February 20, 2024
City Manager's Office
DATE: February 20, 2024
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Shasa Curl, City Manager
LaShonda White, Deputy City Manager, Community
Services
Samantha Carr, Environmental Manager
Subject:
Development of Richmond Legislative Platform
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact to the General Fund at this time.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
N/A
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
A Legislative Pla tform outline s a government’s position on priority issues and matters that impact the
community . Development of a Richmond Legislative
Platform could provide direction and guidance for
identification of and advocacy on bills and grants which would affect the services, programs or finances and
alerting our legislative partners of the greatest needs of the community and areas requiring additional support.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
DIRECT City staff members to develop a Richmond
Legislative Platform – City Manager’s Office (Shasa Curl/ 510-620-6512).
DISCUSSION:
The purpose of the proposed Legislative Pla tform is to outline the City of Richmond’s position on priority issues and matters that impact the community .
Specifically, it designates the City’s position on policies that could be implemented through legislative action on State and Federal levels of government . It provides AGENDA
REPORT
February 20, 2024
direction and guidance for the identification and advocacy on bills and grants, which may impact services, programs, or finances. In addition, it provides a framework to alert our legislative partners of the greatest needs of the community and areas requiring additional support.
Furthermore, a Legislative Platform is the foundation of a focused advocacy strategy and serves as a reference guide for legislative and policy positions and objectives that provide direction for the City Council and staff throughout the year. The primary objective of the Platform is for the City Council to adopt official City positions on specific legislative issues and policies. By doing this, the City Council’s approval process is streamlined, because the City Council is providing clear direction to staff on pertinent legislative issues. The Platform is developed and maintained using the Goals and Priorities; a review of legislative priorities; input from City Council and staff; research on current law; and review of pending legislation.
The Contra Costa County’s 2023-2024 State and Federal Legislative Planforms (Attachment 1 and Attachment 2) are included as reference.
NEXT STEPS:
To assist in brainstorming ideas for Richmond’s legislative platform, City staff members will compile a list of policies included in City Council adopted plans and resolutions, including but not limited to the General Plan, Climate Action Plan, as well as the recently established City Council Goals and Priorities. This list will provide a base for City departments to reference when developing a list of recommendations that would allow departments to accomplish their goals and remove any legislative barriers or challenges currently present.
A draft Richmond Legislative Platform will be brought back for City Council’s review and feedback during the Spring of 2024.
Concurrently, staff will release a Request for Proposals (RFP) to contract with one or more highly qualified fir ms registered at the State and Federal level to provide government relations and lobbying services to represent the City’s interests and advance the City’s legislative agenda at the state and federal levels. This will enable the City of Richmond to have a streamlined strategy around funding requests.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – Contra Costa County 2023-2024 Adopted State Legislative Platform Attachment 2 – Contra Costa County 2023-2024 Adopted Federal Legislative Platform