5PM City Council (Closed Session Begins @ 2:00 p.m.)
Meeting Time: 11-29-22 17:00
eComments Report
Meetings Meeting
Time
Agenda
Items
Comments Support Oppose Neutral
5PM City Council (Closed Session Begins
@ 2:00 p.m.)
11-29-22
17:00
47 11 9 1 0
Sentiments for All Meetings
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Overall Sentiment
5PM City Council (Closed Session Begins @ 2:00 p.m.)
11-29-22 17:00
Agenda Name Comments Support Oppose Neutral
25. An Ordinance Deleting Chapter 15.30 and Amending Chapter 15.38 of the Sacramento City Code to Adopt Local Amendments to the California Building Standards Code, Relating to New Building Electrification; a Resolution Establishing Infeasibility Waiver Fees; and a Resolution Establishing Infeasibility Waiver Guidelines (Passed for Publication 11/15/2022; Published 11/18/2022; Noticed 11/18/2022 & 11/23/2022) File ID: 2022-01920
8 8 0 0
27. Marina Vista and Alder Grove Communities: Budget Adjustment and Agreements for the Broadband Infrastructure Project, Muir Way Park Improvements, Supplemental Education, and Recreation Activities for Residents (Two-Thirds Vote Required) File ID: 2022-02063 2 1 0 0
Public Comments-Matters Not on the Agenda 1 0 1 0
Sentiments for All Agenda Items
The following graphs display sentiments for comments that have location data. Only locations of users who have commented will be shown.
Overall Sentiment
Agenda Item: eComments for 25. An Ordinance Deleting Chapter 15.30 and Amending Chapter 15.38 of the Sacramento City Code to Adopt Local Amendments to the California Building Standards Code, Relating to New Building Electrification; a Resolution Establishing Infeasibility Waiver Fees; and a Resolution Establishing Infeasibility Waiver Guidelines (Passed for Publication 11/15/2022; Published 11/18/2022; Noticed 11/18/2022 & 11/23/2022) File ID: 2022-01920 Overall Sentiment
Betsy Reifsnider
Location:
Submitted At: 8:46am 11-29-22
In the strongest possible terms, we urge you to pass the New Building Electrification Ordinance this Tuesday. As you know, the ordinance only covers new residential and commercial buildings, not existing ones. Also, there are exemptions for restaurant cooking and industrial processes.
We're particularly heartened that the Pipefitters Union worked with you on a water re-use ordinance. Not only will the City Council help save homeowners, renters, and businesses money on their water and energy bills, you will help people working in gas-related industries transition to greener jobs. Bravo, City of Sacramento! Sincerely, Betsy Reifsnider and Bob Schlichting
Rick Codina
Location:
Submitted At: 6:09pm 11-28-22
My name is Rick Codina and have been in support of this ordinance since its conception in the Built Environment Technical Advisory Group of the Mayors’ Climate Commission going back to 2019.
I want to thank the Commission, particularly Ms. Anne Stausboll, as well as Mayor Steinberg who pushed to advance the ordinance as an early climate action, City staff for their diligent and thorough work, and the Council members here today who I trust will be voting for this latest iteration. The ordinance is an important, though modest, step in helping staunch our community’s greenhouse gas emissions. Its passage will place Sacramento in the league of around sixty other cities in the state who have already passed similar ordinances.
The ordinance also ensures that Sacramentans in these new all-electric developments will be saved the future burden of rising gas costs otherwise needed to support the stranded pipeline extensions with little or no gas flow.
This fate – higher gas bills -- eventually awaits all gas users but will be particularly impactful to our lower-income households in our existing housing stock. For that reason, it is critical for the City to begin transitioning its next efforts to the remaining gas-using appliances which can be replaced with heat pumps and other electric technologies upon burn-out. I am looking forward to the Council and City Staff embarking on this next phase of climate work on behalf of our local community and, more broadly, our suffering planet.
Benjamin Nicholson
Location:
Submitted At: 10:37am 11-28-22
I am in favor of this ordinance. The reasons for which it passed previously have only gotten stronger as our understanding of climate change, natural gas leaks from distribution systems, and indoor air quality from combustion have increased.
