Dissolution of the HWCAC and PJC; and establishment of the BCAAHWPJ ACTION CALENDAR March 26, 2024
Programs Through Tripartite Board; Required Response and Corrective Action Due by March 18, 2024”, 2/16/2024
32. “Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery”, June 15, 2021
ORDINANCE NO. -N.S.
ADDING CHAPTER 7.26 TO THE BERKELEY MUNICIPAL CODE ESTABLISHING THE
BERKELEY COMMUNITY ACTION AGENCY COMMISSION HUMAN WELFARE, PEACE AND JUSTICE COMMISSION AND REPEALING CHAPTERS 3.68 AND 3.78 BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the City of Berkeley as follows:
Section 1. That a new Chapter 3.70 of the Berkeley Municipal Code is added to read as follows:
Chapter 3.70
HUMAN WELFARE, PEACE AND JUSTICE COMMISSION
BERKELEY COMMUNITY ACTION AGENCY COMMISSION
Sections:
3.70.010 Creation of the Human Welfare, Peace and Justice CommissionBerkeley Community Action Agency Commission
3.70.020 Membership
3.70.030Term of office
3.70.040 Vacancy and removal
3.70.050 Temporary vacancies
3.70.060 Officers, meetings and procedures
3.70.070 Social welfare defined
3.70.080 Social justice defined
3.70.090 Functions of the commission
3.70.100 Elections for low-income representatives
3.70.110 Bylaws of the Human Welfare, Peace and Justice CommissionBerkeley Community Action Agency Commission
3.70.120 Commission Liaison
Section 3.70.010 Creation of the Human Welfare, Peace and Justice CommissionBerkeley Community Action Agency Commission
The Human Welfare, Peace and Justice Commission Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission is hereby created with an effective date of May 1, 2024.
Section 3.70.020 Membership
A. The commission shall consist of nine members. This commission is not subject to BMC Sections 2.04.030–2.04.130, the Fair Representation Ordinance, due to the Community Action Agency membership regulations in state and federal law.
B. Three of the members shall be appointed by the Berkeley City Council by majority vote.
C. Three of the members shall be low-income representatives, subject to the eligibility requirements of this paragraph, and elected to the commission using one of the methods in Section 3.70.100:
i. An individual who is at or below the federal poverty line, and who resides within the City of Berkeley; or
ii. An individual from a group(s) or organization(s) composed primarily of low- income persons and representing the interest of the low-income population in the City of Berkeley, whose membership duly select a representative chosen in accordance with a democratic selection procedure.
D. Three of the members shall be members or officials of business, industry, labor, religious, welfare, education, or major groups and interests in the community, as required by California Government Code Sections 12736(e), 12750(a)(2), and 12751 (and its successors), the language of which is incorporated herein by reference. These members should be identified and nominated for Council approval by the existing commissioners.
E. For the purpose of members appointed pursuant to paragraph C and D, the community service block grant (CSBG) target area is within the boundary of the City of Berkeley.
Section 3.70.030 Term of office.
For purposes of determining term limits under Section 3.02.040, a commissioner’s service on the Human Welfare & Community Action Commission or the Peace & Justice Commission shall be counted toward their service upon their appointment to the the Human Welfare, Peace and Justice CommissionBerkeley Community Action Agency Commission.
Section 3.70.040 Vacancy and removal of elected members Elected members of the commission are subject to the same membership and attendance requirements as appointed members except as otherwise provided in this chapter.
A. A vacancy shall exist when an elected board member moves and establishes residence outside of their election district or otherwise no longer meets the eligibility requirements of Section 3.70.020.C.
B. Vacancies in any elected commission position shall be filled by a new election pursuant to Section 3.70.100.
Section 3.70.050 Temporary vacancies
An elected member of the commission may take a temporary leave of absence of up to three months in duration by notifying the City Clerk and the commission secretary in writing in advance of the absence, during which time a temporary vacancy shall exist.
During the period of such temporary vacancy in an elected position, a temporary appointment shall be made by the remaining low-income representatives subject to the eligibility requirements of Section 3.70.020.C.
Section 3.70.060 Officers, meetings and procedures
A. The commission shall elect one of its members chairperson and one of its members vice-chairperson.
B. The commission shall establish a regular place and time for meeting. All meetings shall be noticed as required by law and shall be scheduled in a way to allow for maximum input from the public. The frequency of meetings shall be as determined by City Council resolution. The scheduling of special meetings in addition to those established by City Council resolution, except special meetings that take the place of cancelled regular meetings, shall be subject to approval by the City Council. A request for a special meeting shall include the reason for the proposed meeting and should be expedited on the City Council’s agenda, or in the alternative, placed before the Agenda Committee for approval.
C. A majority of the members appointed to the commission shall constitute a quorum and the affirmative vote of a majority of the members appointed is required to take any action.
D. All subcommittees of this commission should fairly reflect the composition of the commission.
Section 3.70.070 Social welfare defined
"Social Welfare" as used in this chapter, means that endeavor which is concerned with community-wide and group interests rather than with needs of individual residents and embraces such areas, among others, special needs of the family, children, youth and the aged, and the way in which people live and work together.
Section 3.70.080 Social justice defined
“Social justice" shall refer to the goal of creating a world community in which the relations between people are based on equality, respect for human rights, and the abhorrence of exploitation and all forms of oppression.
Section 3.70.090 Functions of the commission
The functions of the commission shall be as follows:
A. The commission shall function as the Board of the Community Action Agency as set forth in California Government Code Sections 12750 - 12763 and its successors, the terms of which are incorporated herein by reference;
B. Identify social welfare needs of the Berkeley community and create awareness of these needs among residents;
C. Review and accept the Community Needs Assessment as outlined in the Community Service Block Grant Organizational Standards and create a citizen awareness of these needs;
D. Encourage the development of programs designed to improve the social welfare of the Berkeley community;
E. Hold public hearings and community forums on issues that fall within the charge of the commission;
F. Provide information to other municipalities on the work of the commission; D.G. Help develop proposals for the City Council for actions in furtherance of the goals of human welfare, peace and justice;
E.H. Advise the Berkeley City Council on all matters relating to the City of Berkeley’s role in issues of peace and social justice, including, but not limited to the issues of ending the arms race, abolishing nuclear weapons, support for human rights and self-determination throughout the world and the reallocation of national resources so that money now spent on war and preparation of war is spent on the promotion of peace and fulfilling human needs, specifically the needs of low-income individuals; F.I.Create citizen awareness around issues of social justice; J. Advise the City Council on matters relating to the responsible investment of public funds in accordance with the responsible investment policy established by Resolution No. 55,141A-N.S. and its successors;
G.K. Assist the Director of Finance in the annual evaluation of financial institutions for qualification of City investments; complete development and assist in the implementation of a linked deposit program; encourage target investments; coordinate with City agencies, appropriate community organizations, public and private investors, and the Governor’s Public Investment Task Force; and advise the City Council on matters relating to the responsible investment of public funds in accordance with the responsible investment policy established by Resolution No. 55,141A-NS.; H.L. Act in an advisory role to City Council on Socially Responsible Investment for the City of Berkeley as prescribed in B.M.C. Section 3.68.070.K, including socially responsible procurement policy, Nuclear Free Berkeley Act Waivers, and Oppressive States Contracting Prohibition (per Resolution 59,853-N.S. and its successors); I.M. Perform such other functions and duties as may be directed by the City Council or prescribed or authorized by any ordinance of the City; J.N. In prescribing the above duties and functions of the commission, it is not the intent of the Council to duplicate or overlap the functions, duties or responsibilities heretofore or hereafter assigned to any other City board or commission or to a City department. As to such functions or responsibilities above set forth which are partially or wholly the responsibilities of another board or commission or of a department of the City, the commission will render assistance and advice to such board, commission or department as may be requested.
Section 3.70.100 Elections for low-income representatives Low-income representatives shall be chosen in accordance with democratic selection procedures adequate to assure that they represent the low-income persons in the geographic service area of the City of Berkeley. Among the selection procedures which may be employed, as determined by the commission secretary, either separately or in combination, are the following: (a) nominations and elections, whether within the neighborhoods, community, or service area as a whole; (b) selection at a meeting or conference of low-income persons such that the date, time, and place of such a meeting or conference have been adequately publicized; (c) selection of a small area basis (such as a neighborhood) of representatives who in turn select members for the commission; (d) the commission may recognize a group(s) or organization(s) composed primarily of low-income persons and representing the interest of the low-income population, whose membership may select one or more representatives to the commission. Persons at or below the federal poverty line shall be permitted to vote in the selection processes. The commission may request a waiver for the federal poverty
line eligibility in order to establish residency or other relevant criteria as a basis for eligibility, which will be provided to and reviewed by the commission secretary for CSBG compliance
Section 3.70.110 Bylaws of the Human Welfare, Peace and Justice Commissionthe Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission The commission shall prepare and maintain bylaws for the community action agency. These bylaws and amendments thereto shall be consistent with City, state and federal policies governing community action agencies.
Section 3.70.120 Commission Liaison representative
The commission may designate one or more of its members to act as a liaison representative to any other board, commission, or committee of the City. The functions of the liaison representative may include:
A. Attendance at meetings of such other boards, commissions or committees; B. Advising the Peace and Justice Commission on the background behind those recommendations to the City Council of other boards, commissions or committees; and, C. On request of any member of such other board, commission or committee giving advice to such other board, commission or committee of policies, and procedures and recommendations to the City Council of the Peace and Justice Commission that may bear upon matters under discussion by such other board, commission or committee.
Section 2. That Chapter 3.68 of the Berkeley Municipal Code is hereby repealed effective May 1, 2024.
Section 3. That Chapter 3.78 of the Berkeley Municipal Code is hereby repealed effective May 1, 2024.
Section 4. Posting
Copies of this Ordinance shall be posted for two days prior to adoption in the display case located near the walkway in front of the Maudelle Shirek Building, 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Within 15 days of adoption, copies of this Ordinance shall be filed at each branch of the Berkeley Public Library and the title shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 1
P R O C L AM AT I O N
C AL L I N G A S P E C I AL M EE TI NG O F T HE
B E R K E LE Y CI T Y C O U N CIL
In accordance with the authority in me vested, I do hereby call the Berkeley City Council in special session as follows:
Tuesday, June 15, 2021
4:00 PM
JESSE ARREGUIN, MAYOR
Councilmembers:
DISTRICT 1 – RASHI KESARWANI DISTRICT 5 – SOPHIE HAHN
DISTRICT 2 – TERRY TAPLIN DISTRICT 6 – SUSAN WENGRAF
DISTRICT 3 – BEN BARTLETT DISTRICT 7 – RIGEL ROBINSON
DISTRICT 4 – KATE HARRISON DISTRICT 8 – LORI DROSTE
PUBLIC ADVISORY: THIS MEETING WILL BE CONDUCTED EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH
VIDEOCONFERENCE AND TELECONFERENCE
Pursuant to Section 3 of Executive Order N -29-20, issued by Governor Newsom on March 17, 2020, th is meeting of the City Council will be conducted exclu sively through teleconference and Zoom videoconference. Please be advised that pursuant to the Executive Order and the Shelter -in-Place Order, and to ensure the health and safety of the public by limiting human contact that could spread the COVID -19 virus, there will not be a physical meeting location available.
Live audio is available on KPFB Radio 89.3. Live captioned broadcasts of Council Meetings are available on Cable B -TV (Channel 33) and via internet accessible video stream at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventWebcastMain.aspx.
To access the meeting remotely: Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, or Android device: Please use this UR L https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87908681987. If you do not wish for your name to appear on the screen, then use the drop down menu and click on "rename" to rename yourself to be anonymous. To request to speak, use the “raise hand” icon by rolling over the bottom of the screen.
To join by phone: Dial 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (Toll Free) and enter Meeting ID: 879 0868 1987 . If you wish to comment during the public comment portion of the agenda, Press *9 and wait to be recognized by the Chair.
Please be mindful that the teleconference will be recorded as any Council meeting is recorded, and all other rules of procedure and decorum will apply for Council meetings conducted by teleconference or videoconference.
To submit a written communication for the City Council’s consideration and inclusion in the public record , email [email protected].
This meeting will be conducted in accordance with the Brown Act, Government Code Section 54953. Any member of the public may attend this meeting. Questions regarding this matter may be addressed to Mark Numainville, City Clerk, (510) 981 -6900. The City Council may take action related to any subject listed on the Agenda. Meetings will adjourn at 11:00 p.m. - any items outstanding at that time will be carried over to a date/time to be specified.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 2
Preliminary Matters
Roll Call:
Action Calendar
The public may comment on each item listed on the agenda for action as the item is taken up. For items moved to the Action Calendar from the Consent Calendar or Information Calendar, persons who spoke on the item during the Consent Calendar public comment period may speak again at the time the matter is taken up during the Action Calendar.
The Presiding Officer will request that persons wishing to speak use the "raise hand" function to determine the number of persons interested in speaking at that time. Up to ten (10) speakers may speak for two minutes. If there are more than ten persons interested in speaking, the Presiding Officer may limit the public comment for all speakers to one minute per speaker. The Presiding Officer may, with the consent of persons representing both sides of an issue, allocate a block of time to each side to present their issu e.
Action items may be reordered at the discretion of the Chair with the consent of Council.
Action Calendar – Old Business
1. Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery From: Councilmember Droste (Author), Councilmember Robinson (Co- Sponsor), Councilmember Kesarwani (Co-Sponsor), Mayor Arreguin (Co- Sponsor) (Reviewed by the Agenda & Rules Committee) (Continued from May 25, 2021)
Recommendation:
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach. Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions. Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed in the report. As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
2. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
3. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
4. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be composed of only Mayor and Council appointees.
5. Refer to City Manager and Commissions the following additional considerations:
- Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle. - Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted. - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members. - The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for 2
Action Calendar – Old Business
Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 3
appointment to the merged Commission. - The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission. - Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter
Policy Committee Recommendation: Make a Qualified Positive Recommendation to City Council to: 1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach. Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions. Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed in the report. As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one. 2. Refer to the Commissions impacted a process to determine the charge/responsibilities of the newly merged commissions, and bring Commission input to the appropriate Policy Committees (as proposed by Vice-Mayor Droste in 4/5/21 submittal) for further recommendations to the City Manager on revised charge/responsibilities of merged commissions. 3. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes. 4. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.5. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be comprised of only Mayor and Council appointees. 6. Refer Councilmember Hahn questions to City Manager and Commissions: “Commissions to Combine/Merge - Suggested Considerations” - Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle. - Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted. - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members. - The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission. - The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission - Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter.
Financial Implications: See report
Contact: Lori Droste, Councilmember, District 8, (510) 981-7180
Public Comment - Items on this agenda only
Adjournment
I hereby request that the City Clerk of the City of Berkeley cause personal notice to be given to each member of the Berkeley City Council on the time and place of said meeting, forthwith.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand
and caused the official seal of the City of Berkeley to be affixed on this 3rd day of June, 2021.
Jesse Arreguin, Mayor
Public Notice – this Proclamation serves as the official agenda for this meeting.
ATTEST:
Date: June 3, 2021
Mark Numainville, City Clerk
NOTICE CONCERNING YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS : If you object to a decision by the City Council to approve or deny a use permit or variance for a project the following requirements and restrictions apply:
1) No lawsuit challenging a City decision to deny (Code Civ. Proc. §1094.6(b)) or approve (Gov. Code 65009(c)(5)) a use permit or variance may be filed more than 90 days after the date the Notice of Decision of the action of the City Council is mailed. Any lawsuit not filed within that 90 -day period will be barred. 2) In any lawsuit that may be filed against a City Council decision to approve or deny a use permit or variance, the issues and evidence will be limited to those raised by you or someone else, orally or in writing, at a public hearing or prior to the close of the last public hearing on the project.
Live captioned broadcasts of Council Meetings are available on Cable B-TV (Channel 33), via internet accessible video stream at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventWebcastMain.aspx and KPFB Radio 89.3.
Archived indexed video streams are available at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/citycouncil.
Channel 33 rebroadcasts the following Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. and Sunday at 9:00 a.m.
Communications to the City Council are public record and will become part of the City’s electronic records, which are accessible through the City’s website. Please note: e-mail addresses, names, addresses, and other contact information are not required, but if included in any communication to the City Council, will become part of the public record. If you do not want your e-mail address or any other contact information to be made public, you may deliver communications via U.S. Postal Service to the City Clerk Department at 2180 Milvia Street. If you do not want your contact information included in the public record, please do not include that information in your communication. Please contact the City Clerk Department for further information.
Any writings or documents provided to a majority of the City Council regarding any item on this agenda will be posted on the City's website at http://www.cityofberkeley.info.
Agendas and agenda reports may be accessed via the Internet at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/citycouncil
COMMUNICATION ACCESS INFORMATION:
To request a disability-related accommodation(s) to participate in the meeting, including auxiliary aids or services, please contact the Disability Services specialist at (510) 981-6418 (V) or (510) 981-6347 (TDD) at least three business days before the meeting date.
Captioning services are provided at the meeting, on B-TV, and on the Internet.
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Communications
Council rules limit action on Communications to referral to the City Manager and/or Boards and Commissions for investigation and/or recommendations. All communications submitted to Coun cil are public record. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing through Records Online.
Item #1: Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery
1. Holly Scheider
5
6
1 Lori Droste
Berkeley Vice Mayor
ACTION CALENDAR
June 15, 2021
(Continued from May 25, 2021)
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Councilmember Lori Droste (Author), Councilmembers Rigel Robinson (Co-Sponsor), Rashi Kesarwani (Co-Sponsor) and Mayor Jesse Arreguín (Co-Sponsor)
Subject: Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery
RECOMMENDATION
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach.
Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions.
Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed below.
As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
New Commission Name Former Commissions to be Reorganized Commission on Climate and the
Environment
Zero Waste, Energy, Community Environmental Advisory, and Animal Care
7Page 133 of 177
2 Parks, Recreation, Waterfront (special
Marina subcommittee)
Children, Youth, and Recreation and Parks and Waterfront Peace, Justice, and Human Welfare1 Peace and Justice and Human Welfare, Community Action Commissions
Public Health Commission & Sugar
Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts
Community Health Commission and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts
Housing Advisory Commission Measure O and Housing Advisory Commission Homeless Services Panel of Experts Homeless Commission and Measure P Homeless Services Panel of Experts
Public Works and Transportation Public Works and Transportation Planning Planning and Cannabis
All other commissions will maintain their current structure: Aging, Library Board of Trustees, Civic Arts, Disability, Commission on the Status of Women, Design Review Committee, Disaster and Fire Safety, BIDs, Fair Campaign Practices and Open Government, Redistricting, Landmarks Preservation, Labor, Loan Adjustments Board, Personnel, Planning, Police Review/Accountability, Reimagining Public Safety, Mental Health, Zoning Adjustments Board, and Youth
2. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
3. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
4. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be composed of only Mayor and Council appointees.
5. Refer to City Manager and Commissions the following additional considerations:
- Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle.
- Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted
1 Members will be appointed by Council and membership should adhere to Government Code Section 12736(e); 12750(a)(2) and 12751.
8Page 134 of 177
3 - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members.
- The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission.
- The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission
- Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter Policy Committee Oversight2 Commissions
Agenda and Rules 1. Fair Campaign Practices/Open Government Commission
2. Personnel Board
Budget and Finance (Any legislation that requires funding) Public Safety 1. Disaster and Fire Safety Commission
2. Police Accountability Board/Police Review
Commission
3. Reimagining Public Safety Task Force
Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation
and the Environment
1. Commission on the Environment
2. Parks, Recreation and Waterfront with Marina
subcommittee
3. Public Works and Transportation
Land Use and Economic Development 1. Measure O Housing Commission
2. Planning Commission
3. Labor
4. Civic Arts Commission
Health, Equity, Life Enrichment, and
Community
1. Peace, Justice, and Civil Rights
2. Health and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of
Experts
3. Homeless Services Panel of Experts
4. Mental Health Commission (state/federal mandate)
5. Commission on the Status of Women
6. Disability Commission
2 Primary policy committee oversight but legislation may be referred to multiple policy committees.
9Page 135 of 177
4 Other Commissions: Zoning Adjustments Board (DRC), Landmarks Preservation, Board of Library Trustees, BIDs, Independent Redistricting Commission, Loan Administration Board
POLICY COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
On April 5, 2021, the Agenda and Rules Committee made a qualified positive recommendation to City Council to:
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach.
Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions.
Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed below.
As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
New Commission Name
(suggested)
Former Commissions to be Reorganized
Commission on Climate and the
Environment
Zero Waste, Energy, Community Environmental
Advisory, and Animal Care
Parks, Recreation, Waterfront
(special Marina subcommittee)
Children, Youth, and Recreation and Parks and
Waterfront
Peace, Justice, and Human Welfare Peace and Justice Commission and Human Welfare and Community Action Commission
Public Health Commission & Sugar
Sweetened Beverage Panel of
Experts
Community Health Commission and Sugar Sweetened
Beverage Panel of Experts
Housing Advisory Commission Measure O and Housing Advisory Commission Homeless Services Panel of
Experts
Homeless Commission and Measure P Homeless
Services Panel of Experts
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5 Public Works and Transportation Public Works and Transportation Planning Planning and Cannabis
All other commissions will maintain their current structure: Aging, Library Board of Trustees, Civic Arts, Disability, Commission on the Status of Women, Design Review Committee, Disaster and Fire Safety, BIDs, Fair Campaign Practices and Open Government, Redistricting, Landmarks Preservation, Labor, Loan Adjustments Board, Personnel, Planning, Police Review/Accountability, Reimagining Public Safety, Mental Health, Zoning Adjustments Board, and Youth
2. Refer to the Commissions impacted a process to determine the charge/responsibilities of the newly merged commissions, and bring Commission input to the appropriate Policy Committees (as proposed by Vice-Mayor Droste in 4/5/21 submittal) for further recommendations to the City Manager on revised charge/responsibilities of merged commissions.
3. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
4. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
5. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be comprised of only Mayor and Council appointees.
6. Refer Councilmember Hahn questions to City Manager and Commissions:
“Commissions to Combine/Merge - Suggested Considerations” Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle
Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted
What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter.
Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members.
The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission.
The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission
Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter
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6 PROBLEM/SUMMARY STATEMENT
Commissions provide an important mechanism for residents to shape public policy and provide input on City business. However, the City of Berkeley maintains far more commissions than other cities of similar size, with a significant investment of City resources to staff all 37 commissions. Some commission secretaries report spending upwards of 20+ hours per week on commission business, which takes valuable time away from addressing other pressing City priorities. The local public health emergency created by the global COVID-19 pandemic has required City staff to shift to new roles and maintain an Emergency Operations Center since January 2020; recovery from the pandemic will continue to demand the full attention of our City staff for the foreseeable future. Given the uncertainties that our City faces in recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and the demands that this recovery places on our City staff, it is an appropriate time to consider how best to consolidate our commissions in a manner that helps the City to achieve its core mission.
REITERATION OF PRINCIPLES
Commissions are a fundamental part of the City’s policymaking process. Members of boards and commissions provide an invaluable service to our City. They advise the City Council on a wide variety of subjects by making recommendations on important policy matters. Without the assistance of the various boards and commissions, the City Council could give many complex and significant matters only a perfunctory review. The detailed studies and considered advice of boards and commissions are often catalysts for innovative programs and improved services. Serving on a board or commission can be a rewarding experience for community service– minded residents. It is an excellent way to participate in the functioning of local government and to make a personal contribution to the improvement of our community. Making local government effective and responsive is everybody’s responsibility.
● The Public Works Commission, for example, develops the City’s five year paving plan which they then present to City Council for approval. Through extensive community outreach and research, the Commission identifies the streets most in need of repaving.
● With the passage of Measure D in 2014, a Panel of Experts on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages has guided the City’s spending of over $5 million in revenue generated from the Measure. Those dollars have bolstered local public campaigns and education initiatives.
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7 These are merely two examples of the powerful role that Commissions play in City policymaking.
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Current Commission Structure
The City of Berkeley has approximately thirty-seven commissions overseen by city administration, most of which have at least nine members and who are appointed by individual councilmembers. These commissions were intended to be a forum for public participation beyond what is feasible at the City Council, so that issues that come before the City Council can be adequately vetted.
Some commissions are required by charter or mandated by voter approval or state/federal mandate. Those commissions are the following:
1. Board of Library Trustees (charter)
2. Business Improvement Districts (state mandate)
3. Civic Arts Commission (charter)
4. Community Environmental Advisory Commission (state/federal mandate-- CUPA)
5. Fair Campaign Practices Commission/Open Government (ballot measure)
6. Homeless Services Panel of Experts (ballot measure)
7. Housing Advisory Commission (state/federal mandate)
8. Human Welfare and Community Action (state/federal mandate)
9. Measure O Bond Oversight Committee (ballot measure)
10. Mental Health Commission (state/federal mandate)
11. Personnel (charter)Police Review Commission (ballot measure)
12. Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (ballot measure)
Berkeley must have its own mental health commission because of its independent Mental Health Division. In order to receive services, the City needs to have to have an advisory board. Additionally, Berkeley’s Community Environmental Advisory Commission is a required commission in order to oversee Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) under California’s Environmental Protection Agency. Additionally, some commissions serve other purposes beyond policy advisories. The Children, Youth and Recreation Commission, Housing Advisory Commission, and the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission advise Council on community agency funding.
However, some of the aforementioned quasi-judicial and state/federal mandated commissions do not need to stand independently and can be combined to meet mandated goals.
The Importance of Commissions
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8 Commissions serve a vital role in the City of Berkeley’s rich process of resident engagement. An analysis of agendas over the past several years shows that the commissions have created policy that have benefited the community in meaningful and important ways. In 2020, 14 of the 16 commission items submitted to Council passed.
From 2016-2020, an average of 34 items were submitted by commissions to Council for consideration.
The City’s Health, Housing and Community Development department serves an important role in addressing COVID-19, racial disparities, inequitable health outcomes, affordable housing, and other important community programs. Additionally, Health, Housing, and Community Development also staffs ten commissions, more than many cities of Berkeley’s size. Council needs to wrestle with these tradeoffs to ensure that we seek the maximum benefit for all of the Berkeley community, particularly our most vulnerable.
Commission Structures in Neighboring Jurisdictions
In comparison to neighboring jurisdictions of similar size, Berkeley has significantly more commissions. The median number of commissions for these cities is 12 and the average is 15.
Comparable
Bay Area City
Population
(est.)
Number of
Commissions Links
Berkeley 121,000 37
https://www.cityofberkeley.info/uploadedFiles/Clerk/Level_3_- _Commissions/External%20Roster.pdf
Antioch 112,000 6https://www.antiochca.gov/government/boards-commissions/ Concord 130,000 14
https://www.cityofconcord.org/264/Applications-for-Boards-Committees- Commi
Daly City 107,000 7
http://www.dalycity.org/City_Hall/Departments/city_clerk/Commissions_Inf ormation/boards.htm
Fairfield 117,000 7https://www.fairfield.ca.gov/gov/comms/default.asp Fremont 238,000 15https://www.fremont.gov/76/Boards-Commissions-Committees Hayward 160,000 12https://www.hayward-ca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions
14Page 140 of 177
9 Richmond 110,000 29https://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/256/Boards-and-Commissions San Mateo 105,000 7https://www.cityofsanmateo.org/60/Commissions-Boards Sunnyvale 153,000 10https://sunnyvale.ca.gov/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?blobid=22804 Vallejo 122,000 17http://www.ci.vallejo.ca.us/cms/one.aspx?pageId=22192
To understand the impact on various departments and staffing capacity, the following table shows which departments are responsible for overseeing various commissions.
Staffing and Resources Supporting Berkeley’s Current Commission Structure Commission Name
Overseeing Department (Total Commissions in
Department)
Animal Care Commission City Manager (8)
Civic Arts Commission City Manager (8)
Commission on the Status of Women City Manager (8)
Elmwood BID Advisory Board City Manager (8)
Loan Administration Board City Manager (8)
Peace and Justice Commission City Manager (8)
Solano Ave BID Advisory Board City Manager (8)
Cannabis Commission Planning (7)
Community Environmental Advisory Commission Planning (7) Design Review Committee Planning (7)
Energy Commission Planning (7)
Landmarks Preservation Commission Planning (7)
Planning Commission Planning (7)
Zoning Adjustments Board Planning (7)
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10 Children, Youth, and Recreation Commission Parks (3) Parks and Waterfront Commission Parks (3)
Youth Commission Parks (3)
Commission on Aging Health, Housing, and Community Services (HHCS) (10)
Commission on Labor HHCS (10)
Community Health Commission HHCS (10)
Homeless Commission HHCS (10)
Homeless Services Panel of Experts HHCS(10)
Housing Advisory Commission HHCS (10)
Human Welfare & Community Action Commission HHCS (10)
Measure O Bond Oversight Committee HHCS (10)
Mental Health Commission HHCS (10)
Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Product Panel of Experts HHCS (10) Disaster and Fire Safety Commission Fire (1)
Commission on Disability Public Works (4)
Public Works Commission Public Works (4)
Transportation Commission Public Works (4)
Zero Waste Commission Public Works (4)
Fair Campaign Practices Commission/Open Government
Commission
City Attorney (1)
Personnel Board Human Resources (1)
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11 Police Review Commission/Police Accountability Board Police Review Commission/Police Accountability Board Staff
Reimagining Public Safety Task Force City Manager *(8) and BPD (2) Board of Library Trustees Library (1)
Gray=charter
Red=state/federal mandate
Yellow=quasi-judicial
Blue=ballot initiative
Orange=state/federal mandate and quasi-judicial
Green=quasi-judicial and ballot initiative
The departments that staff more than five commissions are Health, Housing, and Community Services (10 commissions), Planning (7 commissions), and the City Manager’s department (8 commissions). At the same time, some smaller departments (e.g. the City Attorney’s office) may be impacted just as meaningfully if they have fewer staff and larger individual commission workloads.
Policy Committee Structure Expands Opportunities for Public Input With the recent addition of policy committees, proposed legislation is now vetted by councilmembers in these forums. Each policy committee is focused on a particular content area aligned with the City of Berkeley’s strategic plan and is staffed and an advisory policy body to certain city departments. Members of the public are able to provide input at these committees as well. The policy committees currently have the following department alignment:
Department and Policy Committee alignment
1. Agenda and Rules–all departments
2. Budget and Finance–City Manager, Clerk, Budget, and Finance
3. Land Use and Economic Development–Clerk, Planning, HHCS, City Attorney, and City Manager (OED)
4. Public Safety–Clerk, City Manager, Police, and Fire
5. Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment and Sustainability (Clerk, City Manager, Planning, Public Works, and Parks)
6. Health, Equity, Life Enrichment, and Community (Clerk, City Manager, HHCS)
Staffing Costs
Based upon preliminary calculations of staff titles and salary classifications, the average commission staff secretary makes roughly $60-$65/hour. Based upon recent interviews with secretaries and department heads, individual commission secretaries work
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12 anywhere from 8-80 hours a month staffing and preparing for commission meetings. To illustrate this example, a few examples are listed below.
Commission Step 5 Rate
of Pay
Reported
Hours a Month
Total Direct Cost of
Commission per Month
Animal Care $70.90 8 $567.20
Landmarks Preservation
Commission
$57.96 80 $4,636.80
Design Review Commission $52.76 60 $3,165.60
Peace and Justice $60.82 32 $1,946.24
It is extremely challenging to estimate a specific cost of commissions in the aggregate because of the varying workload but a safe estimate of salary costs dedicated to commissions would be in the six-figure range.
Many commissions--particularly quasi-judicial and land use commissions– require more than one staff member to be present and prepare reports for commissions. For example, Zoning Adjustment Board meetings often last five hours or more and multiple staff members spend hours preparing for hearings. The Planning Department indicates that in addition to direct hours, additional commission-related staff time adds an extra 33% staff time. Using the previous examples, this means that the Landmarks Preservation Commission would cost the city over $6,000 in productivity while the Design Review Commission would cost the City over $4,000 a month.
Productivity Losses and Administrative Burden
Current productivity losses are stark because of the sheer amount of hours of staffing time dedicated to commissions. As an example, in 2019 one of the City of Berkeley’s main homeless outreach workers staffed a commission within the City Manager’s department. She spent approximately 32 hours a month working directly on commission work. While this is not a commentary on a particular commission, this work directly impacted her ability to conduct homeless outreach.
RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION
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13 At a time when the City needs to demonstrate efficiency and fiscal restraint, the current commission structure is costly and duplicative. At the same time, civic engagement and commission work absolutely deserve an important role in Berkeley. Consequently, this legislation retains commissions but centers on overall community benefit, staff productivity, and associated costs. This is imperative to address, especially in light of COVID-19 and community demands for reinvestment in important social services.
FISCAL IMPACTS
Significant savings associated with reduced staffing.
CONTACT
Vice Mayor Lori Droste 510-981-7180
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20
Communications
All communications submitted to the City Council are
public record. Communications are not published directly to the City’s website. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing at the City Clerk Department and through Records Online.
City Clerk Department
2180 Milvia Street
Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 981-6900
Records Online
http://www.cityofberkeley.info/recordsonline
To search for communications associated with a particular City Council meeting using Records Online:
1. Select Search Type = “Public – Communication Query (Keywords)”
2. From Date: Enter the date of the Council meeting
3. To Date: Enter the date of the Council meeting (this may match the From Date field)
4. Click the “Search” button
5. Communication packets matching the entered criteria will be returned
6. Click the desired file in the Results column to view the document as a PDF
Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: https://berkeleyca.gov/
ACTION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
(Continued from February 13, 2024)
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Submitted by: Lisa Warhuus, Director, Health, Housing, and Community Services Subject: Dissolution of the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission and the Peace and Justice Commission; and, establishment of the Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt first reading of an Ordinance to:
1. Repeal Chapter 3.68, Peace and Justice Commission; and,
2. Repeal Chapter 3.78, Human Welfare and Community Action Commission; and,
3. Establish the Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission with Chapter 3.70
FISCAL IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION
The City of Berkeley receives approximately $300,000 of CSBG funding per calendar year to support programs and services that combat poverty for Berkeley residents.
Currently, the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission (HWCAC) acts as the federally mandated tripartite board for CSBG funding and advises the Council on how to use these funds. The duties associated with CSBG funding will be transferred to the newly-established Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission (BCAA), which will take on the advisory responsibilities previously held by the HWCAC. The City Council will continue to be the decision-making body and will be responsible for all final CSBG funding decisions.
The dissolution of two commissions and establishment of one commission may reduce staffing and operating costs associated with running commission meetings, because the total number of commissions will be decreased by one. This staff cost saving was identified in the June 15, 2021 Council item, “Commission Reorganization for Post- COVID19 Budget Recovery” (Attachment 2).
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
In order to sustain civic engagement and remain fiscally responsible, in June 2021 the City Council directed the City Manager to consolidate several City commissions, including the HWCAC and Peace and Justice Commission (PJC). Additionally, as of this writing, the HWCAC has two commissioners and has not achieved a commission
Dissolution of the HWCAC and PJC; and establishment of the BCAA ACTION CALENDAR March 26, 2024
meeting quorum since June 21, 2023. This is a significant problem for both the City commission meeting requirements as well as CSBG funding requirements, for which the HWCAC serves as an advisory board to Council. Without regular meetings of the HWCAC, the City is in violation of the contract requirements for CSBG funding, which include approval of CSBG revenue contracts, regular review of community agency performance reports, public hearings on community needs, and funding recommendations to City Council. With over half of the seats currently vacant, the PJC has also struggled to maintain its membership.
The proposed Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission (BCAA) would adopt all CSBG-related requirements, ensuring contract compliance and preservation of the approximate $300,000 per calendar year that the City receives in CSBG funding for anti-poverty programs and services for Berkeley residents.
The proposed change from 15 members of the HWCAC to a nine-member structure for the BCAA would achieve a balance between the strict federal funding requirement to have a tripartite board, and the ability to keep the seats on the commission filled. The three parts of the tripartite board are one-third elected public officials (or their designees), at least one- third elected low-income individuals residing in the CSBG agency's designated service area (in this case, the City of Berkeley), and the remaining members from the private sector (such as representatives from business, industry, labor, religious, human services, education, or other groups with interest in the community). City staff received technical assistance from the California Community Action Partnership Association (CalCAPA), which supports Community Action Agencies and CSBG funding recipients with HUD compliance, to ensure that the new commission structure will be CSBG compliant.
The new BCAA municipal code chapter will include the key responsibilities and requirements from both the HWCAC and PJC.
BACKGROUND
On June 15, 2021, City Council directed the City Manager to examine a multi-phased approach to the consolidation of City commissions, including a merger of the HWCAC and the PJC. The merging of these two commissions was delayed due to conflicting municipal code requirements, as well as challenges to ensuring CSBG funding compliance. City staff have now determined that the commissions are able to be merged without disrupting the responsibilities of each respective commission. City staff shared a memo with both commissions that included a description and timeline for the merger, as well as staff contact information for any questions, concerns, or feedback.
The HWCAC was established to identify social welfare needs of the community and to advise City Council on the use of CSBG funds for services that benefit low-income Berkeley residents, acting as a tripartite board for the City of Berkeley’s CSBG funding.
Dissolution of the HWCAC and PJC; and establishment of the BCAA ACTION CALENDAR March 26, 2024
The PJC was established to advise City Council and the Berkeley Unified School Board on all matters relating to the City of Berkeley’s role in issues of peace and social justice, including, but not limited to the issues of ending the arms race, abolishing nuclear weapons, support for human rights and self-determination throughout the world, and the reallocation of our national resources so that money now spent on war and preparation of war is spent on fulfilling human needs and the promotion of peace.
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
There are no environmental sustainability or climate impacts associated with this report.
RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION
The proposal to dissolve the HWCAC and PJC and establish the BCAA is consistent with Council’s directive to consolidate those two commissions. The new commission (BCAA) will be responsible for all CSBG-related requirements, which are currently not being met by the HWCAC due to ongoing commissioner vacancies and a lack of commission meeting quorum. The formation of the BCAA addresses these issues explicitly, by introducing new strategies and configurations for the tripartite board. In addition, the PJC has struggled to maintain its membership as well with over half of the seats currently vacant. Combining the two commissions will help maintain a more robust membership and public participation, and will support carrying out the assigned duties.
ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS CONSIDERED
Due to the ongoing commission vacancies in the HWCAC and PJC, as well as Council’s directive to consolidate the HWCAC and PJC, no alternative actions were considered.
CONTACT PERSON
Mary-Claire Katz, Associate Management Analyst, HHCS, 981-5414 Attachments:
1: Ordinance
2. “Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery”, June 15, 2021
ORDINANCE NO. -N.S.
ADDING CHAPTER 7.26 TO THE BERKELEY MUNICIPAL CODE ESTABLISHING THE
BERKELEY COMMUNITY ACTION AGENCY COMMISSION AND REPEALING CHAPTERS 3.68 AND 3.78
BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the City of Berkeley as follows:
Section 1. That a new Chapter 3.70 of the Berkeley Municipal Code is added to read as follows:
Chapter 3.70
BERKELEY COMMUNITY ACTION AGENCY COMMISSION
Sections:
3.70.010 Creation of the Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission
3.70.020 Membership
3.70.030Term of office
3.70.040 Vacancy and removal
3.70.050 Temporary vacancies
3.70.060 Officers, meetings and procedures
3.70.070 Social welfare defined
3.70.080 Social justice defined
3.70.090 Functions of the commission
3.70.100 Elections for low-income representatives
3.70.110 Bylaws of the Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission Section 3.70.010 Creation of the Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission The Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission is hereby created with an effective date of May 1, 2024.
Section 3.70.020 Membership
A. The commission shall consist of nine members. This commission is not subject to BMC Sections 2.04.030–2.04.130, the Fair Representation Ordinance, due to the Community Action Agency membership regulations in state and federal law.
