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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 12011998 - D1 TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS }r J FROM: Oc PHIL BATCHELOR, COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR w. Count DATE: November 17, 1998 ... SUBJECT: 1999 LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM SPECIFIC REGUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATION: 1. ADOPT the attached 1999 Legislative Program for the County. 2. AUTHORIZE the County's lobbyist to seek authors for those items being sponsored by the Board and to work toward their passage during 1999. 3. AUTHORIZE Board Members, the County Administrator and other designated staff to testify in support of the Board's position on these and other items which may be added to the Board's 1999 Legislative Program from time to time during the year. BACKGROUND: Each year the Board of Supervisors adopts a legislative program ;for the coming Session of the Legislature in Sacramento. This program generally consists of a few carefully selected items which the Board sponsors. In other cases, the Board indicates its support for a measure providing someone else sponsors the measure. From time to time during the year other pieces of legislation are introduced which are brought to the Board's attention and are added to the Board's legislative program with an appropriate position. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: -)L YES SIGNATURE: RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE APPROVE OTHER SIGNATURE(S): ACTION OF BOARD ON- Rzr-P_mhA_r 1, 1 Q_QA APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that the above recommendations are APPROVED; and on page 2 , Emergency Medical Services Issue section, paragraph 1, of the Proposed 1999 Legislative Program,that the phrase"term"Standby Emergency Room"" is AMENDED to read "designation "Standby Emergency Room"". VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A>TRUE UNANIMOUS(ABSENT ) AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AYES: NOES: AND ENTERED ON T MINUTES OF THE BOARD ABSENT: ABSTAIN: OF SUPERVISOR HE DATE SHOWN. County Administrator ATTESTED ' COritcCt; Les Spahnn 01 PHIL BATCHELOR,CLERK OF THE BOARD OF cc: Heim, Noack, Kelly & Spahnn S IS RS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR 1121 L Street, Suite 100 Sacramento, CA 95814 140 BY DEPUTY Because of the amount of time and attention which must be give to the sponsorship of a measure, it is generally better to try to get another organization to sponsor a measure, which the Board can then co-sponsor or support. Taking full responsibility for the sponsorship of a measure involves planning the strategy for passage of the measure, serving as the author's principal source of information when questions about the bill come to the attention of the author, lobbying members of committees before which a bill will be heard, negotiating compromises where necessary in order to reduce conflict and attempt to insure passage of a bili. This can realistically only be undertaken with a very limited number of bills. In addition, the need to sponsor additional measures generally occurs during the year as events warrant the need for such action. The 1999 Legislative Program has been assembled from a number of measures suggested by staff and Board Members and has been discussed with the County's lobbyist. PROPQSED 1999 LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM General Financing/Revenue Issues: • Support the efforts of CSAC and the Urban Counties Caucus to at least cap the growth of ERAF, and preferably begin to return some of the base to counties and cities. • SPONSOR legislation to allow the original Teeter counties to recover the advantage other counties got in converting to Teeter. (See SB 1338 of 1998) • Explore with our legislative delegation the feasibility of pursuing legislation that would allow either a %0 or an 7/$0 sales tax for general revenue purposes, whereas now only a Y40 tax is permitted. Fire District Issues: • SP }NSOR legislation to include in the definition of State Responsibility Area, and therefore the responsibility of the State Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Delta islands which are currently not in any fire protection district. • Support the efforts of others if it is determined that legislation is necessary to reimburse the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District for the cost of state-mandated fire safety clothing (See AB 1773 from 1998). • SPONSOR legislation to remove the Contra Costa CountyFire Protection District from having to contribute to ERAF, as was done for P-8 in 1995, recognizing that it may only be possible to move such legislation as a part of overall ERAF discussions. (See SB 758, Chapter 5031, Statutes of 1995). Library Issues: • Support efforts to place a library capital construction bond measure on the ballot in 2000. (See SB 2026 from 1998) • Support efforts to retain in the State Budget the increased 'funding for the Public Library Fund and to fully fund the Public Library Fund. Social Service Issues: • Support the efforts of the Service Employees InternationalUnion (SEIU) to seek legislation which provides an appropriation for IHSS provider wage and salary increases and authorizes the State to pay its share of such increases. • Support the effort with other counties to obtain full State funding for an Adult Protective Services Program for the 1999-2000 fiscal year. • Support efforts to develop a State General Fund Multi-Disciplinary Interview Center (MDIC) account to fund MDIC services that conform with the California Children's Justice Act. • Support efforts to continue the Child Welfare Services augmentation pending completion of a new Workload Study and new allocation methodology. • Support efforts to extend current CalWORKS allocation and claiming methodologies to allow multiple-year budgeting. Probation Issues: • Support efforts to place a juvenile facilities bond measure on the ballot in 2000 and to continue the$100 million appropriation enacted in 1998 for one or two more years to meet unmet needs for juvenile facilities. (See AB 1212 of 1998) • Support efforts to enact legislation making it a misdemeanor for a ward of the court who is confined in a juvenile facility to assault a person who is not confined to that facility and a felony if the assault is with a deadly weapon or instrument or by any means of force likely to produce great bodily injury. (See SB 149 from 1997). Emergency Medical Services Issue. • SPONSOR legislation authorizing the boards of supervisors in urban counties, following public hearings, to prohibit the use of the designation "Standby Emergency Roam" in their county. 2 Contra Goma Health Plan Issues: • SPONSOR legislation that would allow the CCHP to keep their contract rates with providers confidential, similar to what other Local', Initiatives have accomplished. • SPONSOR legislation to prohibit retroactive rate decreases for CCHP (it is now 13 months since our contract expired and we are at tremendous risk if the State were to impose a retroactive decrease in rates). Public Health Issues: • Support efforts to increase funding for breast cancer awareness, public education, and treatment. • Support efforts to increase funding for immunizations for minority children, particularly through the use of a mobile clinic in West Contra Costa County. • Support efforts to enact legislation which would allow local health jurisdictions to legally support needle exchange programs. Trial Court Issues: • Support efforts to further reduce counties' Maintenance of Effort for the funding of the Trial Courts and to expand the definition of court operation costs in order to remove those costs as a strictly County cost. • SPQNSOR legislation to conform the State codes to those changes in salary, benefits and classifications for Municipal Court employees already made by the Board of Supervisors, utilizing the omnibus legislation sponsored by the Administrative Office of the Courts. Community Services Issues: • Support the effort of others to get center-based child care contractors dike the County) reimbursed at the Regional Market Rate, as are Alternative Payment Programs. (See AB 1722 of 1998). 3 Environmental Issues; • Support efforts to phase out the use of MTBE as an additive to gasoline in favor of other products which will not contaminate the water supply. • Explore with the County's Legislative Delegation the sponsorship of legislation to require pollution prevention and reduction plans for air emissions of toxic chemicals and harmful particulates. (Directed by the Board on October 27, 1998 as a part of approving the recommendations in the "School Maze: Air Pollution Near California Schools" report). • Reiterate the Board's position in opposition to completion',of the San Luis Drain or use of the existing, but closed, portion of the Drain if that completion or use would discharge selenium-laden water in the Delta immediately above the intake for the Contra Costa Water District. Land Use Planning ssues: • Support efforts to encourage extra-regional land use planning (among, for example, San Joaquin Valley and Bay Area counties). • Support efforts to provide economic incentives for infill development and economic disincentives for expanding development on the fringes of existing development. Traan"Ortation Issue: • Support any efforts that may be underway to obtain additional State and Federal funding for paratransit services for the elderly in Contra Costa County. 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