Project ($350k) have been submitted in the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development bill. Final 5 resolution of these requests is still pending. The Town applied for and was awarded $200,000 through the CalRecycle Pavement Management Program. Tri Valley Cities Coalition During the 2021 session, the Tri-Valley Cities coalition worked on advocacy at the State and Federal levels with lobbyist Townsend Public Affairs. Advocacy efforts included meetings with both state and federal elected officials and their staff, position letters on key legislation, earmark submittals and suggested amendments to pending legislation. Townsend Public Affairs prepared a year end summary on the coalition’s activities. (Attachment C) CONCLUSION The Town Council is asked to provide further direction or feedback to staff regarding steps being taken to effectively advocate the Town’s positions. Attachments: A – Town of Danville Legislative Framework B – Tri-Valley Cities Legislative Framework C - Townsend Summary of 2021 Legislative Efforts Town of Danville Legislative Framework Town Council Legislative Committee ATTACHMENT A 2 Overview The Town of Danville is actively engaged in legislative advocacy efforts that are aimed at protecting and promoting Danville’s best interests at the local, state and federal levels. These efforts are driven by two primary considerations: 1) continuing to uphold the Town mission of delivering superior municipal services that make people’s lives better; and 2) an increasing level of state involvement and regulation in areas that have previously fallen within local control. The significant increase in bills being introduced in the state legislature that have the potential to further impact cities’ local control has prompted the Town to continue to expand advocacy efforts through various means and channels. Key to these efforts is the development of this Legislative Framework which outlines the Town’s legislative principles, policies, goals and strategies. The Framework will be monitored and driven by a Town Council Legislative Committee. Legislative Goals • Advocate the Town’s legislative interests at the federal, state, regional, and county levels to support our Town’s vision and mission. • Serve as an active participant with other local governments, the League of California Cities, regional agencies, and local professional organizations on legislative issues that are important to the town and our region. • Participate in the Tri-Valley Cities coalition to work together on legislative issues, projects and initiatives at the federal, state, regional and county levels. • Seek grant and funding assistance for Town projects, services, and programs. Legislative Principles To fulfill the goals identified, the Town supports legislation and policies that favor: 1. Outstanding Quality of Life - provide opportunities to protect and enhance our residents’ quality of life through active living, a healthy lifestyle and diverse recreational services. 2. Community Safety - provide access to resources and services for residents, such as quality police, fire, emergency management, emergency medical services, services for vulnerable populations and community benefit efforts. 3. Local Control over Land Use and Preservation - ensures the Town’s continued ability and authority to exercise decisions on land use matters and reasonably regulate new development to ensure consistency with Town design standards. The orderly growth and development of the Town together with the preservation of open-space is a high priority for the Danville community. 4. Foster Economic Vitality and Growth - provide funding for initiatives that promote: economic health and resilience, business development, workforce 3 development, and small business entrepreneurship training and assistance. 5. Public Infrastructure - enable continued improvement and maintenance of the Town’s public infrastructure. 6. Transportation - provide funding for planning and implementation of regional transportation projects. 7. Housing - seek balanced solutions which consider housing, jobs, and transportation together; does not take a one size fits all approach; provides funding and resources for infrastructure and allows the Town to exercise local control in developing locally- appropriate plans that meet State objectives in a manner that is compatible with existing community character. 8. Support Residents Growth and Enrichment - enhance and encourage recreational programming, exercise, use of parks and services, community engagement, social and recreational experiences; and performing and visual arts. 9. Sustainability - enable sustainable development, conserve natural resources, and, provide resources to enable environmental awareness and health in our community. 