B. Three of the members shall be appointed by the Berkeley City Council by majority vote.
C. Three of the members shall be low-income representatives, subject to the eligibility requirements of this paragraph, and elected to the commission using one of the methods in Section 3.70.100:
i. An individual who is at or below the federal poverty line, and who resides within the City of Berkeley; or
ii. An individual from a group(s) or organization(s) composed primarily of low- income persons and representing the interest of the low-income population in the City of
Berkeley, whose membership duly select a representative chosen in accordance with a democratic selection procedure.
D. Three of the members shall be members or officials of business, industry, labor, religious, welfare, education, or major groups and interests in the community, as required by California Government Code Sections 12736(e), 12750(a)(2), and 12751 (and its successors), the language of which is incorporated herein by reference. These members should be identified and nominated for Council approval by the existing commissioners.
E. For the purpose of members appointed pursuant to paragraph C and D, the community service block grant (CSBG) target area is within the boundary of the City of Berkeley.
Section 3.70.030 Term of office.
For purposes of determining term limits under Section 3.02.040, a commissioner’s service on the Human Welfare & Community Action Commission or the Peace & Justice Commission shall be counted toward their service upon their appointment to the Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission.
Section 3.70.040 Vacancy and removal of elected members Elected members of the commission are subject to the same membership and attendance requirements as appointed members except as otherwise provided in this chapter.
A. A vacancy shall exist when an elected board member moves and establishes residence outside of their election district or otherwise no longer meets the eligibility requirements of Section 3.70.020.C.
B. Vacancies in any elected commission position shall be filled by a new election pursuant to Section 3.70.100.
Section 3.70.050 Temporary vacancies
An elected member of the commission may take a temporary leave of absence of up to three months in duration by notifying the City Clerk and the commission secretary in writing in advance of the absence, during which time a temporary vacancy shall exist.
During the period of such temporary vacancy in an elected position, a temporary appointment shall be made by the remaining low-income representatives subject to the eligibility requirements of Section 3.70.020.C.
Section 3.70.060 Officers, meetings and procedures
A. The commission shall elect one of its members chairperson and one of its members vice-chairperson.
B. The commission shall establish a regular place and time for meeting. All meetings shall be noticed as required by law and shall be scheduled in a way to allow for maximum input from the public. The frequency of meetings shall be as determined by City Council resolution. The scheduling of special meetings in addition to those established by City Council resolution, except special meetings that take the place of cancelled regular meetings, shall be subject to approval by the City Council. A request for a special meeting shall include the reason for the proposed meeting and should be
expedited on the City Council’s agenda, or in the alternative, placed before the Agenda Committee for approval.
C. A majority of the members appointed to the commission shall constitute a quorum and the affirmative vote of a majority of the members appointed is required to take any action.
D. All subcommittees of this commission should fairly reflect the composition of the commission.
Section 3.70.070 Social welfare defined
"Social Welfare" as used in this chapter, means that endeavor which is concerned with community-wide and group interests rather than with needs of individual residents and embraces such areas, among others, special needs of the family, children, youth and the aged, and the way in which people live and work together.
Section 3.70.080 Social justice defined
“Social justice" shall refer to the goal of creating a world community in which the relations between people are based on equality, respect for human rights, and the abhorrence of exploitation and all forms of oppression.
Section 3.70.090 Functions of the commission
The functions of the commission shall be as follows:
A. The commission shall function as the Board of the Community Action Agency as set forth in California Government Code Sections 12750 - 12763 and its successors, the terms of which are incorporated herein by reference;
B. Identify social welfare needs of the Berkeley community and create awareness of these needs among residents;
C. Review and accept the Community Needs Assessment as outlined in the Community Service Block Grant Organizational Standards and create a citizen awareness of these needs;
D. Encourage the development of programs designed to improve the social welfare of the Berkeley community;
E. Advise the Berkeley City Council on all matters relating to the City of Berkeley’s role in issues of peace and social justice, including, but not limited to the issues of ending the arms race, abolishing nuclear weapons, support for human rights and self- determination throughout the world;
F. Create citizen awareness around issues of social justice; G. Advise the City Council on matters relating to the responsible investment of public funds in accordance with the responsible investment policy established by Resolution No. 55,141A-N.S. and its successors.
H. Act in an advisory role to City Council on Socially Responsible Investment for the City of Berkeley as prescribed in B.M.C. Section 3.68.070.K, including socially responsible procurement policy, Nuclear Free Berkeley Act Waivers, and Oppressive States Contracting Prohibition (per Resolution 59,853-N.S. and its successors); I. Perform such other functions and duties as may be directed by the City Council or prescribed or authorized by any ordinance of the City;
J. In prescribing the above duties and functions of the commission, it is not the intent of the Council to duplicate or overlap the functions, duties or responsibilities heretofore or hereafter assigned to any other City board or commission or to a City department. As to such functions or responsibilities above set forth which are partially or wholly the responsibilities of another board or commission or of a department of the City, the commission will render assistance and advice to such board, commission or department as may be requested.
Section 3.70.100 Elections for low-income representatives Low-income representatives shall be chosen in accordance with democratic selection procedures adequate to assure that they represent the low-income persons in the geographic service area of the City of Berkeley. Among the selection procedures which may be employed, as determined by the commission secretary, either separately or in combination, are the following: (a) nominations and elections, whether within the neighborhoods, community, or service area as a whole; (b) selection at a meeting or conference of low-income persons such that the date, time, and place of such a meeting or conference have been adequately publicized; (c) selection of a small area basis (such as a neighborhood) of representatives who in turn select members for the commission; (d) the commission may recognize a group(s) or organization(s) composed primarily of low-income persons and representing the interest of the low-income population, whose membership may select one or more representatives to the commission. Persons at or below the federal poverty line shall be permitted to vote in the selection processes. The commission may request a waiver for the federal poverty line eligibility in order to establish residency or other relevant criteria as a basis for eligibility, which will be provided to and reviewed by the commission secretary for CSBG compliance
Section 3.70.110 Bylaws of the Berkeley Community Action Agency Commission The commission shall prepare and maintain bylaws for the community action agency. These bylaws and amendments thereto shall be consistent with City, state and federal policies governing community action agencies.
Section 2. That Chapter 3.68 of the Berkeley Municipal Code is hereby repealed effective May 1, 2024.
Section 3. That Chapter 3.78 of the Berkeley Municipal Code is hereby repealed effective May 1, 2024.
Section 4. Posting
Copies of this Ordinance shall be posted for two days prior to adoption in the display case located near the walkway in front of the Maudelle Shirek Building, 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Within 15 days of adoption, copies of this Ordinance shall be filed at each branch of the Berkeley Public Library and the title shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation.
Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 1
P R O C L AM AT I O N
C AL L I N G A S P E C I AL M EE TI NG O F T HE
B E R K E LE Y CI T Y C O U N CIL
In accordance with the authority in me vested, I do hereby call the Berkeley City Council in special session as follows:
Tuesday, June 15, 2021
4:00 PM
JESSE ARREGUIN, MAYOR
Councilmembers:
DISTRICT 1 – RASHI KESARWANI DISTRICT 5 – SOPHIE HAHN
DISTRICT 2 – TERRY TAPLIN DISTRICT 6 – SUSAN WENGRAF
DISTRICT 3 – BEN BARTLETT DISTRICT 7 – RIGEL ROBINSON
DISTRICT 4 – KATE HARRISON DISTRICT 8 – LORI DROSTE
PUBLIC ADVISORY: THIS MEETING WILL BE CONDUCTED EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH
VIDEOCONFERENCE AND TELECONFERENCE
Pursuant to Section 3 of Executive Order N -29-20, issued by Governor Newsom on March 17, 2020, th is meeting of the City Council will be conducted exclu sively through teleconference and Zoom videoconference. Please be advised that pursuant to the Executive Order and the Shelter -in-Place Order, and to ensure the health and safety of the public by limiting human contact that could spread the COVID -19 virus, there will not be a physical meeting location available.
Live audio is available on KPFB Radio 89.3. Live captioned broadcasts of Council Meetings are available on Cable B -TV (Channel 33) and via internet accessible video stream at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventWebcastMain.aspx.
To access the meeting remotely: Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, or Android device: Please use this UR L https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87908681987. If you do not wish for your name to appear on the screen, then use the drop down menu and click on "rename" to rename yourself to be anonymous. To request to speak, use the “raise hand” icon by rolling over the bottom of the screen.
To join by phone: Dial 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (Toll Free) and enter Meeting ID: 879 0868 1987 . If you wish to comment during the public comment portion of the agenda, Press *9 and wait to be recognized by the Chair.
Please be mindful that the teleconference will be recorded as any Council meeting is recorded, and all other rules of procedure and decorum will apply for Council meetings conducted by teleconference or videoconference.
To submit a written communication for the City Council’s consideration and inclusion in the public record , email [email protected].
This meeting will be conducted in accordance with the Brown Act, Government Code Section 54953. Any member of the public may attend this meeting. Questions regarding this matter may be addressed to Mark Numainville, City Clerk, (510) 981 -6900. The City Council may take action related to any subject listed on the Agenda. Meetings will adjourn at 11:00 p.m. - any items outstanding at that time will be carried over to a date/time to be specified.
1
Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 2
Preliminary Matters
Roll Call:
Action Calendar
The public may comment on each item listed on the agenda for action as the item is taken up. For items moved to the Action Calendar from the Consent Calendar or Information Calendar, persons who spoke on the item during the Consent Calendar public comment period may speak again at the time the matter is taken up during the Action Calendar.
The Presiding Officer will request that persons wishing to speak use the "raise hand" function to determine the number of persons interested in speaking at that time. Up to ten (10) speakers may speak for two minutes. If there are more than ten persons interested in speaking, the Presiding Officer may limit the public comment for all speakers to one minute per speaker. The Presiding Officer may, with the consent of persons representing both sides of an issue, allocate a block of time to each side to present their issu e.
Action items may be reordered at the discretion of the Chair with the consent of Council.
Action Calendar – Old Business
1. Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery From: Councilmember Droste (Author), Councilmember Robinson (Co- Sponsor), Councilmember Kesarwani (Co-Sponsor), Mayor Arreguin (Co- Sponsor) (Reviewed by the Agenda & Rules Committee) (Continued from May 25, 2021)
Recommendation:
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach. Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions. Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed in the report. As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
2. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
3. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
4. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be composed of only Mayor and Council appointees.
5. Refer to City Manager and Commissions the following additional considerations:
- Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle. - Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted. - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members. - The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for 2
Action Calendar – Old Business
Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 3
appointment to the merged Commission. - The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission. - Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter
Policy Committee Recommendation: Make a Qualified Positive Recommendation to City Council to: 1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach. Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions. Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed in the report. As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one. 2. Refer to the Commissions impacted a process to determine the charge/responsibilities of the newly merged commissions, and bring Commission input to the appropriate Policy Committees (as proposed by Vice-Mayor Droste in 4/5/21 submittal) for further recommendations to the City Manager on revised charge/responsibilities of merged commissions. 3. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes. 4. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.5. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be comprised of only Mayor and Council appointees. 6. Refer Councilmember Hahn questions to City Manager and Commissions: “Commissions to Combine/Merge - Suggested Considerations” - Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle. - Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted. - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members. - The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission. - The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission - Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter.
Financial Implications: See report
Contact: Lori Droste, Councilmember, District 8, (510) 981-7180
Public Comment - Items on this agenda only
Adjournment
I hereby request that the City Clerk of the City of Berkeley cause personal notice to be given to each member of the Berkeley City Council on the time and place of said meeting, forthwith.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 4
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand
and caused the official seal of the City of Berkeley to be affixed on this 3rd day of June, 2021.
Jesse Arreguin, Mayor
Public Notice – this Proclamation serves as the official agenda for this meeting.
ATTEST:
Date: June 3, 2021
Mark Numainville, City Clerk
NOTICE CONCERNING YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS : If you object to a decision by the City Council to approve or deny a use permit or variance for a project the following requirements and restrictions apply:
1) No lawsuit challenging a City decision to deny (Code Civ. Proc. §1094.6(b)) or approve (Gov. Code 65009(c)(5)) a use permit or variance may be filed more than 90 days after the date the Notice of Decision of the action of the City Council is mailed. Any lawsuit not filed within that 90 -day period will be barred. 2) In any lawsuit that may be filed against a City Council decision to approve or deny a use permit or variance, the issues and evidence will be limited to those raised by you or someone else, orally or in writing, at a public hearing or prior to the close of the last public hearing on the project.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 5
Communications
Council rules limit action on Communications to referral to the City Manager and/or Boards and Commissions for investigation and/or recommendations. All communications submitted to Coun cil are public record. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing through Records Online.
Item #1: Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery
1. Holly Scheider
5
6
1 Lori Droste
Berkeley Vice Mayor
ACTION CALENDAR
June 15, 2021
(Continued from May 25, 2021)
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Councilmember Lori Droste (Author), Councilmembers Rigel Robinson (Co-Sponsor), Rashi Kesarwani (Co-Sponsor) and Mayor Jesse Arreguín (Co-Sponsor)
Subject: Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery
RECOMMENDATION
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach.
Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions.
Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed below.
As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
New Commission Name Former Commissions to be Reorganized Commission on Climate and the
Environment
Zero Waste, Energy, Community Environmental Advisory, and Animal Care
7Page 162 of 177
2 Parks, Recreation, Waterfront (special
Marina subcommittee)
Children, Youth, and Recreation and Parks and Waterfront Peace, Justice, and Human Welfare1 Peace and Justice and Human Welfare, Community Action Commissions
Public Health Commission & Sugar
Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts
Community Health Commission and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts
Housing Advisory Commission Measure O and Housing Advisory Commission Homeless Services Panel of Experts Homeless Commission and Measure P Homeless Services Panel of Experts
Public Works and Transportation Public Works and Transportation Planning Planning and Cannabis
All other commissions will maintain their current structure: Aging, Library Board of Trustees, Civic Arts, Disability, Commission on the Status of Women, Design Review Committee, Disaster and Fire Safety, BIDs, Fair Campaign Practices and Open Government, Redistricting, Landmarks Preservation, Labor, Loan Adjustments Board, Personnel, Planning, Police Review/Accountability, Reimagining Public Safety, Mental Health, Zoning Adjustments Board, and Youth
2. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
3. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
4. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be composed of only Mayor and Council appointees.
5. Refer to City Manager and Commissions the following additional considerations:
- Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle.
- Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted
1 Members will be appointed by Council and membership should adhere to Government Code Section 12736(e); 12750(a)(2) and 12751.
8Page 163 of 177
3 - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members.
- The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission.
- The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission
- Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter Policy Committee Oversight2 Commissions
Agenda and Rules 1. Fair Campaign Practices/Open Government Commission
2. Personnel Board
Budget and Finance (Any legislation that requires funding) Public Safety 1. Disaster and Fire Safety Commission
2. Police Accountability Board/Police Review
Commission
3. Reimagining Public Safety Task Force
Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation
and the Environment
1. Commission on the Environment
2. Parks, Recreation and Waterfront with Marina
subcommittee
3. Public Works and Transportation
Land Use and Economic Development 1. Measure O Housing Commission
2. Planning Commission
3. Labor
4. Civic Arts Commission
Health, Equity, Life Enrichment, and
Community
1. Peace, Justice, and Civil Rights
2. Health and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of
Experts
3. Homeless Services Panel of Experts
4. Mental Health Commission (state/federal mandate)
5. Commission on the Status of Women
6. Disability Commission
2 Primary policy committee oversight but legislation may be referred to multiple policy committees.
9Page 164 of 177
4 Other Commissions: Zoning Adjustments Board (DRC), Landmarks Preservation, Board of Library Trustees, BIDs, Independent Redistricting Commission, Loan Administration Board
POLICY COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
On April 5, 2021, the Agenda and Rules Committee made a qualified positive recommendation to City Council to:
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach.
Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions.
Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed below.
As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
New Commission Name
(suggested)
Former Commissions to be Reorganized
Commission on Climate and the
Environment
Zero Waste, Energy, Community Environmental
Advisory, and Animal Care
Parks, Recreation, Waterfront
(special Marina subcommittee)
Children, Youth, and Recreation and Parks and
Waterfront
Peace, Justice, and Human Welfare Peace and Justice Commission and Human Welfare and Community Action Commission
Public Health Commission & Sugar
Sweetened Beverage Panel of
Experts
Community Health Commission and Sugar Sweetened
Beverage Panel of Experts
Housing Advisory Commission Measure O and Housing Advisory Commission Homeless Services Panel of
Experts
Homeless Commission and Measure P Homeless
Services Panel of Experts
10Page 165 of 177
5 Public Works and Transportation Public Works and Transportation Planning Planning and Cannabis
All other commissions will maintain their current structure: Aging, Library Board of Trustees, Civic Arts, Disability, Commission on the Status of Women, Design Review Committee, Disaster and Fire Safety, BIDs, Fair Campaign Practices and Open Government, Redistricting, Landmarks Preservation, Labor, Loan Adjustments Board, Personnel, Planning, Police Review/Accountability, Reimagining Public Safety, Mental Health, Zoning Adjustments Board, and Youth
2. Refer to the Commissions impacted a process to determine the charge/responsibilities of the newly merged commissions, and bring Commission input to the appropriate Policy Committees (as proposed by Vice-Mayor Droste in 4/5/21 submittal) for further recommendations to the City Manager on revised charge/responsibilities of merged commissions.
3. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
4. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
5. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be comprised of only Mayor and Council appointees.
6. Refer Councilmember Hahn questions to City Manager and Commissions:
“Commissions to Combine/Merge - Suggested Considerations” Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle
Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted
What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter.
Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members.
The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission.
The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission
Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter
11Page 166 of 177
6 PROBLEM/SUMMARY STATEMENT
Commissions provide an important mechanism for residents to shape public policy and provide input on City business. However, the City of Berkeley maintains far more commissions than other cities of similar size, with a significant investment of City resources to staff all 37 commissions. Some commission secretaries report spending upwards of 20+ hours per week on commission business, which takes valuable time away from addressing other pressing City priorities. The local public health emergency created by the global COVID-19 pandemic has required City staff to shift to new roles and maintain an Emergency Operations Center since January 2020; recovery from the pandemic will continue to demand the full attention of our City staff for the foreseeable future. Given the uncertainties that our City faces in recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and the demands that this recovery places on our City staff, it is an appropriate time to consider how best to consolidate our commissions in a manner that helps the City to achieve its core mission.
REITERATION OF PRINCIPLES
Commissions are a fundamental part of the City’s policymaking process. Members of boards and commissions provide an invaluable service to our City. They advise the City Council on a wide variety of subjects by making recommendations on important policy matters. Without the assistance of the various boards and commissions, the City Council could give many complex and significant matters only a perfunctory review. The detailed studies and considered advice of boards and commissions are often catalysts for innovative programs and improved services. Serving on a board or commission can be a rewarding experience for community service– minded residents. It is an excellent way to participate in the functioning of local government and to make a personal contribution to the improvement of our community. Making local government effective and responsive is everybody’s responsibility.
● The Public Works Commission, for example, develops the City’s five year paving plan which they then present to City Council for approval. Through extensive community outreach and research, the Commission identifies the streets most in need of repaving.
● With the passage of Measure D in 2014, a Panel of Experts on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages has guided the City’s spending of over $5 million in revenue generated from the Measure. Those dollars have bolstered local public campaigns and education initiatives.
12Page 167 of 177
7 These are merely two examples of the powerful role that Commissions play in City policymaking.
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Current Commission Structure
The City of Berkeley has approximately thirty-seven commissions overseen by city administration, most of which have at least nine members and who are appointed by individual councilmembers. These commissions were intended to be a forum for public participation beyond what is feasible at the City Council, so that issues that come before the City Council can be adequately vetted.