Matthew Piner
Location:
Submitted At: 9:42am 11-28-22
I participated in the Mayor’s Climate Commission and recall the difficult conversations around this notion of electrification. We are now experiencing the devastating global climate changing effects from decades of ignoring this. While it may be difficult, it is a necessary step to slowing down the burning of fossil fuels and making a livable planet possible. Others have spelled out the particulars - I want to add my voice to encourage the final adoption of this Ordinance and do the right thing for future generations.
Judy Robinson
Location:
Submitted At: 9:33am 11-28-22
Dear Mayor and Council members,
I urge you to support and pass the New Building Electrification Ordinance this Tuesday. The Council ALREADY PASSED this ordinance in July 2021. The ordinance should go into effect as originally approved, starting in 2023.
This ordinance impacts only new residences and places of business, not existing homes and businesses. It also has categorical exemptions for restaurant cooking equipment and industrial process.
We are excited that the City engaged with the Pipefitters Union to create a sister ordinance of water re-use requirements, which will help the City conserve water and help enhance work for pipefitters impacted by this ordinance. In this aspect, the City of Sacramento stands out as a city that has actively supported with policy a just transition for people whose work is impacted by the switch from gas to electric.
Also, this ordinance saves homeowners and renters money. In a study with over 100,000 buildings, 100% of the buildings modeled would show a decrease in overall utility spending with all-electric appliances.
The New Building Electrification ordinance is an important step to take on early to minimize investment in new gas infrastructure, making sure that people living and working in new buildings are not saddled with gas appliances with over 10-year lifetimes, and getting started on the path to carbon zero today.
Thank you,
Judy Robinson
City of Sacramento Resident
Susan Herre, President of ECOS
Location:
Submitted At: 9:03am 11-28-22
ECOS supports the proposed New Building Electrification Ordinance and urges the Council to vote for it. As SMUD moves toward its 2030 zero-carbon goal, electrification of buildings will increasingly help city residents reduce their carbon footprint. We look forward to working with City staff on the development of a building electrification ordinance for existing buildings.
Rosie Yacoub
Location:
Submitted At: 8:42pm 11-27-22
350 Sacramento supports passing and enacting the New Building Electrification ordinance. It has been a long, careful road to get here, but together Council and Staff have created a very do-able ordinance that is ready to enact today.
The ordinance impacts only new residences and places of business, not existing homes and businesses. New gas appliances perpetuate reliance on gas service and lock in all associated GHG emissions for the life of the appliance, unless retired early and replaced with an electric alternative. But early retirement of appliances has its own ecological cost.
The ordinance already has categorical exemptions for restaurant cooking equipment and industrial processes and specifies that these will be re-examined before they are retired. By that time, changes in technology and access to these changes will likely move some of these businesses towards all-electric even with the exemption. And by that time, more contractors and builders will be doing all-electric buildings as a matter of course. There will be a continued process to apply for infeasibility waivers, and that process should be reviewed at the same time the categorical waivers will be.
The City engaged with the Pipefitters Union to create a sister ordinance of water re-use requirements, which will help the City conserve water and help enhance work for pipefitters impacted by this ordinance. In this aspect, the City of Sacramento stands out as a city that has actively supported with policy a just transition for people whose work is impacted by the switch from gas to electric.
Recent work the City has done with Xerohome has shown all-electric buildings to be less expensive to run in Sacramento for residential buildings up to 4-units. In a study with over 100,000 buildings, 100% of the buildings modeled would show a decrease in overall utility spending with all-electric appliances. This means that the ordinance also ensures cost savings to residents of new homes.
The ordinance should go into effect as originally approved, starting in 2023. A key strategy the State of CA has identified to reach its carbon neutrality goals is to phase out gas usage in the building sector. Because gas infrastructure installed in 2023 is expected to last for over 25 years, this means that new gas infrastructure will become a stranded asset: costing the utility more than it will see return during its lifetime. The maintenance and operational costs associated with new gas infrastructure will need to be paid for by a shrinking number of gas customers. These customers are likely to be low-income residential customers and others who have either not chosen to or not been able to shoulder upfront costs of electrification. This is one of the reasons our early advocacy had emphasized an earlier start date for this policy than 2023, in addition to the City generally needing to move more quickly on its climate actions to make a substantial difference.
Provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act will help people with the switch to electric appliances in existing buildings, but the New Buidling Electrification ordinance is an important step to take on early to minimize investment in new gas infrastructure, making sure that people living and working in new buildings are not saddled with gas appliances with over 10-year lifetimes, and getting started on the path to carbon zero today.
Alex Aruj
Location:
Submitted At: 5:15pm 11-27-22
Hello Council, I urge you to support and pass the New Building Electrification Ordinance this Tuesday. The Council had ALREADY PASSED this ordinance in July 2021. The ordinance should go into effect as originally approved, starting in 2023.
Agenda Item: eComments for 27. Marina Vista and Alder Grove Communities: Budget Adjustment and Agreements for the Broadband Infrastructure Project, Muir Way Park Improvements, Supplemental Education, and Recreation Activities for Residents (Two-Thirds Vote Required) File ID: 2022-02063 Overall Sentiment
Dave Swartz
Location:
Submitted At: 8:27am 11-29-22
Dear Sacramento City Council members,
My name is Dave Swartz, and I was raised and still live in District 7 due south of the Marina Vista and Alder Grove communities. I am currently the Chair of our local YMCA and want to let you know that I am in complete support of the Marina Vista and Alder Grove Communities budget adjustment (item 27 on to nights agenda). I believe that the City has done an excellent job in recognizing a need in these two communities and have brought together an effective team (YMCA, Ball Out Academy, Housing Authority and Y outh Street Soccer) to deliver some greatly needed programs and services to these communities.
As for the YMCA we are a leader in childcare both nationally and here in Sacramento. We stand ready to deliver quality childcare that is engaging, educational and fun for the kids. It will be something that the kids as well as the families look forward to having the kids attend and will have a lasting effect on the kid’s life as they grow up. This plan fits our mission perfectly, which is to help all people in our community through programs that build strong bodies, spirit and minds for all. And we look forward to being a valued partner in this project.
Thank you,
David Swartz
Maiuu-Sam Floyd
Location:
Submitted At: 7:51pm 11-28-22
It is imperative that funding for youth in both New Helvetia and Seavey Circle be secured to better serve our kids.
Our kids are in need of resources allocated to better them, so they can have rich experiences to enhance their growth. As the late 80s, 90s and early 2000s showed, investment into these communities helped curtail many of the traumas that poverty tends to create. Kids were always busy is some form of activity, which lessen the chances for negative experiences to infiltrate. Many of these kids went on to careers and colleges where they are reaping the benefits of the organizations that once were in the community. My hope is that funding for our community is sustainable for years to come, so we can get the majority, if not all kids in the same situation.
Therefore, changing the climate and culture of the community positively once again. I also hope that the organizations that are fortunate to work with our community have the best intentions to serve our kids. If both funding is sustainable and organizations have the best intentions to serve, then our kids win. Thus, Sacramento wins. Thank you.
-Maiuu-Sam Floyd
Agenda Item: eComments for Public Comments-Matters Not on the Agenda Overall Sentiment
Sally Powell
Location:
Submitted At: 9:20am 11-29-22
Sierra 2 Dog Park Closure
With the upcoming loss of the Del Rio trail as an off-leash dog are, there are very few p[laces left for off-leash dog socialization. The Sierra 2 informal dog park has been extremely important for dog socialization; dog socialization can help reduce aggressive encounters between dogs in other parts of the neighborhood. I recognize the problems inherent in having a dog park and athletic activities sharing a field; I am willing to comply with conditions the city might impose (e.g., more frequent cleanups of the area, stricter hours control) in order to keep the off-leash dog park available.
350 Sacramento supports passing and enacting the New Building Electrification ordinance. It has been a long, careful road to get here, but together Council and Staff have created a very do-able ordinance that is ready to enact today.