10. Fiscal Sustainability - protect existing federal, state, and local funding sources that provide revenues to the Town of Danville. Oppose Unfunded Mandates and legislation that seeks to impose any requirement upon the Town that is not fully funded; aid recovery of Town costs stemming from State and/or Federal mandates. Town Council Legislative Committee • The Legislative Committee will consist of two members of the Town Council to be appointed annually by the Mayor, supported by appropriate Town staff. • The committee will meet as frequently as monthly to review and discuss the Town’s legislative platform and pending/possible legislation. • The committee will develop positions on pending or possible legislation and make recommendations for consideration by the Town Council. Recommendations will be based upon a determination of potential legislative impacts upon the Town and its residents. Potential positions to be considered include: o Support: Legislation that the Town should support as drafted o Support if Amended: that the Town should support if the author accepts amendments proposed or supported by the Town o Oppose: Legislation that the Town should oppose as drafted o Oppose unless amended: Legislation the Town should oppose unless amended o Watch: Town will take no formal position but will watch the Legislation and consider taking a position as the legislative process progresses • Once a determination has been made that a legislative proposal may impact the Town, a letter outlining the Town’s position will be drafted for the Mayor’s or Town Manager’s signature. 4 • The committee will make regular reports to the Town Council at duly noticed public meetings. • The committee will work collaboratively with Tri-Valley Cities of Dublin, Livermore, Pleasanton and San Ramon to further the Tri-Valley Legislative Framework. Strategic Documents The following documents are available on the Town’s website at www.danville.ca.gov • Town Vision and Mission Statements • Town of Danville General Plan 2030 • Town of Danville Adopted Budget and Capital Improvement Program • Town of Danville Recreation, Arts & Community Services Master Plan • Town of Danville Climate Action Plan The Legislative Framework will be reviewed annually by the Town Council. Day to day oversight of legislative matters is the responsibility of the Town Manager’s Office, consistent with this Legislative Framework and policy set by the Town Council. TRI-VALLEY CITIES Legislative Framework 2022 ATTACHMENT B 1 | P a g e TRI-VALLEY CITIES VALUES STATEMENT The Tri-Valley Cities of Dublin, Livermore, Pleasanton, San Ramon, and the Town of Danville value regional leadership, innovation, collaboration, and problem solving to maintain and improve the quality of life for Tri-Valley residents and provide a vibrant climate for businesses, and enable continued opportunities for public and private investment within the region. Each City and Town provides a unique perspective on how to meet the needs of their residents and businesses. The Cities and Town agree to respect the individuality of each community and are committed to open and honest communication with a goal of building consensus and a united approach to advocacy for solutions that will serve the residents and businesses of the Tri-Valley. TRI-VALLEY CITIES LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK The Tri-Valley Cities Legislative Framework seeks to inform all levels of governmental interaction (e.g., federal, state, regional, local) regarding legislation, policies, and programs that have a direct impact on the region. The TVC has defined Legislative Focus Areas which have an overarching objective to retain and promote local control and decision - making as it relates to the implementation of laws and regulations and to have the ability to integrate them in a manner that meets the unique needs of each community. The TVC will advocate together to achieve outcomes benefiting the region in each of these Focus Areas. Transportation Residents of the Tri-Valley region are subject to some of the heaviest commutes in the Bay Area and are impacted by the heavy flow of traffic along the region’s freeways, which often spills over onto the local surface streets as commuters pursue alternatives to their commute through the Tri-Valley. A key objective of the region is to reduce congestion on the regions freeways and to increase mobility of goods and people through the Tri -Valley with continued financial investment in transportation infrastructure: developing alternative modes of transportation, modernization of transportation corridors, and creation, modernization, and expansion of rail systems. Climate and the Environment The TVC seeks to work collaboratively with federal, state and regional partners to address the new landscape of year-round wildfires, public safety power shut offs, water quality (including PFAS/PFOS contaminants) and supply issues as well as waste and recycling mandates. The TVC will advocate for increasing financial and technical support in these areas as well as an investment in key infrastructure at all levels of government. 2 | P a g e Economic Development The Tri-Valley region is an innovation hub that spurs job growth, sustains a healthy economy and provides a great quality of life for our residents and business. Key objectives are developing a healthy workforce, supporting innovation, capacity building, e conomic stimulus and growth in the region. Affordable Housing The TVC supports balanced solutions which consider housing, jobs, and transportation together and seeks to support, promote and protect affordability in the region’s housing stock. Key objectives are to work with federal, state, and regional partners to provide funding for affordable housing through a variety of programs and options and to work to address barriers to building affordable housing. Mental Health The TVC recognizes that social services are vital to supporting residents and providing crucial safety net services in our region. While the TVC cities do not provide direct delivery of social services we seek to work together to support our local non-profits and organizations that do provide these services and advocate together for these vital resources and services from all levels of government. Mental health is an emerging need in our region and the TVC seeks to advocate for the needed resources to meet the needs of all of our residents. Fiscal Sustainability Fiscal Sustainability is an important role for all levels of government. The TVC seeks to advocate against the imposition of unfunded mandates and the removal of funding streams from local governments. 