Sacramento cannot take money with one hand and force unfunded, mandated spending with the other.

The Honorable Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
Office of the Governor
State Capital Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger,

It was a pleasure to meet with you on May 12, 2009 in San Jose as you described the news of the May Budget Revise. The news was sobering and, speaking for the elected officials in the room, it was also alarming.

The reality of California enacting its authority under Prop 1A (2004) to borrow funds from local government is terrifying. For San Carlos and our $30M general fund, the loss of a projected $1M in property tax revenue will push us into the worst kind of cuts, including significant cuts in safety.

In the few moments we had to speak, I mentioned delays (or moratoriums) on the state mandated spending programs would be much needed help in the face of the desperate situation threatening local governments. Some examples of these unfunded mandates include:

• $115,000 unfunded spending for NPDES Stormwater represents the additional cost in the first year of the five-year permit term to hire consultants for the various studies and reports that would be required. It is difficult to be sure of costs because many of the permit terms are not clear, but ultimately the entire program cost could be double or triple the $500,000 budgeted for the program from the local stormwater users fee.
• Complete the Streets (State). Beginning January 2011 the new law (AB1358) requires cities and counties to include complete streets policies as part of their general plans so that roadways are designed to safely accommodate all users, including bicyclists, pedestrians, transit riders, children, older people, and disabled people, as well as motorists. While it is hard to know what this will cost in terms of planning or implementation, it is evident that it adds a significant funding burden to San Carlos and other localities.
• Sanitary Sewer Management Plans (State). Required by the State Water Resources Control Board General Waste Discharge Requirements on May 2, 2006. Through this ruling, collection systems became the last major component of the wastewater management system to be regulated. Treatment plants, including pretreatment programs, have been regulated for some time. Each agency operating a collection system is required to prepare and implement a Sanitary Sewer Management Plan comprising 12 elements. This new requirement will cost San Carlos $94,000 to develop an operations and maintenance manual. It is likely that an ongoing inspection program will be needed to obtain compliance with these requirements, which represents a start-up cost of $190,000 and yearly operating costs of $190,000.
• Enforcement of Wastewater NPDES permits (State). The Regional Water Quality Control boards have been continually raising the bar on wastewater NPDES permits when they are renewed and aggressively enforcing any violations. Mandatory Minimum Penalties apply. This is one of the reasons why the SBSA must invest $260 million to renew and upgrade the treatment plant and conveyance system.
• Addressing Climate Change in CEQA (State). Governor’s Office of Planning and Research has updated CEQA guidelines to require local agencies to address climate change. This requires additional consulting costs on all projects, both public and private.

Governor, local governments are committed to the good agendas these laws were created to enact.
Local governments are committed to getting California’s economy moving forward.
Local governments are also where Californians truly witness these hard budget times.

We are looking for strong, pragmatic leadership to recognize this simple truth: Sacramento cannot take money with one hand and force unfunded, mandated spending with the other.

I urge you to help us put pragmatic controls on the mandated spending being required of local governments. I look forward to working with you and to helping restore California’s economy quickly so we can return to meeting our environmental and other commitments.

With kind regards I am –

/S/
Omar Ahmad
San Carlos City Council