BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 141 SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: ammiano VERSION: 7/2/14 Analysis by: Carrie Cornwell FISCAL: NO Hearing date: August 5, 2014 URGENCY: YES SUBJECT: Treasure Island Transportation Management Act DESCRIPTION: This bill separates legally the Treasure Island Mobility Management Agency from the San Francisco County Transportation Authority for the purposes of implementing the Treasure Island transportation program. ANALYSIS: Treasure Island is located in San Francisco Bay, midway between San Francisco and Oakland, and is within the city and county of San Francisco. It was built between 1937 and 1939 as an addition to the existing, natural Yerba Buena Island and as the site of the 1939 and 1940 Golden Gate International Exposition. In 1941, the Navy began leasing Treasure Island. In 1993, the federal Base Realignment and Closure Commission listed Treasure Island for shutdown. The naval base on the island officially closed on September 30, 1997. In April 1997, the Board of Supervisors of the city and county of San Francisco created the Treasure Island Development Authority (TIDA) to develop and implement a reuse plan for Treasure Island. AB 699 (Migden), Chapter 898, Statutes of 1997, permitted the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to designate TIDA as a redevelopment agency and invest it with the powers in California's Community Redevelopment Law. AB 699 removed Treasure Island from the jurisdiction of the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and the San Francisco Port Commission and turned those powers over to a single-purpose entity (TIDA). AB 981 (Leno), Chapter 317, Statutes of 2008, provides for a transportation program for Treasure Island and Yerba Buena AB 141 (AMMIANO) Page 2 Island (together called Treasure Island in state law), including authorizing tolls to vary with traffic conditions and to be paid by drivers of motor vehicles entering and exiting Treasure Island from the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. AB 981 authorizes the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, based on TIDA's recommendation, to designate a board or agency, including possibly itself, to adopt and implement a comprehensive transportation program for Treasure Island that will encourage public transit and bicycle, pedestrian, and waterborne modes of transportation and minimize the impact of Treasure Island development on traffic on and around the Bay Bridge. On April 1, 2014, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors designated the San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA) as the transportation management agency for Treasure Island. The SFCTA is the long-range transportation planning for the city and county, and it analyzes, designs, and funds improvements for San Francisco's roadways and public transportation networks. Its 11-member board consists of the 11 members of the San Francisco County Board of Supervisors. AB 981 grants the transportation management agency extensive powers to implement the transportation program for Treasure Island, including the power to: Administer and collect the congestion pricing fees Regulate on- and off-street parking, including adopting and collecting parking fees, fines, and penalties Adopt and collect transit pass fees from residents and other users of Treasure Island Undertake studies, evaluations, and other mechanisms to adopt and amend the transportation program and to recommend fees with the purpose of relieving transportation-related impacts Use fee revenues for operation, maintenance, construction, collection and enforcement, and administration of the transportation program Enter into contracts and agreements with governmental agencies and private parties as necessary and proper to implement its transportation program, including construction and maintenance of transportation facilities, transit operations, and traffic impact mitigation measures This bill : AB 141 (AMMIANO) Page 3 1.Allows the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to revise or revoke its designation of an entity to serve as the transportation management agency at any time. 2.Renames the transportation management agency for Treasure Island as the "Treasure Island Mobility Management Agency" (TIMMA). 3.Provides that the transportation management agency is an independent and autonomous public agency governed by the board of the SFCTA, as designated by the board of supervisors on April 1, 2014, or by a body the board of supervisors designates in the future. 4.Affirms that the transportation management agency is a separate and distinct legal entity that is responsible for its own obligations, debts, and liabilities. 5.Authorizes the transportation management agency under its own name to do all acts necessary or convenient to exercise its designated powers and financing of projects, including to: Employ agents or employees Acquire, construct, manage, maintain, lease, or operate any public facility or improvements Sue and be sued Invest any money not required for the immediate necessity of the agency 1.Requires the transportation management agency to adopt an annual budget and to compensate its board members, including reimbursing them for costs they incur while performing their duties. 2.Authorizes the SFCTA to make direct contributions or contributions on a reimbursement-for-costs basis to the transportation management agency for costs the agency incurs in implementing the transportation program for Treasure Island. 3.Is an urgency measure. COMMENTS: 1.Purpose . The San Francisco Board of Supervisors endorsed a development plan for Treasure Island in December 2006, after AB 141 (AMMIANO) Page 4 an exhaustive planning process involving the Treasure Island Citizen's Advisory Board, TIDA, and other public forums. The plan calls for 8,000 homes, 500 hotel rooms, and 550,000 square feet of office and retail uses. One of the major constraints to the development plan, however, is limited access to Treasure Island, because a single auto route, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, connects it to the rest of San Francisco. To address this constraint, AB 981 (Leno) of 2008 established a scheme to provide a comprehensive transportation program for Treasure Island, including roadway and transit capital improvements and operating subsidies, that could be put in place and managed over time. On April 1 of this year, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors designated the SFCTA to manage the transportation program on Treasure Island. Proponents of this bill anticipate that the Treasure Island transportation management agency will initiate major financial commitments for long-term contracts beginning early next year. They are endorsing this legislation in order to shield the local transportation sales tax and other revenues from any liabilities of TIMMA. This bill establishes what they describe as a highly desirable firewall to provide the necessary protection for the SFCTA and its revenue. 2.Precedent . Other examples exist where state law establishes legally distinct entities that have the same board of directors to manage separate transportation programs. For example, in 2003, SB 916 (Perata), Chapter 715, made the Bay Area Toll Authority legally distinct from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, despite having the same board, for purposes of managing the Bay Area toll bridges. 3.New bill . The Transportation and Housing Committee heard this bill last year when it had a different author and related to a different subject. Last month, this bill was gutted and amended to include the current language. As a result, this is the first hearing for the current content of the bill. 4.Technical amendments . On page 3, lines 20-21, delete "Sections 1967.3 and 1967.5" and insert "Section 1967.3" On page 6, line 28, delete "1967.4" and insert "1967.3" AB 141 (AMMIANO) Page 5 Assembly Votes are not relevant POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on Wednesday, July 30, 2014.) SUPPORT: San Francisco County Transportation Authority (sponsor) Hon. Edwin Lee, Mayor of San Francisco Treasure Island Development Authority OPPOSED: None received.