THE SOUND IS NOW LIVE. [00:00:01] THANK YOU. THANK YOU. WELL, GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME TO THE BOARD LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MEETING OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. TODAY, JULY 10TH, WE'RE BEGINNING TODAY AT 10:35, AND THE MEETING IS NOW OPEN. [Roll Call] DEBORAH, WOULD YOU PLEASE TAKE THE ROLL CALL? THANK YOU. TODAY'S MEETING IS BEING HELD PURSUANT TO THE BROWN ACT. STAFF IS PROVIDING LIVE AUDIO AND VIDEO STREAMING. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT MAY DO SO BY SUBMITTING AN EMAIL, LEAVING A VOICEMAIL, OR JOINING LIVE VIA ZOOM WITH THE LINK PROVIDED ON THE AGENDA LOCATED ON THE DISTRICT'S WEBSITE. IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MEETING, PROCEED. THE MEETING MAY PROCEED. WILL BEGIN. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OUR FIRST ITEM TODAY IS THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE JUNE 5TH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING. [Approval of Minutes] LEG'. PARDON ME, LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MEETING. RIGHT. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO ACCEPT? SO MOVED, AND I WILL SECOND. JASON, ARE YOU OKAY WITH THAT? YES. OKAY. YESTERDAY, WE HAD AN ISSUE OF WHETHER OR NOT ME WHO WAS NOT AT THE MEETING, HAS THE ABILITY TO SECOND A MOTION AND MOVE IT FORWARD. YOU'RE JUST APPROVING THE MINUTES. IT'S OKAY. YEAH. ROBERT'S RULES. YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE ATTENDED A MEETING IN ORDER TO VOTE FOR THE MINUTES. OKAY, THAT WAS MY OPINION, TOO. YEAH, THAT'S AN OLD ROBERT'S RULES FACT. GOOD. SO I WILL SECOND ANY COMMENTS? QUESTIONS? IF NOT, ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. MINUTES PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. OUR NEXT ITEM IS PUBLIC COMMENTS. ANY PUBLIC? NO PUBLIC COMMENTS. OKAY, THEN WE'LL MOVE RIGHT TO THE RECOMMENDATION TO AUTHORIZE ENTER INTO AN OH. WHOA, WHOA, WHOA. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA. THAT'S EMBARRASSING. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ON THE BACKSIDE. YEAH, I'M READING YESTERDAY'S EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS MINUTES. IT'S OKAY. WE ALL DO THAT. YEAH. OKAY. OUR ACTION ITEMS ARE TO THE RECOMMENDATION TO SUPPORT STATE LEGISLATION AB 1581. [Action Items] GOOD MORNING. THANKS. GOOD MORNING, LISA BALDINGER, LEGISLATIVE AND POLICY MANAGEMENT ANALYST AND I'LL BE GIVING A BRIEF UPDATE ON AN ADDITIONAL PIECE OF LEGISLATION I DO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE FOR THE BOARD THAT THE BILL NUMBER ON THE AGENDA IS THE CORRECT BILL NUMBER. THERE IS A TYPO IN THE SLIDE DECK AS WELL AS IN THE STAFF REPORT CONTENT. SO I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT. SO WE ARE DISCUSSING AB 1581, NOT 1582. AB 1581 IS THE RESTORATION MANAGEMENT PERMIT ACT. THIS PIECE OF LEGISLATION IS IN SUPPORT OF THE STATES CUTTING THE GREEN TAPE PROGRAM INITIATIVE. SO AS WE'VE DISCUSSED NUMEROUS TIMES HERE AT THE PARK DISTRICT IN SUPPORT OF REGULATIONS TO MITIGATE AND PREVENT NEGATIVE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS, A LOT OF RESTORATION WORK HAS A NET POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT, BUT BECAUSE IT GOES THROUGH THE SAME PERMITTING PROCESS, IT'S OFTEN DELAYED HIGHER COSTS AND IT ISN'T ABLE TO MAKE THAT HOLISTIC IMPACT THAT WE'RE HOPING FOR AT THE SAME LEVEL, AND SO THE CUTTING THE GREEN TAPE PROGRAM AIMS TO ADDRESS THAT AND CREATE NEW OPPORTUNITIES AND PATHWAYS TO ADVANCE RESTORATION WORK HERE IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA AS WE'RE FACING CLIMATE IMPACTS. SO THIS SPECIFIC PIECE OF LEGISLATION FOCUSES ON STREAM BEDS, AND WHAT IT WOULD DO IS IT WOULD ALLOW AGENCIES TO UTILIZE THE RESTORATION MANAGEMENT PERMIT, WHICH IS A COMPREHENSIVE PERMIT WITHIN THE CUTTING THE GREEN TAPE PROGRAM THAT MOVES A LITTLE BIT MORE SWIFTLY THROUGH THE STATE AGENCIES WHEN DOING STREAM BED ALTERATIONS, AND THIS WOULD HELP WHERE CURRENTLY NO ACTIONS CAN BE TAKEN ON STREAM BEDS. YOU CAN INSTEAD DO THAT RESTORATION WORK. IT'S IN ALIGNMENT WITH OUR ECOSYSTEM STEWARDSHIP LEGISLATION, AS WELL AS OUR ACTIONS TO SUPPORT A MORE COMPREHENSIVE AND ADAPTIVE APPROACH TO REGULATORY PROCESSES AS THEY [00:05:03] RELATE TO NET POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT PROJECTS. SO THAT'S OUR ONE PIECE OF LEGISLATION, AND WE ARE LOOKING FOR A SUPPORT FROM THE BOARD. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS ON THIS ONE? NEITHER DO I, AND YOU WANT US TO HANDLE IT AT STATE AND THEN FEDERAL? CORRECT. IN THAT ORDER. OKAY. DO A MOTION TO APPROVE OR RECOMMEND TO THE FULL BOARD. YES. SO MOVED. A MOTION AND I'LL SECOND. MOTION AND A SECOND. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE. AYE. THANK YOU. MOTION PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. GREAT, AND WE'LL MOVE NOW TO FEDERAL LEGISLATION. YOU'RE WELCOME. GOOD MORNING. ERICH PFUEHLER, CHIEF OF GOVERNMENT AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS, TO DISCUSS FEDERAL LEGISLATION. THE FIRST BILL IS A WILDFIRE RESILIENCE RELATED BILL BY SENATOR KELLY OF ARIZONA. THE MAIN PIECE OF IT IS IT DOES ALLOW FEMA TO RELAX MATCHING REQUIREMENTS FOR BOTH PRE-DISASTER MITIGATION AND POST-DISASTER RECOVERY. THAT WOULD BE IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY FOR COMMUNITIES AND AREAS THAT ARE UNDER-RESOURCED, AND THEN IT ALSO RECOGNIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF GRAZING AS A TOOL TO REDUCE FIRE AND VEGETATION. SO WE IT WOULD POTENTIALLY HELP SUPPORT OUR GRAZING PROGRAMS, AND IT ALSO INCLUDES DEBRIS REMOVAL AS A RESPONSIBILITY OF FEMA'S FUNDING EFFORTS. HR 7936 IS A PRETTY INNOVATIVE PIECE OF LEGISLATION, CALLING ON THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE TO UPDATE THEIR GUIDANCE ON CULTURAL RESOURCES NOT ONLY PROTECTION OF, BUT ALSO INTERPRETATION AND PROGRAMING OF HOW THEY ARE INTERPRETED, INTERPRETED, AND THEN IT ALSO ESTABLISHES A NATIONAL A NATIONAL GRANT PROGRAM THROUGH NATIONAL PARK SERVICES FOR CULTURAL RESOURCE PROTECTION AND RESTORATION. THE UNIQUE PART OF THAT GRANT PROGRAM IS THAT LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ARE ELIGIBLE, WHICH WOULD INCLUDE THE PARK DISTRICT, SO WE WOULD BE ELIGIBLE FOR FUNDS. THE BILL IS SILENT ON HOW MUCH FUNDING WOULD BE MADE AVAILABLE, SO THAT'S A PIECE THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE NEGOTIATED WITH THE APPROPRIATE THROUGH THE APPROPRIATIONS PROCESS, BUT IT POTENTIALLY COULD BENEFIT THE PARK DISTRICT'S CULTURAL RESOURCES PROGRAM, AND THEN, I BELIEVE, DIRECTOR COFFEY, YOU WERE IN THE MEETING WITH REPRESENTATIVE HARDER'S STAFF IN WASHINGTON, D.C., WHERE WE DISCUSSED THE FEMA'S BUILDING RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE AND COMMUNITIES PROGRAM. THE BRIC PROGRAM AND THE HAZARD MITIGATION PROGRAM IS, YOU KNOW, REQUESTING ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR THOSE EFFORTS, AND HIS STAFF INFORMED US AT THAT TIME THAT THEY WERE PLANNING ON INTRODUCING LEGISLATION THAT TOOK SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF A SORT OF WIDE RANGED INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP, AND AMONG THOSE WERE THE BRIC PROGRAM AND THE HAZARD MITIGATION PROGRAM RECEIVING ADDITIONAL FUNDING. SO THIS BILL IN FACT DOES THAT, AND IT RELAXES SOME OF THEIR OR EXPANDS SOME OF THEIR ABILITIES TO PROVIDE RESOURCES FOR ADDITIONAL EFFORTS, SUCH AS GRAZING, AND IN ADDITION, THIS LEGISLATION WOULD CREATE A GRANT PROGRAM FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT FOR THE TEN, IT SAYS UP THERE, TEN MILLION FOR TEN YEARS. THAT'S NOT A LOT OF MONEY, BUT MY GUESS IS THAT IT ALSO WOULD PUT A FOOTHOLD INTO IN ESTABLISHING THE GRANT PROGRAM, AND THEN ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATIONS COULD BE LEVERAGED LATER BECAUSE THE AUTHORIZATION WOULD EXIST. SO FOR BOTH OF THOSE REASONS, IT'S A LEGISLATION WORTH SUPPORTING, BUT ALSO BECAUSE REPRESENTATIVE