2022 PAGE 1 ATTACHMENT C M E M O R A N D U M To: Mayor Newell Arnerich Danville Town Council Members Joe Calabrigo, Town Manager Diane Friedmann, Deputy Town Manager From: Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. Christopher Townsend, President Niccolo De Luca, Vice President Andres Ramirez, Senior Associate Ben Goldeen, Senior Associate (Washington DC Office) Sammi Maciel, Associate (Washington DC Office) Date: January 28, 2022 Subject: 2021 Legislative Summary and 2022 Outlook for the Town of Danville SUMMARY Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. (TPA) has prepared this report for the Town of Danville following the end of the 2021 legislative year. This report provides a summary of our efforts to date for the advocacy objectives of the Town of Danville. Summary of 2021 State Legislative Efforts and Successes TPA worked with the elected Danville leadership, Town Manager, Deputy Town Manager, and staff to develop, advocate, and secure several major initiatives through various means including legislation and the budget process. This was done working hand in hand with the four other municipalities in the Tri-Valley Cities (TVC) coalition and working directly with our elected leaders in Sacramento. As part of the Tri-Valley Cities coalition, the Town of Danville took unified formal positions on several pieces of high priority legislation. Below are the bills we worked on which included testifying in policy and fiscal committee hearings, writing and distributing position letters, meeting with authors’ offices, meeting with committee chairs and staff, and working closely with our legislative delegation to advocate for changes based on our concerns/suggested amendments. AB 215 (Chiu) Planning and Zoning Law: housing element: violations. Position: Oppose Status: Signed by the Governor AB 988 (Bauer-Kahan) Mental health: 988 crisis hotline. Position: Support Status: Funding was Appropriated in the State Budget Trailer Bill Process AB 1512 (Bauer-Kahan) Alameda- Tesla Expansion Area. Position: Support Status: Funding was Appropriated in the State Budget Trailer Bill Process SB 6 (Caballero) Local planning: housing: commercial zones. Position: Oppose Status: Held as a 2-year bill 2 SB 8 (Skinner) Housing Crisis Act of 2019. Position: Oppose Status: Signed by the Governor SB 9 (Atkins) Housing development: approvals. Position: Oppose Status: Signed by the Governor SB 10 (Wiener) Planning and zoning: housing development: density. Position: Oppose Status: Signed by the Governor SB 15 (Portantino) Housing development: incentives: rezoning of idle retail sites. Position: Support Status: Held as a 2-year bill SB 210 (Wiener) Automated license plate recognition systems: use of data. Position: Oppose Status: Held as a 2-year bill SB 556 (Dodd) Street light poles, traffic signal poles: small wireless facilities attachments. Position: Oppose Status: Vetoed by the Governor SB 619 (Laird) Organic waste: reduction regulations: local jurisdiction compliance. Position: Support Status: Signed by the Governor SB 792 (Glazer) Sales and use tax: returns: online transactions: local jurisdiction schedule. Position: Support Status: Vetoed by the Governor In addition to the bills listed in the matrix above, TPA remained engaged on behalf of Danville and the Tri-Valley Cities on bills affecting Brown Act requirements. This included bills such as AB 361 (Robert Rivas), AB 339 (Lee), and AB 703 (Rubio). Danville, as part of TVC, and TPA were also able to work on a number of amendments on priority legislation this year. Some specific examples of the amendments include: AB 215 (Chiu) Planning and Zoning Law: housing element: violations • This bill provides HCD with additional enforcement authority for local agency violations of specified housing laws and increases public review for housing elements. • We proposed amendments and advocated for the removal of the provision which would have required a city or town to obtain a pro-housing designation from HCD if the jurisdiction had not made sufficient progress towards its RHNA numbers. • The significance of this is that the “pro-housing” designation was created as a voluntary incentive, and not a mandate used for punitive reasons. SB 9 (Atkins) Housing development: approvals • This bill requires ministerial approval of a housing development of no more than two units in a single-family zone (duplex), the subdivision of a parcel zoned for residential use into two parcels (lot split), or both. • Danville and the coalition were integral to a number of significant amendments. • Danville and TPA worked on the amendment in last year’s version of the bill which exempted historic districts from the bill’s provisions. We advocated and successfully kept that exemption in this year’s version of the bill. 3 • The coalition also advocated for provisions to exempt high fire severity zones, and for explicit clarification that this bill could result in no more than four units, total. Both concerns were considered and implemented into the bill. • Additionally, the coalition advocated for a great degree of discretion over a housing project. Amendments