BOARD AGENDA MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT:
Title
Operating Funds for Watershed Based Activities-Memorandum of Agreement between San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority and Santa Clara Valley Water District; and Budget Adjustment
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
A. Authorize the CEO to negotiate and execute a Memorandum of Agreement with the San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority (Authority) to provide operating funds towards the Authority's costs to fund activities that will directly benefit flood protection, watershed restoration and other related efforts in Santa Clara County, in addition to funding the remaining local share of the South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Project; and
B. Approve a budget adjustment in the amount of $1,500,000 to provide operating funds to the Authority.
Body
SUMMARY:
The San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority (Authority) is a regional agency with a Governing Board made up of local elected officials. Its purpose is to raise and allocate local resources for the restoration, enhancement, protection, and enjoyment of wetlands and wildlife habitat in San Francisco Bay and along its shoreline.
The Restoration Authority was created by the California Legislature in 2008 to find solutions to the need for new, local funding. The Legislature has given the Restoration Authority the unique capacity to raise funds from local sources throughout the Bay Area and the oversight capacity to ensure transparency and prevent waste. Its purpose is restoration, not regulation. The Restoration Authority does not duplicate the missions of other public agencies and private organizations working on Bay restoration; it is designed to deliver essential local funding to restoration and flood protection projects developed by others. While not funded by the State, it was given the power to raise and allocate resources.
The Authority is seeking to enter into an agreement with the District to provide operating funds that will allow for the ...
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