HARDER DOES REPRESENT A SMALL PORTION OF THE EAST BAY. SEEMS LIKE WE SOMETHING THE PARK DISTRICT SHOULD SUPPORT. SO THAT IS OUR BRIEF UPDATE ON FEDERAL LEGISLATION, AND WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A VOTE OF SUPPORT AND A RECOMMENDATION TO THE FULL BOARD. NO QUESTIONS, NO QUESTIONS. I ERICH JUST I DON'T KNOW IF YOU KNOW THIS, BUT I'M LOOKING AT THE KELLY'S BILL ENHANCING MITIGATION, BUILDING EFFECTIVE RESILIENCE ACT EXPAND TARGETED GRAZING BY PROVIDING NONRENEWABLE TEMPORARY GRAZING PERMITS TO REDUCE FINE FUEL LOADS, AS WELL AS PROVISIONS FOR ADDRESSING VIRTUAL FENCING. WHAT IS VIRTUAL FENCING? I PUT THAT IN BECAUSE I FOUND IT VERY INTERESTING, BUT I BELIEVE THE IDEA IS NOT IS MORE LIKE LASERS, YOU KNOW, THINGS THAT ARE NOT AS VISIBLE AS HUMAN FENCING, AND I THOUGHT IT WAS A CREATIVE WAY OF LOOKING AT IT, AND IT DEFINITELY WOULD IMPROVE YOU SHED IN TERMS OF OUR PARKS, WITHOUT A DOUBT. LASER FENCING. OKAY, I'LL LOOK THAT UP LATER. OKAY. THANK YOU. DO WE HAVE A MOTION TO ACCEPT ALL THESE OR SUPPORT ALL THESE BILLS AND MOVE IT FORWARD TO THE FULL BOARD? I'M STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW COWS ARE GOING TO INTERACT WITH ANYWAY. [00:10:06] ANYWAY, YES. SO MOVED. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION. DIRECTOR COFFEY, WE DO HAVE ELECTRIC FENCING, SO IT PROBABLY WOULDN'T BE THAT MUCH DIFFERENT. THE COWS REALLY GOING TO CARE ABOUT CLIMATE. ALL RIGHT, I WILL SECOND. I MOVED SO WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE. ALL IN FAVOR? SAY AYE. AYE. MOTION PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. THANK YOU VERY, VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. WE'LL NOW MOVE TO. [Informational Items] OUR INFORMATIONAL ITEMS, WHICH INCLUDE A VOTER SURVEY PRESENTATION, AND I WOULD JUST LIKE TO DO A BRIEF INTRODUCTION WHILE BEN MAKES HIS WAY UP HERE, AND I TRY TO SHARE THE SCREEN. BEN TULCHIN IS THE POLLSTER THAT WORKED ON THIS PROJECT WITH US. IN ADDITION TO THE ACTUAL POLLING, WE DID A SERIES OF FOCUS GROUPS THAT BEN WILL COMMENT ON AND WE FOUND THEM VERY FASCINATING TO LISTEN INTO. I'M NOT GETTING THE RIGHT SCREEN, AND BEN CAN GIVE US SOME GUIDANCE ON THAT, BUT ALSO, THE FACT THAT HE'S JUST A NATIONALLY KNOWN POLLSTER HAS WORKED ON MANY NATIONAL ISSUES AND NATIONAL CANDIDATES. SO WE'RE VERY, VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE HIM WORKING WITH THE PARK DISTRICT, AND I THINK I PROBABLY DO NEED SOME SUPPORT. A NEW CLIMATE BOND. WHERE IS IT? ON THE AGENDA. I'M SORRY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MY APOLOGIES. ON THE AGENDA, WE DID HAVE THE CLIMATE BOND UPDATE NEXT, AND THEN BEN AFTER THAT, SO I'LL GET IT. I MIGHT GET A SECOND CHANCE TO INTRODUCE HIM PROPERLY. SO I'LL INTRODUCE DOUG HOUSTON WHO NEEDS NO INTRODUCTION. OH, NO HE'S I'M SORRY HE DOESN'T HAVE A PRESENTATION. YES, SURE. IT'S NOT ON THE. I THOUGHT MAYBE I WAS WRONG. GOOD MORNING EVERYBODY. IT'S NICE TO SEE YOU. MORNING, DOUG. THANKS SO MUCH FOR COMING DOWN. OH, MY PLEASURE INDEED. SO LET'S TALK ABOUT A CLIMATE BOND. YOU KNOW, THIS EFFORT WAS SORT OF SHROUDED IN DOUBT SKEPTICISM. FEW PEOPLE REALLY THOUGHT IT WOULD HAPPEN, BUT WAS IT LATE LAST WEDNESDAY, JUST HOURS BEFORE THE DEADLINE, WHERE SOMETHING HAD TO BE SUBMITTED TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE? BOTH HOUSES RESOUNDINGLY AND I MEAN RESOUNDINGLY APPROVED THIS CLIMATE BOND, $10 MILLION CLIMATE BOND. ON THE ASSEMBLY SIDE, IT WAS 66 TO 6. TREMENDOUS BIPARTISAN SUPPORT. ON THE OTHER SIDE, IT'S 33 TO 6, I BELIEVE, SENDING A VERY STRONG SIGNAL. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO THIS LEGISLATURE AND SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE HAD IN MOVING THIS ALONG AND ERICH CAN ATTEST TO THIS IS WE HAD IT WE HAD A SPEAKER IN ROBERT RIVAS WHO EVENTUALLY CAME ALONG, BUT INITIALLY IT WAS NOT A PRIORITY, AND IT WAS IT DIDN'T BECOME A PRIORITY TO HIM UNTIL IT BECAME A PRIORITY OF THIS CAUCUS. SO THAT WAS THAT WAS CERTAINLY A CHALLENGE. EVEN A BIGGER CHALLENGE IS WE HAD A GOVERNOR THAT WAS VERY INDIFFERENT. NO COMMUNICATION COMING OUT OF ANY OF THE DEPARTMENTS, ANY OF THE AGENCIES THAT THIS WAS A PRIORITY OF THIS ADMINISTRATION, AND I THINK THAT KNOW BETTER. IS THAT EVIDENCED BY THE FACT THAT HE DIDN'T SHOW UP AT THE SIGNING CEREMONY? IS ANYBODY AWARE OF THAT? HE DIDN'T SIGN THIS. THE PRO TEM SIGNED IT BECAUSE THE GOVERNOR WAS ACTUALLY OUT OF STATE. SO AND I'VE JUST LEARNED MORE RECENTLY AND PERHAPS ERICH AT LEAST HAS HEARD THIS AS WELL, THAT THE ADMINISTRATION HAS SERIOUS CONCERNS ABOUT THIS BOND UP UNTIL THE LAST WEEK AND EVEN INTO THE PASSAGE OF THIS BOND. [00:15:01] SO I JUST ABOUT A HALF HOUR AGO, I WAS ON A ZOOM CALL WITH THE MAJOR CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE ON THIS, AND SO THERE'S A LITTLE TREPIDATION MOVING INTO THE CAMPAIGN OR TRANSITIONING INTO THE CAMPAIGN ABOUT THE ADMINISTRATION'S POSITION AND WHAT THEY MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT DO. SO IT'S CRAZY. IT'S CREATING A LITTLE BIT OF ANXIETY MOVING FORWARD INTO NOVEMBER. I'LL SHARE THAT. ANOTHER THING IS THE ASSEMBLY VERY FRACTURED, DIFFUSE VOICES, DIFFUSE PRIORITIES. WHY IS THAT? IS BECAUSE WE STILL HAD THERE WAS STILL SOME HURT FEELINGS OVER THE TRANSITION TO A NEW SPEAKER FROM MR. RENDON TO MR. RIVAS. WE HAD A NEWBIE FLEX, I LIKE TO SAY. SO WE HAD A LOT OF NEW MEMBERS THAT CAME IN UNDER THE RIVAS CAMP THAT ACTUALLY THEY TRIED TO ESTABLISH A COUP ON THE ASSEMBLY SIDE AND TRIED TO WREST THIS BOND AWAY FROM ASSEMBLY MEMBER GARCIA. SO IT WAS IT WAS WROUGHT WITH POTENTIAL DISASTER, BUT ULTIMATELY AS I'D MENTIONED, RESOUNDING SUPPORT, APPROVAL FROM BOTH HOUSES, AND WE'RE MOVING FORWARD. IN TERMS OF THE EAST BAY'S PRIORITIES, STATED PRIORITIES, I CAN SAY WITH REASONABLE CONFIDENCE THAT THE PRIORITIES WERE ADDRESSED IN THE CONTEXT OF SB 67, AND I PREFACE THAT BY SAYING, IN MY WORK AS AN EXTENSION OF STAFF THROUGH EDUARDO GARCIA, WE DID HAVE AT TIMES SPECIFIC LANGUAGE TO ADDRESS SPECIFIC PRIORITIES OF THE DISTRICT, AND ULTIMATELY THOSE WERE ABSORBED THROUGH VARIOUS PROGRAMS. THERE WAS ONLY A SINGLE CALLOUT IN THE BOND THAT I'VE IDENTIFIED FOR CLEAR LAKE AND DO SOME WORK MITIGATION WORK AROUND CLEAR LAKE, AND THAT WAS THAT WAS FOR THE ASSEMBLY PRO TEM. IT'S FOR LEADERSHIP, BUT THE WAY THAT THEY ADDRESSED A LOT OF THESE PRIORITIES WAS BECAUSE WE HAD SUBALLOCATIONS WE'D HAVE MONEY FOR, FOR EXAMPLE, I'LL GET INTO MORE DETAIL FUNDS FOR SILT REMOVAL AND DEBRIS REMOVAL AT JEWEL AND FOR TEMESCAL AND AT ONE POINT THERE WAS SPECIFIC LANGUAGE TOWARD THAT. INSTEAD OF HAVING THOSE SUBALLOCATIONS, THEY ACTUALLY ESTABLISHED POTS OF FUNDS UNDER THESE VARIOUS CATEGORIES UNDER COAST, UNDER WATER, UNDER PARKS WHERE THEY WILL BE DISCRETIONARY ALLOCATIONS MEANING MEMBER REQUESTS POTENTIALLY. SO THEY'VE GOT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS. I'VE IDENTIFIED AT LEAST A HALF $1 BILLION, IF NOT MORE, THAT WILL BE SUBJECT TO FUTURE BUDGET DISCUSSIONS AND NEGOTIATIONS AND POTENTIALLY TO THE EXTENT THAT THE DISTRICT IS POSITIONED WELL AND WORKING WITH ITS DELEGATION, AND THEN IN TURN, WE CAN SECURE SOME OF THOSE DOLLARS WORKING THROUGH THAT DELEGATION. SO, AGAIN ON THE SILT DEBRIS REMOVAL FOR TEMESCAL IN PARTICULAR THE MONEY THAT I'VE IDENTIFIED IS THERE IS A DAM SAFETY PROGRAM, ALMOST $500 MILLION IDENTIFIED IN THE BOND, AND SO I WENT IN AND READ A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE DAM SAFETY PROGRAM AND SPECIFIC TO THAT PROGRAM IN TERMS OF ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA, IT INDICATES THAT ONE TIME PROJECTS TO REMOVE SEDIMENT NEAR AND AROUND DAMS AND LAKES RESULTING FROM WILDFIRES OR EXTRAORDINARY STORM EVENTS. SO IT SOUNDS AS THOUGH TEMESCAL WOULD BE VERY ELIGIBLE, BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, I'VE IDENTIFIED ANOTHER ROUGHLY $200 MILLION THROUGH THE INTEGRATED REGIONAL WATERSHED MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, THE RIVERINE STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM, AND THEN URBAN STREAMS PROGRAM ALL COULD BE ELIGIBLE. TEMESCAL JEWEL, ALL COULD BE ELIGIBLE THROUGH THESE PROGRAMS AND THE RIVERINE PROGRAM AND AGAIN, GOING BACK TO THIS NOTION OF DISCRETIONARY DOLLARS, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE ROOTED PROGRAMMATICALLY THROUGH A PROGRAM. IT'S GOING TO BE, AT THE END OF THE DAY, AT LEAST, THAT PROGRAM FOR $50 MILLION UP FOR GRABS WITHIN THE LEGISLATURE IN TERMS OF HOW THAT MONEY CAN BE DIRECTED FIRE FUNDING. THERE'S $200 MILLION IN THERE. AGAIN, DISCRETIONARY $200 MILLION THAT CAN BE SHOULD BE ADDRESSING AN EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT PRIORITY, AND THAT IS FUNDING FOR ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, SPECIFICALLY IN THERE DESCRIBED AS AN ELIGIBLE OPPORTUNITY FOR [00:20:04] ON THE GROUND WORK FOR THE DISTRICT. THERE'S ALSO 500 OR, I'M SORRY, $50 MILLION IN THERE FOR THE NATURAL RESOURCES AGENCY. AGAIN, DISCRETIONARY FOR THESE TYPES OF PROJECTS. 