in the Assembly provided that a local agency may deny a housing project otherwise authorized by this bill if the building official makes a written finding based upon the preponderance of the evidence that the housing development project would have a specific, adverse impact upon health and safety or the physical environment. • Lastly, owner occupancy requirements of 3-years were added into the bill, where they had originally been only one year. SB 10 (Wiener) Planning and zoning: housing development: density • This bill allows a local legislative body, such as a City Council, to zone a parcel for up to 10 units of residential development if it is in an urban infill site or a transit-rich area if they so choose. • First, TVC advocated to amend this bill down from its original iteration last legislative session, which was a mandate, into an opt-in piece of legislation. • This year, TPA and the TVC coalition advocated for the removal of the provision which would have allowed the zoning of a parcel up to 10 units in a “jobs-rich” area, which was vague. This provision was successfully removed from the bill. • The coalition also continued to advocate for the removal of the provision which would allow a jurisdiction to overturn a voter approved ordinance against rezoning. TPA engaged in multiple conversations with the Author’s office and policy committee staff about this remaining provision. Ultimately, this portion of the bill was amended down even further, so that the bill: 1) Does not apply to any local restriction enacted or approved by a local initiative that designates publicly owned land as open space or for park or recreational purposes. 2) If a jurisdiction does decide to do zone a parcel for residential use despite a local initiative, it shall only take effect if adopted by 2/3 of the members of the legislative body. • In all, this bill provides an option, with complete local discretion to a city or town council, over whether they would like to zone certain parcels for up to 10 units of residential development. 2021 Sacramento Virtual Advocacy Meetings In 2021, the Mayors of the TVC Coalition had meetings with state elected officials and key policy staff. Discussion topics were centered around housing legislation, transportation, and COVID-19 relief as well as funding needs. Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry • Met with the Assemblymember (Chair of the Assembly Local Government Committee) and her committee consultant, Hank Brady, who handled the major housing related bills that were heard in the committee. Senator Steve Glazer • Met with the Senator and his senior staff. 4 Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan • Met with the Assemblymember and her senior staff. 2021 State Budget As it relates to the State Budget, TPA and Danville worked with the other cities to craft and finalize a multi-jurisdictional TVC budget letter highlighting local/regional needs and requesting funding for specific issue areas including: Small Business/Local Support Amount Placed in Legislature’s Budget Bill and Trailer Bills: • $1.5 Billion Small Business/Non- Profits Grants; • $430 Million for other Small Business Support Affordable Housing Funding Amount Placed in Legislature’s Budget Bill and Trailer Bills: • $1.75 Billion for Affordable Housing Construction Backlog; • $600 Million Planning and Implementation Grants to Local Governments Flexible Homelessness Funding Amount Placed in Legislature’s Budget Bill and Trailer Bills: • $1 Billion to Cities, Counties, and Continuums of Care per year- Ongoing; • $12 Billion in New Funding for Homelessness Programs over the next two years Natural Resources/Emergency Response Funding Amount Placed in Legislature’s Budget Bill and Trailer Bills: • $3.1 Billion Drought/Water Package; • $1.8 Billion Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Package; • $258 Million Wildfire Package Transportation Infrastructure Funding Baseline funding remained but increases in programs or new allocations were held off until 2022, due to the Governor and Legislature being unable to reach an agreement on the Transportation Budget Trailer Bill. 5 Broadband Funding Amount Placed in Legislature’s Budget Bill and Trailer Bills: • $6 Billion over a multi-year period for broadband infrastructure and improved access, including $3.75 billion for middle-mile infrastructure. TPA followed up with advocacy efforts focused on Senate and Assembly Budget Committees, Legislative Leadership (Pro Tem and Speaker), our legislative delegation, and then advocacy focused on the Governor’s administration as budget negotiations and budget trailer bills were finalized. Specific programs, both competitive and formulaic, are currently being established on the State Agency and Departmental levels. Many of the applications for programmatic funds allocated in 2021’s budget bill and budget trailer bills are being made available now, with even more being made available over the next 2 years. To supplement our advocacy, we created a TVC revenue loss, budget shortfall, and local expenditure document. This further highlighted need in the Tri-Valley and Danville this year and ongoing need as we emerge from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and deal with the ongoing effects of COVID variants and other issues. 