BOARD LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE Friday, January 18, 2019 12:30 p.m. EBRPD – Administrative Headquarters 2950 Peralta Oaks Court Oakland, California 94605 The following agenda items are listed for Committee consideration. In accordance with the Board Operating Guidelines, no official action of the Board will be taken at this meeting; rather, the Committee’s purpose shall be to review the listed items and to consider developing recommendations to the Board of Directors. A copy of the background materials concerning these agenda items, including any material that may have been submitted less than 72 hours before the meeting, is available for inspection on the District’s website (www. ebparks.org), the Headquarters reception desk, and at the meeting. Public Comment on Agenda Items If you wish to testify on an item on the agenda, please complete a speaker’s form and submit it to the recording secretary. Your name will be called when the item is announced for discussion. Accommodations and Access District facilities and meetings comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. If special accommodations are needed for you to participate, please contact the Clerk of the Board at 510-544-2020 as soon as possible, but preferably at least three working days prior to the meeting. AGENDA TIME ITEM STATUS STAFF 12:30 I. STATE LEGISLATION / OTHER MATTERS A. NEW LEGISLATION R Doyle/Pfuehler 1. ACA 1- Lower Voter Threshold (55%) for Local Revenue (Aguiar-Curry D-Winters) 2. Other Matters B. OTHER STATE MATTERS I Doyle/Pfuehler 1. Newsom Appointments and State Budget 2. Wildfire Legislation 3. 2020 Resources Bond 4. Cap-and-Trade Investment Plan 5. Other Matters II. FEDERAL LEGISLATION / OTHER MATTERS R Pfuehler/Baldinger A. NEW LEGISLATION 1. H.R. 179 – No Increase in National Parks (Griffith R-VA) 2. Other Matters B. OTHER FEDERAL MATTERS I Pfuehler/Baldinger 1. Land and Water Conservation Fund – Lands Bill Update 2. Delegation Committee Assignments 3. Other Matters III. SACRAMENTO DAY MEMBER ASKS I Pfuehler/Baldinger IV. WASHINGTON D.C. ISSUES / HIKE THE HILL R Doyle/Pfuehler/ Baldinger V. ARTICLES VI. OPEN FORUM PUBLIC COMMENT Individuals wishing to address the Committee on a topic not on the agenda may do so by completing a speaker’s form and submitting it to the recording secretary. VII. BOARD COMMENTS (R) Recommendation for Future Board Consideration (I) Information (D) Discussion Legislative Committee Members Future Meetings: Dennis Waespi (Chair); Ellen Corbett, Colin Coffey January 18 July 19 Director Dee Rosario, Alternate February – NO MTG August 16 Erich Pfuehler, Government Affairs Manager March 15 September – NO MTG April 19 October 18 May 17 November – NO MTG June – NO MTG *December 13 TO: Board Legislative Committee (Chair Dennis Waespi, Colin Coffey, Ellen Corbett, alt. Dee Rosario) FROM: Robert E. Doyle, General Manager Erich Pfuehler, Government Affairs Manager SUBJECT: Board Legislative Committee Meeting WHEN: Friday, January 18, 2019 12:30 PM Lunch will be served WHERE: Board Room, Peralta Oaks _______ Items to be discussed: I. STATE LEGISLATION / OTHER MATTERS A. NEW LEGISLATION 1. ACA 1 – Lower Voter Threshold (55%) for Local Revenue (Aguiar-Curry D- Winters) This Assembly Constitutional Amendment would lower the voter threshold to 55% for “the construction, rehabilitation or replacement of public infrastructure or affordable housing.” Under the legislation, “parks, open space and recreation facilities” are considered “public infrastructure.” The proposed Amendment, however, seems to specify only “a city, county, or city and county” can incur bonded indebtedness by a vote of 55%. Thus, special districts would still be required to meet the 2/3rds voter threshold. The 55% voter threshold is a concept the District is on record of supporting. Staff and advocates will work to see if “special districts” can be included as eligible. Staff recommendation: Support, but work to amend to include special districts. 2. Other Matters B. OTHER STATE MATTERS 1. Newsom Appointments and State Budget On January 7th, Gavin Newsom was sworn in as California’s 40th Governor. Governor Newsom has made a number of key appointments, including: • Wade Crowfoot as Secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency • Jared Blumenfeld as Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) • Karen Ross as Secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture • Ann O’Leary as Chief of Staff who was a top aide to Hillary Clinton • Ana Matosantos as Cabinet Secretary who was one-time director of the State Department of Finance • Angie Wei as Chief Cabinet Secretary for Policy Development who comes over from the California Labor Federation • Lindsey Cobia as Deputy Chief of Staff who was his Deputy Campaign Manager • Kate Gordon as Director of the Office of Planning and Research who has as strong 1 background in climate related matters. On January 10, Newsom unveiled his first California budget proposal. It includes a $144 billion general fund, a 4% increase over the last spending plan former Gov. Brown signed in June 