33.5 MILLION FOR THE STATE COASTAL CONSERVANCY, AND THEN 50 OR $500 MILLION OVER A BROAD RANGE OF PROGRAMS, THE REGIONAL FOREST FIRE CAPACITY PROGRAM, FOREST HEALTH, FIRE PREVENTION, A LOT OF MONEY, A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES ON THE COAST AND COASTAL RESOURCES AND COASTAL FUNDING. THIS IS THE BIGGEST FIGHT I HAD, AND THAT WAS, FOR WHATEVER REASON, IN WORKING ON 1567, THE ASSEMBLY VERSION, I HAD INCLUDED A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF MONEY FOR THE BAY AREA PROGRAM. HOPEFULLY YOU FOLKS ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE NUANCE, THE BAY AREA PROGRAM VERSUS THE AUTHORITY BARRIER PROGRAM, MORE EXPANSIVE RANGE, BROADER RANGE OF PROJECTS, GEOGRAPHY, AND IN THE COURSE OF NEGOTIATIONS ON THE ASSEMBLY SIDE WITH THE WORKING GROUP, THEY TOOK THAT PROVISION OUT OF THERE. THEY RETAINED THE AUTHORITY, BUT THEY TOOK THE PROGRAM OUT OF THERE. MY WORK IN WITH LORI WILSON, WHO IS PART OF OUR DELEGATION, SHE WAS PART OF THE NEGOTIATION TEAM. WE WORKED TO MAKE SURE THAT MONEY WAS SECURED AND IT'S $85 MILLION THAT CAN GO FOR EITHER OR THE BARRIER PROGRAM OR FOR THE AUTHORITY. SO I THINK IT WOULD BEHOOVE THE DISTRICT IN WORKING THROUGH MAYBE TOGETHER BAY AREA, TO IDENTIFY HOW THEY WANT TO ALLOCATE THOSE FUNDS, AND I WOULD IMAGINE TO THE EXTENT THAT THE PROGRAM, AGAIN, IT'S MORE EXPANSIVE IN SCOPE AND PURPOSE, THAT WOULD BE A PREFERRED APPROACH. IN TERMS OF SEA LEVEL RISE, THERE'S $350 MILLION THAT'S GOING TO BE ALLOCATED THROUGH THE STATE COASTAL CONSERVANCY TO PROTECT, PRESERVE CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE, SHORELINE TRAILS. FOR EXAMPLE, THE DISTRICT MIGHT AVAIL ITSELF OF 30 BY 30 LAND ACQUISITIONS $870 MILLION THROUGH THE WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD. A LOT OF MONEY, AND THEN FOR PARKS AND GREEN SPACE. $100 MILLION FOR THE URBAN GREENING PROGRAM. $200 MILLION FOR THE STATEWIDE PARKS PROGRAM, AND THEN, AS I DESCRIBED, THERE'S GOING TO BE ANOTHER $200 MILLION. THAT'S GOING TO BE DISCRETIONARY. IT'S GOING TO BE SUBJECT TO LEGISLATIVE DISCUSSION FOR PARKS AND PARK PURPOSES. AGAIN, WORKING WITH OUR DELEGATION HOPEFULLY WE CAN SECURE SOME OF THESE FUNDING AMOUNTS FOR PRIORITY PROJECTS, AND THEN IMPORTANT FOR ME AND FOR ONE OF YOUR BOARD MEMBERS AND ALL OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS HERE, MR. MERCURIO IN PARTICULAR IS THERE'S $100 MILLION IN THERE FOR TRAILS. THIS WAS AT THE BEHEST OF THE PRO TEM, SENATOR MCGUIRE, AND DISCRETIONARY AGAIN, AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE IT'S GOING TO BE SUBJECT TO WHATEVER THE LEGISLATURE DETERMINES, IT'S APPROPRIATED THROUGH THE LEGISLATURE. SO THEY COULD ROUTE IT THROUGH AN EXISTING PROGRAM LIKE THE TRAILS AND GREENWAYS PROGRAM. HOWEVER, THEY DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO DO THAT. THIS FUNDING CAN GO FOR TO SPECIFIC PROJECTS THROUGH EARMARKS AND THROUGH MEMBERS' REQUESTS AT THROUGH THE BUDGET CYCLE. SO THAT'S WHAT I'VE GOT FOR NOW. I'M HAPPY TO FIELD QUESTIONS COMMENTS. JUST TO GET THE SPECIFICS. PLEASE. YOU MENTIONED THE COASTAL CONSERVANCY. SO THERE'S A SPECIFIC ALLOCATION FOR THE COASTAL CONSERVANCY. HOW ABOUT I THINK THERE'S SOME ALLOCATION BROADLY FOR CONSERVANCIES GENERALLY. IS THAT TRUE? SO 415 MILLION FOR THE STATE COASTAL CONSERVANCY. WITHIN THAT 415 MILLION THERE'S A SUBALLOCATION OF 85 FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY RESTORATION AUTHORITY OR THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY PROGRAM. ALSO, STATE COASTAL CONSERVANCY HAS FUNDING $350 MILLION FOR SEA LEVEL RISE. THE CONSERVANCIES THERE ARE TEN OF THEM, INCLUDING THE TAHOE, CALIFORNIA TAHOE CONSERVANCY, SIERRA NEVADA CONSERVANCY, SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS CONSERVANCY, AND THE LIKE ALL RECEIVE A SHARE OF THE PROCEEDS OF THIS BOND AS WELL. [00:25:05] NOT UNLIKE PROP 68 OR PREVIOUS BONDS. SO I WAS HOPING THE DELTA CONSERVANCY WOULD AT LEAST HAVE ACCESS. DELTA CONSERVANCY. MY RECOLLECTION DIRECTOR COFFEY IS 29 MILLION. DIRECT OR WRITE TO THE CONSERVANCY. OH, THAT'S VERY GOOD, ACTUALLY. YEAH. THANK YOU. STATE PARKS. SO IS 200 MILLION SET ASIDE FOR STATE PARKS? I BELIEVE WAS THE NUMBER 175 MILLION FOR DEFERRED MAINTENANCE AND 50 MILLION FOR SEA LEVEL RISE, AND THEN IN ADDITION TO THAT, THERE ARE NUMEROUS CATEGORIES AGAIN, WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THIS BOND THAT ARE DISCRETIONARY, WHERE STATE PARKS IS SPECIFICALLY IDENTIFIED AND MENTIONED AS A RECIPIENT DEPARTMENT FOR FIRE PURPOSES FOR PUBLIC ACCESS AND THE LIKE. IT'S JUST IT NEEDS TO BE FURTHER VETTED AND ARTICULATED, THOSE THOSE PROGRAMS THROUGH LEGISLATIVE ACTION. I CONTINUE TO BE INTERESTED IN WHETHER STATE PARKS IS GOING TO HAVE FUNDING FROM WHATEVER SOURCE IN THE FUTURE TO OPEN THE 3600 ACRES THAT ARE IN EAST CONTRA COSTA SITTING THERE VERY, VERY BEHIND A FENCE, AND I COMBED THROUGH THE LANGUAGE TO SEE IF THERE ISN'T AN OPPORTUNITY, THROUGH SOME LEGISLATIVE ACTION AGAINST SOME OF THESE DISCRETIONARY DOLLARS FOR THAT PURPOSE, AND I THINK UNDER THAT $200 MILLION FOR PARKS IT DOESN'T SPECIFY LOCAL PARKS. SO THERE MIGHT BE OPPORTUNITIES FOR STATE PARKS, AND I SUSPECT, IN WORKING WITH THE ASSEMBLY NEGOTIATING TEAM, THE SPEAKER'S NEGOTIATING TEAM, THEY KNEW WHAT SOME OF THE MY PRIORITIES WERE AND WORKING WITH MY CLIENTS, AND I THINK THEY TRIED TO COBBLE THOSE TOGETHER IN THE CONTEXT OF THESE DISCRETIONARY POTS OF MONEY. SO POSTPONING ANY KIND OF ULTIMATE DECISION OR CALL OUT UNTIL A FUTURE BUDGET BUDGET NEGOTIATION. OKAY. I APPRECIATE THAT THE AND YOUR INPUT ON IT THROUGH THE PROCESS VERY MUCH APPRECIATED. THE BRIEF SUMMARY I HAD OF THE BOND AND YOU OF THE BOND PROPOSAL BALLOT MEASURE, AND YOU'VE DESCRIBED IT. COULD YOU MAYBE GO BACK AND ADDRESS WHETHER THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR ACTUAL LAND ACQUISITION FOR THE PARK DISTRICT FOR THE PARK DISTRICT, BE IT TO CREATE SHORELINE ACCESS, WHICH IS PARTICULAR TO MY WARD AND OF INTEREST OR JUST GENERALLY I'LL SAY THIS AND NOT TO BE FLIPPANT, BUT A LOT OF THE LANGUAGE, THIS IS A LOT OF LANGUAGE REALLY DRIVEN THROUGH THE SENATE, AND IN PARTICULAR, ONE OF THE PRINCIPAL VOICES IN SHAPING THIS BOND WAS THE NATURE CONSERVANCY. NATURE CONSERVANCY LAND ACQUISITIONS 30 BY 30. PROTECTING, PRESERVING LANDS IN CALIFORNIA IS A PRIORITY OF THAT ORGANIZATION, AS WE ALL KNOW. LITERALLY LITTERED WOULDN'T BE THE APPROPRIATE TERM, BUT THIS BOND IS CHOCK FULL OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR ACQUISITION. OKAY, THAT'S GOOD TO HEAR BECAUSE THAT'S IN THAT BRIEF SUMMARY I READ THAT SEEMED TO BE THE CASE, AND, YOU KNOW, I STARTED GETTING EXCITED BY THAT. SO I VERY MUCH SO, I THINK I WILL SAY AND UNDERSCORE THAT WITHIN THE WCB'S POT OF MONEY AT 870 MILLION, THERE IS THERE ARE SPECIFIC SUB ALLOCATIONS AND ONE MIGHT BE OF INTEREST TO THE, TO THE DISTRICT AND THAT IS IT'S CALLED THE SAN ANDREAS LINKAGE PROGRAM. SO IT BASICALLY FOLLOWS THE FAULT STARTING STARTING AT DIABLO AND RUNNING