CSAC ANR Policy Committee Meeting Report

The CSAC ANR Policy Committee met last week and took action on two items, including the Proposed Voluntary Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between CSAC, RCRC, the United States Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM); and, the Agricultural Flood Management Alliance. The Committee approved the MOA, as did the CSAC Board of Directors at their meeting on Thursday afternoon. As you recall, the MOA is an effort between CSAC & RCRC to develop a strategy to help counties create a better working relationship with the USFS and the BLM. The statewide voluntary MOA outlines a structure under which counties and federal public land management agencies consent to communicate and work with one another. Staff is working to organize a signing ceremony of the MOA between all organizations. Stay tuned for more detailed information. 

The Committee and the CSAC Board of Directors also gave the approval for CSAC to join the Agricultural Flood Management Alliance (AFMA).The AFMA was formed as a coalition of local agencies, organizations, and individuals interested in protecting the long-term viability of agricultural communities, industries, and operations located in the regulatory floodplain. These communities have a significant historic cultural presence and play an integral role in the viability of agriculture locally, regionally, and nationally. The Alliance strongly supports the mission of FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to identify and mitigate flood risk and protect life and property in all floodplain communities. However, the Alliance is concerned that the current approach under the NFIP places a disproportionately impactful economic burden on agricultural communities in the mapping of Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA) which imposes highly restrictive flood protection regulations and establishes burdensome flood insurance rates. CSAC has extensive policy direction in place that recognizes the importance of agriculture and its contribution to the state’s economy. Participation in AFMA will provide CSAC with the opportunity to contribute to solution- oriented discussions, concerning the impacts of NFIP mapping requirements on agriculture, from a statewide perspective. For more information about this group, see the CSAC website. 

Energy

SB 1222 (Leno) – Oppose
As Amended May 25, 2012

SB 1222, by Senator Leno, is now in the Assembly awaiting Committee assignment. As previously reported, the Senate Appropriations Committee took amendments to the bill, allowing it to pass off the suspense file, that would allow local governments to charge reasonable costs to cover any state mandates associated with the bill. SB 1222 still caps the permit fee at $400 that local agencies are allowed to charge on rooftop solar installations. CSAC, along with the League of California Cities, the Regional Council of Rural Counties, the American Planning Association- California Chapter, the California Building Officials and the Urban Counties Caucus all oppose this bill because we do not believe it is the role of the state to undermine local decisions by setting the level of the fee in statue without regard to individual city or county costs. CSAC asks that counties that have taken an oppose position send their letters of opposition to the author.