BOARD AGENDA MEMORANDUM
Government Code Section 84308 Applies: Yes ☐ No ☒
(If “YES” Complete Attachment A)
SUBJECT:
Title
Receive Santa Clara Valley Water District’s 2022 Government Relations Program Report and 2023 Legislative Outlook.
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
A. Receive information on the 2022 Valley Water government relations advocacy and stakeholder engagement program;
B. Receive 2023 legislative outlook from federal and state consultants; and
C. Provide input on current and future challenges, goals, and accomplishments since the last presentation to the Board of Directors.
Body
SUMMARY:
On an annual basis, staff presents the Board with updates on Santa Clara Valley Water District’s (Valley Water) government relations advocacy and stakeholder engagement program. The last update was presented on January 25, 2022.
BACKGROUND
The Office of Government Relations advocates at the local, regional, state, and federal levels to promote the water supply, flood protection, revenue enhancement, and environmental stewardship interests of Valley Water and the residents of Santa Clara County, in alignment with the Board’s legislative priorities. Consequently, Valley Water’s government relations program cultivates strategic relationships with a variety of policymaking bodies and advocacy stakeholders, including elected officials, regulatory agencies, administrative agencies, and key advocacy groups. In addition, Valley Water’s Board (Board) annually reviews and adopts legislative policy proposals and legislative guiding principles that form the foundation for Valley Water’s advocacy efforts. The 2023 Legislative Proposals and Guiding Principles adopted by the Board on December 13, 2022, are included as Attachment 1.
FEDERAL ADVOCACY AND STAKEHOLDER EFFORTS
The federal government operates on a long-term horizon, with bills introduced in one two-year congressional session and, if not enacted into law, requiring reintroduction in future sessions. Efforts at the federal level involve direct engagement and ongoing communication with Congress and executive agencies on legislative and regulatory matters affecting Valley Water’s projects and priorities. In addition to staff’s advocacy efforts, we also use Washington, D.C.-based consultants who have extensive experience and established relationships with policymakers and administration officials and work at the direction provided by Valley Water.
Federal Advocacy and Engagement
Staff meets with Valley Water’s congressional delegation in their local offices at least twice yearly and regularly communicates with their staff in Washington, D.C., to keep them informed of various projects and priorities. Staff also creates opportunities for the Board to dialogue directly with Members of Congress and other key federal officials on important policy issues, legislation, and regulatory concerns. After two years of closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic and security concerns stemming from the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, in 2022 many federal offices began to reopen to the public. While Valley Water continued its virtual advocacy with these offices throughout the year, in the fall we returned for our first in-person advocacy trip in nearly three years.
Washington, D.C. Advocacy Trips
Twice yearly, Valley Water Board Members lead a delegation on advocacy trips to Washington, D.C., to advance the Board’s and Valley Water’s federal projects and priorities. In 2022, Valley Water conducted one virtual advocacy trip in the spring and one in-person trip in the fall. In March 2022, Chair Pro Tem John Varela led the delegation in virtual meetings over three days with dozens of agency officials, Members of Congress, and key congressional committee staff. In September 2022, senior staff conducted an in-person advocacy trip over three days - the first such meeting since November 2019. Over the course of each set of meetings, the delegation spoke with Members of Congress and officials from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the White House Office of Management and Budget, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, among others. Both trips were a great success: the virtual spring meetings demonstrated Valley Water’s continued ability to effectively advocate via Zoom; the fall in-person meetings were a welcome return to in-person advocacy, communication, and relationship building.
Key Federal Legislation
In 2022, staff brought 10 federal bills to the Board for positions, listed in Attachment 2. With Board-approved authority, staff then actively educated our congressional delegation and advocated for the Board’s position on each bill, addressing water infrastructure funding, drought response and relief, sea level rise and climate change, water recycling, water quality, environmental justice, and regulatory streamlining, among other topics.
Federal Successes
2022 marked the second year of the Biden administration and the second session of the 117th Congress. Building on the legislative successes in 2021 that included passage of additional Covid-19 relief and an historic investment in our nation’s infrastructure, much of the federal government’s domestic focus in 2022 centered on implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and passage of legislation to address rising inflation.
While much of this year involved advocacy for new programs created under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, including the large-scale water recycling program that will be rolled out in 2023, below are two key legislative accomplishments in 2022 for which Valley Water advocated and that benefit Santa Clara County residents.
1. Passage of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2022: This water resources legislation includes policy direction for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). Valley Water worked closely with Congressional Members and staff in 2021 to get language in WRDA that would resolve one of two key barriers to securing additional federal funding for the South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Phase I Project. Valley Water secured several letters of support from local elected officials and state legislators for passage of the bill. The language is intended to accomplish two things:
a. Restore the project’s original cost share between the federal government and the local sponsor, essentially annulling the Contributed Funds Agreement that put the increased funding burden on Valley Water.
b. Prevent any stalling or termination of construction on Reaches 1-3 if there are sufficient funds for those reaches left in the BBA 2018. At this time, there are sufficient funds remaining to complete these reaches.