ADJACENT TO THE GREATER DIABLO RANGE ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE OH, I'M BLANKING ON THE TERM, BUT IT'S A SUBSTANTIAL SWATH OF LAND, AND IT'S TNC AND WORKING WITH ANOTHER ONE OF MY CLIENTS SAY MOUNT DIABLO VIEWED THIS AS A VERY IMPORTANT PROGRAM TO MEET 30 BY 30 OBJECTIVES. THAT'S WHERE THE LAND IS RICH AND DIVERSE AND INEXPENSIVE, RELATIVELY SPEAKING. [00:30:02] SO IT DOES A PORTION OF THAT WILL BE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES WILL RUN THROUGH THE DISTRICT'S JURISDICTION. OKAY, THAT'S GOOD NEWS. APPRECIATE IT. DENNIS. YEAH. DOUG, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR GREAT WORK ON THIS, AND SO I DON'T KNOW HOW TO POSE THESE QUESTIONS. SO IT SOUNDS LIKE IN PROP 68, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A BIG FIGHT OVER PER CAPITA. SO THIS SOUNDS LIKE THERE'S NOTHING GUARANTEED TO ANYBODY, AND IT'S DISCRETIONARY TERM OR. YEAH, YEAH. WELL, YES, A LOT OF IT. A LOT OF I'D SAY, YOU KNOW, THE BULK OF IT IS GOING TO BE AVAILABLE COMPETITIVELY AND IT'S GOING TO BE ROUTED THROUGH PROGRAMS. THERE IS, THERE IS THESE POTS OF MONEY. I APOLOGIZE. THESE POTS OF MONEY THAT ARE GOING TO BE SUBJECT TO LEGISLATIVE AND ADMINISTRATIVE DISCUSSION, NEGOTIATION. THEY HAVEN'T BEEN VETTED, AND I SHOULD MENTION, AND I FAILED TO MENTION EARLIER, ANOTHER KEY PROVISION ASSOCIATED WITH THIS BOND. IT'S MORE NUANCED IS THAT THERE IS A CHANGING AND A REVISION OF THE DEFINITION OF DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES IN THE PREVIOUS BOND. 35% WAS TO BE MADE AVAILABLE FOR DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES AND IN PROP 68. THE DEFINITION OF DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITY WAS 80% STATEWIDE MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME. VERY FEW POCKETS. AREAS WITHIN EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT'S JURISDICTION QUALIFIED. IN THIS CASE, WE'RE GOING TO BE SETTING ASIDE 40%, BUT THE DEFINITION IS NOW 80% REGIONAL MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME. SO YOUR LESSER AFFLUENT AREAS ARE GOING TO BE COMPETING WITH OTHER LESSER AFFLUENT AREAS, AND BUT THE THERE'S A, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENTIAL OBVIOUSLY, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO BE COMPETING ON EQUAL FOOTING FOR WITH EVEN THE MOST DISADVANTAGED AREAS IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, IF THAT MAKES ANY SENSE. YEAH. YEAH, YEAH. THANK YOU. SO AND I GUESS MOVING FORWARD WE APPRECIATE ALL YOUR GREAT EFFORTS. WHAT DO YOU DO NEXT? OR IF ARE YOU CAN YOU LIBERTY TO TELL US WHAT'S YOUR ROLE. BECAUSE I KNOW, AND THEN I'M GOING TO ASK WHAT'S THE DISTRICT'S ROLE NOW. YEAH, AND I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH I CAN SHARE OTHER THAN WE TRANSITIONED OVER TO THE CAMPAIGN, AND I WAS I MENTIONED I WAS ON A CALL THIS MORNING WITH THE NATURE CONSERVANCY AND TRUST FOR PUBLIC LAND RESOURCE LAW FUND, OR RLF, AND THESE ARE MAJOR DONORS AND HAVING A DISCUSSION ABOUT CAMPAIGN ROLLOUT LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT AND PARTICIPATION WITH TWO OF THE BOND AUTHORS, SENATOR ALLEN AND EDUARDO GARCIA. WHAT ARE THEIR ROLES? HOW CAN I BE HELPFUL? HOW CAN THE CLIENTS BE HELPFUL? SO IT'S MY INDICATION OR MY UNDERSTANDING THAT PROP 68, I THINK THEY RAISED ABOUT $6 MILLION FOR THAT MEASURE. IT WAS APPROVED BY ABOUT 57%. I DON'T KNOW IF THE VOTERS ARE QUITE AS ENTHUSIASTIC THIS GO AROUND, AND SO I THINK THE GOAL IS TO RAISE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN. SO THAT'S WHERE WE'RE TRANSITIONING RIGHT NOW. THAT'S WHERE I'M TRANSITIONING, AND DO WE HAVE A I GUESS I'M ASKING US WHAT IS OUR ROLE GOING TO BE? I KNOW BOB DOYLE WAS VERY, VERY INVOLVED IN PROP 68 AND DO WE HAVE A ROLE? HAVE WE? I MEAN, THE ELECTION'S FOUR MONTHS AWAY OR LESS. I HOPE YOU'RE NOT ASKING ME. NO, NO, I'M ASKING OUR STAFF. ARE WE GOING TO. WE GOT ANYTHING GOING WITH THIS OR ARE WE INVESTED IN THIS ARE WE GOING TO BE A PART OF THE LEADERSHIP OR. WELL, AS A POLITICAL, THIS WOULD BE LIKE A BOND MEASURE. BALLOT MEASURE WOULD BE POLITICAL ACTIVITY. SO THERE WOULD BE THE USUAL RESTRICTIONS ON POLITICAL ACTIVITIES THAT THE DISTRICT COULD TAKE. SO IN OTHER INCONSISTENT WITH OTHER BALLOT MEASURES OR BOND MEASURES, WE COULD TAKE A POSITION, AN OFFICIAL POSITION FOR OR AGAINST IT, WHERE, YOU KNOW, IT WOULD BE PRESENTED TO THE LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE TO SUPPORT IT. JUST LIKE THIS STATE BILLS, THE BOARD COULD SUPPORT IT, AND BEYOND THAT, THEN IT WOULD BE AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE COULD PROVIDE MORE SPECIFIC DETAIL TO THE BOARD WHEN THIS COMES FORWARD, BUT IT WOULD GENERALLY COVER THE SAME SITUATIONS WHERE WE COULD GIVE A FAIR PRESENTATION OF THE FACTS, BUT NOT ACTUALLY SPEND PARK DISTRICT DOLLARS ADVOCATING ON BEHALF OF. I UNDERSTAND THAT. OKAY. THANK YOU. ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS? [00:35:02] HEARING NONE. DOUG, WHILE YOU'RE HERE, THANKS FOR COMING DOWN. APPRECIATE IT. HAVE YOU CAN I ASK A QUESTION? I JUST HEARD MY COLLEAGUES AT HARDER ARE LOSING FUNDS THAT WERE EARMARKED FOR THEM, AND, YOU KNOW, WE'VE ALWAYS BEEN A LITTLE FEARFUL OF THAT. HAVE YOU HEARD ANYTHING OF BASED ON THE DEFICIT PROMISED EARMARKS OR PROMISED SET ASIDES BEING LOST. OH, SO SO YOU'RE HEARING FROM COLLEAGUES THAT MONEY THAT HAD BEEN SECURED THROUGH BUDGETS PREVIOUS YEAR BUDGETS ARE LOST OR I HADN'T HEARD THAT. OKAY. IF THERE WAS MONEY, AT LEAST YOU HAVE A RESPONSE. WELL, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY SOMETHING ON THE RECORD AFTER YOU FINISH. YEAH, I DON'T KNOW, I HAVE NOT HEARD FROM A SINGLE ENTITY. I THINK THERE WAS A HOPE FOR MAYBE FOR THIS YEAR, SURPRISINGLY, TO SECURE SOME FUNDING, AND I ALSO KNOW THAT THERE WAS MONEY IN THE QUEUE THROUGH ENTITIES LIKE WCB AND STATE COASTAL CONSERVANCY THAT MIGHT HAVE BECOME AVAILABLE FOR FOLKS. THAT DIDN'T BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THERE WAS REVERSIONS OF FUNDS, BUT IN TERMS OF SPECIFIC EARMARKS I HAD NOT HEARD THAT. THANK YOU. YEAH. OF COURSE. WE'RE JUST GOING TO JUMP IN. LISA BALDINGER, LEGISLATIVE AND POLICY MANAGEMENT ANALYST AND JUST IN RESPONSE TO THE QUESTION, I WANT TO GIVE STRONG ASSURANCE TO OUR BOARD AS YOU RECEIVED IN THE MEMO UPDATE LAST WEEK ON THE STATE BUDGET, ALL OF THE PARK DISTRICT'S DIRECT FUNDING ALLOCATIONS THAT WE RECEIVED IN 2023 AND 2024 ARE MOVING FORWARD SUCCESSFULLY, AND WE DO EXPECT THOSE WILL BE INVESTED IN THE PROJECTS THAT THEY WERE COMMITTED TO. SO OUR STATE FUNDING THAT WE RECEIVED IS IN CONTRACT. THANK YOU. WOULD IT BE WOULD IT BE HELPFUL FOR THE PARK DISTRICT TO ADVOCATE WITH THE SECRETARY OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE FOR SUPPORT FOR THE MEASURE, TO THE EXTENT THAT WE CAN LEGALLY, AS A PUBLIC AGENCY ADVOCATE TO THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE AND NATURAL RESOURCES THAT THEY BE SUPPORTIVE OF EFFORTS TO PROVIDE FUNDING SOURCES FOR US. YEAH. THANK YOU. I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE CAN KIND OF PROVIDE FOR YOU OFFLINE ON THOSE ANSWERS. THIS IS VEERING A LITTLE BIT BEYOND THE CLIMATE BOND PRESENTATION MATTER. UNLESS THIS IS STILL RELATED TO THE CLIMATE. I'M STRICTLY TALKING ABOUT THE CLIMATE BOND. OKAY. SORRY. THANK YOU, AND IT IT BOTHERS ME THAT THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE ISN'T JUMPING UP AND DOWN WITH SUPPORT, AND SO I'M LOOKING FOR WAYS TO TRY TO PLAY A ROLE IN SOME ADVOCACY OR INFLUENCE ON THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE, AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE A VERY LARGE AGENCY AT TIMES. THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA TREATS US LIKE A DEPARTMENT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, FRANKLY, WHICH IS A GOOD THING, AND I'D LIKE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT AND TRY TO GET THE GOVERNOR'S SUBSTANTIAL INFLUENCE ON STATE POLITICS BEHIND THIS, AND WE'LL, OF COURSE, LOOK