The ordinance impacts only new residences and places of business, not existing homes and businesses. New gas appliances perpetuate reliance on gas service and lock in all associated GHG emissions for the life of the appliance, unless retired early and replaced with an electric alternative. But early retirement of appliances has its own ecological cost.
The ordinance already has categorical exemptions for restaurant cooking equipment and industrial processes and specifies that these will be re-examined before they are retired. By that time, changes in technology and access to these changes will likely move some of these businesses towards all-electric even with the exemption. And by that time, more contractors and builders will be doing all-electric buildings as a matter of course. There will be a continued process to apply for infeasibility waivers, and that process should be reviewed at the same time the categorical waivers will be.
The City engaged with the Pipefitters Union to create a sister ordinance of water re-use requirements, which will help the City conserve water and help enhance work for pipefitters impacted by this ordinance. In this aspect, the City of Sacramento stands out as a city that has actively supported with policy a just transition for people whose work is impacted by the switch from gas to electric.
Recent work the City has done with Xerohome has shown all-electric buildings to be less expensive to run in Sacramento for residential buildings up to 4-units. In a study with over 100,000 buildings, 100% of the buildings modeled would show a decrease in overall utility spending with all- electric appliances. This means that the ordinance also ensures cost savings to residents of new homes.
The ordinance should go into effect as originally approved, starting in 2023. A key strategy the State of CA has identified to reach its carbon neutrality goals is to phase out gas usage in the building sector. Because gas infrastructure installed in 2023 is expected to last for over 25 years, this means that new gas infrastructure will become a stranded asset: costing the utility more than it will see return during its lifetime. The maintenance and operational costs associated with new gas infrastructure will need to be paid for by a shrinking number of gas customers. These customers are likely to be low-income residential customers and others who have either not chosen to or not been able to shoulder upfront costs of electrification. This is one of the reasons our early advocacy had emphasized an earlier start date for this policy than 2023, in addition to the City generally needing to move more quickly on its climate actions to make a substantial difference.
Provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act will help people with the switch to electric appliances in existing buildings, but the New Buidling Electrification ordinance is an important step to take on early to minimize investment in new gas infrastructure, making sure that people living and working in new buildings are not saddled with gas appliances with over 10-year lifetimes, and getting started on the path to carbon zero today.
www.ecosacramento.net
November 28, 2022
Mayor and Council Members
City of Sacramento
915 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814
SUBJECT: City Council Meeting Nov 29, 2022
Agenda Item 25: New Building Electrification Ordinance, ID: 2022-01920
Sent via email
Dear Mr. Mayor and Council members,
ECOS supports the proposed New Building Electrification Ordinance and urges the Council to vote for it.
- The first phase of this ordinance (for newly constructed buildings that are three stories or less) will take effect on January 1, 2023, and second phase (for newly constructed buildings that are four stories or more) will take effect on January 1, 2026. - The New Building Electrification Ordinance will be a local amendment to the 2022 California Building Standards Code.
As SMUD moves toward its 2030 zero-carbon goal, electrification of buildings will increasingly help city residents reduce their carbon footprint. We look forward to working with City staff on the development of a building electrification ordinance for existing buildings.
Sincerely yours,
Susan Herre
President of the ECOS Board of Directors
cc:
Mayor, Darrell Steinberg - [email protected] Jay Schenirer, District 5, [email protected] Angelique Ashby, District 1, [email protected] Sean Loloee, District 2, [email protected]
Jeff Harris, District 3, [email protected]
Katie Valenzuela, District 4, [email protected] Eric Guerra, District 6, [email protected]
Rick Jennings II, District 7, [email protected] Mai Vang, District 8, [email protected]
City Manager - Howard Chan, [email protected]
AsstCity Mgr PubWks - Hector Barron, [email protected] Jennifer Venema [email protected]
Jennifer Donlon Wyant [email protected] Mindy Cuppy, City Clerk, [email protected]
Post Office Box 1526 | Sacramento, CA 95812-1526