2. Appropriations Bill Included Language Increasing BBA Funding
In the FY23 Omnibus Appropriations Bill that Congress passed in late December, Congress provided $350 million that projects funded under BBA 2018, such as the Shoreline Phase I Project, can access. Staff aggressively advocated for a legislative fix that would allow the Corps to comingle funds for BBA 2018-funded projects, but Congress instead simply provided additional funding for these projects. Staff is now advocating for the Shoreline Phase I Project to receive some of these funds.
STATE ADVOCACY AND STAKEHOLDER EFFORTS
Our work in Sacramento involves protecting Valley Water’s interests and advocating on state legislative, regulatory, and budgetary items. Staff routinely meets with members of the State Legislature, the Office of the Governor, and key agencies on legislative and regulatory issues. Staff also utilizes consultants with an extensive network of established relationships with policymakers to assist in the advancement of Valley Water’s interests at the State Capitol. Staff typically reviews thousands of bills and numerous regulatory proposals for impacts on Valley Water; consults with Valley Water staff regarding significant policy issues; brings legislation before the Board for consideration of positions; and educates officials about Valley Water’s positions, funding priorities, and concerns, engaging them for advocacy in support of Valley Water’s interests.
State Advocacy and Engagement
Once the Board approves a legislative position, staff advocates for Valley Water’s position with the members and staff of the Legislature, the Office of the Governor, regulatory agencies, and other stakeholders. Advocacy for state budget appropriations and state grants for Valley Water projects are strategically pursued to maximize funding opportunities. Staff also monitors and engages on regulatory issues as needed to advance Valley Water’s interests.
Sacramento Legislative Days at the Capitol
The Office of Government Relations coordinated the annual series of State Legislative Days for Valley Water Board Members on May 17-18, consisting of 22 virtual meetings. Director Estremera, Director Hsueh, and Director Santos participated and led senior staff in specific meetings with state legislators, their staffs, and Newsom Administration officials on several priority issues, including the drought, human health and safety allocations from the State Water Project, and water transfers, as well as expediting water supply and flood risk reduction projects, the Voluntary Agreements, State Budget funding priorities for the Anderson Dam Spillway and the South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Project, dam safety, recycled water, and flood protection. One of the key outcomes of the Newsom Administration discussions was a request for Valley Water’s suggestions on how the state can expedite water supply projects for delivery by 2030. Many of Valley Water’s subsequent suggestions were incorporated into Governor Newsom’s Water Supply Strategy released in August.
State Regulatory Efforts
In 2022 there were several regulatory issues of importance to Valley Water, including engaging with the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Board) on the Municipal Regional Permit for the San Francisco Bay Area (MRP 3.0) where staff engaged with key stakeholders to address several concerns regarding regulations affecting our facilities. Staff also engaged with the Regional Board on the update to the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay Basin (Basin Plan) to include considerations of climate change, urging flexibility in the application of the “No Net Loss of Wetlands” policy to encourage wetland enhancement projects. Staff also commented on the Delta Stewardship Council’s consideration of amendments to the Delta Plan, thanking them for the considerable improvements that were being made while urging a balancing of the coequal goals of water supply reliability and environmental protection of the Delta required by the Delta Reform Act of 2009. Grant guidelines issued by the State Coastal Conservancy and the Department of Water Resources were reviewed and changes were requested to increase Valley Water project eligibility. In all these proceedings, Government Relations staff coordinated internal staff review, consolidated comments into a coherent message, sought final approval from senior management, and formally submitted the comments. When warranted, staff facilitated meetings and presentations of Valley Water’s positions, often testifying in public hearings.
State Legislation
In 2022, staff tracked 309 state bills of interest to Valley Water and brought 24 bills to the Board for formal positions that are listed in Attachment 2. Staff then advocated for the Board-approved positions with the Legislature. Nine bills supported by the Board became law including a tax exemption for turf replacement rebates, product bans related to mercury and PFAS contamination, water rights process improvements, progressive design-build procurement, and the decoupling of water sales and water revenue to further incentivize water conservation efforts at for-profit water retailers.
State Successes
In 2022, Valley Water’s top state-level successes were:
1. Restored Millions in Prop 1E Flood Subventions Funding
Led an advocacy coalition to extend the funds liquidation sunset date until June 30, 2028, for $149 million in Proposition 1E funding that was set to expire on June 30, 2023. Thirty percent of the funding is set to benefit Valley Water flood protection projects. The sunset extension was included in AB 178 (Ting) which was signed into law on June 30, 2022.