Some commissions are required by charter or mandated by voter approval or state/federal mandate. Those commissions are the following:
1. Board of Library Trustees (charter)
2. Business Improvement Districts (state mandate)
3. Civic Arts Commission (charter)
4. Community Environmental Advisory Commission (state/federal mandate-- CUPA)
5. Fair Campaign Practices Commission/Open Government (ballot measure)
6. Homeless Services Panel of Experts (ballot measure)
7. Housing Advisory Commission (state/federal mandate)
8. Human Welfare and Community Action (state/federal mandate)
9. Measure O Bond Oversight Committee (ballot measure)
10. Mental Health Commission (state/federal mandate)
11. Personnel (charter)Police Review Commission (ballot measure)
12. Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (ballot measure)
Berkeley must have its own mental health commission because of its independent Mental Health Division. In order to receive services, the City needs to have to have an advisory board. Additionally, Berkeley’s Community Environmental Advisory Commission is a required commission in order to oversee Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) under California’s Environmental Protection Agency. Additionally, some commissions serve other purposes beyond policy advisories. The Children, Youth and Recreation Commission, Housing Advisory Commission, and the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission advise Council on community agency funding.
However, some of the aforementioned quasi-judicial and state/federal mandated commissions do not need to stand independently and can be combined to meet mandated goals.
The Importance of Commissions
13Page 168 of 177
8 Commissions serve a vital role in the City of Berkeley’s rich process of resident engagement. An analysis of agendas over the past several years shows that the commissions have created policy that have benefited the community in meaningful and important ways. In 2020, 14 of the 16 commission items submitted to Council passed.
From 2016-2020, an average of 34 items were submitted by commissions to Council for consideration.
The City’s Health, Housing and Community Development department serves an important role in addressing COVID-19, racial disparities, inequitable health outcomes, affordable housing, and other important community programs. Additionally, Health, Housing, and Community Development also staffs ten commissions, more than many cities of Berkeley’s size. Council needs to wrestle with these tradeoffs to ensure that we seek the maximum benefit for all of the Berkeley community, particularly our most vulnerable.
Commission Structures in Neighboring Jurisdictions
In comparison to neighboring jurisdictions of similar size, Berkeley has significantly more commissions. The median number of commissions for these cities is 12 and the average is 15.
Comparable
Bay Area City
Population
(est.)
Number of
Commissions Links
Berkeley 121,000 37
https://www.cityofberkeley.info/uploadedFiles/Clerk/Level_3_- _Commissions/External%20Roster.pdf
Antioch 112,000 6https://www.antiochca.gov/government/boards-commissions/ Concord 130,000 14
https://www.cityofconcord.org/264/Applications-for-Boards-Committees- Commi
Daly City 107,000 7
http://www.dalycity.org/City_Hall/Departments/city_clerk/Commissions_Inf ormation/boards.htm
Fairfield 117,000 7https://www.fairfield.ca.gov/gov/comms/default.asp Fremont 238,000 15https://www.fremont.gov/76/Boards-Commissions-Committees Hayward 160,000 12https://www.hayward-ca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions
14Page 169 of 177
9 Richmond 110,000 29https://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/256/Boards-and-Commissions San Mateo 105,000 7https://www.cityofsanmateo.org/60/Commissions-Boards Sunnyvale 153,000 10https://sunnyvale.ca.gov/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?blobid=22804 Vallejo 122,000 17http://www.ci.vallejo.ca.us/cms/one.aspx?pageId=22192
To understand the impact on various departments and staffing capacity, the following table shows which departments are responsible for overseeing various commissions.
Staffing and Resources Supporting Berkeley’s Current Commission Structure Commission Name
Overseeing Department (Total Commissions in
Department)
Animal Care Commission City Manager (8)
Civic Arts Commission City Manager (8)
Commission on the Status of Women City Manager (8)
Elmwood BID Advisory Board City Manager (8)
Loan Administration Board City Manager (8)
Peace and Justice Commission City Manager (8)
Solano Ave BID Advisory Board City Manager (8)
Cannabis Commission Planning (7)
Community Environmental Advisory Commission Planning (7) Design Review Committee Planning (7)
Energy Commission Planning (7)
Landmarks Preservation Commission Planning (7)
Planning Commission Planning (7)
Zoning Adjustments Board Planning (7)
15Page 170 of 177
10 Children, Youth, and Recreation Commission Parks (3) Parks and Waterfront Commission Parks (3)
Youth Commission Parks (3)
Commission on Aging Health, Housing, and Community Services (HHCS) (10)
Commission on Labor HHCS (10)
Community Health Commission HHCS (10)
Homeless Commission HHCS (10)
Homeless Services Panel of Experts HHCS(10)
Housing Advisory Commission HHCS (10)
Human Welfare & Community Action Commission HHCS (10)
Measure O Bond Oversight Committee HHCS (10)
Mental Health Commission HHCS (10)
Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Product Panel of Experts HHCS (10) Disaster and Fire Safety Commission Fire (1)
Commission on Disability Public Works (4)
Public Works Commission Public Works (4)
Transportation Commission Public Works (4)
Zero Waste Commission Public Works (4)
Fair Campaign Practices Commission/Open Government
Commission
City Attorney (1)
Personnel Board Human Resources (1)
16Page 171 of 177
11 Police Review Commission/Police Accountability Board Police Review Commission/Police Accountability Board Staff
Reimagining Public Safety Task Force City Manager *(8) and BPD (2) Board of Library Trustees Library (1)
Gray=charter
Red=state/federal mandate
Yellow=quasi-judicial
Blue=ballot initiative
Orange=state/federal mandate and quasi-judicial
Green=quasi-judicial and ballot initiative
The departments that staff more than five commissions are Health, Housing, and Community Services (10 commissions), Planning (7 commissions), and the City Manager’s department (8 commissions). At the same time, some smaller departments (e.g. the City Attorney’s office) may be impacted just as meaningfully if they have fewer staff and larger individual commission workloads.
Policy Committee Structure Expands Opportunities for Public Input With the recent addition of policy committees, proposed legislation is now vetted by councilmembers in these forums. Each policy committee is focused on a particular content area aligned with the City of Berkeley’s strategic plan and is staffed and an advisory policy body to certain city departments. Members of the public are able to provide input at these committees as well. The policy committees currently have the following department alignment:
Department and Policy Committee alignment
1. Agenda and Rules–all departments
2. Budget and Finance–City Manager, Clerk, Budget, and Finance
3. Land Use and Economic Development–Clerk, Planning, HHCS, City Attorney, and City Manager (OED)
4. Public Safety–Clerk, City Manager, Police, and Fire
5. Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment and Sustainability (Clerk, City Manager, Planning, Public Works, and Parks)
6. Health, Equity, Life Enrichment, and Community (Clerk, City Manager, HHCS)
Staffing Costs
Based upon preliminary calculations of staff titles and salary classifications, the average commission staff secretary makes roughly $60-$65/hour. Based upon recent interviews with secretaries and department heads, individual commission secretaries work
17Page 172 of 177
12 anywhere from 8-80 hours a month staffing and preparing for commission meetings. To illustrate this example, a few examples are listed below.
Commission Step 5 Rate
of Pay
Reported
Hours a Month
Total Direct Cost of
Commission per Month
Animal Care $70.90 8 $567.20
Landmarks Preservation
Commission
$57.96 80 $4,636.80
Design Review Commission $52.76 60 $3,165.60
Peace and Justice $60.82 32 $1,946.24
It is extremely challenging to estimate a specific cost of commissions in the aggregate because of the varying workload but a safe estimate of salary costs dedicated to commissions would be in the six-figure range.
Many commissions--particularly quasi-judicial and land use commissions– require more than one staff member to be present and prepare reports for commissions. For example, Zoning Adjustment Board meetings often last five hours or more and multiple staff members spend hours preparing for hearings. The Planning Department indicates that in addition to direct hours, additional commission-related staff time adds an extra 33% staff time. Using the previous examples, this means that the Landmarks Preservation Commission would cost the city over $6,000 in productivity while the Design Review Commission would cost the City over $4,000 a month.
Productivity Losses and Administrative Burden
Current productivity losses are stark because of the sheer amount of hours of staffing time dedicated to commissions. As an example, in 2019 one of the City of Berkeley’s main homeless outreach workers staffed a commission within the City Manager’s department. She spent approximately 32 hours a month working directly on commission work. While this is not a commentary on a particular commission, this work directly impacted her ability to conduct homeless outreach.
RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION
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13 At a time when the City needs to demonstrate efficiency and fiscal restraint, the current commission structure is costly and duplicative. At the same time, civic engagement and commission work absolutely deserve an important role in Berkeley. Consequently, this legislation retains commissions but centers on overall community benefit, staff productivity, and associated costs. This is imperative to address, especially in light of COVID-19 and community demands for reinvestment in important social services.
FISCAL IMPACTS
Significant savings associated with reduced staffing.
CONTACT
Vice Mayor Lori Droste 510-981-7180
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20
Communications
All communications submitted to the City Council are
public record. Communications are not published directly to the City’s website. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing at the City Clerk Department and through Records Online.
City Clerk Department
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Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 981-6900
Records Online
http://www.cityofberkeley.info/recordsonline
To search for communications associated with a particular City Council meeting using Records Online:
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3. To Date: Enter the date of the Council meeting (this may match the From Date field)
4. Click the “Search” button
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6. Click the desired file in the Results column to view the document as a PDF
Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: https://berkeleyca.gov/
ACTION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Submitted by: Margot Ernst, Interim Deputy Director, Health, Housing, and Community Services
Subject: Reform the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission by amending rules regarding the Commission’s composition, number of members, filling of vacancies, election of low-income representatives, enumerated functions, and other changes
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt first reading of an Ordinance to reform the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission (HWCAC)
FISCAL IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION
The City of Berkeley receives approximately $300,000 of CSBG funding per calendar year to support programs and services that combat poverty for Berkeley residents.
Currently, the HWCAC acts as the federally mandated tripartite board for CSBG funding and advises the Council on how to use these funds.
On February 16, 2024, the State of California’s Department of Community Services and Development (CSD) sent the City of Berkeley a 45-Day notice of anticipated high-risk designation based on the City’s failure to maintain the CSBG-required tripartite board structure. Should the HWCAC continue to have long-term vacancies that impact the tripartite board structure, CSD may suspend or terminate the CSBG contract, resulting in the loss of approximately $300,000 per year for anti-poverty programs.
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Maintaining a full commission that serves as a tripartite advisory board to City Council is a requirement of the City’s CSBG funding, which is used to fund anti-poverty programs in the amount of approximately $300,000 per year. However, the HWCAC has struggled to maintain a full commission since 2012 (Attachment 2), and, as such, staff recommend the reduction of the total membership of the HWCAC from 15 to nine members. In 2023, the HWCAC did not meet for a total of six regular meetings due to a lack of quorum. The inability of the HWCAC to achieve a meeting quorum can be partially attributed to the high number of vacancies on the commission; from July to
Reform the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission ACTION CALENDAR March 26, 2024
December of 2023, the HWCAC never had more than three commissioners at any given time.
Without regular meetings of the HWCAC and a full tripartite board, the City is in violation of the contract requirements for CSBG funding, which include approval of CSBG revenue contracts, regular review of community agency performance reports, public hearings on community needs, and funding recommendations to City Council.
The three parts of the tripartite board are one-third elected public officials (or their designees), at least one-third elected low-income individuals residing in the CSBG agency's designated service area (in this case, the City of Berkeley), and the remaining members from the private sector (such as representatives from business, industry, labor, religious, human services, education, or other groups with interest in the community). City staff received technical assistance from the California Community Action Partnership Association (CalCAPA), which supports Community Action Agencies and CSBG funding recipients with CSBG compliance, to ensure that the new nine- member commission structure will be CSBG compliant.
BACKGROUND
On June 15, 2021, City Council directed the City Manager to examine a multi-phased approach to the consolidation of City commissions, including a merger of the HWCAC and the PJC. The merging of these two commissions was delayed due to conflicting municipal code requirements, as well as challenges to ensuring CSBG funding compliance. It has now been determined that the commissions are able to be dissolved and the creation of an entirely new commission could be developed that would incorporate the key elements and responsibilities of each respective commission.
In November 2023, City staff shared a memo with both commissions that included a description and timeline for the commission consolidations, as well as staff contact information for any questions, concerns, or feedback. Staff met with representatives of each commission to discuss their concerns about the merger. After receiving strong feedback from HWCAC and PJC commissioners that the consolidation should not move forward, including letters from each respective commission to Council detailing their concerns, the commission merger Council item that was to be discussed at the February 13, 2024 Council meeting was pulled for further review and possible revisions based on HWCAC and PJC commissioner feedback. At the February 26th Agenda and Rules Committee meeting, staff was directed to bring forward a second alternative to the merger that would allow for the necessary reform of the HWCAC and ensure expeditious compliance with the CSBG Tripartite Board requirements.
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
There are no identifiable environmental effects, climate impacts, or sustainability opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
Reform the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission ACTION CALENDAR March 26, 2024
RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION
The proposed changes to Chapter 3.78 will significantly increase the likelihood that the commission will consistently maintain a full tripartite board, and be in compliance with CSBG funding, by reducing the total membership from 15 to nine commissioners. The new commission (BCAA) will be responsible for all CSBG-related requirements, which are currently not being met by the HWCAC due to ongoing commissioner vacancies and a lack of commission meeting quorum. The formation of the BCAA addresses these issues explicitly, by introducing new strategies and configurations for the tripartite board.
ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS CONSIDERED
Due to the ongoing commission vacancies in the HWCAC, and the notice of anticipated high-risk designation from CSD based on the City’s failure to maintain the CSBG- required tripartite board structure, no alternative actions were considered.
CONTACT PERSON
Mary-Claire Katz, Associate Management Analyst, HHCS, 981-5414 Attachments:
1: Ordinance
2. Letter from CA State Dept. of Comm. Services and Dev. to City of Berkeley, “RE: 45- Day Notice of Anticipated High-Risk Designation Based on The City of Berkeley's Failure to Maintain Required CSBG Tripartite Board Structure and Failure to Administer Programs Through Tripartite Board; Required Response and Corrective Action Due by March 18, 2024”, 2/16/2024
3. “Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery”, June 15, 2021
ORDINANCE NO. -N.S.
REPEALING AND REENACTING CHAPTER 3.78 OF THE BERKELEY MUNICIPAL
CODE ESTABLISHING THE HUMAN WELFARE AND COMMUNITY ACTION
COMMISSION
BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the City of Berkeley as follows:
Section 1. That Chapter 3.78 of the Berkeley Municipal Code is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
Chapter 3.78
HUMAN WELFARE AND COMMUNITY ACTION COMMISSION
Sections:
3.78.010 Creation of the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission
3.78.020 Membership
3.78.030Term of office
3.78.040 Vacancy and removal
3.78.050 Temporary vacancies
3.78.060 Officers, meetings and procedures
3.78.070 Social welfare defined
3.78.080 Functions of the commission
3.78.090 Elections for low-income representatives
3.78.100 Bylaws of the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission Section 3.78.010 Creation of the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission.
The Human Welfare and Community Action Commission is hereby created.
Section 3.78.020 Membership
A. The commission shall consist of nine members. This commission is not subject to BMC Sections 2.04.030–2.04.130, the Fair Representation Ordinance, due to the Community Action Agency membership regulations in state and federal law.
B. Three of the members shall be appointed by the Berkeley City Council by majority vote.
C. Three of the members shall be low-income representatives, subject to the eligibility requirements of this paragraph, and elected to the commission using one of the methods in Section 3.78.090:
i. An individual who is at or below the federal poverty line, and who resides within the City of Berkeley; or
ii. An individual from a group(s) or organization(s) composed primarily of low-income persons and representing the interest of the low-income population in the City of Berkeley, whose membership duly select a representative chosen in accordance with a democratic selection procedure.
D. Three of the members shall be members or officials of business, industry, labor, religious, welfare, education, or major groups and interests in the community, as required by California Government Code Sections 12736(e), 12750(a)(2), and 12751 (and its successors), the language of which is incorporated herein by reference. These members should be identified and nominated for Council approval by the existing commissioners.
E. For the purpose of members appointed pursuant to paragraph C and D, the community service block grant (CSBG) target area is within the boundary of the City of Berkeley.
Section 3.78.030 Term of office.
The term of office of each elected member, other than specifically provided herein, shall be four years from the date of the elections; no person shall serve for more than two full elected terms, or eight years.
The term of office of each appointed member shall be as provided in B.M.C. Section
3.02.040.
Section 3.78.040 Vacancy and removal of elected members Elected members of the commission are subject to the same membership and attendance requirements as appointed members except as otherwise provided in this chapter.
A. A vacancy shall exist when an elected board member moves and establishes residence outside of their election district or otherwise no longer meets the eligibility requirements of Section 3.78.020.C.
B. Vacancies in any elected commission position shall be filled by a new election pursuant to Section 3.78.090.
Section 3.78.050 Temporary vacancies
An elected member of the commission may take a temporary leave of absence of up to three months in duration by notifying the City Clerk and the commission secretary in writing in advance of the absence, during which time a temporary vacancy shall exist.
During the period of such temporary vacancy in an elected position, a temporary appointment shall be made by the remaining low-income representatives subject to the eligibility requirements of Section 3.78.020.C.
Section 3.78.060 Officers, meetings and procedures
A. The commission shall elect one of its members chairperson and one of its members vice-chairperson.
B. The commission shall establish a regular place and time for meeting. All meetings shall be noticed as required by law and shall be scheduled in a way to allow for maximum input from the public. The frequency of meetings shall be as determined by City Council resolution. The scheduling of special meetings in addition to those established by City Council resolution, except special meetings that take the place of cancelled regular meetings, shall be subject to approval by the City Council. A request for a special meeting shall include the reason for the proposed meeting and should be expedited on the City Council’s agenda, or in the alternative, placed before the Agenda Committee for approval.
C. A majority of the members appointed to the commission shall constitute a quorum and the affirmative vote of a majority of the members appointed is required to take any action.
D. All subcommittees of this commission should fairly reflect the composition of the commission.
Section 3.78.070 Social welfare defined
"Social Welfare" as used in this chapter, means that endeavor which is concerned with community-wide and group interests rather than with needs of individual residents and embraces such areas, among others, special needs of the family, children, youth and the aged, and the way in which people live and work together.
Section 3.78.080 Functions of the commission
The functions of the commission shall be as follows:
A. The commission shall function as the Board of the Community Action Agency as set forth in California Government Code Sections 12750 - 12763 and its successors, the terms of which are incorporated herein by reference;
B. Review and accept the Community Action Plan and the accompanying Community Needs Assessment as outlined in the Community Service Block Grant Organizational Standards and create a citizen awareness of these needs; C. Fulfill all duties and meet all requirements as detailed in the annual Community Service Block Grant Organizational Standards report;
D. Identify social welfare needs of the Berkeley community and create awareness of these needs among residents;
E. Identify social welfare standards made available by other social welfare agencies and provide the public information with reference to such services; F. Encourage the development of programs designed to improve the social welfare of the Berkeley community;
G. Render advice and assistance to other City boards and commissions, to City departments and to private agencies on matters of social welfare; H. Advise the City Council on all matters affecting the social welfare of the community and its citizens;
I. Perform such other functions and duties as may be directed by the City Council or prescribed or authorized by any ordinance of the City;
J. In prescribing the above duties and functions of the commission, it is not the intent of the Council to duplicate or overlap the functions, duties or responsibilities heretofore or hereafter assigned to any other City board or commission or to a City department. As to such functions or responsibilities above set forth which are partially or wholly the responsibilities of another board or commission or of a department of the City, the commission will render assistance and advice to such board, commission or department as may be requested.