2018. The total proposal, including special purpose funds, is $209 billion, which is about $8 billion more than Brown’s final budget. Newsom’s team estimates there is a state surplus of $21 billion. Child care, education, health, housing/homelessness and fiscal resiliency seem to be the main focus. The budget allocates $6.2 billion to the Natural Resources Agency and $4.225 billion to the Environmental Protection Agency. The budget allocates $1 billion in cap-and-trade funding including: • $165 million to CAL FIRE for Healthy and Resilient Forests, and an additional $35 million for Prescribed Fire and Fuel Reduction • $18 million to the Department of Food and Agriculture for Healthy Soils • $3 million to the Coastal Commission and Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) for Coastal Resilience Newsom’s budget also proposes a tax on drinking water to help disadvantaged communities clean up contaminated water systems. The “safe and affordable drinking water fund” would address the needs of at least 360,000 Californians whose water does not meet state standards for toxins. A similar proposal was considered last year, which would have taxed residential customers 95 cents a month and raised about $110 million a year. 2. Wildfire Legislation and Funding On his first day as Governor, Gavin Newsom called for $105 million in increased wildfire safety funding. This funding would be on top of the $200 million approved last fall. Of the $305 million now in his proposed budget he allocates: • $214 million for reducing forest fuels • $64 million for more firefighting personnel and equipment • $25 million to help local governments handle emergencies District staff and advocate Houston will also discuss ideas for wildfire legislation. 3. 2020 Resources Bond As discussed at the December Legislative Committee meeting, Senator Allen’s $4 billion bond legislation (SB 45) takes a fairly comprehensive look at the inter-relation between restoring fire damaged areas, reducing wildfire risk, creating healthy forest and watersheds, reducing climate impacts on urban areas and vulnerable populations, protecting water supply and water quality, reducing flood risk and protecting coastal lands. SB 45 does not assign dollar allocations to the various categories included in the outline. There is not currently an allocation category for parks or outdoor access. During the session, there will be significant discussions about the possible nature and categories for a resource related bond measure. The District should closely track this effort and work with the East Bay delegation to include the relationship between wildfire, drought, flooding, human health and natural resource management in whatever bond measure is considered. There may also be a companion resources bond introduced by Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee Chair Eduardo Garcia. District staff and advocate Houston will discuss proposals for funding allocations and programs for which the District intends to advocate. 4. Cap-and-Trade Investment Plan 2 After a discussion by staff and legislative advocate Houston, there will be a presentation by Government Affairs Intern Nika Hoffman. 5. Other Matters II. FEDERAL LEGISLATION / OTHER MATTERS A. NEW LEGISLATION 1. H.R. 179 – No Increase in Parks (Griffith R-VA) Representative Morgan Griffith (R-VA) has introduced legislation for no net increase in the total acreage of Federal land under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service or the Forest Service. This notion is fundamentally opposed to the District’s Mission. Staff recommendation: Oppose 2. Other Matters B. OTHER MATTERS 1. Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) – Lands Bill Update Due to the federal government shutdown, the Senate has been slow to vote on any legislation. The Lands Bill Package (LWCF permanent reauthorization, Contra Costa Canal Conveyance, Every Kids Outdoors, 21st Century Service Corps and 110 other lands-conservation bills) is on the calendar and may be considered in the next week or two. Even if the Senate passes the bill, the House of Representatives are expected to make some changes and send the bill back to the Senate. On LWCF, there is a tentative agreement which would permanently reauthorize the program. The funding formula would be 40% for stateside assistance, 40% for federal lands and the Appropriations Committee would determine the remaining 20%. For years, stakeholders – including the East Bay Regional Park District – have advocated for LWCF permanent reauthorization and mandatory full funding. The LWCF agreement is tied to a larger package of 110 land bills. The Contra Costa Canal Transfer and the Golden Spike Transcontinental Railroad bills could be included in the package. Members continue to negotiate the details of each bill. 2. Other Items III. SACRAMENTO DAY MEMBER ASKS Staff will provide a verbal discussion and PowerPoint about the January 29 meetings in Sacramento. IV. WASHINGTON D.C. ISSUES / HIKE THE HILL Staff will provide a verbal discussion and PowerPoint about the issues for legislative meetings in Washington D.C.