2022 State Outlook for the Town of Danville 2022 is the second year of the 2-year legislative session. The fact that it is year two, paired with several dozen covid outbreaks amongst Legislators and Capitol staff, has resulted in a relatively slower rollout and introduction of new legislation since January of 2022. As of the week of January 24, 2022 – there has been just under 200 new bills introduced, and we expect over 1,000 new bills to be introduced by the introduction deadline on February 18, 2022. TPA has already begun compiling a bill matrix of relevant legislation, which aligns with the TVC proposed Legislative Framework, in order to act on bills affecting Danville and its neighboring communities that are part of the coalition. On January 10, the Governor announced that his Administration’s January Budget proposal assumes a $45.7 billion operating surplus for FY 2022-23, of which $20.6 billion will be available for discretionary use. Governor Newsom iterated that the state revenue figures are likely to change over the next few months, pending revenue information that will materialize during tax return season before the June 15th budget deadline. Notable trends observed from this budget proposal includes a focus on the intersectionality of climate change and resiliency and other policy areas like housing development and transportation. The proposal contains a one-time expenditure of $22.5 billion to combat the climate crisis over the next five years. This amount includes new funding for electric vehicle initiatives, wildfire resiliency, drought mitigation, and clean energy workforce development. Several of the Governor’s specific proposals are targeted for “early action,” which mean the Governor’s goal is to get certain portions of funding out in the coming weeks, well before the final budget is adopted. The early action portions of the budget include $1.4 billion in emergency appropriations to address the ongoing COVID-19 crisis through bolstering testing access, vaccine distribution, and supporting frontline healthcare workers. Another topic of high importance is redistricting. The decennial process of re-drawing state district lines to ensure districts have equal population size, maintain minority voting power, and are contiguous has officially concluded. The new districts will take effect beginning in the 2022 6 election cycle and will continue for the next decade. The new line-drawing process garnered massive amounts of public comment regarding maps protecting communities of interest and Latino representation, as well as complications from the COVID-19 pandemic which among other things, delayed census data intrinsic to drawing maps. Major changes brought forth by the new district lines include one less congressional district and a greater number of districts with a Latino citizen voting age population greater than 50%. The new districts have also prompted many legislators’ retirement announcements and will force many to move into new districts and court new voters or will pit incumbents of the same or opposing political parties to run against one another in what used to be their old districts. Funding Advocacy/Grant Writing On behalf of the Town of Danville, TPA submitted and successfully secured $200,000 through the CalRecycle Rubberized Pavement Grant Program. Funding is for the Danville Rubberized Pavement Chipseal Project. Federal Advocacy Efforts Federal Earmarks Over the past year, Danville and TPA have collaborated to develop, compile, and share information on a number of priority projects for the Town and for the Tri-Valley Cities as a whole. Below are the earmarks relevant to Danville: Tri-Valley – San Joaquin Valley Regional Rail Authority $20,000,000 (Valley Link Rail Project) This earmark was approved by the US House of Representatives in H.R.3684 but progress was stalled due to disagreements between the House and Senate. The Senate ultimately removed all earmarks from the bill prior to passage. Danville $350,000 (Iron Horse Trail- Pedestrian Safety Project) This earmark is pending approval as part of the final Fiscal Year 2022 Federal Appropriations package. Danville $1,000,000 (Town-wide Traffic Signal Modernization) This earmark is pending approval as part of the final Fiscal Year 2022 Federal Appropriations package. Dublin, Danville, San Ramon $5,000,000 (Iron Horse Trail- Bridge, Open Space Nature Park, and Pedestrian Safety Project… This is same as other Iron Horse projects, just lumped into one and includes Dublin’s portion as well) Senator Padilla submitted this earmark as a combined version of the $350,000 request from Danville, and $2 million request from San Ramon and Dublin for the Iron Horse Trail. It was not included in Senate appropriations bills however funding for Iron Horse Trail is included in the House bills, pending a final Fiscal Year 2022 appropriations package agreement. On behalf of Danville, TPA has continually advocated for the final passage of the above appropriations requests. TPA provides regular updates on status to the Legislative Liaison, with the latest information being an expected passage in February. 