Cal Cities Board adopts new bill positions, reviews progress on ballot measure battle

By Rachel Vincent, director of strategic communications and marketing

The first Cal Cities Board meeting of the year focused on advocacy priorities for 2024, including defeating the California Business Roundtables ballot measure in November.

Board members noted that defeating what Cal Cities and other opponents are calling the “Taxpayer Deception Act” will take a statewide, all-hands-on-deck approach. Dave Mullinax, a regional public affairs manager for the Channel Counties Division, told the Board about the steady progress Cal Cities has made in recent months to mobilize member cities. Close to 200 cities have already passed resolutions opposing the ballot measure.

The Board also reviewed progress made on legislative priorities set by the Board late last year: local revenues, climate change, public safety, and homelessness and housing.

Legislative Director Jason Rhine and his team of lobbyists updated the Board on the 12 bills Cal Cities is sponsoring this session. The measures would advance cities' interests across a wide range of issues, including wildfire preparedness, addiction treatment, emergency medical services, autonomous vehicle services, the Brown Act, and unfunded state mandates.

The team also identified some trends that emerged out of the nearly 2,100 bills introduced by the Feb. 16 bill introduction deadline. Public safety is still a huge area of focus for this year, as are local housing laws — in particular fees and permitting.  

The Board accepted the recommendation to support SB 251 (Newman), which would penalize political candidates who knowingly falsify statements of a material fact with fines. The Board also moved to oppose AB 797 (Weber). That measure would require cities and counties to create an independent community-based commission on law enforcement officer practices by Jan. 1, 2026.

In her report, Executive Director and CEO Carolyn Coleman noted that Cal Cities has already made strong progress on its goals this year because “we hit the ground running.” In early January, the board officers came to the Capitol to meet with more than a dozen key lawmakers, including some of the new leadership in the Assembly and the Senate.

National League of Cities President David Sander (Rancho Cordova, mayor) reported on NLC’s priorities for 2024 to the Board. The two organizations are celebrating major milestones this year: Cal Cities is celebrating 125 years as the voice of California cities and NLC is turning 100.

“Cities are the labs of democracy,” Sander said. “Local governments have to get it done, so they do, and that gives them lots of opportunities to innovate.”