BILL NUMBER: SB 792 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 10, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Senator DeSaulnier
FEBRUARY 22, 2013
An act to add Sections 66537, 66537.1, 66537.2, 66537.3, 66537.4,
66537.5, and 66537.6 , and 66537.7 to
the Government Code, relating to planning.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 792, as amended, DeSaulnier. Regional entities: Bay Area.
Existing law creates the Metropolitan Transportation Commission,
the Bay Area Toll Authority, the Bay Area Air Quality Management
District, and the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development
Commission, with various powers and duties relative to all or a
portion of the 9-county San Francisco Bay Area region with respect to
transportation, air quality, and environmental planning, as
specified. Another regional entity, the Association of Bay Area
Governments, is created as a joint powers agency comprised of cities
and counties under existing law with regional planning
responsibilities. Existing law provides for a joint policy committee
of certain regional entities in this 9-county area to collaborate on
regional coordination. Existing law requires regional transportation
planning agencies, as part of the regional transportation plan in
urban areas, to develop a sustainable communities strategy pursuant
to Senate Bill 375 of the 2007-08 Regular Session coordinating
transportation, land use, and air quality planning, with specified
objectives.
This bill would require the joint policy committee to prepare a
regional organization plan for the affected regional entities. The
regional organization plan would include a plan for
integrating, by July 1, 2016, certain major planning documents of the
individual entities into a comprehensive regional plan that also
addresses other specified goals, and a plan for consolidating
certain functions that are common to the regional entities
and reducing overhead costs . The regional
organization plan would also include a statement relative
to the expected reduction of overhead, operation, and management
costs. The bill would require the joint policy committee to
ensure public participation in the development and adoption of
the plan, to hold at least one public hearing in each county of
the region , and to adopt a final plan by June 30, 2015.
The bill would also require the joint policy committee to develop and
adopt public and community outreach and inclusive
public participation programs and to maintain an Internet Web
site. The bill would also require the joint policy committee to
appoint an advisory committee on economic competitiveness with
specified members from the business community and other organizations
to adopt goals and policies related to the inclusion of economic
development opportunities in the plans of the regional entities.
The bill would require the joint policy committee , until
a comprehensive regional plan is adopted, to conduct a review
of the major planning documents and associated
policies , and plans, and associated regulations,
regulations of each regional entity, including
an assessment of the consistency of the documents,
policies, plans, and regulations among the regional entities
with each other, with the requirements of
Senate Bill 375 of the 2007-08 Regular Session , and
with the goals and policies adopted by the advisory committee on
economic competitiveness . The bill would provide that
the joint policy committee shall be responsible for ensuring that
the sustainable communities strategy for the region integrates
transportation, land use, and air quality management consistent with
that legislation. The bill would also require the joint policy
committee to appoint an advisory committee on economic
competitiveness with specified members from the business community to
adopt goals and policies related to the inclusion of economic
development opportunities in the plans of the regional entities.
The bill would require the joint policy committee to
issue a consistency report describing the findings of each review and
to hold hearings in that regard, and would require the applicable
regional entity to consider the findings. The bill would
require all cost savings derived from implementation of the regional
organization plan to be directed to the joint policy committee's
general fund. By imposing new duties on the joint policy
committee, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The bill would require the Legislative Analyst's Office to analyze
voting power disparities based on population, race, and ethnicity
relative to the voting power of each city and county on the governing
board of each of the regional agencies, and to report to the
Legislature by July 1, 2014, as specified.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 66537 is added to the Government Code, to read:
66537. For purposes of Sections 66537.1 to 66537.5
66537.7 , inclusive, the following definitions
shall apply:
(a) "Region" means the area encompassed by the Counties of
Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa
Clara, Solano, and Sonoma.
(b) "Regional entities" means the Metropolitan Transportation
Commission, including any joint exercise of powers agencies that
include the commission as a member agency; the Bay Area Toll
Authority; the Bay Area Air Quality Management District; the San
Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission; and the
Association of Bay Area Governments.
SEC. 2. Section 66537.1 is added to the Government Code, to read:
66537.1. (a) The joint policy committee created pursuant to
subdivision (d) of Section 66536 shall prepare a regional
organization plan . The joint policy committee shall adopt
goals and policies to govern the preparation of the plan. Among the
goals shall be a statement as to the expected reduction in the cost
of overhead and in the operation and management of the regional
entities. All cost saving shall be directed to the joint policy
committee's general fund. In addition, goals shall be adopted for
integrating the regional planning requirements for the regional plans
of each regional entity into a comprehensive regional plan.
that includes all of the following:
(1) A plan for integrating, by July 1, 2016, the major planning
documents described in subdivision (c) of Section 66536.1 into a
comprehensive regional plan that also addresses priority
infrastructure needs, the goals and policies related to economic
development opportunities adopted pursuant to subdivision (b) of
Section 66537.6, and social equity goals to ensure that people of all
income levels, races, and ethnicities share fairly in the benefits
and burdens associated with the comprehensive regional plan and its
implementation.