TO LAWYERS, OUR LAWYERS, ON HOW TO DO THAT, BUT I'LL SAY IT AS TACTFULLY AS I CAN AND NO DISRESPECT TO ANY INDIVIDUAL OR ORGANIZATION, BUT I THINK IN IN THE WAKE OF PROPOSITION ONE AND IT'S BARELY EKING THROUGH, AND BY BASED ON MY CONVERSATION WITH THE CAMPAIGN TEAM, I THINK THE HOPE IS THAT THE ADMINISTRATION, AT LEAST AT THIS JUNCTURE, JUST DOESN'T COME OUT WITH ANY NEGATIVE. RIGHT. OKAY. THANK YOU. YEAH. THANK YOU, DOUG. YEAH. MY PLEASURE. APPRECIATE IT. ALL RIGHT. I'M SORRY FOR BEING OUT OF ORDER IN THE FIRST PLACE, BEN. WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR PRESENTATION. THANKS SO MUCH FOR COMING DOWN, DOUG, AND ALL YOUR WORK. GREAT. DID WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE DOUG'S WORK ON THE CLIMATE BOND. IN ADDITION TO MANY GROUPS THAT WE'VE BEEN A PART OF THE COALITION. MOVING THAT AND ADVANCING THAT FORWARD. SO IT'S BEEN A LIFT, BUT IT WILL BE ON THE BALLOT AND HOPEFULLY WE'LL HAVE SOME SUCCESS WITH THAT. YEAH, YEAH. WE'D BE REMISS IN NOT ACKNOWLEDGING GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS ON YOUR EFFORTS TO ADVANCE THAT MEASURE, AND, YOU KNOW, JUST THE FACT THAT YOU WERE WORKING ALL ALONG CLOSELY WITH DOUG AND KEEPING US INFORMED DURING THE PROCESS WAS VERY HELPFUL, AND I THINK IS IS PART OF THE SUCCESS WE [00:40:06] WILL HAVE IF THIS PASSES. SO THANK YOU AND YOUR TEAM. APPRECIATE THAT AND DID WANT TO TAKE A SECOND CHANCE TO INTRODUCE BEN SINCE I WASN'T I WAS DISTRACTED. SO WE WORKED WITH BEN TOLSON'S FIRM FOR I BELIEVE THIS IS THE SECOND VOTER SURVEY. THE FIRST VOTER SURVEY WAS PRESENTED TO YOU LAST YEAR, AND IT SHOWED A DIFFERENCE IN NUMBERS THAN SURVEYS WE HAD SEEN IN YEARS EARLIER, AND THERE WERE COMMENTS FROM OUR DIRECTORS ABOUT WONDERING WHAT WAS THAT? WHY IS THAT SO AND SO WE HEARD YOU. SO WHEN WE WENT OUT FOR A NEW RFP FOR A VOTER SURVEY, WE INCLUDED THE CONCEPT OF FOCUS GROUPS, AND INCLUDING THOSE FOCUS GROUPS WAS INTENDED TO FIND TO DIG A LITTLE DEEPER AND INTENDED TO FIND SOME NUGGETS OF INFORMATION AS TO WHAT WOULD MOVE AND WHAT WOULD ADJUST VOTERS RESPONSES TO A POTENTIAL PARCEL TAX, AND SO, WITH THE WORK THAT BEN AND HIS FIRM DID ON THE FOCUS GROUPS AND SORT OF THE ANALYSIS OF THAT, WE'RE ABLE TO DEVELOP A INSTRUMENT TO GO TO THE VOTERS, TO ASK THEM SOME DIFFERENT QUESTIONS THAN WE HAD IN THE PAST, AND EVEN SOME QUESTIONS THAT WE DIDN'T EXPECT TO GET RESPONSES IN THE WAY THAT THEY CAME BACK. REALLY WERE HIGHLIGHTED BECAUSE OF THE FOCUS GROUP WORK THAT WE DID. SO I WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT AND THEN ALSO WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE BEN'S WORK WITH NOT ONLY WITH THE PARK DISTRICT IN THE PAST, BUT OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS AND THEN, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, NATIONAL ELECTED OFFICIALS, ALSO NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS. SO WE'RE FORTUNATE TO HAVE HIS RESEARCH FIRM SUPPORTING OUR WORK AND LOOKING FORWARD TO THE PRESENTATION. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, BEN. THANK YOU, ERICH, FOR THE INTRODUCTION. GOOD TO SEE ALL OF YOU. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME TODAY, AND JUST TO FOLLOW UP ON WHAT ERICH SAID. SO WE'VE DONE AN EXTENSIVE VOTER SURVEY. WE DID SOME FOCUS GROUPS. WE HAVE AN IN-DEPTH PRESENTATION THAT'S PART OF YOUR PACKET. SO I'M NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH EVERY SINGLE SLIDE. TODAY I'M GOING TO HIGHLIGHT ON THE KEY FINDINGS, AND YOU CAN REFERENCE THE MORE IN-DEPTH POWERPOINT IN YOUR PACKET AT YOUR AT ANY TIME AT YOUR CHOOSING, BUT I JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THE KEY FINDINGS THAT WE FOUND. JUST TO PROVIDE SOME INFORMATION ABOUT THE METHODOLOGY, WE DID 800, LIKELY NOVEMBER 2024 VOTERS. WE DO WHAT WE CALL MULTIMODAL METHODOLOGY. WE CALL LANDLINES, WE CALL CELL PHONES, WE TEXT AN ONLINE SURVEY LINK TO CELL PHONES, THEN WE EMAIL VOTERS AS WELL, AND WE DID INTERVIEWS IN ENGLISH, SPANISH AND CHINESE TO GET AS REPRESENTATIVE OF SAMPLES WE COULD OF THE VERY DIVERSE ELECTORATE OF YOUR DISTRICT, AND THE MARGIN OF ERROR FOR THE WHOLE SAMPLE IS PLUS OR -3.5%. SO KIND OF BROADLY SPEAKING YOU KNOW, VOTERS ARE IN A FAIRLY PESSIMISTIC MOOD. 51% OF VOTERS IN THE DISTRICT BELIEVE THAT THE THINGS ARE, YOU KNOW, ARE GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION IN THEIR COUNTY, EITHER ALAMEDA COUNTY OR CONTRA COSTA. ALAMEDA A LITTLE BIT MORE NEGATIVE THAN THE VOTERS IN CONTRA COSTA, AND WE'VE SEEN A KIND OF SHIFT IN A MORE PESSIMISTIC SHIFT SINCE OUR PREVIOUS SURVEY LAST YEAR, PARTICULARLY IN ALAMEDA COUNTY, AND WE'RE SEEING THIS IT'S NOT UNIQUE TO THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. WE'RE SEEING THIS THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA. JUST AS INFLATION IS TAKING ITS BITE WITH PARTICULARLY WITH WORKING CLASS VOTERS THERE'S JUST A SENSE OF FRUSTRATION AND DESPAIR, QUITE FRANKLY, AND YOU SAW THE RESULTS. DOUG ALLUDED TO PROP ONE, WHICH WAS THE HOMELESS HOUSING BOND THAT BARELY PASSED DESPITE A LOT OF MONEY SPENT IN BEHALF OF IT. THERE IS WE'RE SEEING THIS THROUGHOUT OUR PUBLIC AGENCY POLLING JUST RESISTANCE FOR VOTERS TO KIND OF OPEN UP THEIR WALLETS TO FUND PUBLIC SECTOR PROJECTS. SO YOU KNOW, SO VOTERS WERE SEEING KIND OF RETRENCH AND FEEL FAIRLY PESSIMISTIC ABOUT THE WAY THINGS ARE GOING, AND IT'S TRUE ACROSS ETHNICITY, WHITE VOTERS ARE A LITTLE BIT MORE OR LESS PESSIMISTIC. 44% SAY THINGS ARE GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION, BUT LATINO VOTERS AND AAPI VOTERS ARE A MAJORITY BELIEVE THINGS ARE ON THE WRONG TRACK. SO THAT FUELS THE KIND OF THEIR VOTERS ARE NOT IN AS GENEROUS A MOOD AS WE'VE SEEN IN YEARS PAST. SO THE GOOD NEWS IS THE DISTRICT IS HIGHLY RATED BY VOTERS. CURRENTLY, 77% OF VOTERS APPROVE OF THE JOB THAT YOU ALL ARE DOING. SO IT'S A VERY IMPRESSIVE NUMBER FOR A PUBLIC AGENCY. ONLY 7% DISAPPROVE. [00:45:01] THIS IS SIMILAR TO WHAT WE FOUND IN PREVIOUS RESEARCH. SO. SO CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU FOR THE EXCELLENT WORK YOU'RE DOING. BASED ON OUR FOCUS GROUPS, PEOPLE VALUE THE PARKS. THEY LOVE THE PARKS THEY THINK THEY'RE IN. A HUGELY IMPORTANT PIECE OF THE FABRIC OF THE EAST BAY AND THE CULTURE AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE. SO AND THEY COMMEND ALL OF YOU FOR THE JOB YOU'VE DONE AND MAINTAINING THEM. SO YOU KNOW, THERE IS A MAJORITY OF FOLKS WHO BELIEVE THAT YOU COULD THE DISTRICT COULD BENEFIT FROM ADDITIONAL FUNDING. 59% SAY EITHER A LOT OR A LITTLE BIT MORE FUNDING, 26% SAY AREN'T SURE, DON'T KNOW. SO THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR VOTER EDUCATION AND PERSUASION TO GET MORE PEOPLE ON BOARD WITH, WITH PROVIDING MORE FUNDING FOR THE PARK DISTRICT. IN TERMS OF AN ACTUAL PARCEL TAX THAT WE TESTED BASED ON PAST RESEARCH. WE TESTED 36 BEFORE WE FOUND A LOWER DOLLAR AMOUNT. COULD GET MORE SUPPORT, AND IN FACT, THAT WAS THE CASE WAS WE TESTED $24 PARCEL TAX. WE FOUND A MAJORITY SUPPORT, 61% WITH LEANERS. SO OBVIOUSLY YOU NEED TWO THIRDS SUPPORT TO PASS A PARCEL TAX. SO THIS DOESN'T QUITE MEET THRESHOLD. YOU KNOW, THERE IS SOME SEGMENT OF THE ELECTORATE THAT'S UNDECIDED. SO YOU COULD POTENTIALLY GET UP TO TWO THIRDS, BUT IT WOULD TAKE A VERY CONCERTED EFFORT TO GET THERE AND JUST PUT A CONTEXT BASED ON PAST RESEARCH. YOU KNOW, YOU'RE 61%. YES. TODAY, LAST YEAR THAT'S AN IMPROVEMENT FROM OUR SURVEY RESEARCH FROM LAST YEAR, WHICH FOUND 56% OF VOTERS SUPPORTED. SO THAT'S A GOOD TO SEE A COMBINATION OF FACTORS. ONE IS WE REVISED THE LANGUAGE TO REFLECT-- PARDON ME BEN. YEAH. EXCUSE ME. THESE ARE GREAT QUESTIONS, AND THEY'RE GOING QUICK AND FAST. CAN WE ASK QUESTIONS ALONG THE WAY. CAN WE INTERRUPT YOU AND ASK? IT'D PROBABLY BEST TO DO IT AT THE END. NO, THIS ISN'T GOING TO WORK IF WE DO THAT, OKAY, BECAUSE IT WILL MOVE TOO FAST, AND HAVING US COME BACK. THE REASON I INTERRUPTED WAS BECAUSE THAT JUST WON'T WORK. OKAY. WE HAVE OUR NOTES ON GIVEN PAGES. THEY'RE VERY IMPORTANT IF