7 Federal Advocacy Meetings in 2021 As part of a comprehensive approach to federal advocacy, Townsend Public Affairs (TPA) facilitated a series of meetings with federal elected and Administration officials during August 2021. Speaking directly with officials allows for clear explanations of the policy agenda of coalition cities, builds relationships between the mayors and federal officials, and lays the groundwork for future requests. Because of COVID restrictions, the meetings took place virtually over two days, August 12 and August 30, 2021 and included the five TVC mayors and their representatives. TPA worked with TVC’s staff liaisons to develop a meeting itinerary that would include the Members of Congress and Administration agencies relevant to TVC’s legislative priorities. Once an itinerary was agreed to by the TVC staff liaisons, TPA scheduled the set of meetings. In all, TVC met with the following officials: • Congressman Eric Swalwell and his staff. • Congressman Mark DeSaulnier and his staff. • Office of Senator Dianne Feinstein • Office of Senator Alex Padilla • House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, majority and minority rail staff • House Committee on Appropriations, Transportation-HUD Subcommittee Staff • U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of the Secretary • U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Intergovernmental Affairs • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water In preparation for the meetings, TPA gathered information about the TVC legislative agenda and compiled talking points documents for the TVC mayors to use during the meetings. These talking points included background information, meeting goals, as well as a suggested script and concrete asks for each official. TPA fully staffed the TVC mayors throughout the meetings, providing advice and analysis of each meeting in real-time. At the conclusion of the meetings TPA provided comprehensive summary notes for each meeting to TVC liaison staff for their use. An important component of federal advocacy meetings is post-meeting follow-up. Meetings such as these lay the groundwork for future requests, and TPA has provided follow-up in the weeks since the federal advocacy meetings concluded. • With Senator Padilla, TPA has advocated for inclusion of TVC earmarks in Senate appropriations bills. • TPA has engaged with the U.S. Department of Transportation on their plans to implement federal infrastructure legislation and ways in which the TVC can best position itself for potential grant money upon passage of the infrastructure legislation. • TPA has built upon the meetings with Congressman Swalwell and Congressman DeSaulnier to ask them to find ways to fund critical infrastructure important to TVC through budget reconciliation. • TPA is working with U.S. EPA to provide guidance on funding to deal with groundwater issues in the Tri-Valley area. • TPA has communicated with the staff of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee regarding funding for member designated projects in pending transportation legislation. The Committee is attempting to fund these projects, including ValleyLink through budget reconciliation. 8 At TPA’s suggestion the TVC Mayors asked for future commitments of support from the Congressmen and Senators for infrastructure grants when new federal funding becomes available. The Members of Congress made these commitments and TPA will follow-up with them and their staffs when grant money becomes available in the coming months. Overall, the August virtual federal advocacy meetings advanced the legislative goals of the Tri- Valley Cities Coalition in concrete ways through timely sharing of information and commitments from TVC’s federal elected leaders. TPA, in conjunction with TVC staff will build upon the success of these meetings in the months to come. 2022 Washington DC Advocacy Trip (USCOM) In January of 2022, Mayor Newell Arnerich along with two other Mayors accompanying in person, and two virtually, travelled to Washington DC, for the US Conference of Mayors and two days of legislative advocacy meetings with federal elected officials and key agency and departmental staff. Discussion topics were centered around opportunities for federal funding and partnerships as well as implementation of the bipartisan infrastructure law. Office of Congressman Mark DeSaulnier • Met with the Congressman and his staff virtually. • Discussed partnering on federal transportation funding and secured the Congressman’s support for future grant applications and opportunities. • Agreed to partner on a joint event promoting infrastructure spending with Congressman Eric Swalwell. Office of Congressman Eric Swalwell • Met with the Congressman and his Legislative Director in his Washington, DC office. • Secured the Congressman’s support for future grant applications. • Congressman Swalwell promoted the availability of COVID test kits through the US Postal Service. • Congressman Swalwell encouraged the Mayor to support the resettlement of Afghan refugees in the East Bay and offered his support for this and other immigration-related issues. • Mayor Arnerich discussed his support for PFAS remediation and discussed strategies for regional partnerships to remediate groundwater contamination. Congressman Swalwell offered his support and highlighted funding in the bipartisan infrastructure law. The Congressman’s staff said that EPA will administer $10 million for PFAS distributed through three funding mechanisms: o $5 billion for the small and disadvantaged community drinking water grant program. o $4 billion for the drinking water state revolving loan fund– unlike past SRLF funding, the money directed at emerging contaminants (including PFAS) will be fully covered with no state matching requirement. o $1 billion for the clean water state revolving loan fund – unlike past SRLF funding, the money directed at emerging contaminants (including PFAS) will be fully covered with no state matching requirement. 