Section 3.78.090 Elections for low-income representatives Low-income representatives shall be chosen in accordance with democratic selection procedures adequate to assure that they represent the low-income persons in the geographic service area of the City of Berkeley. Among the selection procedures which
may be employed, as determined by the commission secretary, either separately or in combination, are the following: (a) nominations and elections, whether within the neighborhoods, community, or service area as a whole; (b) selection at a meeting or conference of low-income persons such that the date, time, and place of such a meeting or conference have been adequately publicized; (c) selection of a small area basis (such as a neighborhood) of representatives who in turn select members for the commission; (d) the commission may recognize a group(s) or organization(s) composed primarily of low-income persons and representing the interest of the low-income population, whose membership may select one or more representatives to the commission. Persons at or below the federal poverty line shall be permitted to vote in the selection processes. The commission may request a waiver for the federal poverty line eligibility in order to establish residency or other relevant criteria as a basis for eligibility, which will be provided to and reviewed by the commission secretary for CSBG compliance Section 3.78.100 Bylaws of the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission is hereby created.
The commission shall prepare and maintain bylaws for the community action agency.
These bylaws and amendments thereto shall be consistent with City, state and federal policies governing community action agencies.
Section 2. Posting
Copies of this Ordinance shall be posted for two days prior to adoption in the display case located near the walkway in front of the Maudelle Shirek Building, 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Within 15 days of adoption, copies of this Ordinance shall be filed at each branch of the Berkeley Public Library and the title shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 1
P R O C L AM AT I O N
C AL L I N G A S P E C I AL M EE TI NG O F T HE
B E R K E LE Y CI T Y C O U N CIL
In accordance with the authority in me vested, I do hereby call the Berkeley City Council in special session as follows:
Tuesday, June 15, 2021
4:00 PM
JESSE ARREGUIN, MAYOR
Councilmembers:
DISTRICT 1 – RASHI KESARWANI DISTRICT 5 – SOPHIE HAHN
DISTRICT 2 – TERRY TAPLIN DISTRICT 6 – SUSAN WENGRAF
DISTRICT 3 – BEN BARTLETT DISTRICT 7 – RIGEL ROBINSON
DISTRICT 4 – KATE HARRISON DISTRICT 8 – LORI DROSTE
PUBLIC ADVISORY: THIS MEETING WILL BE CONDUCTED EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH
VIDEOCONFERENCE AND TELECONFERENCE
Pursuant to Section 3 of Executive Order N -29-20, issued by Governor Newsom on March 17, 2020, th is meeting of the City Council will be conducted exclu sively through teleconference and Zoom videoconference. Please be advised that pursuant to the Executive Order and the Shelter -in-Place Order, and to ensure the health and safety of the public by limiting human contact that could spread the COVID -19 virus, there will not be a physical meeting location available.
Live audio is available on KPFB Radio 89.3. Live captioned broadcasts of Council Meetings are available on Cable B -TV (Channel 33) and via internet accessible video stream at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventWebcastMain.aspx.
To access the meeting remotely: Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, or Android device: Please use this UR L https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87908681987. If you do not wish for your name to appear on the screen, then use the drop down menu and click on "rename" to rename yourself to be anonymous. To request to speak, use the “raise hand” icon by rolling over the bottom of the screen.
To join by phone: Dial 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (Toll Free) and enter Meeting ID: 879 0868 1987 . If you wish to comment during the public comment portion of the agenda, Press *9 and wait to be recognized by the Chair.
Please be mindful that the teleconference will be recorded as any Council meeting is recorded, and all other rules of procedure and decorum will apply for Council meetings conducted by teleconference or videoconference.
To submit a written communication for the City Council’s consideration and inclusion in the public record , email [email protected].
This meeting will be conducted in accordance with the Brown Act, Government Code Section 54953. Any member of the public may attend this meeting. Questions regarding this matter may be addressed to Mark Numainville, City Clerk, (510) 981 -6900. The City Council may take action related to any subject listed on the Agenda. Meetings will adjourn at 11:00 p.m. - any items outstanding at that time will be carried over to a date/time to be specified.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 2
Preliminary Matters
Roll Call:
Action Calendar
The public may comment on each item listed on the agenda for action as the item is taken up. For items moved to the Action Calendar from the Consent Calendar or Information Calendar, persons who spoke on the item during the Consent Calendar public comment period may speak again at the time the matter is taken up during the Action Calendar.
The Presiding Officer will request that persons wishing to speak use the "raise hand" function to determine the number of persons interested in speaking at that time. Up to ten (10) speakers may speak for two minutes. If there are more than ten persons interested in speaking, the Presiding Officer may limit the public comment for all speakers to one minute per speaker. The Presiding Officer may, with the consent of persons representing both sides of an issue, allocate a block of time to each side to present their issu e.
Action items may be reordered at the discretion of the Chair with the consent of Council.
Action Calendar – Old Business
1. Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery From: Councilmember Droste (Author), Councilmember Robinson (Co- Sponsor), Councilmember Kesarwani (Co-Sponsor), Mayor Arreguin (Co- Sponsor) (Reviewed by the Agenda & Rules Committee) (Continued from May 25, 2021)
Recommendation:
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach. Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions. Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed in the report. As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
2. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
3. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
4. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be composed of only Mayor and Council appointees.
5. Refer to City Manager and Commissions the following additional considerations:
- Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle. - Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted. - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members. - The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for 2
Action Calendar – Old Business
Tuesday, June 15, 2021 AGENDA Page 3
appointment to the merged Commission. - The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission. - Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter
Policy Committee Recommendation: Make a Qualified Positive Recommendation to City Council to: 1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach. Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions. Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed in the report. As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one. 2. Refer to the Commissions impacted a process to determine the charge/responsibilities of the newly merged commissions, and bring Commission input to the appropriate Policy Committees (as proposed by Vice-Mayor Droste in 4/5/21 submittal) for further recommendations to the City Manager on revised charge/responsibilities of merged commissions. 3. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes. 4. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.5. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be comprised of only Mayor and Council appointees. 6. Refer Councilmember Hahn questions to City Manager and Commissions: “Commissions to Combine/Merge - Suggested Considerations” - Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle. - Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted. - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members. - The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission. - The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission - Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter.
Financial Implications: See report
Contact: Lori Droste, Councilmember, District 8, (510) 981-7180
Public Comment - Items on this agenda only
Adjournment
I hereby request that the City Clerk of the City of Berkeley cause personal notice to be given to each member of the Berkeley City Council on the time and place of said meeting, forthwith.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand
and caused the official seal of the City of Berkeley to be affixed on this 3rd day of June, 2021.
Jesse Arreguin, Mayor
Public Notice – this Proclamation serves as the official agenda for this meeting.
ATTEST:
Date: June 3, 2021
Mark Numainville, City Clerk
NOTICE CONCERNING YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS : If you object to a decision by the City Council to approve or deny a use permit or variance for a project the following requirements and restrictions apply:
1) No lawsuit challenging a City decision to deny (Code Civ. Proc. §1094.6(b)) or approve (Gov. Code 65009(c)(5)) a use permit or variance may be filed more than 90 days after the date the Notice of Decision of the action of the City Council is mailed. Any lawsuit not filed within that 90 -day period will be barred. 2) In any lawsuit that may be filed against a City Council decision to approve or deny a use permit or variance, the issues and evidence will be limited to those raised by you or someone else, orally or in writing, at a public hearing or prior to the close of the last public hearing on the project.
Live captioned broadcasts of Council Meetings are available on Cable B-TV (Channel 33), via internet accessible video stream at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventWebcastMain.aspx and KPFB Radio 89.3.
Archived indexed video streams are available at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/citycouncil.
Channel 33 rebroadcasts the following Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. and Sunday at 9:00 a.m.
Communications to the City Council are public record and will become part of the City’s electronic records, which are accessible through the City’s website. Please note: e-mail addresses, names, addresses, and other contact information are not required, but if included in any communication to the City Council, will become part of the public record. If you do not want your e-mail address or any other contact information to be made public, you may deliver communications via U.S. Postal Service to the City Clerk Department at 2180 Milvia Street. If you do not want your contact information included in the public record, please do not include that information in your communication. Please contact the City Clerk Department for further information.
Any writings or documents provided to a majority of the City Council regarding any item on this agenda will be posted on the City's website at http://www.cityofberkeley.info.
Agendas and agenda reports may be accessed via the Internet at http://www.cityofberkeley.info/citycouncil
COMMUNICATION ACCESS INFORMATION:
To request a disability-related accommodation(s) to participate in the meeting, including auxiliary aids or services, please contact the Disability Services specialist at (510) 981-6418 (V) or (510) 981-6347 (TDD) at least three business days before the meeting date.
Captioning services are provided at the meeting, on B-TV, and on the Internet.
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Communications
Council rules limit action on Communications to referral to the City Manager and/or Boards and Commissions for investigation and/or recommendations. All communications submitted to Coun cil are public record. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing through Records Online.
Item #1: Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery
1. Holly Scheider
5
6
1 Lori Droste
Berkeley Vice Mayor
ACTION CALENDAR
June 15, 2021
(Continued from May 25, 2021)
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Councilmember Lori Droste (Author), Councilmembers Rigel Robinson (Co-Sponsor), Rashi Kesarwani (Co-Sponsor) and Mayor Jesse Arreguín (Co-Sponsor)
Subject: Commission Reorganization for Post-COVID19 Budget Recovery
RECOMMENDATION
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach.
Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions.
Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed below.
As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
New Commission Name Former Commissions to be Reorganized Commission on Climate and the
Environment
Zero Waste, Energy, Community Environmental Advisory, and Animal Care
7Page 130 of 145
2 Parks, Recreation, Waterfront (special
Marina subcommittee)
Children, Youth, and Recreation and Parks and Waterfront Peace, Justice, and Human Welfare1 Peace and Justice and Human Welfare, Community Action Commissions
Public Health Commission & Sugar
Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts
Community Health Commission and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts
Housing Advisory Commission Measure O and Housing Advisory Commission Homeless Services Panel of Experts Homeless Commission and Measure P Homeless Services Panel of Experts
Public Works and Transportation Public Works and Transportation Planning Planning and Cannabis
All other commissions will maintain their current structure: Aging, Library Board of Trustees, Civic Arts, Disability, Commission on the Status of Women, Design Review Committee, Disaster and Fire Safety, BIDs, Fair Campaign Practices and Open Government, Redistricting, Landmarks Preservation, Labor, Loan Adjustments Board, Personnel, Planning, Police Review/Accountability, Reimagining Public Safety, Mental Health, Zoning Adjustments Board, and Youth
2. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
3. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
4. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be composed of only Mayor and Council appointees.
5. Refer to City Manager and Commissions the following additional considerations:
- Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle.
- Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted
1 Members will be appointed by Council and membership should adhere to Government Code Section 12736(e); 12750(a)(2) and 12751.
8Page 131 of 145
3 - What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter. - Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members.
- The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission.
- The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission
- Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter Policy Committee Oversight2 Commissions
Agenda and Rules 1. Fair Campaign Practices/Open Government Commission
2. Personnel Board
Budget and Finance (Any legislation that requires funding) Public Safety 1. Disaster and Fire Safety Commission
2. Police Accountability Board/Police Review
Commission
3. Reimagining Public Safety Task Force
Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation
and the Environment
1. Commission on the Environment
2. Parks, Recreation and Waterfront with Marina
subcommittee
3. Public Works and Transportation
Land Use and Economic Development 1. Measure O Housing Commission
2. Planning Commission
3. Labor
4. Civic Arts Commission
Health, Equity, Life Enrichment, and
Community
1. Peace, Justice, and Civil Rights
2. Health and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of
Experts
3. Homeless Services Panel of Experts
4. Mental Health Commission (state/federal mandate)
5. Commission on the Status of Women
6. Disability Commission
2 Primary policy committee oversight but legislation may be referred to multiple policy committees.
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4 Other Commissions: Zoning Adjustments Board (DRC), Landmarks Preservation, Board of Library Trustees, BIDs, Independent Redistricting Commission, Loan Administration Board
POLICY COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
On April 5, 2021, the Agenda and Rules Committee made a qualified positive recommendation to City Council to:
1. Refer to the City Manager and City Attorney to bring back changes to the enabling legislation to reorganize existing commissions as proposed below in a phased approach.
Phase 1: Prioritize merging the Homeless Commission/Homeless Services Panel of Experts and Housing Advisory Commission/Measure O Bond Oversight Committee first, and request that the City Manager bring back changes to the enabling legislation to implement these consolidated commissions.
Phase 2: All other Commissions as proposed below.
As staff is able to make recommendations on consolidation, they can bring those recommendations forward one by one.
New Commission Name
(suggested)
Former Commissions to be Reorganized
Commission on Climate and the
Environment
Zero Waste, Energy, Community Environmental
Advisory, and Animal Care
Parks, Recreation, Waterfront
(special Marina subcommittee)
Children, Youth, and Recreation and Parks and
Waterfront
Peace, Justice, and Human Welfare Peace and Justice Commission and Human Welfare and Community Action Commission
Public Health Commission & Sugar
Sweetened Beverage Panel of
Experts
Community Health Commission and Sugar Sweetened
Beverage Panel of Experts
Housing Advisory Commission Measure O and Housing Advisory Commission Homeless Services Panel of
Experts
Homeless Commission and Measure P Homeless
Services Panel of Experts
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5 Public Works and Transportation Public Works and Transportation Planning Planning and Cannabis
All other commissions will maintain their current structure: Aging, Library Board of Trustees, Civic Arts, Disability, Commission on the Status of Women, Design Review Committee, Disaster and Fire Safety, BIDs, Fair Campaign Practices and Open Government, Redistricting, Landmarks Preservation, Labor, Loan Adjustments Board, Personnel, Planning, Police Review/Accountability, Reimagining Public Safety, Mental Health, Zoning Adjustments Board, and Youth
2. Refer to the Commissions impacted a process to determine the charge/responsibilities of the newly merged commissions, and bring Commission input to the appropriate Policy Committees (as proposed by Vice-Mayor Droste in 4/5/21 submittal) for further recommendations to the City Manager on revised charge/responsibilities of merged commissions.
3. Refer to staff to develop recommendations on the transition to new consolidated commissions and the effective date of the changes.
4. Consider establishing 18 members on the new Climate and Environment Commission and establishing specific subcommittees focused on the policy areas of the merged commissions.
5. The Peace, Justice and Human Welfare Commission will be comprised of only Mayor and Council appointees.
6. Refer Councilmember Hahn questions to City Manager and Commissions:
“Commissions to Combine/Merge - Suggested Considerations” Federal, state or other external mandates that might be impacted, and determine how to handle
Whether charters of to-be-merged Commissions were adopted by City Council, through measures or initiatives passed by voters, or are by Charter, and by what means they might be merged/adjusted
What elements of each Commission to keep, update, or retire, as well as relevant topics/issues not currently covered that might be added to a more comprehensive and/or relevant merged Commission’s charter.
Whether the merged Commission might include 9, or a greater number of members.
The possibility of requiring specific qualifications for appointment to the merged Commission.
The possibility of recommended or required Standing Committees of the Merged Commission
Volunteer workload and capacity given scope of Commission’s charter
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6 PROBLEM/SUMMARY STATEMENT
Commissions provide an important mechanism for residents to shape public policy and provide input on City business. However, the City of Berkeley maintains far more commissions than other cities of similar size, with a significant investment of City resources to staff all 37 commissions. Some commission secretaries report spending upwards of 20+ hours per week on commission business, which takes valuable time away from addressing other pressing City priorities. The local public health emergency created by the global COVID-19 pandemic has required City staff to shift to new roles and maintain an Emergency Operations Center since January 2020; recovery from the pandemic will continue to demand the full attention of our City staff for the foreseeable future. Given the uncertainties that our City faces in recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and the demands that this recovery places on our City staff, it is an appropriate time to consider how best to consolidate our commissions in a manner that helps the City to achieve its core mission.
REITERATION OF PRINCIPLES
Commissions are a fundamental part of the City’s policymaking process. Members of boards and commissions provide an invaluable service to our City. They advise the City Council on a wide variety of subjects by making recommendations on important policy matters. Without the assistance of the various boards and commissions, the City Council could give many complex and significant matters only a perfunctory review. The detailed studies and considered advice of boards and commissions are often catalysts for innovative programs and improved services. Serving on a board or commission can be a rewarding experience for community service– minded residents. It is an excellent way to participate in the functioning of local government and to make a personal contribution to the improvement of our community. Making local government effective and responsive is everybody’s responsibility.
● The Public Works Commission, for example, develops the City’s five year paving plan which they then present to City Council for approval. Through extensive community outreach and research, the Commission identifies the streets most in need of repaving.
● With the passage of Measure D in 2014, a Panel of Experts on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages has guided the City’s spending of over $5 million in revenue generated from the Measure. Those dollars have bolstered local public campaigns and education initiatives.
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7 These are merely two examples of the powerful role that Commissions play in City policymaking.
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Current Commission Structure
The City of Berkeley has approximately thirty-seven commissions overseen by city administration, most of which have at least nine members and who are appointed by individual councilmembers. These commissions were intended to be a forum for public participation beyond what is feasible at the City Council, so that issues that come before the City Council can be adequately vetted.
Some commissions are required by charter or mandated by voter approval or state/federal mandate. Those commissions are the following:
1. Board of Library Trustees (charter)
2. Business Improvement Districts (state mandate)
3. Civic Arts Commission (charter)
4. Community Environmental Advisory Commission (state/federal mandate-- CUPA)
5. Fair Campaign Practices Commission/Open Government (ballot measure)
6. Homeless Services Panel of Experts (ballot measure)
7. Housing Advisory Commission (state/federal mandate)
8. Human Welfare and Community Action (state/federal mandate)
9. Measure O Bond Oversight Committee (ballot measure)
10. Mental Health Commission (state/federal mandate)
11. Personnel (charter)Police Review Commission (ballot measure)
12. Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (ballot measure)
Berkeley must have its own mental health commission because of its independent Mental Health Division. In order to receive services, the City needs to have to have an advisory board. Additionally, Berkeley’s Community Environmental Advisory Commission is a required commission in order to oversee Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) under California’s Environmental Protection Agency. Additionally, some commissions serve other purposes beyond policy advisories. The Children, Youth and Recreation Commission, Housing Advisory Commission, and the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission advise Council on community agency funding.
However, some of the aforementioned quasi-judicial and state/federal mandated commissions do not need to stand independently and can be combined to meet mandated goals.
The Importance of Commissions
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8 Commissions serve a vital role in the City of Berkeley’s rich process of resident engagement. An analysis of agendas over the past several years shows that the commissions have created policy that have benefited the community in meaningful and important ways. In 2020, 14 of the 16 commission items submitted to Council passed.
From 2016-2020, an average of 34 items were submitted by commissions to Council for consideration.
The City’s Health, Housing and Community Development department serves an important role in addressing COVID-19, racial disparities, inequitable health outcomes, affordable housing, and other important community programs. Additionally, Health, Housing, and Community Development also staffs ten commissions, more than many cities of Berkeley’s size. Council needs to wrestle with these tradeoffs to ensure that we seek the maximum benefit for all of the Berkeley community, particularly our most vulnerable.
Commission Structures in Neighboring Jurisdictions
In comparison to neighboring jurisdictions of similar size, Berkeley has significantly more commissions. The median number of commissions for these cities is 12 and the average is 15.
Comparable
Bay Area City
Population
(est.)
Number of
Commissions Links
Berkeley 121,000 37
https://www.cityofberkeley.info/uploadedFiles/Clerk/Level_3_- _Commissions/External%20Roster.pdf
Antioch 112,000 6https://www.antiochca.gov/government/boards-commissions/ Concord 130,000 14
https://www.cityofconcord.org/264/Applications-for-Boards-Committees- Commi
Daly City 107,000 7
http://www.dalycity.org/City_Hall/Departments/city_clerk/Commissions_Inf ormation/boards.htm
Fairfield 117,000 7https://www.fairfield.ca.gov/gov/comms/default.asp Fremont 238,000 15https://www.fremont.gov/76/Boards-Commissions-Committees Hayward 160,000 12https://www.hayward-ca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions
14Page 137 of 145
9 Richmond 110,000 29https://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/256/Boards-and-Commissions San Mateo 105,000 7https://www.cityofsanmateo.org/60/Commissions-Boards Sunnyvale 153,000 10https://sunnyvale.ca.gov/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?blobid=22804 Vallejo 122,000 17http://www.ci.vallejo.ca.us/cms/one.aspx?pageId=22192
To understand the impact on various departments and staffing capacity, the following table shows which departments are responsible for overseeing various commissions.