(b) The regional organization plan shall include a
(2) A plan for consolidating the
functions that are common to the regional entities, including, but
not limited to, personnel and human resources, budget and financial
services, electronic data and communications systems, legal services,
contracting and procurement of goods and services, public
information and outreach services, intergovernmental relations,
transportation, land use, economic, and related forecasting models,
and other related activities. Consideration shall be given to
ensuring that there are common personnel classifications where
appropriate among the regional entities, and the consolidation of
other functions or activities, as deemed feasible, that will further
the mission of the joint policy committee and will reduce redundancy.
The plan shall be updated as determined by the joint policy
committee also include a statement as to the expected
reduction in the cost of overhead and in the cost of operation and
management of the regional entities .
(c)
(b) On or before December 31, 2014, the staff shall
submit to the joint policy committee a draft regional organization
plan. The joint policy committee shall ensure early, continuous,
and inclusive public participation in the development and adoption
of the regional organization plan and shall hold at least one
public hearing in each county of the region to receive public comment
on the draft plan . A final plan shall thereafter be
adopted for implementation on or before June 30, 2015.
(c) All cost savings derived from implementation of the regional
organization plan shall be directed to the joint policy committee's
general fund.
SEC. 3. Section 66537.2 is added to the Government Code, to read:
66537.2. The joint policy committee shall develop and adopt
public and community outreach and inclusive public participation
policies to govern the scheduling of
development and adoption of the regional organization plan as well as
regular joint policy committee meetings,
meetings. These policies shall also govern the meetings of
regional entities, the meetings of standing committees, and meetings
of ad hoc or other temporary committees. In developing the policies,
the joint policy committee shall ensure that outreach programs
will are inclusive of limited
-English -proficient populations, and utilize all
available communication technologies, including webcasting and social
media, print, radio, and television. The joint policy committee
shall also establish policies for the holding workshops of the joint
policy committee and the regional entities in the cities and counties
of the region. The joint policy committee shall provide an
opportunity for the public to comment on the draft and the final
recommended policies. The policies shall be adopted on or before
October 31, 2014.
SEC. 4. Section 66537.3 is added to the Government Code, to read:
66537.3. The joint policy committee shall maintain an Internet
Web site containing relevant information pertaining to the joint
policy committee's activities.
SEC. 5. Section 66537.4 is added to the Government Code, to read:
66537.4. The joint policy committee shall be subject to the Ralph
M. Brown Act (Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 54950) of Part 1 of
Division 2 of Title 5).
SEC. 6. Section 66537.5 is added to the Government Code, to read:
66537.5. (a) Beginning on January 1, 2014,
Until the joint policy committee adopts a comprehensive regional
plan as described in Section 66537.1, the joint policy
committee shall review the policies and plans, and
associated regulations, of each regional entity. The
both the draft and ado pted versions of both of the
following:
(1) Major planning documents described in subdivision (c) of
Section 66536.1.
(2) Policies, plans, and regulations of each regional entity
associated with the major planning documents.
(b) The review shall include an
assessment of the consistency of the planning documents,
policies, plans, and regulations among the regional entities
with each other, with the requirements of Senate
Bill 375 of the 2007-08 Regular Session , and with the goals
and policies related to economic development opportunities adopted
pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 66537.6 . The joint
policy committee shall issue a consistency report describing the
findings of this each review. The joint
policy committee shall hold public and community hearings in
accordance with its public outreach policies regarding the draft
consistency findings. The findings of the
each consistency review shall be used in fulfilling
the joint policy committee's regional planning responsibilities
considered by the applicable regional entity in
connection with any proposed amendment to a planning document,
policy, plan, or regulation .
(b) The joint policy committee shall be responsible for ensuring
that the sustainable communities strategy for the region integrates
transportation, land use, and air quality management consistent with
the requirements of Senate Bill 375 of the 2007-08 Regular Session.
SEC. 7. Section 66537.6 is added to the Government Code, to read:
66537.6. (a) The joint policy committee shall appoint an advisory
committee on economic competitiveness with members from the business
community, including representatives of small businesses ,
and the technology and manufacturing sectors,
community colleges, public and private universities, labor, local
governments, community organizations with an interest in
expanding economic opportunity for low-income populations and
communities, and other organizations involved with the private
economy.
(b) The joint policy committee, in consultation with the advisory
committee, shall adopt goals and policies related to the inclusion of
economic development opportunities in the plans of the regional
entities and the comprehensive regional plan . The goals
and policies shall also promote amenities that are special to the
region and contribute to the region's quality of life. Social
equity goals and considerations shall be integrated throughout to
ensure that low-income populations and populations of color share
fairly in the benefits and burdens of the economic development goals
and policies and their implementation.
SEC. 8. Section 66537.7 is added to the
Government Code , to read:
66537.7. On or before July 1, 2014, the Legislative Analyst's
Office shall analyze and report to the Legislature on the voting
power that each city and county in the region has on the governing
board of each of the regional entities, including an analysis of any
voting power disparities based on population, race, and ethnicity.
The analysis shall utilize appropriate metrics, such as votes per
million in population. The report to the Legislature shall include
recommended changes to regional entity governance and voting,
including any recommended legislation, that would lessen disparities,
if any, to insignificant levels.
SEC. 8. SEC. 9. If the Commission
on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by
the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for
those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section
17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.