WE WAIT TILL THE END. MY EXPERIENCE IS WE DON'T GET TO THEM. OKAY. SO I'M SORRY TO BE IN THAT SENSE ANTAGONISTIC TOWARD YOUR DESIRE, BUT NO, THAT'S NOT GOING TO WORK. SO I WANTED TO IF I COULD. GOOD, PLEASE DO. THAT COMPARISON WITH 23 WAS FOR A $36. YES, AND DIFFERENT LANGUAGE, I MEAN, SO WE REVISED THE LANGUAGE OF THE PROPOSED PARCEL TAX TO REFLECT OUR PREVIOUS POLLING AND FOCUS GROUPS TO INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, TALKING ABOUT EXTREME WEATHER DAMAGE AS WELL AS ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE REVISION TO KIND OF TEST THE INCLUDE THE THINGS THAT TESTED THE BEST IN BOTH THE PAST POLLING AND FOCUS GROUPS. SO WE'RE ABLE TO REDUCE THE DOLLAR AMOUNT, REVISE THE LANGUAGE, AND GET SLIGHTLY HIGHER SUPPORT. OKAY, BUT THE TO LOOK AT THE DIFFERENTIAL BETWEEN 23 AND 24 TO ME DOESN'T WORK. IF WE WERE ASKING IN 23 ABOUT A $36 PARCEL TAX, I MEAN, THE DROP OFF OF SUPPORT FOR THAT LARGE ANNUAL CHARGE ON ON PARCELS WAS SIGNIFICANT. SO I'M NOT ISN'T THE BEST COMPARISON GOING BACK TO 21 WHEN WE WERE ASKING ABOUT THE YOU KNOW, THE 21 FINDING OUR VIEW, A COUPLE OF THINGS. ONE, A POLL IS A SNAPSHOT IN TIME, RIGHT? SO 2021 WAS KIND OF PEAK, YOU KNOW, COVID WHERE PEOPLE WERE USING THE PARKS A LOT AND BEFORE INFLATION STARTED TO TAKE ITS BITE. RIGHT. WE HAVE SEEN A SIGNIFICANT DROP IN SUPPORT ACROSS THE STATE ON SUPPORT FOR LOCAL PUBLIC AGENCY, YOU KNOW, TAXES, BONDS, YOU NAME IT. I'VE SEEN A SIGNIFICANT DROP IN SUPPORT. SO WHAT WE'RE SEEING IT HAPPEN IN YOUR DISTRICT FROM 2021 AT 70% TO WHERE WE ARE TODAY AT 61%, IS IN LINE WITH WHAT WE'RE SEEING ELSEWHERE WHERE VOTERS NOW INFLATION HAS TAKEN ITS BITE AND TAKING ITS TOLL ON VOTERS AND THEIR ECONOMIC WELL-BEING AND EVERYDAY LIVES. WE'VE SEEN A DROP IN SUPPORT FOR PUBLIC FUNDING. ALL RIGHT. IT JUST TELLS ME, BECAUSE THAT IS TRUE, WHAT WAS GOING ON IN 21. THERE'S AN ARGUMENT. WE MISSED OUR SHOT, BUT NOBODY WANTED TO GO TO A BALLOT MEASURE IN THE HEIGHT OF COVID, BUT WE DID PEAK IN TERMS OF POPULARITY, BUT I LIKE TO COMPARE IT TO THAT BECAUSE IT KIND OF CREATES A BENCHMARK FOR WHAT WE NEED TO DO, AND THE SUPPORT WE NEED TO GENERATE IS IT'S A PRETTY HEAVY BURDEN TO REACH. WE DON'T HAVE TO REACH 70%, BUT IT'S A HEAVY BURDEN AND I APPRECIATE THESE COMPARISONS. [00:50:08] ANYWAY. THAT'S ENOUGH. OKAY, AND THEN SO WE DID TEST DIFFERENT DOLLAR AMOUNTS JUST TO AGAIN, SEE IF CAN YOU GET MORE BECAUSE IF YOU GO TO THE BALLOT AND OUR EXPERIENCE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE SEEN TWO DIFFERENT DYNAMICS PLAY OUT. IT MEASURES LIKE THIS WHICH IS SOMETIMES VOTERS SUPPORT THE CONCEPT AND AREN'T PRICE-SENSITIVE, BUT OTHER TIMES, LIKE IN BONDS IN PARTICULAR WHERE IT'S NOT A DIRECT, YOU KNOW, IT'S A DOLLAR AMOUNT IS MORE FUNGIBLE IN TERMS OF THE DIRECT IMPACT ON A VOTER VERSUS A PARCEL TAX, BUT WE SEE HERE VOTERS ARE VERY PRICE SENSITIVE. WE HAVE 40, YOU KNOW, AT $24, 60%. THEN AT $30 YOU SEE SUPPORT DROPS TO 48%, 35%, THE HIGHER YOU GO, AND SO THEY'RE CLEARLY SAYING, OKAY, I'M OKAY WITH $2 A MONTH AT $24, BUT YOU ASK FOR MORE AND THEY GET YOU GET REAL RESISTANCE. SO THAT TELLS US YOU KNOW, AND THE REASON WE ASKED FOR 36 LAST TIME WAS, WELL, 24 PULLED REALLY WELL A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO. LET'S SEE IF WE CAN GET A LITTLE BIT MORE AND WE WERE TOLD CLEARLY VOTERS WERE LIKE, NO, NO, DON'T ASK FOR MORE. SO SO 24 IS REALLY THE TOP DOLLAR AMOUNT THAT WE THINK WE CAN GET FROM VOTERS, AND WE'RE STILL NOT A TWO THIRDS, BUT IT'S THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF SUPPORT WE CAN GET. JUST AGAIN, FOR THE SAKE OF SOME FOCUS ON KEY FINDINGS I TALKED ABOUT THERE WAS A POOL OF VOTERS THAT WEREN'T SURE WHETHER THEY LIKE THE DISTRICT, THEY PROVED THE JOB YOU'RE DOING, BUT THEY'RE NOT SURE WHETHER YOU NEED MORE FUNDING, AND THESE ARE TARGETED GROUPS OF VOTERS THAT ONCE YOU TELL THEM ABOUT THE NEEDS THAT YOUR DISTRICT FACES AND HOW YOU WOULD SPEND ADDITIONAL REVENUES, THEY MOVED TO SUPPORTING A BOND MEASURE, AND THERE'S A VERY CLEAR PROFILE. SO IF THERE IS EVER RESOURCES FOR VOTER OUTREACH AND VOTER EDUCATION, THESE ARE THE VOTERS YOU'D WANT TO TALK TO. THEY ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY YOUNGER FEMALE INDEPENDENT MPPS, NO PARTY PREFERENCE, WHICH IS THE NEW VERSION OF SAYING INDEPENDENT. IF YOU REGISTER AND DON'T CHOOSE A PARTY, YOU'RE LABELED AS NO PARTY PREFERENCE. THEY LEAN LEFT AND THEY'RE HEAVILY ASIAN-AMERICAN. SO THERE IS A A SIGNIFICANT SEGMENT OF VOTERS IN THE EAST BAY WHO, IF THEY LEARN MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU WOULD DO WITH THE PARCEL TAX REVENUES, THEY'D BE WILLING TO SUPPORT A PARCEL TAX. SO THERE IS A PART OF TO GET TO THAT TWO THIRDS, YOU NEED TO DO VOTER EDUCATION BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS THERE ARE VOTERS OUT THERE THAT ARE MORE WILLING TO SUPPORT YOU KNOW, A PARCEL TAX ONCE THEY HEAR WHAT IT WOULD GO TO, AND THEN IN TERMS OF MESSAGING, WE DO SEE ONCE WE COMMUNICATE THE NEED FOR IT, YOU DO INCREASE SUPPORT TO 64%, WHICH IS VERY, VERY CLOSE TO TWO THIRDS THRESHOLD. THAT'S MORE KIND OF ON THE MARGINS OF WHETHER WE'D RECOMMEND WHETHER YOU MOVE FORWARD WITH ONE OR NOT, BUT YOU LOOK AT DEFINITE YES GOES TO 41%. THAT'S WINNING TERRITORY. YOU KNOW, TO GET TO TWO THIRDS YOU NEED A SOLID BASE OF SUPPORT, 41% DEFINITE. YES. AFTER THAT PERSUASION PUTS YOU IN THAT CATEGORY. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, IF I WERE HERE TODAY PRESENTING YOU WITH 64%, YES, THAT'S A MUCH TOUGHER DECISION WHETHER YOU SHOULD GO FORWARD OR NOT. 61% IS NOT IN THAT REALM, BUT 64. SO YOU CAN SEE WITH A LITTLE BIT OF PERSUASION AND VOTER EDUCATION, YOU CAN BE IN THAT SITUATION NOT QUITE WHERE YOU WERE 2021, BUT MORE IN THE BALLPARK, AND THEN WE DID SOME TESTED MESSAGING AND I WOULD SAY THE NUMBER ONE ITEM FOR PRIORITIES FOR THE DISTRICT TO FUND WAS THIS NEW ITEM WE DISCOVERED IN THE DEVELOPING THE SURVEY WITH LISA AND ERICH. LISA MENTIONED, WELL, YOU KNOW, THERE'S AN ISSUE WE'RE HAVING. WE'RE HAVING TO CLEAN UP MATTRESSES, APPLIANCES, OLD CARS. THERE SEEMS TO BE MORE DUMPING GOING ON IN AND AROUND OUR PARKS, AND SO WE TOOK NOTE OF THAT. WE TESTED IT IN OUR FOCUS GROUPS. WE ASKED PEOPLE ABOUT IT AND IT REALLY RESONATED WITH PEOPLE. WE GOT A LOT OF FEEDBACK FROM PEOPLE SAYING, YES, I'VE NOTICED A LOT MORE DUMPING THE MATTRESSES IN THE PARKS OUTSIDE THE PARKS. IT'S A REAL PROBLEM. THESE ARE OUR PARKS. THERE ARE, YOU KNOW, A JEWEL OF, YOU KNOW, OF EAST BAY. THEY ARE HUGE PART OF OUR QUALITY OF LIFE AND THEY'RE GETTING RUINED BY THIS DUMPING, AND YOU CAN SEE IT'S THE NUMBER ONE ITEM IN TERMS OF PERCENT RANKING AT NUMBER TEN, 56% SAY GIVE IT A TEN AS A PRIORITY. IT RANKS NUMBER ONE AMONG ALL THE OTHER ISSUES. SO THIS IS A NEW AND THIS IS WHY YOU DO FOCUS GROUPS, AND THIS IS WHY WE WORK TOGETHER WITH YOUR STAFF TO BRAINSTORM WITH THEM. BECAUSE TYPICALLY CLEANING UP DUMPING HAS NOT BEEN AN ISSUE THAT'S BEEN TESTED IN ANY PAST RESEARCH, BUT YOUR STAFF BROUGHT IT TO OUR ATTENTION. WE ASKED IN THE FOCUS GROUPS, AND IT REALLY GENERATED A CONVERSATION QUESTION. I'M HAVING TROUBLE UNDERSTANDING. IT'S JUST ME. THIS METHODOLOGY, TIER ONE. JUST TO LOOK AT THIS PAGE PERCENTAGE TEN RATING, THERE IS SOME CORRELATION TO THE, YOU KNOW, ASKING PEOPLE TO PICK IMPORTANCE ON A RANGE OF 1 TO 10. [00:55:02] SO I GET IT. THIS IS 8.5. SO THESE CLEAN UP DUMPING IS TESTING HIGH IN THAT A CERTAIN PERCENTAGE OF FOLKS GAVE IT AN EIGHT OR 9 OR 10. CORRECT. YEAH, SO THESE WE DID IT A LONG BATTERY OF INDIVIDUAL ELEMENTS LIKE THIS, AND WE HAD THEM RATE EACH ONE ON A SCALE FROM 1 TO 10, WHERE TEN IS THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE IS NOT IMPORTANT TO THEM. RIGHT, AND SO THE AVERAGE SCORE OR THE MEAN SCORE IS WHAT YOU SEE IN THE BLUE AT 8.57. SO CLEANUP DUMPING WAS RANKED NUMBER ONE OF ALL THE ELEMENTS WE TESTED, AND THEN THE DARK BLUE IS THE PERCENT OF RESPONDENTS WHO GAVE EACH ONE A TEN OUT OF 1 TO 10. SO MORE THAN HALF OF PEOPLE WHO TOOK OUR SURVEY GAVE