Staffing and Resources Supporting Berkeley’s Current Commission Structure Commission Name
Overseeing Department (Total Commissions in
Department)
Animal Care Commission City Manager (8)
Civic Arts Commission City Manager (8)
Commission on the Status of Women City Manager (8)
Elmwood BID Advisory Board City Manager (8)
Loan Administration Board City Manager (8)
Peace and Justice Commission City Manager (8)
Solano Ave BID Advisory Board City Manager (8)
Cannabis Commission Planning (7)
Community Environmental Advisory Commission Planning (7) Design Review Committee Planning (7)
Energy Commission Planning (7)
Landmarks Preservation Commission Planning (7)
Planning Commission Planning (7)
Zoning Adjustments Board Planning (7)
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10 Children, Youth, and Recreation Commission Parks (3) Parks and Waterfront Commission Parks (3)
Youth Commission Parks (3)
Commission on Aging Health, Housing, and Community Services (HHCS) (10)
Commission on Labor HHCS (10)
Community Health Commission HHCS (10)
Homeless Commission HHCS (10)
Homeless Services Panel of Experts HHCS(10)
Housing Advisory Commission HHCS (10)
Human Welfare & Community Action Commission HHCS (10)
Measure O Bond Oversight Committee HHCS (10)
Mental Health Commission HHCS (10)
Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Product Panel of Experts HHCS (10) Disaster and Fire Safety Commission Fire (1)
Commission on Disability Public Works (4)
Public Works Commission Public Works (4)
Transportation Commission Public Works (4)
Zero Waste Commission Public Works (4)
Fair Campaign Practices Commission/Open Government
Commission
City Attorney (1)
Personnel Board Human Resources (1)
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11 Police Review Commission/Police Accountability Board Police Review Commission/Police Accountability Board Staff
Reimagining Public Safety Task Force City Manager *(8) and BPD (2) Board of Library Trustees Library (1)
Gray=charter
Red=state/federal mandate
Yellow=quasi-judicial
Blue=ballot initiative
Orange=state/federal mandate and quasi-judicial
Green=quasi-judicial and ballot initiative
The departments that staff more than five commissions are Health, Housing, and Community Services (10 commissions), Planning (7 commissions), and the City Manager’s department (8 commissions). At the same time, some smaller departments (e.g. the City Attorney’s office) may be impacted just as meaningfully if they have fewer staff and larger individual commission workloads.
Policy Committee Structure Expands Opportunities for Public Input With the recent addition of policy committees, proposed legislation is now vetted by councilmembers in these forums. Each policy committee is focused on a particular content area aligned with the City of Berkeley’s strategic plan and is staffed and an advisory policy body to certain city departments. Members of the public are able to provide input at these committees as well. The policy committees currently have the following department alignment:
Department and Policy Committee alignment
1. Agenda and Rules–all departments
2. Budget and Finance–City Manager, Clerk, Budget, and Finance
3. Land Use and Economic Development–Clerk, Planning, HHCS, City Attorney, and City Manager (OED)
4. Public Safety–Clerk, City Manager, Police, and Fire
5. Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment and Sustainability (Clerk, City Manager, Planning, Public Works, and Parks)
6. Health, Equity, Life Enrichment, and Community (Clerk, City Manager, HHCS)
Staffing Costs
Based upon preliminary calculations of staff titles and salary classifications, the average commission staff secretary makes roughly $60-$65/hour. Based upon recent interviews with secretaries and department heads, individual commission secretaries work
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12 anywhere from 8-80 hours a month staffing and preparing for commission meetings. To illustrate this example, a few examples are listed below.
Commission Step 5 Rate
of Pay
Reported
Hours a Month
Total Direct Cost of
Commission per Month
Animal Care $70.90 8 $567.20
Landmarks Preservation
Commission
$57.96 80 $4,636.80
Design Review Commission $52.76 60 $3,165.60
Peace and Justice $60.82 32 $1,946.24
It is extremely challenging to estimate a specific cost of commissions in the aggregate because of the varying workload but a safe estimate of salary costs dedicated to commissions would be in the six-figure range.
Many commissions--particularly quasi-judicial and land use commissions– require more than one staff member to be present and prepare reports for commissions. For example, Zoning Adjustment Board meetings often last five hours or more and multiple staff members spend hours preparing for hearings. The Planning Department indicates that in addition to direct hours, additional commission-related staff time adds an extra 33% staff time. Using the previous examples, this means that the Landmarks Preservation Commission would cost the city over $6,000 in productivity while the Design Review Commission would cost the City over $4,000 a month.
Productivity Losses and Administrative Burden
Current productivity losses are stark because of the sheer amount of hours of staffing time dedicated to commissions. As an example, in 2019 one of the City of Berkeley’s main homeless outreach workers staffed a commission within the City Manager’s department. She spent approximately 32 hours a month working directly on commission work. While this is not a commentary on a particular commission, this work directly impacted her ability to conduct homeless outreach.
RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION
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13 At a time when the City needs to demonstrate efficiency and fiscal restraint, the current commission structure is costly and duplicative. At the same time, civic engagement and commission work absolutely deserve an important role in Berkeley. Consequently, this legislation retains commissions but centers on overall community benefit, staff productivity, and associated costs. This is imperative to address, especially in light of COVID-19 and community demands for reinvestment in important social services.
FISCAL IMPACTS
Significant savings associated with reduced staffing.
CONTACT
Vice Mayor Lori Droste 510-981-7180
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20
Communications
All communications submitted to the City Council are
public record. Communications are not published directly to the City’s website. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing at the City Clerk Department and through Records Online.
City Clerk Department
2180 Milvia Street
Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 981-6900
Records Online
http://www.cityofberkeley.info/recordsonline
To search for communications associated with a particular City Council meeting using Records Online:
1. Select Search Type = “Public – Communication Query (Keywords)”
2. From Date: Enter the date of the Council meeting
3. To Date: Enter the date of the Council meeting (this may match the From Date field)
4. Click the “Search” button
5. Communication packets matching the entered criteria will be returned
6. Click the desired file in the Results column to view the document as a PDF
Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.CityofBerkeley.info/Manager
INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Submitted by: Sharon Friedrichsen, Budget Manager
Henry Oyekanmi, Finance Director
Subject: Fiscal Year 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update
RECOMMENDATION
Council receive and file the Fiscal Year 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update.
INTRODUCTION
This report presents the Fiscal Year 2024 (“FY 2024”) Mid-Year Budget Update including actual General Fund and Special Fund expenditures incurred from July 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023.
It also provides an estimate of anticipated General Fund revenues and expenditures by June 30, 2024 and projected expenditures for All Funds by department for FY 2024.
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
The City of Berkeley is currently in FY 2024, which covers the period of July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024. On June 27, 2023 the City Council adopted the FY 2024 Budget, authorizing gross appropriations of $728,631,293 and net appropriations of $621,229,929 (net of dual appropriations). The General Fund portion of this appropriation is $276,548,969.
As depicted on the next page, the FY 2024 Mid-Year General Budget at a Glance, shows that, as of December 31, 2023, General Fund revenues actuals are at 45.32% of the revised budget projection. Revenues received are less than 50% with half of the fiscal year elapsed, although the timing of the receipt of revenues varies through the course of the fiscal year. The year-end projected revenue is expected at $1.67 million less than the Adopted and Revised revenue.
General Fund expenses are at 55.54%, compared to the projected 50%, halfway through the fiscal year. Based on the mid-year trend, expenditures are projected to end over the revised budget by approximately $2.4 million. The FY 2024 mid-year projected ending shortfall is mostly due to increased personnel costs based upon approved labor agreements and public safety overtime offset by salary savings related to vacancies in other departments. However, the projections do not reflect all expenditures approved on January 16, 2024 by Council in the Amendment to the Annual Appropriation Ordinance (AAO#1).
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
FY 2024 Mid-Year General Budget at a Glance
FY 2024 Mid-Year Summary
General Fund Revenues
General Fund Revenue and Transfer In FY 2024 Mid-Year vs FY 2023 Mid-Year Comparison, on the next page, shows FY 2024 General Fund Revenues through the first six months of the current fiscal year and compares the year-to-date revenues received to the first six months of FY 2023. General Fund revenue and transfers decreased $7,143,655 or 5.59%, from $127,875,604 in the first half of FY 2023, to $120,731,949 for the same period in FY 2024.
Notable declines during the first half of FY 2024 were the following:
1. Property Transfer Taxes $ 6,619,374
2. Measure P Property Transfer Taxes 5,523,564
3. Transfers In 2,411,463
4. Sales Taxes 382,339
As staff indicated in the FY 2023 General Fund Revenue report to Council, the City General Fund has, for the near term, lost at least two of its three primary drivers of annual growth (Property Transfer Taxes and Measure P Property Transfer Taxes). These drivers of annual growth are experiencing negative growth that will eventually lower growth for Secured Property Taxes as they have continued to decline sharply in the first half of FY 2024. As a result, the General Fund revenue and transfers projection for FY 2024 has been reduced by $1,672,971 or .6% from $266,418,342 to $264,745,371.
The City’s Sales Tax Consultant has noted softening in sales activity in several sales tax categories since the Adopted Budget was passed, resulting in a reduction in the Sales Tax revenue projection of $1,278,425, from $19,654,225 to $18,375,800. The decline in Transfers In was due to a decline of $4,507,934 in transfers from the American Rescue Plan Fund. $'s in Millions Revenues Expenditures
FY 2024 Adopted Budget $266.42 ($276.55)
FY 2024 Revised Budget $266.42 ($307.53)
FY 2024 Mid-Year Actuals $120.73 ($170.81)
Percentage of Revenue Received/
Expended and Encumbered
compared to Revised Budget
45.32% 55.54%
FY 2024 Year-End Projected $264.75 ($309.96)
Variance between Revised and
Projected ($1.67) ($2.43)
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
Three notable increases during the first half of FY 2024 were Unsecured Property Taxes (+$729,509), Ambulance Fees (+$1,335,904) and Interest Income (+$2,580,861), which resulted in increases in the revenue projections for those revenue categories. Excluding Transfers, General Fund revenue decreased $4,327,473 or 3.55%, from $121,916,745 in the first half of FY 2023, to $116,589,272 in the first half of FY 2024.
Notes: This statement is presented on a budgetary basis (i.e., cash).
Before getting into the FY 2024 General Fund revenue details, staff also want to point out that the City’s General Fund revenue challenges have not ended now that the Feds have apparently stopped raising short-term rates, for the following reasons:
1.The Fed’s monetary tightening includes a program to sell $95 billion/month (or $1.14 trillion per year) of Agency and Mortgage-Backed securities from its Balance Sheet, which increases the supply of these securities and puts additional upward pressure on long-term rates, including mortgage rates. Prior to the monetary policy change, as the Feds was the major purchaser of these long-term securities;
2. The proposed $1.8 trillion federal budget deficit for the upcoming fiscal year will require the issuance of an additional $1.8 trillion in Treasury Bonds to fund the deficit; and,
3. The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index (the Fed’s favored inflation index) has declined from almost 9% during the pandemic to 2.93% in December 2023, close to the Fed’s
2.0% target.
Revenue Categories Adopted Actual Variance % Received Adopted Actual Variance % Received Amount % Secured Property $84,725,717 $42,904,620 ($41,821,097) 50.64% $75,664,920 $40,237,811 ($35,427,109) 53.18% 2,666,809 6.63% Redemptions -Regular 831,441 524,404 (307,037) 63.07% 831,441 461,026 -370,415 55.45% 63,378 13.75% Supplemental Taxes 3,400,000 1,197,265 (2,202,735) 35.21% 2,000,000 1,229,929 -770,071 61.50% (32,664) -2.66% Unsecured Property Taxes 3,806,995 3,881,280 74,285 101.95% 3,516,000 3,151,771 -364,229 89.64% 729,509 23.15% Property Transfer Tax 22,873,786 10,056,934 (12,816,852) 43.97% 34,462,172 16,676,308 -17,785,864 48.39% (6,619,374) -39.69% Property Transfer Tax-Measure P (New December 21, 2018) 10,189,500 2,840,259 (7,349,241) 27.87% 14,073,750 8,363,823 -5,709,927 59.43% (5,523,564) -66.04% Sales Taxes 19,654,225 9,305,556 (10,348,669) 47.35% 19,016,546 9,687,895 -9,328,651 50.94% (382,339) -3.95% Soda Taxes 1,147,387 581,705 (565,682) 50.70% 990,210 642,874 -347,336 64.92% (61,169) -9.51% Utility Users Taxes 17,454,320 7,801,328 (9,652,992) 44.70% 13,800,000 7,638,612 -6,161,388 55.35% 162,716 2.13% Transient Occupancy Taxes 8,374,588 4,393,772 (3,980,816) 52.47% 5,000,000 4,785,735 -214,265 95.71% (391,963) -8.19% Less: TOT rebates owed (3) (546,224) (498,566) (47,658) 9.56% Short-term Rentals 1,400,000 687,271 (712,729) 49.09% 1,000,000 712,661 -287,339 1,000,000 (25,390) -3.56% Business License Tax 21,560,783 1,592,902 (19,967,881) 7.39% 19,000,000 1,010,143 -17,989,857 5.32% 582,759 57.69% Recreational Cannabis 1,000,000 76,512 (923,488) 7.65% 1,400,000 237,669 -1,162,331 16.98% (161,157) -67.81% U1 Revenues 5,900,000 181,607 (5,718,393) 3.08% 4,900,000 113,893 -4,786,107 2.32% 67,714 59.45% Other Taxes (excluding Redemptions-Regular) 2,593,129 1,899,156 (693,973) 73.24% 1,800,000 1,500,099 -299,901 83.34% 399,057 26.60% Vehicle In-Lieu Taxes 17,811,134 8,937,911 (8,873,223) 50.18% 15,926,168 8,329,833 -7,596,335 52.30% 608,078 7.30% Parking Fines-Regular Collections 5,800,000 3,253,087 (2,546,913) 56.09% 4,326,450 3,104,161 -1,222,289 71.75% 148,926 4.80% Moving Violations 132,600 96,254 (36,346) 72.59% 132,600 71,415 -61,185 53.86% 24,839 34.78% Ambulance Fees 5,350,779 3,815,272 (1,535,507) 71.30% 3,880,779 2,479,368 -1,401,411 63.89% 1,335,904 53.88% Interest Income 8,826,211 6,619,791 (2,206,420) 75.00% 6,000,000 4,038,930 -1,961,070 67.32% 2,580,861 63.90% Franchise Fees 1,720,056 307,634 (1,412,422) 17.89% 1,613,283 335,043 -1,278,240 20.77% (27,409) -8.18% Other Revenue 7,668,797 3,018,612 (4,650,185) 39.36% 6,729,977 3,902,132 -2,827,845 57.98% (883,520) -22.64% IDC Reimbursement 6,104,970 3,259,079 (2,845,891) 53.38% 5,490,000 3,205,614 -2,284,386 58.39% 53,465 1.67% Transfers 8,091,924 4,045,962 (4,045,962) 50.00% 17,096,148 6,457,425 -10,638,723 37.77% (2,411,463) -37.34% Total Revenue: $266,418,342 $120,731,949 -$145,686,393 45.32% $258,650,444 $127,875,604 -$130,774,840 49.44% ($7,143,655) -5.59% FY 2024 FY 2023 Comparision FY24 vs FY23
General Fund Revenue and Transfer In FY 2024 Mid-Year vs FY 2023 Mid-Year Comparison
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
Despite that, the Feds is reluctant to lower short-term interest rates as soon as the market expected. The Fed Chairman indicated at the January 31, 2024 meeting that it will not start lowering interest rates until it is certain that inflation is on a sustainable path to the Fed’s 2% goal.
The additional huge supply of bonds from these macroeconomic factors will probably overwhelm demand for long-term bonds and continue to put pressure on long-term interest rates, including mortgage rates. In addition to reducing consumer spending and slowing down the economy, it will keep mortgage rates high.
FY 2024 FIRST HALF GENERAL FUND REVENUE DETAILS
Supplemental Taxes (-$32,664 less than FY 2023 Actual)
During the first half of FY 2024, Supplemental Taxes totaled $1,197,265, which was $32,664 or
2.7% less than the $1,229,929 received for the same period in FY 2023 Secured Property Tax (+$2,666,809 more than FY 2023 Actual) During the first half of FY 2024, Secured Property Tax revenues totaled $42,904,620, which was $2,666,809 or 6.63% more than the $40,237,811 received for the same period in FY 2023.
This result was consistent with the County’s Certification of Assessed Valuation (received from the County in August 2023), which reflects growth of 7.256%. However, the FY 2024 Adopted Budget assumed a 6.895% increase for FY 2024, so actual Secured Property Taxes are expected to be $286,128 or .361% more than the Adopted Budget amount of $84,725,717. The Secured Property Tax Revenue projection is being increased from $84,725,717 to $85,011,845.
Unsecured Property Tax (+$729,509 more than FY 2023 Actual) During the first half of FY 2024, Unsecured Property Tax revenues totaled $3,881,280, which was $729,509 or 23.2% more than the amount of $3,151,771 received for the same period in FY 2023.
This amount is greater than the County’s Certification of Assessed Valuation growth of 9.1% for FY 2024. The Unsecured Property Tax Revenue projection is being increased from $3,806,995 to $3,881,280.
Property Transfer Tax (-$6,619,374 less than FY 2023 Actual) During the first half of FY 2024, Property Transfer Tax totaled $10,056,934, which was $6,619,374 or 39.7% less than the $16,676,308 received for the same period in FY 2023.
The primary reasons for the $6,619,374 decrease in Property Transfer Tax were the following:
(1) The dollar value of property sales decreased by $487.2 billion or 42.2%, from $1.154.7 billion in the first half of FY 2023 to $667.5 million during the same period of FY 2024, as illustrated in Table 1 below.
(2) There were ten property sales of $10 million or more, with total sales of $411 million in the first half of FY 2023 compared to 4 property sales of $10 million or more, with total sales of $74.9 million in the first half of FY 2024; and,
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
(3) The number of property sales transactions decreased by 126 or 23.7% from 532 in the first half of FY 2023 to 406 during the same period of FY 2024, as illustrated in the Table 3 below.
This decline in real estate activity is generally attributed to high and increasing mortgage rates and a slowing economy resulting from the Federal Reserve Board’s aggressive attempt to reduce the money supply and slowing down the US economy in order to reduce inflation, by sharply raising interest rates and selling $95 billion/month of Agency and Mortgage-Backed securities from its Balance Sheet. The Property Transfer Tax Revenue projection is being decreased from $22,873,786 to $16,873,786.
Property Sales In Million $
July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Total
FY 2024 $129.2 $152.5 $99.9 $95.7 $95.8 $94.4 $667.5
FY 2023 188.9 320.0 134.6 113.9 254.9 142.4 1,154.7 Change -59.7 -167.5 -34.7 -18.2 159.1 -48.0 -487.2 % Change -
31.6%
-52.3% -25.8% -16.0% -62.4% -33.7% -42.2%
Number of Property Sales Transactions
Measure P-Property Transfer Tax (-$5,523,564 less than FY 2023 Actual) Measure P taxes totaling $2,840,259 was collected during the first half of FY 2024, which was $5,523,564 or 66.0% less than the $8,363,823 collected during the same period of FY 2023. This decrease resulted primarily from the following: (1) A decrease of 61.0% in the dollar value of property sales amount in the first half of FY 2024 versus those in the first half of FY 2023 as reflected in Table 3; (2) The number of property sales transactions decreased by 131 or 60.9% during the first half of FY 2024, as illustrated in the table below; and,(3) There were only four property sales of $10 million or more totaling $75 million during this six-month period in FY 2024, compared to 9 transactions with total property sales of $401 million for the same period in FY 2023. The Measure P1 Property Transfer Tax Revenue projection is being decreased from $10,189,500 to $6,500,000.
