Kiley & Associates
April 17, 2025
Mr. Ernie Hernandez
City Manager
City of Commerce
2535 Commerce Way
Commerce, CA 90040
Dear Mr. Hernandez,
I am writing to provide you with an overview of our firm and the services that we have performed over our decades of experience working in Washington, D.C. With Kiley & Associates’ established Washington, D.C. presence, deep California connections, focused methodology and extensive experience in representing governmental entities, we are uniquely qualified to partner with the City of Commerce.
For more than a decade, Kiley & Associates has offered a wide range of services to a variety of organizations across many industry sectors. These include local governments, states, businesses, corporations, nonprofits and trade associations. We have provided government relations services in Washington, D.C. to some of the largest and most complex governmental entities in the country; helped clients successfully achieve policy, regulatory, and funding goals; and assisted others to envision and then implement multi-year, multi-million-dollar development projects. Our in-depth substantive knowledge combined with our creativity, hard work and reputation for integrity has earned us the trust of longstanding clients. We’re proud that clients think of us as an integral part of their operations, capable of delivering the services they need when they need them.
Kiley & Associates will collaborate with Commerce to open doors in Washington, D.C. and help develop their federal legislative priorities. Our partnership would include:
• Working with the City of Commerce to raise their profile with the House and Senate delegations, federal agencies, and the Trump Administration;
• Coordinating with the dedicated day-to-day point of contact on identifying and refining local governments top project and policy priorities for their federal agenda (i.e. securing federal money for recreation and park projects, 5G telecommunications, water infrastructure, public safety, roadway expansion, street repairs, tourism, and policymaking); • Building support for the City’s objectives and resource needs within Congress and target key allies and influential lawmakers, committees and Executive branch policymakers; • Coordinating an annual trip to Washington, D.C. to meet with the Congressional delegation, Trump Administration, and key staff in the federal agencies;
• Helping the City with any issues that have a federal nexus, which may include providing comments on federal regulations, securing letters of support for grant applications, and connecting local officials to federal agency professionals to maximize opportunities for success.
Kiley & Associates will collaborate with Commerce to create a federal government funding and outreach program. The focus will be on developing a plan to apply for congressionally directed spending and targeted funding within specific federal agencies and developing crucial relationships with program managers responsible for administering target grants.
Kiley & Associates
Kiley & Associates would very much welcome the opportunity to partner with Commerce. Should you decide to hire our team we are prepared to begin immediately and would recommend a strategy session be scheduled as soon as possible so that we can begin our collaboration. Our monthly retainer for our services is $5,000 per month.
Thank you for taking the time to review this proposal. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly with any questions.
Very respectfully,
Jayson Braude
Chief Counsel
Kiley & Associates, LLC
636 North Carolina Ave, SE
Washington, DC 20003
(202) 544-6897
2 Attachments:
1. Team Biographies
2. Recent Experience and References
Kiley & Associates
Attachment I: Team Biographies
Gregory T. Kiley-President, Kiley & Associates
Gregory Kiley is President of Kiley & Associates, LLC. Since retiring from federal service, he has consulted to federal, state and local governments, and industry and non-profit entities on national security policy and processes. He has written for the Center for Strategic and International Studies among others.
Prior to working in the private sector, Mr. Kiley served 25 years in the federal government, concentrating on local governments, defense and national security. He spent six years as a senior professional staff member for the Senate Armed Services Committee. As lead staff for two subcommittees, his oversight portfolio included all military air and ground systems, military logistics and readiness, and the defense budget. His responsibilities included coordinating and conducting congressional hearings, developing and drafting legislation, and negotiating and staffing passage of annual National Defense Authorization Acts and supplemental spending bills.
Mr. Kiley began his professional career in the U.S. Air Force, culminating as a senior pilot, flying C-130 aircraft and deploying throughout the world. Greg also held positions as a wing plans officer, maintenance officer, and information management officer. Greg lives in Washington, D.C. with his wife and daughters.
Jayson J. Braude-Chief Counsel, Kiley & Associates
Jayson Braude is the Chief Counsel to Kiley & Associates. Jayson Braude grew up in the Los Angeles area and is the Grandson of former United States Congressman Glenn Anderson. Jayson worked for United States Senators Kent Conrad and Sherrod Brown in Washington, D.C. After law school, he worked as Legislative Counsel for United States Congresswoman Janice Hahn, where he staffed the Congresswoman on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. He then became the District Director for Congresswoman Nannette Diaz Barragan in her San Pedro office. Jayson has over fifteenyears of experience in government affairs and maintains contacts all over Capitol Hill and throughout federal, state and local agencies. Jayson is a graduate of the UC Santa Barbara and received his law degree from Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles. Jayson is a member of the Washington Bar and resides in Washington, D.C.
Kimberly J. VanWyhe-Vice President, Kiley & Associates
Kimberly is currently Vice President of Kiley & Associates, focusing on business development and policy and strategy development. Kimberly received her BA in Political Science from St. John’s University in 2004 and received her MBA in International Business with a concentration in consulting and holds a certification in Global Oil and Gas Management from the Thunderbird School of Global Management.
Kimberly’s previous professional experience includes working on multiple political campaigns on both the state and federal level, working for the Alaska State Legislature as well as working for the Cohen Group, a defense-oriented consulting firm founded by former Secretary of Defense William Cohen. She then served as the Director of Energy Policy at the American Action Forum, a D.C. think tank focusing on economic, domestic, and fiscal policy issues. Kimberly was raised in Fairbanks, Alaska and currently resides in Washington, D.C.
Kiley & Associates
Attachment II. Recent Experience and References
Kiley & Associates has strong ties at the federal level with both the legislative and executive branches.
