BOARD MEETING DATE: May 4, 2007
AGENDA NO. 26

PROPOSAL:

Provide Direction on SB 886 (Negrete-McLeod) Concerning Term Limits For Board Chair

SYNOPSIS:

SB 886 (Negrete-McLeod) seeks to eliminate the term limits for the Board Chairman of Mojave, Sacramento and South Coast Air Districts. South Bay Council of Governments (South Bay COG) has requested amendments to SB 886 which would add an additional seat to the AQMD Governing Board. At the April 20, 2007 Special Board meeting, staff was directed to return to the May 4, 2007 Board meeting for further direction on the South Bay COG request.

COMMITTEE:

Special Board Meeting, April 20, 2007, Discussed
Board Retreat, March 30, 2007, Discussed

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Provide direction to staff regarding terms to be included in SB 886 (Negrete-McLeod).

               OPTION A:  Reject all amendments to expand AQMD’s Governing Board, but
                                 amend SB 886 to include Malibu and Calabasas in the Western
                                 Cities Region of Los Angeles County.

               OPTION B:  Accept amendments to expand the Governing Board as outlined
                                below.

Barry R. Wallerstein, D. Env.
Executive Officer

Background

The Governing Board discussed AB 391 (Lieu) at length with representatives of the South Bay Council of Governments (South Bay COG) at both the March 30, 2007 Board Retreat and the April 6, 2007 Mobile Board meeting. In those discussions, Board Members expressed various views of support and opposition regarding an increase in Governing Board size. In the discussions, the Board Members discussed specific provisions that would be required before they would contemplate any agreement. However, before our Board would adopt a formal position, an official response from the South Bay COG and Assemblyman Lieu was requested. Consequently, the Board directed staff to continue discussions with the South Bay COG and the Assemblyman’s office and report back to the Board.

Staff continued discussions with the proponents of AB 391 and both the South Bay COG, and the Assemblyman agreed with terms discussed by Board Members at the Retreat. On April 11, 2007 Assemblyman Lieu withdrew his bill from the Assembly Committee on Local Government and Natural Resources.

At the Special Board meeting of April 20, 2007, the Board directed staff to return the item for further discussion and a vote expressing the position of the Board at the next regularly scheduled Board meeting of May 4, 2007.

Board Member Campbell expressed concerns about amending SB 886 to include the expansion of the Governing Board insofar as it would key the bill as fiscal and could present problems in Appropriations. Subsequently, staff inquired with the Appropriations Committee consultants who stated that the bill could be structured to avoid this problem. First, it could be positioned as a consensus bill. Second, standard language could be included that would state that “no reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution because . . . . .[AQMD] has the authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code.”

OPTION B:

• Create a separate seat on the SCAQMD Governing Board for the City of Los Angeles.
• That seat shall be appointed by the Mayor from among the members of the Los Angeles City Council (as per current process).
• Maintain separate western and eastern city regions within LA County, exclusive of the City of Los Angeles; request the League of Cities to propose a realignment that would more equally distribute population of the incorporated cities between the East and the West.
• Deem the current Los Angeles County Western Cities Representative as the appointment from the City of Los Angeles until the end of her current term.
• Allow the Los Angeles County Eastern Cities Representative to serve until the end of her term.
• No other additional seats on the AQMD Governing Board would be proposed or granted, nor would there be any other changes to Board composition.
• Assemblyman Lieu would withdraw his bill and instead, the above changes to state law would be placed into SB 886 (Negrete-McLeod), which also addresses term limits for the chairmanships of the Governing Boards for the Mojave, Sacramento and South Coast Air Districts. Assemblyman Lieu would agree to co-author SB 886 and serve as the lead when the bill crosses from the Senate into the Assembly.

Recommendation

Provide direction to staff regarding specific items to be included or excluded from SB 886 (Negrete-McLeod).