2. Secured Grant Funding
• Cross Valley Pipeline Extension - Advocated for drought response funding in the FY 2021-22 State Budget, assisted in the strategic drafting of the application for the Department of Water Resources (DWR) Urban and Multi-benefit Drought Relief Program grant. After the grant was denied, advocated with DWR to reconsider, and ultimately the Cross Valley Pipeline Extension Project was awarded $5.8 million in June 2022.
• Inflation Adjustment for Pacheco Reservoir Expansion Project - Advocated for an inflation adjustment provided on March 16, 2022, from the Water Storage Investment Program which led to an additional $7.5 million for the Pacheco Project, bringing the total funding award to $504.1 million.
3. Sea Level Rise Funding
Working in coalition with business and environmental groups, Valley Water was a leading advocate for sea level rise funding. Staff successfully secured funding in the FY 2022-23 State Budget, including $390 million for the State Coastal Conservancy, of which $30 million was appropriated for the San Francisco Bay Program for nature-based sea level rise solutions.
LOCAL/REGIONAL ADVOCACY AND ENGAGEMENT
Similar to the work at the federal and state levels, Valley Water’s local and regional government relations programs involve direct engagement and communication with elected and appointed officials in all 15 cities of Santa Clara County, the County Board of Supervisors, both open space agencies, and the San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority. The local and regional government relations staff also proactively engages with the field staff for the 11 members of the state legislative delegation, as well as with key advocacy stakeholders including business, civic, environmental, and diversity organizations. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many community engagement events that Valley Water traditionally attends and supports remained hosted in virtual or hybrid settings, while some returned to in-person events, and staff continued to ensure Valley Water’s presence.
2022 Local and Regional Successes
In 2022, Valley Water had many local and regional successes that advanced Valley Water’s interests and Board priorities. Highlights include:
1. Collaboration with Municipalities on Drought Emergency
Since the Board’s June 9, 2021 declaration of a Water Shortage Emergency Condition, staff continued to proactively engage municipalities to join Valley Water in underscoring the seriousness of our region’s water supply condition. Following the Board’s adoption of Board Resolution 22-20, which amended Board Resolution 21-68, staff focused on working with cities and the County to implement additional water-use restrictions and advocated for further water conservation measures to help meet Valley Water’s water use reduction goal. To date, 14 cities in Santa Clara County have implemented a maximum one or two-day irrigation schedule, including five cities that have taken additional formal action to their elected bodies in response to the ongoing drought emergency and Amended Board Resolution 22-20. In 2022, staff also completed outreach to the County and all 15 cities to encourage their consideration and adoption of all or parts of the Model Water Efficient New Development Ordinance (MWENDO), which would ensure new developments meet strong water efficiency standards. Valley Water staff continues to monitor actions and provide staff support to municipalities as part of ongoing efforts to support cities’ and the County’s interests in expanding water efficiency measures. Currently, the County and several cities are considering select MWENDO measures to include as part of their jurisdictions’ updated building code.
2. Annual Valley Water Summit Held
On August 26, 2022, Valley Water convened a diverse cross-section of elected officials, business leaders, agricultural leaders, and environmental advocates from throughout Silicon Valley at the 2022 Water Summit to discuss our current water supply challenges and how we can partner together to address the drought and worsening climate change impacts. The Water Summit featured a recorded keynote address from Senator Alex Padilla, presentations from Valley Water subject matter experts and partners in sustainability, and an expert panel discussion on how we can collaboratively work together to become more climate resilient. Valley Water subject matter experts presented on drought challenges due to climate change, actions taken in response to the drought, and strategies for a sustainable water supply into the future, as well as shared information on water conservation rebates and resources that can be used to help our communities get through the drought emergency.
3. Conducted Advocacy Tours and Annual VIP Water Walk Tour
Staff advanced Valley Water projects and priorities with elected officials, regulatory agency representatives, and advocacy stakeholders by conducting and organizing advocacy tours of key water supply, flood protection, and environmental restoration projects. Staff coordinated and participated in tours for the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project, South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Project, Upper Guadalupe River Flood Protection Project, Rinconada Water Treatment Plant, and Silicon Valley Advanced Water Purification Center.
On October 14, Valley Water hosted elected officials, staff, and key advocacy stakeholders from the public, non-profit, and private sectors on the Annual VIP Water Walk Tour of our critical water infrastructure projects to educate and engage them on the projects' benefits and advocate for funding and legislative needs. The VIP Water Walk tour was held in person after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, and featured visits to Anderson Dam, Alamitos Groundwater Recharge Ponds, the Upper Guadalupe River Flood Protection and South San Francisco Shoreline Projects, and the Silicon Valley Advanced Water Purification Center.