Every member of our team has developed professional working relationships with Republican and Democratic Members of the Senate and House, as well as with their personal staffs, and the staffs of key Senate and House committees. Further, we have key allies within the White House staff and across the Trump Administration.
Kiley & Associates’ size, structure and personalized approach allows us to provide proactive, costeffective representation to all our clients.
We are extremely proud of our work for our city clients across the State of California. The accomplishments and experience gained from the recent work below in other cities is a sample of similar work we would apply to the City of Commerce.
2019-2025. City of Carson, California.
• Provided guidance and counsel to the Mayor and City Council on various matters related to COVID-19, including updates on federal policy and federal grant opportunities. • Organized a Federal Small Business Administration virtual meeting to educate Carson business owners on the Paycheck Protection Program.
• Coordinated meetings between Carson Council members, the FAA, and the Long Beach Airport regarding noise complaints from residents.
• Facilitated meetings with FEMA and the United States Treasury to ensure Carson was receiving their fair share of the of municipal funding from the American Rescue Plan. • Renewed the City’s relationship with United States Senator Dianne Feinstein and helped the City apply for earmarks and Community Improvement Projects (CIPs) with her office, which includes the potential of over a million dollars for parks funding within the City. • Worked with the Federal Communications Commission to promote the Emergency Broadband Benefit to Carson residents, which will provide them up to $50 per month towards broadband service for eligible households and a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a computer or tablet.
• At the request of the City, approached the U.S. Postal Service in Washington, D.C. to investigate long-running postal problems within the City of Carson with a goal to improve mail service for Carson residents.
• Worked with the City to explore renewable energy opportunities, including electric vehicle charging throughout Carson and solar power at City Hall and other City-owned buildings. • Brought in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to help the City with the problem at the Domínguez Channel.
Kiley & Associates
• Helped the City secure a $2 million federal earmark from their Congressmember for an infrastructure project at Carson Veterans Park.
• Helped the City secure Senate earmark for $1.5 million that Senator Padilla submitted to the Senate Appropriations Committee for street and landscaping improvements. 2019-2025. City of South Gate, California.
• Developed a federal funding and policy agenda for the Mayor, Council and City department heads. Created federal government agendas and provided federal outreach and funding opportunities. Provide the City with relevant hearing schedules and grant announcements. • Arranged for City officials to meet with federal officials on the COVID-19 Funeral Assistance program which provided thousands of dollars for families in the City who lost a loved one.
• Provided the City with Congressional and White House updates detailing legislative action in Washington.
• Initiated a dialogue for the City with Union Pacific Railroad regarding trash and homelessness along a neglected rail line.
• Worked with the City to secure earmarks for $1.5 million in road improvements to Garfield Avenue, of which Congresswoman Barragán submitted to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure for approval.
• Worked with South Gate, Los Angeles County Metro, and Congress for millions of dollars in funding for the West Santa Ana Branch light rail line. Started a dialogue between the City and the office of recently appointed United States Senator Alex Padilla. • Worked with the City and the EPA to keep the South Gate Superfund sites at the forefront of the agencies’ federal priorities.
• Worked closely with the City and federal officials after the January 2020 Delta Airlines Fuel Release over Southeast Los Angeles. Facilitated a Zoom call between the White House and the City of South Gate. South Gate Councilwoman Denise Diaz also participated on this extremely informative and crucial White House conversation with Intergovernmental Affairs Director Eduardo Cisneros.
• Engaged with the United States Conference of Mayors, providing South Gate a seat at the table for numerous federal decisions.
• Helped the City secure an earmark for $1 million that the Congresswoman submitted to the House Appropriations Committee for drinking water improvements. • Helped the City secure an earmark for $1.5 million that Senator Padilla submitted to the Senate Appropriations Committee for street and landscaping improvements.
Kiley & Associates
• Helped the City secure an earmark for $1.25 million that both Senator Feinstein and Senator Padilla submitted to the Senate Appropriations Committee for upgrades to the City’s Emergency Operations Center.
2020-2025. City of Lynwood, California.
• Organized meetings for the City and the Port of Los Angeles regarding the shipping backlog and the supply chain issues currently impacting the region, traffic, and the environment. • Worked with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to secure a $1 million dollars award for the City of Lynwood. Worked with the EPA to bring in senior White House officials to the City for a tour and meetings.
• Worked with Congressional officials and the City to ensure Lynwood is maximizing COVID-19 FEMA reimbursements and implementing American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding for maximum usage.
• Helped the City with numerous matters related to compliance and accounting of the ARPA.
Worked with the City to push for Federal legislation that allows for 30% of ARPA recovery funding to be spent on transportation projects or community projects. This legislation allows local officials additional flexibility to spend their own funds and extends the spending deadline by an additional two years.
• Helped the City secure an earmark for $1.3 million that their Congresswoman submitted to the House Appropriations Committee for renovations to the City’s Senior Center. • Helped the City secure Senate earmarks that were submitted to the Senate Appropriations Committee. Senator Feinstein secured funding for public safety radio.
References
Jennifer Vasquez
City Manager, City of Maywood
[email protected]
323-562-5700
Thaddeus McCormack
City Manager, City of Lakewood
[email protected]
562-202-1114
Mayor Michael Vargas
City of Perris
[email protected]
951-238-9598
Kiley & Associates
John Moreno
City Manager, City of Paramount
[email protected]
562-400-6070
Mike Flad
Assistant City Manager, Jurupa Valley
[email protected]
818-632-3110
David Roberts
City Manager, City of Carson
[email protected]
310-952-1729