Property Sales $1.5 million+ In Million $
July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Total
FY 2024 $62.8 $87.2 $48.5 $51.9 $33.6 $42.5 $326.5
FY 2023 114.4 271.1 84.1 63.3 203.7 99.8 836.4 Change - 51.6 -183.9 -35.6 -11.4 -170.1 -57.3 -509.9 % Change -45.1% -67.8% -42.3% -18.0% -83.5% -57.4% -61.0% July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Total
FY 2024 79 73 64 61 67 62 406
FY 2023 113 101 108 79 74 57 532
Change -34 -28 -44 -18 -7 5 -126
% Change -.30.1% -27.7% 40.7% -22.8% -9.5% 8.8% -23.7%
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
Property Transactions $1.5 Million and Above
Sales Tax (-$382,339 less than FY 2023 Actual)
For the first half of FY 2024, Sales Tax revenue totaled $9,305,556, which was $382,339 or 3.95% less than the $9,687,895 received for the same period in FY 2023. The City’s Sales Tax Consultant has noticed a significant softening of sales in several categories since the Adopted Budget was passed and has revised revenue projections in the following categories:
Category Adopted Budget Amount Revised Projection Difference General Retail $ 4,514,430 $ 4,037,541 ($ 476,889)
Food Products 5,584,993 5,332,044 ( 252,949) Transportation 3,060,135 2,566,985 ( 493,150) Construction 1,697,060 1,430,481 ( 266,579)
Business to Business 1,692,394 1,729,113 36,719 Miscellaneous 211,692 563,185 351,493 County Pool 4,091,330 3,437,856 ( 653,474)
State Pool 9,402 8,989 (413) County Sharing (1,043,072) (955,310) 87,762 CDTFA Administration (164,139) (137,311) 26,828 Total $19,654,225 $ 18,013,573 ($1,640,652)
As a result, the FY 2024 Sales Tax Revenue projection is being decreased from $19,654,225 to $18,375,800.
Utility Users Taxes (+$162,716 more than FY 2023 Actual) Utility Users Tax revenue for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $7,801,328, which was $162,716 or
2.13% more than the $7,638,612 received for FY 2023. This increase of $162,716 resulted from increases/decreases in the following categories:
FY 2024 Actual Revenues Compared to FY 2023 Actual Revenues FY2024 FY 2023 $ Change % Change
Telephone $ 515,199 $ 545,243 $ -30,044 -5.96%
Cable 475,793 503,785 - 27,992 -5.56%
Cellular 881,338 898,459 -17,121 -1.91%
Electric 4,792,052 4,346,334 445,718 10.26%
Gas 1,136,946 1,344,791 -207,845 -15.46%
Total $7,801,328 $7,638,612 $162,716 2.13%
July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Total
FY 2024 18 17 12 15 12 10 84
FY 2023 52 41 48 31 24 19 215
Change -34 -24 -36 -16 -12 -9 -131
% Change -65.4% -58.5% -75.0% -51.6% -50.0% -47.4% -60.9%
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
PG&E received an 8% increase in electricity rates in January 2022, another increase of 8.9% in March 2023, and another ranging between 1%-4.1% effective September 1, 2023. The UUT Revenue projection is being increased from $17,454,320 to $17,700,000.
Transient Occupancy Tax (-$391,963 less than FY 2023 Actual) The total gross Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) revenue reported for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $4,393,772 (before deducting $546,224 in TOT rebates owed), which was $391,963 or
8.2% less than the $4,785,735 (before deducting $498,566 in TOT rebates owed) received for the same period in 2023. The decline reported was $439,621 or 10.3% after deducting the TOT rebates owed for the respective period.
However, four hotels with a total of $293,467 in TOT and $92,312 in TOT rebates owed were not reported in the period ending December 31, 2023. After considering these transactions, gross TOT revenue in the first half of FY 2024 declined $98,496 or 2.1% and net TOT (after deducting TOT rebates owed) declined $238,466 or 5.6%.
The revised decrease in the first half of FY 2024 was primarily attributable to a gross decrease of
3.7% and a net decrease of .2% at the six largest hotels in Berkeley.
Short-Term Rentals (-$25,390 less than FY 2023 Actual)
Short-Term Rentals revenue for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $687,271, which was $25,390 or
3.6% less than the $712,661 received for the same period in FY 2023.
Business License Taxes (+$582,759 more than FY 2023 Actual) Business license Taxes (BLT) revenue for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $1,592,902, which was $582,759 or 57.7% more than the $1,010,143 received for the same period in FY 2023.
It is too soon to determine if this increase is due to growth or due to the timing of the processing of the Business License Tax receipts, as these taxes are not delinquent until March 1st.
U1 Revenues (+$67,714 more than FY 2023 Actual)
U1 revenues for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $181,607, which was $67,714 or 59.5% more than the $113,893 received for the same period in FY 2023.
It is too soon to determine if this increase is due to growth or due to the timing of the processing of the U1 receipts, as these taxes are not delinquent until March 1st.
Vehicle In Lieu Taxes (+$608,078 more than FY 2023 Actual) Vehicle in Lieu Taxes (VLF) for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $8,937,911, which was $608,078 or 7.30% more than the $8,329,833 received for the same period in FY 2023. This result was consistent with the County’s Certification of Assessed Valuation (received in August 2022), which reflects growth of 7.256%. Changes in VLF revenues are based on the growth in assessed values.
However, the Adopted Budget reflects growth of 6.912%, so actual Vehicle In Lieu Taxes are expected to be $57,356 or .3443% more than the Adopted Budget amount of $17,811,134. The FY 2024 Vehicle In Lieu Tax projection is being increased from $17,811,134 to $17,868,490.
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
Other Taxes (+$399,057 more than FY 2023 Actual)
Other Taxes (excluding Redemptions-Regular) for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $1,899,156 which was $399,047 or 26.6% more than the $1,500,099 received for the same period in FY 2023.
The primary reason for the increase was (1) an increase of $199,570 in Parking Lot Taxes; (2) a decline of $191,035 in BLT penalties; (3) a decline of $97,637 in BLT interest; and, (4) $406,213 in Transportation Network Company User Tax (i.e., a tax on ride sharing companies enacted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic) was recorded as Other Revenue, instead of Other Taxes in FY 2023. After including Transportation Network Company User Taxes as Other Taxes, instead of Other Income, the FY 2024 Other Taxes projection is being increased from $2,593,129 to $4,621,618.
Parking Fines (+$148,926 more than FY 2023 Actual)
Parking Fines revenue for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $3,253,087, which was $148,926 or
4.8% more than the $3,104,161 received for the same period in FY 2023. The primary reason for the increase was the continued increase in ticket writing. For the first half of FY 2024, ticket writing increased by 4,986 or 7.06% from 70,592 in the first half of FY 2023 to 75,578 in the same period in FY 2024, as follows:
July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Total
FY 2024 12,318 13,865 12,931 12,819 12,213 11,432 75,578 FY 2023 10,881 11,414 12,984 12,419 12,369 10,525 70,592 Difference 1,437 2,451 -53 400 -156 907 4,986 % Difference 13.2% 21.5% -.4% 12.6% -1.26% 8.62% 7.06% Ambulance Fees (+$1,335,904 more than FY 2023 Actual)
Ambulance Fees revenue for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $3,815,272, which was $1,335,904 or 53.9% more than the $3,833,730 received for the same period in FY 2023. This increase was primarily due to (1) an increase in the number of transports, which increased by 205 or 7% in the first half of FY 2024, from 2,941 to 3,146; and (2) the Public Provider Ground Emergency Medical Transportation (PPGEMT) program replacing the Quality Assurance Fee Program (QAF); The MEDI-CAL and MCAL HMO reimbursement rate increased to $1,062 under the PPGEMT Program from $339 under the QAF Program. As a result, the FY 2024 Ambulance Fee revenue projection is being increased from $5,350,779 to $6,944,117 in FY 2024.
Interest Income (+$2,580,861 more than FY 2023 Actual)
For the first half of FY 2024, Interest Income totaled $6,619,791, which was $2,580,861 or 63.9% more than the total of $4,038,930 received for the same period in FY 2023.This increase was primarily attributable to a significant increase in average interest rates earned after the Federal Reserve reversed course and started raising interest rates on March 17, 2022. Primarily as a result of the Fed’s actions, the net interest rate earned by the City increased from a range of
1.837%-2.616% during the first half of FY 2023, to a range of 2.84%-3.10% during the first half of FY 2024, as follows:
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
Monthly Net Interest Rate Earned
July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
FY 2024 3.10% 3.02% 2.95% 2.95% 2.88% 2.84%
FY 2023 1.837% 2.025% 1.972% 2.258% 2.390% 2.616%
The FY 2024 Interest Income projection is being increased from $8,826,211 to $12,615,354.
Indirect Cost Reimbursements (+$53,465 more than FY 2023 Actual) Indirect Cost Reimbursements (IDC) for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $3,259,079, which was $53,465 or 1.67% more than the $3,205,614 received for the same period in FY 2023. This increase was primarily accounted for by an increase in the indirect cost allocation base (total direct salaries and wages) from $14,360,779 in the first half of FY 2023 to $14,846,041 in FY 2024. The FY 2024 IDC revenue projection is being increased from $6,104,970 to $6,800,000.
Transfers (-$2,411,463 less than FY 2023 Actual)
Transfers from other funds for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $4,045,962 which was $2,411,463 or 37.3% less than the $6,457,425 received for the same period in FY 2023. This was primarily attributable to the Transfer of $1,627,872 from the American Rescue Plan Fund to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in FY 2024, compared to the Transfer of $6,135,806 from the American Rescue Plan Fund for the same period in FY 2023.
Other Revenues (-$883,520 less than FY 2023 Actual)
Other Revenues primarily consists of licenses and permits; grants; preferential parking fees; general government charges for services; public safety charges for services; health charges for services; culture and recreation charges for services; rents and royalties; and other miscellaneous revenues that are not considered major.
Other Revenues for the first half of FY 2024 totaled $3,018,612 which was $883,520 or 22.6% less than the $3,902,132 received for the same period in FY 2023. This decrease of $883,520 was primarily attributable to (1) the inclusion of $406,213 in TNC User Taxes to Other Income, rather than Other Taxes in the first half of FY 2023; and (2) A premium of $687,680 on the issuance of the Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes (TRAN) in FY 2023 versus $457,283 in FY 2024. The premium paid to the City was not actually revenue; it was a liability that was paid by the purchaser of the City’s Notes when the coupon interest rate was higher than the market rate when the Notes were issued. It will be used to offset the interest expense paid by the City on the Notes.
The FY 2023 total for Other Revenue was $9,043,937, while the Adopted Budget total was $7,668,797. The FY 2024 Other Revenue projection is being increased from $7,668,797 to $8,468,797.
Based on the FY 2024 Mid-Year, the revised projection for the FY 2024 General Fund Revenues are $264.75 million.
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
General Fund Expenditures
On June 27, 2023 the City Council adopted the FY 2024 Budget, which authorized General Fund expenditures in FY 2024 of $276.55 million. Subsequently, on December 12, 2023, the City Council approved General Fund recommended encumbered rollovers, unencumbered carryovers, and adjustments totaling $50.04 million in the Amendment to the FY 2024 Annual Appropriations Ordinance (AAO#1) as shown in the table below:
FY 2024 General Fund Revised Budget
*FY 24 Revised Budget at mid-year totaled $307.5 million. With AAO#1 amendment approved in January 2024, revised budget increases to $326.6 million.
The encumbered rollovers of $16.75 million reflect contractual obligations entered in FY 2023, which had not been paid as of June 30, 2023. Unencumbered carryovers of $12.52 million are approved by Council for specific purposes that had not been completed by the end of FY 2023.
Funding for these commitments is brought forward into the current fiscal year to provide for payment of these obligations. Adjustments are new allocations for projects and Council priorities as detailed in the AAO. Included in the other adjustments of $20.76 million are Council authorized allocations approved through the adoption of the Amendment to the AAO on December 12, 2023 (first reading) and January 16, 2024 (second reading).
General Fund expenditures incurred by department as of December 31, 2023 are shown in the following chart along with projections regarding the expenditures likely to be incurred through June 30, 2024. The two projected savings/deficit columns in the chart below are an estimate of whether the department will be under or over the revised budget and their respective appropriation limit based upon the first six months of the year. Not all of the adopted AAO#1 funding is reflected in the FY 2024 Revised Budget as of December 31, 2023.
The General Fund expenditure is projected to be over original revised budget of $3.08 million by $2.43 million at the end of FY 2024 (Revised Budget minus Projected Expenses). The planned expenditures reflect increased personnel costs based upon approved labor agreements, and public safety overtime offset by salary savings related to vacancies in other departments and adjustments approved by Council on January 16, 2024 in the Amendment to the Annual Appropriation Ordinance (AAO#1). Projected expenditures will also fluctuate as departments (1) fill vacant positions; (2) increase overtime spending to provide critical public safety services; (3) spend more on consultants and other professional services (“non-personnel costs”) to mitigate vacant staff positions and/or respond to unanticipated events and (4) implementation of projects.
FY 2024 Adopted
Budget
Encumbered
Recommended
Unencumbered
Recommended
Other
Adjustments
FY 2024 Revised
Budget
276,548,969$ 16,752,951$ 12,523,938$ 20,763,498$ 326,589,356$
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
FY 2024 Mid-Year General Fund Expenditures (as of December 21, 2023) *FY 2024 Revised does not reflect as of December 31, 2023 all Council approved allocations included in the FY 2024 AAO #1.
Explanations for significant projected savings and overages are as follows:
City Auditor’s Office, $132,177: The projected balance is mostly due to salary savings by underfilled positions and a vacancy.
Office of the Director of Police Accountability, (-$46,237): The projected deficit results from expenditure patterns driven by one-time investments in office infrastructure, which were funded as part of AAO1, but not reflected at this point in time.
DEPARTMENT FY 2024
ADOPTED
BUDGET
FY 2024
REVISED
BUDGET*
YEAR TO
DATE
EXPENDED
ENCUMBRANCES AVAILABLE
BUDGET
PERSONNEL
PERCENTAGE
USED
NON-
PERSONNEL
PERCENTAGE
USED
TOTAL
PERCENTAGE
USED
FY 2024
PROJECTED
EXPENDITURES
FY 2024 PROJECTED
ENDING
BALANCE/(DEFICIT)
MAYOR AND COUNCIL 4,772,190 4,849,542 1,923,297 62,410 2,863,835 40.5% 44.7% 40.9% 4,849,542 - CITY AUDITOR 3,136,323 3,221,934 1,391,210 102,047 1,728,678 43.9% 63.1% 46.3% 3,089,758 132,177 RENT STABILIZATION BOARD 550,000 651,588 302,231 349,356 1 0.0% 100.0% 100.0% 651,588 - POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY 1,142,593 1,310,290 515,732 159,357 635,201 34.4% 77.3% 51.5% 1,597,102 (286,812) CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE 13,150,234 16,294,107 7,458,276 2,303,030 6,532,801 45.4% 81.4% 59.9% 15,758,044 536,063 CITY ATTORNEY 4,304,039 5,003,419 2,038,057 395,637 2,569,725 39.6% 77.3% 48.6% 5,273,499 (270,080) CITY CLERK 2,547,276 2,759,548 972,288 325,627 1,461,633 48.0% 45.7% 47.0% 2,886,744 (127,196) FINANCE 8,179,370 9,110,602 3,281,701 1,063,527 4,765,374 39.6% 71.4% 47.7% 8,047,068 1,063,534 HUMAN RESOURCES 3,467,541 4,127,222 1,728,648 142,944 2,255,629 45.6% 44.8% 45.3% 4,125,275 1,947 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 1,526,760 2,233,165 891,132 308,646 1,033,388 0.0% 53.7% 53.7% 1,702,432 530,733
HEALTH, HSG & COMMUNITY
SVC
31,429,102 47,457,711 16,578,721 9,486,685 21,392,304 40.7% 60.9% 54.9% 45,656,435 1,801,276
PARKS, RECREATION &
WATERFRONT
9,359,349 11,766,832 5,828,846 997,780 4,940,206 49.7% 66.8% 58.0% 16,256,832 (4,490,000) PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT 3,277,246 6,494,510 1,469,787 171,732 4,852,991 43.4% 12.2% 25.3% 6,132,221 362,289 PUBLIC WORKS 6,558,529 12,160,727 3,144,927 1,972,562 7,043,238 30.8% 49.4% 42.1% 9,264,376 2,896,351 POLICE 83,606,570 81,617,830 41,085,284 1,081,010 39,451,536 49.5% 70.3% 51.7% 85,155,524 (3,537,694) FIRE & EMERGENCY SERVICES 39,546,063 43,205,216 22,830,487 4,951,735 15,422,994 62.6% 67.8% 64.3% 49,455,394 (6,250,178) NON DEPARTMENTAL 59,995,782 55,262,131 35,120,397 378,568 19,763,166 1564.8% 64.1% 64.2% 50,055,826 5,206,305 GRAND TOTAL 276,548,969 307,526,375 146,561,021 24,252,653 136,712,701 49.1% 62.7% 55.5% 309,957,660 (2,431,285)
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
City Manager’s Office, $536,063: Projected balance from vacancies during the first half of the fiscal year as well as timing-related delays in implementing new programs. City Attorney’s Office, (-$270,080): Projected deficit is timing related as the report does not reflect Council approved increases in funding in the AAO#1. Based upon AAO#1, the department is projecting a positive balance due to not incremental filling of vacancies and the possible partial use of funding for outside legal counsel. City Clerk, (-$127,196): Projected deficit is due to unplanned special elections costs. Finance, $1,063,534: Projected balance due to vacancies and challenges in finding qualified candidates to fill specialized positions funded by the General Fund. Information Technology, $530,733: Projected balance is due to various projects that will not be completed in FY 2024.
Health, Housing & Community Services, $1,801,276: Projected balance due to vacancies and challenges in hiring for specialized positions.
Parks, Recreation, and Waterfront, (-$4,490,000): Projected deficit is timing-related as the report does not include Council approved AAO#1 funding. Once the additional funding is accounted for, the department is expecting to be on budget. The projection includes projections for predictability pay, $4.05M of General Fund FY 2024 contribution to the Workers Compensation Fund redirected to fill the T1 funding gap, $300,000 for Dreamland design and $140,000 for the Miyawaki Forest.
Planning, $362,289: Projected balance is primarily comprised of $284,000 in salary savings due to vacancies.
Public Works, $2,896,351: Projected savings is primarily due to Facilities and Transportation projects that are expected to not be completed by FY 2024. Police, (-$3,537,694): Projected deficit based on mid-year numbers do not reflect the Council approved funding in AAO#1 of $4.3 million for the Berkeley Police Association Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Once adjusted, the projected year-end is positive due to savings from vacant positions. It also consists of cost overruns related to Police fleet replacement fund contributions and fuel and maintenance costs. Fire, (-$6,250.178): Projected deficit of $6.25 million compared to the FY 2024 revised budget as of mid-year. This is expected to decrease once the $1.89 million of approved AAO#1 funding for the Berkeley Fire Fighters Association’s new MOU is entered into the financial system. However, the Fire department is still expected to end the fiscal year with a deficit due to challenges in staffing and increases in overtime cost and fringe benefits. Non-Departmental, $5,206,305: Projected balance due to timing of implementation of various projects and programs.
In addition, the Rent Board and Human Resources, are expected to finish the year either on budget or very slightly under budget.
