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CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
City of Anaheim
PUBLIC UTILITIES & PUBLIC WORKS
DEPARTMENTS
DATE: MARCH 28, 2023
FROM: PUBLIC UTILITIES & PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENTS
SUBJECT: GRANT AND REBATE APPLICATIONS FOR FEDERAL, STATE,
AND LOCAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES IN SUPPORT OF
PUBLIC UTILITIES AND PUBLIC WORKS INFRASTRUCTURE,
OPERATIONS, OR TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS
ATTACHMENT (Y/N): YES ITEM # 19
GOVERNMENT CODE § 84308 APPLIES: NO
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council, by Resolution:
1) Authorize the Public Utilities General Manager (GM) and the Director of Public Works (Director) or their respective designees, on behalf of the City of Anaheim (Anaheim), to apply for grants, rebates, and other funds intended to offset the cost of improvements, maintenance, and/or modernization of Anaheim’s public utilities and public works infrastructure, operations, and technology systems (Grants) that are made available by various federal, state, and local laws and programs (Grant Sources);
2) If awarded, authorize the GM and Director to take such actions as may be necessary or advisable to receive Grants, including negotiating and executing agreements, assurances, certifications, affidavits, commitments, reports, plans, payment requests, or other documents and any amendments or changes thereto; and to take any actions necessary or advisable to implement such received Grants; and 3) Determine that the authorizations given by the Resolutions concern organizational and administrative activities of government that will not result in a binding commitment by Anaheim to authorize or advance any development activity or result in a direct or indirect physical change in the environment and thus are not a project within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations (CEQA Guidelines).
DISCUSSION:
At their meeting on February 22, 2023, the Public Utilities Board (PUB) recommended that the City Council approve these actions.
Application Authority for Federal, State, and Local Grants and Rebates in Support of Public Utilities and Public Works Infrastructure, Operations, or Technology Systems
March 28, 2023
Anaheim Public Utilities (APU) and the Public Works Department (PWD) continuously seek opportunities to improve service reliability by investing in upgrades to infrastructure, operations, and technology systems. Due to the passage of various federal laws, highlighted by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, public agencies will have greater access to grant fund opportunities. Because these opportunities will be highly competitive, staff recommends delegating authority in order to quickly apply for grant and rebate funding to augment and support reliability and modernization initiatives.
APU intends to pursue grant funding for qualifying utility projects such as power and water system hardening, replacement of infrastructure, undergrounding of overhead power lines, water treatment, and system automation. Other examples of utility grant opportunities include decarbonization programs and rebates, water use efficiency improvements, and emergency planning.
Likewise, PWD intends to pursue grant opportunities to leverage restricted funding sources. PWD frequently applies for federal, state, and local grants focusing on various programs such as active transportation, highway safety, regional capacity, safe routes to school, signal synchronization, and environmental cleanup.
Federal, state, and local regulations and guidelines typically require applicants, like Anaheim, to submit detailed application packages and comply with strict, multi-step deadlines. These tight, multi-step deadlines often do not allow sufficient time to seek authorization from the Public Utilities Board and City Council to submit applications and execute documents. The proposed Resolutions (Attachments 1 & 2) provide federal, state, and local agencies verification of authorized delegation to submit applications in a timely manner.
Should a budget amendment be required to receive grants or rebates, such authorization will be requested separately from City Council. Additionally, construction awards and other agreements resulting from grant or rebate funding will still need to go through normal competitive procedures consistent with City Council policies.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION:
Staff has determined that the proposed Resolutions do not result in any binding commitment by Anaheim to authorize or advance any development activity, will not result in a direct or indirect physical change in the environment, and do not constitute an “approval” of a “project” as defined by CEQA. The Resolutions authorize the GM and Director to execute documents and take actions necessary and advisable to obtain grant and rebate funding, which will not commit Anaheim to any development activity. As such, these Resolutions are not subject to CEQA pursuant to sections 15004(b)(4), 15060(c)(2)- (3), 15061(b)(3), 15352(a), 15378(b) of the CEQA Guidelines.
If Anaheim undertakes a future project pursuant to a Grant, Anaheim will determine whether such project is subject to or exempt from CEQA. If the project is determined to be exempt, Anaheim will file a Notice of Exemption with the County Clerk. If such project does not qualify for an exemption from CEQA, staff will submit the appropriate CEQA Application Authority for Federal, State, and Local Grants and Rebates in Support of Public Utilities and Public Works Infrastructure, Operations, or Technology Systems
March 28, 2023
documentation (e.g., a Negative Declaration, Mitigated Negative Declaration, or Environmental Impact Report) to the City Council for consideration.
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
There is no budgetary impact to apply for Grants. If budget amendments are necessary, City Council authorization will be pursued.
Respectfully submitted,
Dukku Lee Rudy Emami
Public Utilities General Manager Director of Public Works Attachments:
1. Resolution – Public Utilities
2. Resolution – Public Works