4. Participated in Community Events
Staff educated, engaged, and bolstered support for Valley Water priorities with communities across Santa Clara County by participating in 38 community events, where Valley Water highlighted water conservation, purified and recycled water, and community-specific projects. Most organizations continued to host online experiences that allowed Valley Water the opportunity to participate through virtual events.
5. Sponsored Community Events with Valley Water Nexus
Staff supported Valley Water’s and the Board’s presence at a variety of civic, business, diversity and inclusion, and professional events by sponsoring 58 conferences, symposia, science fairs, and other events that had a nexus to and advanced Valley Water’s mission, vision, and goals.
2023 LEGISLATIVE OUTLOOK
The mid-term elections in November yielded some key changes to the makeup of the 118th Congress, including how Santa Clara County is represented. The U.S. House of Representatives now has a new Republican Majority of 222-213 and, along with it, a new Speaker (Kevin McCarthy, Bakersfield) and new committee leadership. In the U.S. Senate, Democrats retain control and picked up one seat for a 51-49 Majority. With a divided government in 2023, it will be critical for both parties to find common ground and compromise in order to pass legislation that can be signed by the president.
Santa Clara County will continue to be represented by the same Members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, but the congressional district boundaries have changed as a result of redistricting. The largest changes will occur in San José, where all four Members will now represent a piece of the city. The districts will be as follows:
• Anna Eshoo, 16th District - Formerly the 18th District, Rep. Eshoo’s new district contains some of San José, including a portion of Coyote Creek; Campbell and Palo Alto; and it extends north along the coast to Pacifica.
• Ro Khanna, 17th District - This district largely remains the same, but it gains Norman Mineta San José International Airport.
• Zoe Lofgren, 18th District - Formerly the 19th District, Rep. Lofgren’s new district includes downtown and Alum Rock in San José, Morgan Hill and Gilroy, and it extends south to include Watsonville, Salinas, and all the way south of King City. The district will now split Anderson Dam and Reservoir with the 20th District (Rep. Panetta).
• Jimmy Panetta, 19th District - Formerly the 20th District, Rep. Panetta’s new district includes South San José and the Evergreen neighborhood, Santa Cruz, and it extends all the way down to Paso Robles. While the district no longer includes Gilroy, it now includes half of Anderson Dam and Reservoir.
Despite the divided government over the next two years, Valley Water’s federal advocacy efforts will continue to be robust and aggressive, building upon our 2022 accomplishments. We will continue to advocate for a legislative fix to the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 that will allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to spend additional dollars to complete the Shoreline Phase I Project. Staff will also focus on implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, particularly rollout of the new grant program for large-scale water recycling projects. Valley Water has already engaged with the administration to shape this new program in a way that will benefit Valley Water’s Purified Water Project.
At the state level, with Gavin Newsom re-elected as Governor and a Democratic supermajority in both the Senate and Assembly, staff is looking forward to a productive year. Santa Clara County has two new state legislators:
• Aisha Wahab, 10th Senate District - This district was previously represented by Bob Wieckowski and includes Sunnyvale, parts of San José, Milpitas, and stretches north to Hayward.
• Gail Pellerin, 28th Assembly District - Formerly the 29th Assembly District represented by Mark Stone, the new district includes Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, and parts of San José and stretches west to Santa Cruz.
Key efforts at the state level will include advancing the legislative proposals approved by the Board and advocating for funding in the FY 2023-24 State Budget for local assistance grants for dam safety improvements, direct potable reuse water recycling projects, and other Board priorities. Valley Water’s state advocacy efforts, as well as our local/regional engagement activities, also will continue to be vigorous and build upon our 2022 successes so that the Board’s priorities and Valley Water’s interests are protected and advanced at all levels.
On the local level, voters elected 26 new representatives across 15 city and town councils, as well as special districts and the County Board of Supervisors. Valley Water’s local government team will engage these representatives and those re-elected in areas of mutual interest and strengthen municipal partnerships. Staff will continue to develop and implement ongoing strategic outreach programs by engaging and providing information to elected officials, businesses, environmental organizations, and community leaders; represent Valley Water and make presentations to various boards, commissions, committees, city councils, and outside agencies; and help drive the success of Valley Water’s legislative, policy, and funding initiatives at the local, state, and federal level. Areas of focus for 2023 will include continued support for water conservation and drought awareness, including ongoing countywide advocacy for MWENDO and Valley Water’s capital projects (with a continued focus on the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project), as well as drought-related outreach should the drought stretch into a fourth year.
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE IMPACT:
There are no Environmental Justice impacts associated with this item.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
There is no financial impact associated with this item.
CEQA:
The recommended action does not constitute a project under CEQA because it does not have the potential for resulting in direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: 2023 Legislative Policy Proposals and Guiding Principles
Attachment 2: Key Legislation in 2022
UNCLASSIFIED MANAGER:
Manager
Marta Lugo, 408-630-2237