IT A TEN. OKAY, SO THAT MEANS 56% GAVE CLEAN UP DUMPING A TEN. CORRECT? EXACTLY. SO I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THAT COLUMN AT ALL. NO. SURE THING, AND THE OTHER YEAH QUESTION IS THIS, THE PRIORITY FUNDING TESTING AMONG THE VOTER SURVEY OR FOCUS GROUPS OR A MIX? HOW IS THIS THIS IS JUST THE SURVEY. SO THE QUANTITATIVE, THIS IS QUANTITATIVE DATA JUST FROM THE QUANTITATIVE SURVEY, AND THE LANGUAGE, THE COMPONENTS OF IT WE DID FROM, YOU KNOW, BASED ON PRIORITIES THAT YOUR STAFF PROVIDED US AS WELL AS THE FOCUS GROUPS AND TURN GETTING FEEDBACK AND HOW TO MAXIMIZE SUPPORT FOR EACH DESCRIPTION OF EACH OF THESE ELEMENTS. ARE YOU GOING TO GET BACK TO REASONS TO VOTE NO OR YES? I MEAN, I'M HAPPY TO TALK ABOUT THAT. IT'S JUST A LOT OF DATA. I'M TRYING TO FOCUS ON THE KEY TAKEAWAYS THAT I THOUGHT WERE THE MOST IMPORTANT TO TALK ABOUT TODAY, BUT I'M HAPPY TO TALK ABOUT. ALL RIGHT. YEAH. BECAUSE I'M GOING TO HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR SLIDES ON REASONS TO VOTE NO OR REASONS TO VOTE YES, WHATEVER POINT YOU'RE INTERESTED IN TALKING ABOUT THIS. OKAY. YEAH. WHY DON'T I GO THROUGH JUST BECAUSE I ONLY HAVE A COUPLE OF SLIDES, MORE THAT I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT, AND THEN WE CAN TALK ABOUT THOSE? SURE. SO NUMBER TWO IS WILDFIRE RISK. THAT HAS TYPICALLY BEEN THE NUMBER ONE ISSUE IN THE PAST. THE FACT THAT WE FOUND AN ALTERNATIVE ISSUE THAT TRUMPS WILDFIRE RISK IS IS IMPRESSIVE AGAIN. SO I JUST THINK THAT AND I KNOW LISA AND ERICH HAVE WORKED WITH THE DISTRICT TO FIGURE OUT WHAT DOES CLEAN UP DUMPING LOOK LIKE, HOW TO IMPLEMENT THAT FROM A POLICY PERSPECTIVE, BUT OUR JOB AS RESEARCHERS AND POLLSTERS IS TO HIGHLIGHT KIND OF WHAT VOTERS CARE MOST ABOUT, BUT SO WILDFIRE IS STILL A BIG DEAL. WE'RE ALREADY STARTING TO HAVE A BAD WILDFIRE SEASON, AND WE'VE SEEN WITH SURVEY RESEARCH IS IF YOU POLL IN THE FALL AND THE PEAK WILDFIRE SEASON WHEN THERE ARE WILDFIRES RAGING, THERE'S EVEN MORE SUPPORT FOR WILDFIRE. YOU KNOW, PRESERVING PARKLANDS AND TRAILS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS. THAT DID QUITE WELL. REQUIRING COMMUNITY OVERSIGHT TO ENSURE TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY. AGAIN, VOTERS ARE ALWAYS WANT TO MAKE SURE THE MONEY IS BEING WELL SPENT AND THEN THE EXTREME WEATHER. SO THIS IS LANGUAGE WE'VE BEEN DEVELOPING THE LAST FEW YEARS BOTH WITH, WITH WITH WITH WITH YOU AS A CLIENT, BUT ALSO OUR ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE POLL FOR, AND WHAT WE FOUND IS WHEN YOU USE THE TERM CLIMATE CHANGE, THERE'S A SEGMENT OF THE ELECTORATE THAT SEES THAT AS A POLITICAL TERM. MAINLY CONSERVATIVE VOTERS SEE IT AS SO THEY DON'T REACT WELL, BUT BUT IF YOU USE THE TERM EXTREME WEATHER, ENSURE THE DISTRICT HAS A RESOURCE THAT NEEDS TO DEAL WITH THE IMPACT FROM EXTREME WEATHER CLEANING DAMAGE FROM MORE SEVERE STORMS, WILDFIRES, FLOODING, DROUGHT AND TOXIC ALGAE BLOOMS. THE TOXIC ALGAE BLOOMS ACTUALLY CAME UP IN OUR FOCUS GROUPS. PEOPLE TALKED ABOUT THEM WHEN THEY GO ON HIKES IN YOUR WONDERFUL PARKS AND THE BODIES OF WATER THAT YOU HAVE THAT HAVE BEEN HIT WITH TOXIC ALGAE BLOOMS, THEY'VE NOTICED THAT ESPECIALLY DOG OWNERS WHO'VE HAD THEIR DOGS BECOME SICK BECAUSE THEY DRINK THE WATER OR THEY CAN'T, THEY HAVE TO KEEP THEIR DOGS AWAY FROM THE WATER, THINGS LIKE THAT. SO AGAIN, LEARNING FROM THE FOCUS GROUPS AS WELL, BUT WHEN WE FOUND WE USED THE TERM EXTREME WEATHER AND DESCRIBE WHAT PEOPLE ALL SEE AS EXPERIENCING WITHOUT USING THE TERM CLIMATE CHANGE, IT'S MORE EFFECTIVE, IT BECOMES LESS POLITICAL. IT JUST WE DON'T SAY HUMAN CAUSED OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE YOU KNOW, CERTAIN SEGMENTS OF THE ELECTORATE ARE KIND OF BACK AWAY FROM SUPPORTING BUT WHEN YOU JUST TALK ABOUT EXTREME WEATHER, IT DOES QUITE WELL. SO THESE ARE THE TOP TESTING ELEMENTS AND PRIORITIES THAT VOTERS ARE TELLING US THAT THEY WANT WOULD WANT IN A PARCEL TAX KIND OF SECOND TIER, WHICH DID WELL, BUT NOT QUITE AS WELL RESTORING WATERSHEDS, LAKES AND URBAN CREEKS. SO SOURCES OF WATER, EXISTING TRAILS, MAINTAINING EXISTING TRAILS RESTORING ECOSYSTEMS, MAINTAINING PARK MAINTENANCE. WHAT WE FOUND IN THE FOCUS GROUPS WHEN WE TOLD PEOPLE JUST HOW BIG THE PARK DISTRICT IS, HOW MANY PARKS YOU HAVE, HOW MANY ACRES OF PARKLAND, AND WE SHOWED THEM A MAP OF ALL YOUR PARKS. THEY ARE BLOWN AWAY BY IT BECAUSE MOST PEOPLE EXPERIENCE YOUR PARKS THROUGH THEIR OWN PARK. I MEAN, THEY MIGHT GO TO 1 OR 2 OTHERS, BUT THEY HAVE NO IDEA. YOU HAVE THIS MASSIVE YOU KNOW, RESOURCE THAT, AND THEN ONCE THEY SEE THE SCALE OF YOUR DISTRICT, HOW MANY PARKS YOU HAVE, THAT'S WHEN THEY SAY, WELL, I GUESS YOU DO NEED MORE FUNDING. HOW THE HECK DO YOU MANAGE ALL THESE PARKS AND DO A GREAT JOB DOING IT? SO THAT WAS AN IMPORTANT. SO IF THERE'S EVER ANY VOTER EDUCATION EFFORT SHOWING THE MAP, YOUR MAP OF THE DISTRICT AND ALL THE PARKS YOU HAVE AND THE NEED TO MAINTAIN THEM BECAUSE [01:00:10] WE SAW IN THE FOCUS WAS PEOPLE TIE ALL THE CONNECT THE DOTS, RIGHT? THEY SAY, OH MY GOD, YOU HAVE THIS HUGE PARK, YOU HAVE EXTREME WEATHER AND YOU KNOW, AND THEN THE DUMPING IS LIKE, WE HAVE SO MANY PARKS AND SO PEOPLE KIND OF THINK THEY CAN SNEAKILY DUMP STUFF IN YOUR WONDERFUL PARKS. YOU KNOW, I SEE THE NEED FOR MORE RESOURCES, LIKE WHY YOU NEED MORE RESOURCES, RIGHT. THE CHALLENGES YOU'RE FACING. SO WE TESTED A LOT OF OTHER STUFF THAT DIDN'T DO QUITE AS WELL. SO IF YOU'RE GOING TO DO A PARCEL TAX, WE HIGHLIGHT JUST HIGHLIGHTING THE THINGS THAT DO THE BEST, AND A COUPLE MORE SLIDES AND THEN WE CAN GO BACK TO THE REASONS FOR VOTING YES AND NO. SO THE NUMBER ONE TESTING MESSAGE OVERALL WAS A FIRE MESSAGE WHICH IS IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS, THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA EXPERIENCED THE WORST WILDFIRES IN RECORDED HISTORY. DROUGHT CONDITIONS, DRY AND DYING VEGETATION, INCREASED TREE MORTALITY ACROSS THE EAST BAY REQUIRE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES TO MANAGE THE FIRE RESILIENT, SAFE AND HEALTHY FORESTS. SO WE NEED TO INCREASE FUNDING FOR VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, FIRE SAFETY EQUIPMENT. ADDITIONAL FIREFIGHTERS PROTECT OUR COMMUNITY FROM CATASTROPHIC WILDFIRE. THAT WAS THE NUMBER ONE TESTING MESSAGE 42% VERY CONVINCING, 68% TOTAL CONVINCING, AND I WOULD SAY THIS I MEAN, I'VE HAD EXPERIENCE IN PASSING LOCAL AND STATEWIDE BALLOT MEASURES IN THE FALL WHEN THERE'S THAT TALK ABOUT WILDFIRE THAT ADDRESSED WILDFIRE, INCREASED FUNDING TO ADDRESS WILDFIRES WHEN THERE'S A BAD WILDFIRE SEASON. RIGHT, AND IF YOU'RE YOU CAN'T THIS POLL WAS DONE EARLIER THIS YEAR, NOT DURING COMING OUT OF A WET WINTER, NOT DURING WILDFIRE SEASON. SO, YOU KNOW, IT'S ONE OF THOSE DECISIONS WHERE IF YOU GO FORWARD, DO A PARTIAL TAX ON A FALL BALLOT, AND THERE'S A BAD WILDFIRE SEASON, AS SAD AS IT IS, IT ACTUALLY INCREASES YOUR CHANCES OF, OF PASSING. SO THERE'S THAT POLITICAL DYNAMIC WHERE, QUITE FRANKLY, IF WE POLLED IN THE MIDDLE OF WILDFIRE SEASON AND TALKED ABOUT WILDFIRES, I WOULD THINK SUPPORT FOR YOUR MEASURE WOULD INCREASE BY A COUPLE OF POINTS. NEXT BEST TESTING MESSAGE TALKS ABOUT PROTECTING YOU KNOW, THESE FOR A FUTURE GENERATION. THEY'RE A TREMENDOUS ASSET THAT CONTRIBUTE TO OUR QUALITY OF LIFE. THAT'S LANGUAGE. QUITE FRANKLY, WE LEARNED FROM THE FOCUS GROUPS HOW VOTERS THEMSELVES DESCRIBE YOUR PARKS, THEY'RE AN ASSET, THEY'RE A HUGE PART OF OUR QUALITY OF LIFE. THEY'RE SO IMPORTANT FOR, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE'S DAY TO DAY USE AS WELL AS IT'S WORTH INVESTING IN THEM TO PRESERVE THEM FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS, AN ARGUMENT ABOUT MAINTENANCE DOES QUITE WELL. AGAIN, THIS TALKS ABOUT THE SCALE AND HOW MANY PARKS YOU HAVE AND THE NEED TO KIND OF KEEP UP MAINTENANCE. IT LACKS A LITTLE BIT OF INTENSITY. 