9 Federal Transit Administration, Administrator Nuria Fernandez • Mayor Arnerich met with FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez and her staff, including FTA Regional Administrator Ray Tellis, who is based in San Francisco. • The Mayor discussed the importance of ValleyLink, of which the Administrator was familiar from her years working in the South Bay. • FTA recommended the project pursue funding through the Capital Investment Grant Program, which received increased funding in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. • Ray Tellis, the Regional Administrator offered to host the Mayor and ValleyLink staff in a series of webinars to detail the Capital Investment Grant process. U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Intergovernmental Affairs • Mayor Arnerich met with DOE Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs Ali Nouri. • Ali Nouri gave an overview of the key provisions from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that the department is tasked with implementing over the next few months including clean energy research projects. • Nouri encourage the mayor to participate in the request for comment period for newly created funding opportunities. These include $5 billion to be used on grid hardening for wildfire and other climate events and the $3 billion to be used on the SMART grid program. • The mayor highlighted the regional interest in clean hydrogen development, and how this technology would significantly transform regional priority projects. • Nouri discussed how the department is working to establish 4 hydrogen research hubs with the focus of environmental justice, greenhouse gad reduction, and workforce development. • The mayor described how Danville and the greater tri-valley region would be an ideal project location as it would not only highlight the priority areas but also contribute to an area of the bay-area that is often overlooked for larger cities to the west. • Engagement with cities is a large priority for Department of Energy. As such Ali Noori and his team are committed to continuing to engage with the city. The western regional specialist, Rose Booker will reach out to the mayor to engage in a follow-up meeting, where the mayor will have the opportunity to go in depth on priority projects and Rose can provide feedback on how DOE can best serve the region. 2022 Federal Outlook for the Town of Danville The actions of Congress and the Biden Administration will be influenced by one central occurrence in 2022: the midterm elections scheduled for November. Both congressional chambers and the White House are under Democratic control, but history and polling suggests that Republicans are poised to take the majority in the House of Representatives in the November elections. Democrats are motivated to advance as much of their agenda as possible in 2022. This includes social spending policies such as paid family leave, universal Pre-Kindergarten education, subsidized child-care, support for Affordable Care Act marketplaces, actions to curb greenhouse gas emissions, and more. Disagreements over the scope and scale of this agenda led to a breakdown in negotiations in late 2021. Expect Democrats to move forward with portions of their agenda in the first two quarters of 2022. The decennial process of redrawing congressional lines will have an impact on policies and representation in 2022. Following the certification of new congressional districts in December 2021 by the California Citizens Redistricting Commission, the state will lose a congressional seat due to slow population growth in the last decade, thus requiring an adjustment that wound up 10 costing Los Angeles County one of its seats. Nevertheless, the overall trajectory of the new congressional maps favor Democrats, which could play a role in which party controls the House after the midterm elections. Additionally, in 2022 federal agencies will be busy at work implementing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in November 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This law provides $1.2 trillion over 5 years for roads, bridges, rail, transit, water, broadband, grid resiliency, and more. Funding will begin to roll out in 2022 through a combination of formula grants and competitive discretionary grants. The coronavirus pandemic will continue to impact federal policy making. Much will depend on the trajectory the pandemic takes and if additional federal funds are determined to be necessary to stem negative economic impacts. Throughout 2022, both Congress and the Biden Administration will be focused on the midterm elections. Decisions will be based on their ability to help win and actions will be heavily influenced by these political calculations. History has shown that this dynamic often limits the ability for Congress to enact sweeping legislation, which will be compounded by the historically slim majorities in both the House and Senate. Legislative inaction often leads the Administration to take bolder action through executive orders, rule makings, and litigation. Ongoing Communication TPA stays in frequent communication with Danville’s TVC liaison on weekly TVC conference calls, as well as on individual advocacy calls whenever needed. TPA sends frequent (several times per week) correspondence via email to Danville’s Legislative Liaison, with items pertaining to relevant state and federal legislation, budget and appropriations updates, and overall advocacy efforts. Additionally, TPA will always makes availability for email and phone outreach with staff, management, and elected officials if they wish to speak.