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
Projected General Fund Budget Summary
The FY 2024 Adopted Budget anticipated the use of $10.13 million in fund balance to support increased expenditures that exceeded revenue projections, recognizing that revenues had not fully returned to pre-pandemic levels, the use of one-time federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act would be exhausted, and that Measure P fund balance within the General Fund would be required to fund related programs and one-time expenditures such as the reservation for Project Homekey. Based on the projected decrease in General Fund revenue, and various assumptions related to non-personnel expenses incurred before June 30, 20024, the FY 2024 mid-year projection estimates an annual shortfall between $18.2-45.21 million, with the latter upward projection assuming all non-personnel expenditures authorized within the revised budget are fully spent by June 30, 2024. However, it is important to emphasize that the revenue and expenditure projections provided are the best estimates staff has at this time for how the General Fund is projected to close in FY 2024. Between now and the end of the fiscal year, a number of assumptions could change that will impact projections, including, but not limited to, changes in economic conditions that may impact revenue, status of vacant positions, any increased operational costs, as well as the likely underspending in non-personnel costs related to timing delays in implementing projects and programs that would significantly reduce the projected shortfall. The actual FY 2024 year-end status will be known sometime in late December 2024 after the completion of the financial audit. Any General Fund shortfall will be absorbed by existing fund balance and will impact recommendations regarding carryover and encumbrances requests in FY 2025.
All Funds Expenditures
The General Funds comprises about 32 percent of the total revised budget. The rest of the budget consists of various Special Funds. Special Funds are collected for a specific purpose; therefore, the projected balances are not considered to be discretionary and available to be re- allocated toward other programs, projects, and services. Included in the FY 2024 Mid-Year All Funds Expenditures by Department chart on the next page are both the General Fund and the Special Funds expenditures as of December 31, 2023. On an All Funds basis, the City is tracking on budget at 49.2 percent at mid-year and projected to close FY 2024 with a balance of $75.51 million using the revised budget as of December 31, 2023.
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
FY 2023 Mid-Year All Funds Expenditures (as of December 31, 2023) *FY 2024 Revised does not reflect as of December 31, 2023 all Council approved allocations included in the FY 2024 AAO #1. City Auditor, City Manager’s Office, City Clerk, Finance, Human Resources, Information Technology, Health, Housing, & Community Services, Parks, Recreation & Waterfront, Planning, Public Works, and Non-Departmental are anticipated to finish FY 2024 with balances compared to the Mid-Year FY 2024 Revised budget. The underspending is related to salary savings due to vacancies, as well as projects and grants that are not expected to be finished by the end of the fiscal year.
DEPARTMENT FY 2024
ADOPTED
BUDGET
FY 2024
REVISED
BUDGET*
(as of 12/31/23)
FY 2024
EXPENDED (as
of 12/31/23)
ENCUMBRANCES
(as of 12/31/23)
AVAILABLE
BUDGET
(as of 12/31/23)
TOTAL
PERCENTAGE
USED
FY 2024
PROJECTED
EXPENDITURES
FY 2024 PROJECTED
ENDING
BALANCE/(DEFICIT)
MAYOR AND COUNCIL 4,772,190 4,852,642 1,923,297 62,410 2,866,935 $ 40.9% 4,852,642 - CITY AUDITOR 3,231,099 3,316,710 1,436,197 102,047 1,778,466 $ 46.4% 3,185,336 131,374 RENT STABILIZATION BOARD 8,056,460 8,878,430 3,321,869 1,177,159 4,379,402 $ 50.7% 8,878,430 - POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY 1,142,593 1,310,290 515,732 159,357 635,201 $ 51.5% 1,597,102 (286,812) CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE 16,889,184 24,460,343 10,369,281 3,308,613 10,782,449$ 55.9% 23,849,537 610,806 BERKELEY PUBLIC LIBRARY 25,024,425 26,408,346 11,707,927 2,974,567 11,725,852$ 55.6% 31,726,777 (5,318,431) CITY ATTORNEY 8,106,984 9,855,499 3,859,904 848,178 5,147,417 $ 47.8% 10,253,763 (398,264) CITY CLERK 3,159,486 3,371,758 1,137,760 325,627 1,908,371 $ 43.4% 3,257,393 114,365 FINANCE 10,607,143 11,608,386 4,108,986 1,214,803 6,284,597 $ 45.9% 10,240,391 1,367,995 HUMAN RESOURCES 5,442,688 6,133,364 2,524,897 168,619 3,439,848 $ 43.9% 6,098,578 34,786 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 22,237,720 29,316,274 7,944,446 3,165,053 18,206,775$ 37.9% 25,820,790 3,495,484
HEALTH, HSG & COMMUNITY
SVC 99,683,536 163,577,083 39,384,181 38,369,815 85,823,087$ 47.5% 132,358,390 31,218,693 PARKS, RECREATION & WF 53,688,581 89,082,692 24,402,344 9,740,801 54,939,546$ 38.3% 69,503,725 19,578,967 PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT 31,267,162 36,767,666 12,207,816 1,955,917 22,603,933$ 38.5% 32,394,732 4,372,934 PUBLIC WORKS 188,326,163 292,296,250 71,665,023 67,247,968 153,383,259$ 47.5% 267,668,149 24,628,101 POLICE 88,188,161 88,587,883 43,419,654 1,496,074 43,672,155$ 50.7% 91,106,786 (2,518,903) FIRE & EMERGENCY SERVICES 62,316,809 69,373,228 31,462,153 7,817,721 30,093,354$ 56.6% 75,998,874 (6,625,646) NON DEPARTMENTAL 101,173,999 100,604,624 65,445,388 520,846 34,638,390$ 65.6% 95,504,624 5,100,000 GRAND TOTAL 733,314,383 969,801,468 336,836,857 140,655,573 492,309,038 49.2% 894,296,021 75,505,447
FY 2024 Mid-Year Budget Update INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
The Office of the Director of Police Accountability, City Attorney, and Police Department anticipates an ending shortfall from the FY 2024 Revised Budget. However, after accounting for all of the approved AAO#1 funding, anticipated shortfalls will be less or end with a balance.
The Fire Department is expected to end FY 2024 with a deficit due to high vacancy rate causing an increase in overtime expenses and underfunded fringe benefit costs The Berkeley Public Library shows a projected deficit of over $5.0 million. This is mostly due to increasing 0.5 Part Time employees to 0.75 Part Time employees. The Library plans to reconcile this late third quarter in FY 2024 and going forward.
Next Steps:
Staff is continuously monitoring the FY 2024 General Fund budget to make sure the City stays within budget and is also reviewing and analyzing data to make sure that the City remains agile should additional operating and capital needs arise in the fiscal year. Final FY 2024 year-end General Fund revenues and expenditures information will be included in the “FY 2024 Year-End Report and FY 2025 First Quarter Update” that will be presented to Council in December 2024.
The City’s annual Mid-Year Budget Update is a Strategic Plan Priority, advancing our goal to provide an efficient and financially-healthy City government.
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
Actions included in the budget will be developed and implemented in a manner that is consistent with the City’s environmental sustainability goals and requirements.
CONTACT PERSON
Sharon Friedrichsen, Budget Manager, City Manager’s Office, 981-7000 Henry Oyekanmi, Finance Director, Department of Finance, 981-7300 Maricar Dupaya, Senior Management Analyst, City Manager’s Office, 981-7000 Attachments:
1. Table: General Fund Revenue and Transfer In FY 2024 Mid-Year vs FY 2023 Mid-Year Comparison
2. Table: FY 2024 Mid-Year General Fund Expenditures (as of December 31, 2023)
3. Table: FY 2024 Mid-Year All Funds Expenditures (as of December 31, 2023)
Revenue Categories Adopted Actual Variance % Received Adopted Actual Variance % Received Amount % (a) (b) c=(b) - (a) ( d) = (b)/(a) (e) (f) g=(f) - (e) (h) = (f)/(g) (i) = (b) - (f) (j) = (i)/(f) Secured Property $84,725,717 $42,904,620 ($41,821,097) 50.64% $75,664,920 $40,237,811 ($35,427,109) 53.18% 2,666,809 6.63% Redemptions -Regular 831,441 524,404 (307, 037) 63.07% 831,441 461,026 -370, 415 55.45% 63,378 13.75% Supplemental Taxes 3,400,000 1,197,265 (2,202,735) 35.21% 2,000,000 1,229,929 -770,071 61.50% (32,664) -2.66% Unsecured Property Taxes 3,806,995 3,881,280 74,285 101. 95% 3,516,000 3,151, 771 -364, 229 89.64% 729,509 23.15% Property Transfer Tax 22,873,786 10,056,934 (12, 816,852) 43.97% 34,462,172 16,676, 308 -17, 785,864 48.39% (6,619,374) -39. 69% Property Transfer Tax-Measure P (New December 21, 2018) 10,189,500 2,840,259 (7, 349,241) 27.87% 14,073,750 8,363, 823 -5, 709,927 59.43% (5,523,564) -66. 04% Sales Taxes 19,654,225 9,305,556 (10, 348,669) 47.35% 19,016,546 9,687, 895 -9, 328,651 50.94% (382,339) -3. 95% Soda Taxes 1,147,387 581,705 (565, 682) 50.70% 990,210 642,874 -347, 336 64.92% (61,169) -9. 51% Utility Users Taxes 17,454,320 7,801,328 (9, 652,992) 44.70% 13,800,000 7,638, 612 -6, 161,388 55.35% 162,716 2.13% Transient Occupancy Taxes 8,374,588 4,393,772 (3, 980,816) 52.47% 5,000,000 4,785, 735 -214, 265 95.71% (391,963) -8. 19% Less: TOT rebates owed (3) (546,224) (498,566) (47, 658) 9.56% Short-term Rentals 1,400,000 687,271 (712, 729) 49.09% 1,000,000 712,661 -287, 339 1,000,000 (25, 390) -3. 56% Business License Tax 21,560,783 1,592,902 (19, 967,881) 7.39% 19,000,000 1,010, 143 -17, 989,857 5.32% 582,759 57.69% Recreational Cannabis 1,000,000 76,512 (923, 488) 7.65% 1,400,000 237,669 -1, 162,331 16.98% (161,157) -67. 81% U1 Revenues 5,900,000 181,607 (5, 718,393) 3.08% 4,900,000 113,893 -4, 786,107 2.32% 67,714 59.45% Other Taxes (excluding Redemptions-Regular) 2,593,129 1,899,156 (693, 973) 73.24% 1,800,000 1,500, 099 -299, 901 83.34% 399,057 26.60% Vehicle In-Lieu Taxes 17,811,134 8,937,911 (8, 873,223) 50.18% 15,926,168 8,329, 833 -7, 596,335 52.30% 608,078 7.30% Parking Fines-Regular Collections 5,800,000 3,253,087 (2, 546,913) 56.09% 4,326,450 3,104, 161 -1, 222,289 71.75% 148,926 4.80% Moving Violations 132,600 96,254 (36, 346) 72.59% 132,600 71,415 -61, 185 53.86% 24,839 34.78% Ambulance Fees 5,350,779 3,815,272 (1, 535,507) 71.30% 3,880,779 2,479, 368 -1, 401,411 63.89% 1,335,904 53.88% Interest Income 8,826,211 6,619,791 (2, 206,420) 75.00% 6,000,000 4,038, 930 -1, 961,070 67.32% 2,580,861 63.90% Franchise Fees 1,720,056 307,634 (1, 412,422) 17.89% 1,613,283 335,043 -1, 278,240 20.77% (27,409) -8. 18% Other Revenue 7,668,797 3,018,612 (4, 650,185) 39.36% 6,729,977 3,902, 132 -2, 827,845 57.98% (883,520) -22. 64% IDC Reimbursement 6,104,970 3,259,079 (2, 845,891) 53.38% 5,490,000 3,205, 614 -2, 284,386 58.39% 53,465 1.67% Transfers 8,091,924 4,045,962 (4, 045,962) 50.00% 17,096,148 6,457, 425 -10, 638,723 37.77% (2,411,463) -37. 34% - 0 -
Total Revenue: $266,418,342 $120,731,949 -$145,686,393 45.32% $258,650,444 $127,875,604 -$130,774,840 49.44% ($7,143,655) -5.59% Notes: (1) This statement is presented on a budgetary basis (i.e., cash). (2) Current vendor no longer breaks out Regular and Booting Parking Fines Collections (3)
Includes the amount of TOT rebates owed for the period
(4) Total Other Taxes includes Redemptions-Regular
General Fund Revenue and Transfer Mid Year FY 2024 vs Mid Year FY 2023 Comparison Attachment 1 FY 2024 FY 2023 Comparision FY24 vs FY23
DEPARTMENT FY 2024
ADOPTED
BUDGET
FY 2024
REVISED
BUDGET*
YEAR TO
DATE
EXPENDED
ENCUMBRANCES AVAILABLE
BUDGET
PERSONNEL
PERCENTAGE
USED
NON-
PERSONNEL
PERCENTAGE
USED
TOTAL
PERCENTAGE
USED
FY 2024
PROJECTED
EXPENDITURES
FY 2024 PROJECTED
ENDING
BALANCE/(DEFICIT)
MAYOR AND COUNCIL 4,772,190 4,849,542 1,923,297 62,410 2,863,835 40.5% 44.7% 40.9% 4,849,542 - CITY AUDITOR 3,136,323 3,221,934 1,391,210 102,047 1,728,678 43.9% 63.1% 46.3% 3,089,758 132,177 RENT STABILIZATION BOARD 550,000 651,588 302,231 349,356 1 0.0% 100.0% 100.0% 651,588 - POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY 1,142,593 1,310,290 515,732 159,357 635,201 34.4% 77.3% 51.5% 1,597,102 (286,812) CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE 13,150,234 16,294,107 7,458,276 2,303,030 6,532,801 45.4% 81.4% 59.9% 15,758,044 536,063 CITY ATTORNEY 4,304,039 5,003,419 2,038,057 395,637 2,569,725 39.6% 77.3% 48.6% 5,273,499 (270,080) CITY CLERK 2,547,276 2,759,548 972,288 325,627 1,461,633 48.0% 45.7% 47.0% 2,886,744 (127,196) FINANCE 8,179,370 9,110,602 3,281,701 1,063,527 4,765,374 39.6% 71.4% 47.7% 8,047,068 1,063,534 HUMAN RESOURCES 3,467,541 4,127,222 1,728,648 142,944 2,255,629 45.6% 44.8% 45.3% 4,125,275 1,947 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 1,526,760 2,233,165 891,132 308,646 1,033,388 0.0% 53.7% 53.7% 1,702,432 530,733 HEALTH, HSG & COMMUNITY SVC 31,429,102 47,457,711 16,578,721 9,486,685 21,392,304 40.7% 60.9% 54.9% 45,656,435 1,801,276
PARKS, RECREATION &
WATERFRONT
9,359,349 11,766,832 5,828, 846 997,780 4,940,206 49.7% 66.8% 58.0% 16,256,832 (4,490,000) PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT 3,277,246 6,494,510 1,469,787 171,732 4,852,991 43.4% 12.2% 25.3% 6,132,221 362,289 PUBLIC WORKS 6,558,529 12,160,727 3,144,927 1,972,562 7,043,238 30.8% 49.4% 42.1% 9,264,376 2,896,351 POLICE 83,606,570 81,617,830 41,085,284 1,081,010 39,451,536 49.5% 70.3% 51.7% 85,155,524 (3,537,694) FIRE & EMERGENCY SERVICES 39,546,063 43,205,216 22,830,487 4,951,735 15,422,994 62.6% 67.8% 64.3% 49,455,394 (6,250,178) NON DEPARTMENTAL 59,995,782 55,262,131 35,120,397 378,568 19,763,166 1564.8% 64.1% 64.2% 50,055,826 5,206,305 GRAND TOTAL 276,548,969 307,526,375 146,561,021 24,252,653 136,712,701 49.1% 62.7% 55.5% 309,957,660 (2,431,285) FY 2024 MID-YEAR GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES (AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2023) Attachment 2 *FY 2024 Revised does not reflect as of December 31, 2023 all Council approved allocations included in the FY 2024 AAO #1.
DEPARTMENT FY 2024
ADOPTED
BUDGET
FY 2024
REVISED
BUDGET*
(as of 12/31/23)
FY 2024
EXPENDED (as
of 12/31/23)
ENCUMBRANCES
(as of 12/31/23)
AVAILABLE
BUDGET
(as of 12/31/23)
TOTAL
PERCENTAGE
USED
FY 2024
PROJECTED
EXPENDITURES
FY 2024 PROJECTED
ENDING
BALANCE/(DEFICIT)
MAYOR AND COUNCIL 4,772,190 4,852, 642 1,923,297 62,410 2,866,935$ 40.9% 4,852,642 - CITY AUDITOR 3,231,099 3,316,710 1,436,197 102,047 1,778,466$ 46.4% 3,185,336 131,374 RENT STABILIZATION BOARD 8,056,460 8,878,430 3,321,869 1,177,159 4,379,402$ 50.7% 8,878,430 - POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY 1,142,593 1,310,290 515,732 159,357 635,201$ 51.5% 1,597,102 (286,812) CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE 16,889,184 24,460,343 10,369,281 3,308,613 10,782,449$ 55.9% 23,849,537 610,806 BERKELEY PUBLIC LIBRARY 25,024,425 26,408,346 11,707,927 2,974,567 11,725,852$ 55.6% 31,726,777 (5,318,431) CITY ATTORNEY 8,106,984 9,855,499 3,859,904 848,178 5,147,417$ 47.8% 10,253,763 (398,264) CITY CLERK 3,159,486 3,371,758 1,137,760 325,627 1,908,371$ 43.4% 3,257,393 114,365 FINANCE 10,607,143 11,608,386 4,108,986 1,214,803 6,284,597$ 45.9% 10,240,391 1,367,995 HUMAN RESOURCES 5,442,688 6,133,364 2,524,897 168,619 3,439,848$ 43.9% 6,098,578 34,786 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 22,237,720 29,316,274 7,944,446 3,165,053 18,206,775$ 37.9% 25,820,790 3,495,484 HEALTH, HSG & COMMUNITY SVC 99,683,536 163,577,083 39,384,181 38,369,815 85,823,087$ 47.5% 132,358,390 31,218,693 PARKS, RECREATION & WF 53,688,581 89,082,692 24,402,344 9,740,801 54,939,546$ 38.3% 69,503,725 19,578,967 PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT 31,267,162 36,767,666 12,207,816 1,955,917 22,603,933$ 38.5% 32,394,732 4,372,934 PUBLIC WORKS 188,326,163 292,296,250 71,665,023 67,247,968 153,383,259$ 47.5% 267,668,149 24,628, 101
POLICE 88,188,161 88,587,883 43,419,654 1,496,074 43,672,155$ 50.7% 91,106,786 (2,518,903) FIRE & EMERGENCY SERVICES 62,316,809 69,373,228 31,462,153 7,817,721 30,093,354$ 56.6% 75,998,874 (6,625,646) NON DEPARTMENTAL 101,173,999 100,604,624 65,445,388 520,846 34,638,390$ 65.6% 95,504,624 5,100,000 GRAND TOTAL 733,314,383 969,801,468 336,836,857 140,655,573 492,309,038 49.2% 894,296,021 75,505,447 *FY 2024 Revised does not reflect as of December 31, 2023 all Council approved allocations included in the FY 2024 AAO #1.
FY 2024 MID-YEAR ALL FUNDS EXPENDITURES (AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2023) Attachment 3
Public
[Commission Name]
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: https://berkeleyca.gov/
INFORMATION CALENDAR
March 26, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Homeless Services Panel of Experts
Submitted by: Josh Jacobs, Secretary, Homeless Services Panel of Experts Subject: Two consecutive meetings canceled for lack of quorum
INTRODUCTION
The Homeless Services Panel of Experts canceled their regular January and February meetings due to lack of quorum.
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
On January 10, 2024 four out of eight commissioners were present for the regularly scheduled meeting. On February 7, 2024, the commissioners were polled and the meeting was cancelled preemptively due to lack of quorum.
BACKGROUND
The Commissioners’ Manual states that it is the secretary’s responsibility to submit an information report to the City Council whenever a commission cancels two consecutive meetings for lack of quorum.
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
No environmental impact.
POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
No action is required.
FISCAL IMPACTS OF POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
No action is required.
CONTACT PERSON
Josh Jacobs, Homeless Services Panel of Experts, City Manager’s Office, 510-225- 8035
Communications
All communications submitted to the City Council are
public record. Communications are not published directly to the City’s website. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing at the City Clerk Department and through Records Online.
City Clerk Department
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Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 981-6900
Records Online
https://records.cityofberkeley.info/
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