September 14, 2012
On Monday, Sept. 4, following the final night of the 2011-12 legislative session on Friday, Aug. 30, the League published a comprehensive list of bills of interest to cities which were passed by the Legislature and sent to Gov. Jerry Brown for action. City officials are still encouraged to immediately send request for signature or veto letters as indicated below, as the Governor could take action at any time before his Sept. 30 deadline.
August 30, 2012
This year the League has been tracking a number of major bills which affect cities as reflected in its updated Aug. 10 Major Bills List. This week, the League also published a list of gut and amends that affect cities. The following actions have occurred for the bills the League is tracking.
August 27, 2012
The last week of session is typically filled with last minute gut and amends. This year is no different. The following bills are still being analyzed by League staff for potential impacts to cities.
August 10, 2012
The Los Angeles Times editorial “New cities? Not now”, which ran on Aug. 3, grossly misunderstood the context and state laws that dictate the dispersal of vehicle license fee (VLF) dollars to established and newly incorporated cities.
July 27, 2012
CaliforniaCityFinance.com has posted new city-by-city and county-by-county revenue motor vehicle excise fuel tax, or Highway Users Tax Account (HUTA), estimates for FY 2011-12 and FY 2012-13.
July 6, 2012
This week the Legislature indicated it would take up a number of significant items before taking its summer recess, which starts Monday, July 9. The following actions were taken.
July 3, 2012
Today, League-opposed hot bill AB 904 (Skinner), which would have prescribed a one-size-fits-all parking standard for most infill projects on a statewide basis, was pulled from the Senate Governance and Finance Committee by the author when it appeared that the bill lacked the votes.
July 3, 2012
AB 2231 (Fuentes) and AB 1706 (Eng) were heard in the Senate today.
June 29, 2012
The League revised its major bills list this week. The following list represents the bills that League staff is following closely.
June 29, 2012
This week, AB 1706 (Eng), which would increase the weight limit for buses, was substantially amended. The bill is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee next Tuesday.
June 29, 2012
The Conference Committee announced an agreement on a 27-month transportation authorization that would fund transportation at existing levels, adjusted for inflation.
June 22, 2012
On June 12, Assembly Member Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) gutted and amended AB 904 to revive last year’s parking bill, AB 710 (Skinner), which was strongly opposed by the League. AB 904, sponsored by the California Infill Builders Association fails to address the League’s concerns from last year’s AB 710, and it also could discourage the development of new affordable housing. For more details on AB 904, please see “Last Year’s Parking Bill AB 710 Resurrected in AB 904.”
June 22, 2012
In anticipation of the expiration of the current extension of the Federal Transportation Authorization on June 30, negotiations on a new, long-term authorization went into overdrive this week.
June 22, 2012
The National League of Cities recently announced the release of two new Municipal Action Guides from its Center for Research & Innovation. These guides may be useful to city officials dealing with infrastructure and housing and community development issues.
June 15, 2012
On Tuesday, AB 904 (Skinner) was gutted and amended from an energy bill into a revival of last year’s parking bill, AB 710 (Skinner).
June 8, 2012
While much of the attention in the next week will be focused on the state budget, there are also a number of other important items of which cities should watch.
May 14, 2012
Gov. Jerry Brown released his revised FY 2012-13 Budget today, reflecting an increased deficit of $15.7 billion, up from his January projection of $9.2 billion. The budget shortfall is attributed to overly optimistic revenue forecasts, increased Proposition 98 spending and federal court rulings blocking several budget cuts.
May 7, 2012
SB 1330 (Simitian), a bill which would limit license plate recognition (LPR) data retention, could be voted on as early as Thursday on the Senate floor.
April 27, 2012
This week, Senate and House leadership released the names of conference committee members who will tackle the difficult task of negotiating a long term transportation authorization.
April 24, 2012
The League revised its major bills list this week. The following list represents the bills that League staff is following closely.