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| March 20, 2015 Issue #27 Editor's NoteFor a PDF copy of the newsletter please visit the League's website. For more updates from the League, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.City of Bell – Lessons LearnedWriting in The Sacramento Bee, Joe Matthews of Zócalo Public Square commends the city of Bell’s remarkable transformation and examines how state restrictions on local government can lead to municipal corruption. Matthews says local government needs the ability to raise taxes and revenues, which motivate citizens to pay attention to how their local government operates. “So to truly reform local governance, Californians must first recognize a paradox: Preventing local officials from behaving like those in Bell requires giving more discretion and freedom to local officials.” For the full piece, please see “We need to learn the right lessons from Bell to prevent corruption,” The Sacramento Bee, March 18, 2015.Open Government WATER: What Cities Need to Know about the Governor’s Emergency Drought Relief PackageGov. Jerry Brown and Legislative leaders on Thursday announced a $1 billion emergency drought relief spending package that will accelerate the release of much need funding. Of particular note to cities, the package includes $267 million for water recycling and drinking water quality projects and programs; $19.9 million for emergency drinking water; and $24 million for local food assistance programs.Water California City Solutions: Cathedral City’s Waste Curbed with Myriad of Recycling ChoicesThis story is part of an ongoing series featuring Helen Putnam Award entries. The 2014 entries are available on the League’s website as a resource for cities in a searchable database called California City Solutions. Cathedral City’s Waste Management Program was submitted in 2014 for the Planning and Environmental Quality award category.Helen Putnam, California City Solutions, Environmental Quality Loan Applications Due Soon for Veterans’ Housing ProgramApplications are due April 20 for $75 million in Veterans Housing and Homelessness Prevention Program loans. These will mark the first installment of about $545 million in Proposition 41 funding set to be lent out over 15 years.Housing Upcoming Legislative Hearings of Interest March 24-April 22The League’s lobbying team continues to review the flood of bills introduced before the Feb. 27 deadline, determining which of them may be of significant interest to cities. As the Legislature begins to assign legislation to policy committees, it is also holding a number of oversight and informational hearings on policy areas of interest to cities. In the coming weeks, the League will issue its first Priority Bills list.Legislative Hearings, Assembly, Senate |
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