32% VERY CONVINCING COMPARED TO THE FIRE WHICH HAS A LITTLE BIT MORE ENERGY BEHIND IT. WE DIDN'T DO A MESSAGE FOCUSED ON DUMPING BECAUSE IT WAS A NEW CONCEPT. WE DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO TEST, BUT AGAIN, YOU KNOW, THAT IS A TOP ISSUE, A TOP PRIORITY FOR VOTERS AND SOMETHING THAT'S WORTH ADDRESSING AND COULD BOOST SUPPORT FOR PARCEL TAX IF IT WERE INCLUDED, IF FUNDING IN A PARCEL TAX WERE TO GO TOWARDS CLEANING UP ILLEGAL DUMPING. SO THAT IS THE SUMMARY. SO I'M HAPPY TO GO BACK TO THE REASONS FOR YES AND NO. IF YOU'D LIKE TO ADDRESS THOSE, LET ME GO BACK TO THOSE SLIDES. SO FOLKS, SO THE REASONS FOR. YES THIS IS WHAT WE DO, AN OPEN ENDED QUESTION, WHICH IS WE IN THE SURVEY, WE ASKED VOTERS, WHY ARE YOU VOTING YES FOR THIS? AND THE WORD CLOUD IS THE SIZE OF THE WORD. IS RELATED TO HOW OFTEN IT'S MENTIONED BY RESPONDENTS. RIGHT? SO AND THEN ON THE RIGHT ARE PERCENTS BASED ON CODING THOSE RESPONSES. SO NUMBER ONE OVERALL IS PRESERVE EAST BAY PARKS 23% PARKS ARE IMPORTANT. PRESERVE THE TRAILS. REGULAR PARK USERS OBVIOUSLY HAVE A HUGE BASE OF SUPPORT. PEOPLE USE YOUR PARKS REGULARLY. THEY LOVE THE PARKS, ENJOY THE PARKS. THEY WANT TO BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN THE PARKS. ENVIRONMENTAL REASONS. AGAIN, YOU KNOW, ADDRESSING THE EXTREME WEATHER PIECE, BUT THE BIG BOLD IS. YEAH. GO AHEAD. I'M CONFUSED BY THIS, PRESERVE EAST BAY PARKS AS A PERCENTAGE RESPONSE AT 23%. IF I'M READING THAT LITERALLY, THESE ARE FOLKS WHO THAT WAS A REASON TO SUPPORT A MEASURE, CORRECT? YES. SO THEN WE HAVE REGULAR PARK USERS. 14%. IS THAT REFLECTIVE OF PEOPLE WHO ARE REGULAR PARK USERS OR THE IDEA OF REGULAR PARK USERS? THIS IS WHAT I'M CONFUSED. OH I SEE OKAY, SO THESE ARE SO ON THE RIGHT ARE KIND OF SO VERBATIM AN OPEN END IS WE TELL PEOPLE IN YOUR OWN WORDS, WHY ARE YOU SUPPORTING. YES, AND THEY TELL US, YOU KNOW, THEY WRITE DOWN THEIR REASONS, THEY TELL US THEIR REASONS, AND THEN THIS IS AN ATTEMPT TO SUMMARIZE ALL THOSE RESPONSES. SO ON THE RIGHT IS WE GROUP THE RESPONSES INTO CATEGORIES. RIGHT. SO PEOPLE TOLD US IN SO MANY WAYS THAT PARKS ARE IMPORTANT TO THEM. SO 17% OF THOSE RESPONDENTS TOLD US PARKS ARE IMPORTANT. RIGHT, AND THEN A REGULAR PARK USER IS 14%, IN OTHER WORDS. [01:05:01] SOMEONE SAID, YEAH, I USE THE PARKS ALL THE TIME. I ENJOY THE PARKS, I LIKE THE PARKS, I VALUE THE PARKS. SO IT IT'S LIKE, I MEAN, SO 9% OF PEOPLE SAID THEY EITHER VALUE LIKE LOVE, ENJOY THE PARKS. FOR US, IT'S THIS SIMILAR RESPONSE. WE'RE TRYING TO KIND OF COBBLE TOGETHER 800 INTERVIEWS INTO COHERENT THEMES, SO THAT'S WHAT THOSE PERCENTS REFLECT, THAT THEY'RE THEY'RE KIND OF BUCKETS OF RESPONSES TO WHY PEOPLE ARE VOTING YES FOR THE PARCEL TAX. ARE YOU ABLE TO SUMMARIZE IT? TO ME, IT'S NOT HELPFUL TO HAVE AND IT'S JUST MAYBE IT'S JUST HOW I'M READING THIS, BUT WE HAVE A WHOLE BUNCH OF REASONS GIVEN TO VOTE YES, BUT THEY'RE ALL OVER THE PLACE, MANY OF THEM 1%, 2%, 5%, 8%, 8%, 8%. SO HOW DO WE INTERPRET THAT JUMBLE? IT'S VERY MUCH A JUMBLE. WHAT STANDS OUT. YEAH. SO THIS IS 800 PEOPLE, IN THEIR OWN WORDS, TELLING US WHY THEY'RE VOTING FOR AT THE BEGINNING BEFORE WE GIVE THEM ANY INFORMATION. RIGHT, AND SO SOME PEOPLE HUMAN BEINGS ARE VERY COMPLICATED SPECIES. RIGHT. SO THEY ALL HAVE THEIR DIFFERENT WAYS TO RESPOND, BUT WHAT WE'VE TRIED TO DO HERE IS GROUP THEM AND KIND OF COME IN BUCKETS OF REASONS WHY THEY'RE SUPPORTING IT, BUT FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE, THAT'S ON THE FRONT OF WHY THEY'RE VOTING YES ON IT, BUT THIS IS WHERE OUR VIEW IS. YOU KNOW WHY WE DO MESSAGING TESTING. WHAT YOU KNOW, THE DISTRICT'S JOB IS TO COMMUNICATE THESE PRIORITIES ABOUT WHAT A PARCEL TAX WOULD FUND, BECAUSE THIS WOULD MOTIVATE THE MOST NUMBER OF VOTERS TO VOTE YES ON SOMETHING. RIGHT. SO THAT'S WHAT THE SO THAT QUESTION BEFORE ABOUT WHY THEY'RE VOTING YES IS THEY'RE TELLING US IN THEIR OWN WORDS WHY THEY'RE VOTING YES ON IT BEFORE WE GIVE THEM MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE NEED FOR IT, BUT NOW WITH THIS SLIDE, THEY'RE TELLING US, OKAY, I'M MORE LIKELY TO SUPPORT A PARTIAL TAX IF IT DOES CLEANS UP DUMPING, ILLEGAL DUMPING ADDRESS MITIGATES WILDFIRE RISK, AND PRESERVES THE PARKS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS. SO THAT'S THE GOAL HERE IS TO COMMUNICATE TO VOTERS THE NEED FOR A PARCEL TAX IN YOUR OWN WORDS. OKAY, TELL ME IF I'M READING THIS RIGHT, THEN THE REASONS TO VOTE YES, THAT YOU FOLKS ARE HEARING THAT PRETTY MUCH LAND ALL OVER THE PLACE. BUT WHAT STANDS OUT IS THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO REALLY LIKE THE PARKS AND AGREE THAT THEY NEED FUNDING. BASICALLY. YEAH, THEIR PARKS ARE WHAT I'M READING OUT OF. YEAH, THE PARKS ARE IMPORTANT THAT THEY ARE REGULAR USERS OF THE PARK AND THAT THEY NEED FUNDING, AND THE OPPOSITION THAT WE'RE FACING IS THAT STANDS OUT BECAUSE OF INFLATION AND COSTS AND HIGH TAXES THAT ALREADY EXIST IN THE MINDS OF THESE FOLKS, THAT'S WHAT STANDS OUT. THE TAXES ARE TOO HIGH. I DON'T WANT MORE TAXES, ESPECIALLY WITH INFLATION GOING THE WAY IT IS. CORRECT, AND SO THE CORRECT AND THIS IS THE FLIP SIDE THAT THESE REASONS TO VOTE NO, AND LOOK THERE'S A LARGE PERCENT I MEAN A QUARTER TO A THIRD OF VOTERS IN ANY KIND OF EVEN A MORE RELATIVELY MORE DEMOCRATIC DISTRICT SUCH AS YOURS, THEY'RE GOING TO VOTE NO ON ANYTHING, RIGHT? ANY TAX, ANY BOND, YOU NAME IT, AND THE KNEE JERK RESPONSE IS TAXES. THEY'RE ANTI-TAX OR THEY JUST DON'T BELIEVE IN GIVING. YOU KNOW, THEY'RE MORE KIND OF VERY NEGATIVE ATTITUDES ABOUT GOVERNMENT. RIGHT. SO THE FIRST TWO CATEGORIES ARE TAXED ARE TOO HIGH, WASTE MANAGEMENT. YOU KNOW, GOVERNMENT WASTE WHATEVER. YOU CAN'T TAKE THAT PERSONALLY. THAT'S JUST KIND OF A THE KIND OF BUILT IN NO VOTE ON A PARCEL TAX, BUT THE INFLATION COSTS, THE REASON WE CIRCLE IT HERE IS THAT FOR US, THE DIFFERENCE OF TODAY VERSUS 2021, RIGHT. YOU HAVE A NEW REASON, AND I REMEMBER THE LAST TIME I PRESENTED TO ALL OF YOU A QUESTION YOU HAD WAS WHY OR WHY SUPPORT LOWER, AND SO THAT WAS, AS ERICH MENTIONED, WHY WE DID THE FOCUS GROUPS, WHY WE ASKED THIS QUESTION, WHY IS SUPPORT LOWER TODAY THAN IT WAS FEW YEARS AGO AND THE 8% IS THE BIG DIFFERENCE QUANTITATIVELY IS A BIG REASON WHY THERE'S LOWER SUPPORT TODAY THAN THERE WAS IN 2021. RIGHT. THE INFLATION PIECE AND WHAT WE SAW IN OUR FOCUS GROUPS IS PARTICULARLY AMONG WORKING CLASS VOTERS AND VOTERS OF COLOR THAT THEY SUPPORT PARKS, THEY LOVE PARKS, BUT THEY'RE LIKE, I CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY ANY MORE, EVEN IF THEY WEREN'T EVEN HOMEOWNERS, BUT THEY JUST SEE A PARTIAL TAX AND THAT THEY SAY IT'S GOING TO COST ME MORE. I'M AGAINST IT BECAUSE OF THAT, AND EVEN THOUGH THESE SAME PEOPLE HAD VERY LAUDATORY THINGS TO SAY ABOUT YOUR PARK DISTRICT AND LOVE YOUR PARKS, THEY JUST CAN'T AFFORD OR FEEL THAT THEY CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY MORE, AND SO, AND I THINK IN TERMS OF A PATH FORWARD FOR ASKING, I THINK YOU GOT TO WAIT FOR INFLATION TO COOL, AND FOR VOTERS, ESPECIALLY WORKING CLASS VOTERS, TO FEEL A LITTLE BIT MORE FINANCIALLY SECURE BEFORE ASKING THEM FOR. I THINK YOU'RE VERY RIGHT, AND SO SO THAT'S WHAT'S HOLDING YOU BACK RIGHT NOW AND LOOK, I MEAN, AGAIN, THESE JOB APPROVAL NUMBERS ARE REALLY IMPRESSIVE FOR A PUBLIC AGENCY. 77%. THAT'S WELL ABOVE TWO THIRDS. [01:10:01] SO THEY'RE NOT SAYING WE THINK YOU DON'T DESERVE THE MONEY. THEY JUST FEEL LIKE I CAN'T AFFORD IT RIGHT NOW, AND SO THAT'S THE CONUNDRUM YOU'RE IN RIGHT NOW. YEAH. I WOULD LIKE TO ASK SOME QUESTIONS ON THE REASONS FOR VOTING NO. THESE ARE ALL JUST, YOU KNOW, GET OFF MY LAWN TYPE STUFF IN MY OPINION. I WAS WONDERING, SO THIS GROUP OF 800 PEOPLE WERE SAID WHAT WHAT ARE THE REASONS? WAS THAT THE QUESTION WHAT WERE THE WHAT WOULD WHY WOULDN'T YOU VOTE FOR THIS? YEAH. WHY ARE YOU VOTING NO? YES BECAUSE WE HAVE A THIRD OF RESPONDENTS VOTING NO, AND SO WE ASKED THOSE PEOPLE, THE THIRD WHO ARE VOTING NO, WHY ARE YOU VOTING NO AND MOST OF THEM ARE BECAUSE THEY'RE ANTI-TAX OR HONESTLY THEY VOTE NO ON YOU KNOW WHAT IF IT WAS A PARTIAL TAX FOR FREE ICE CREAM AND FREE PUPPIES AND THEY WOULD STILL VOTE NO, RIGHT? I MEAN, THAT'S KIND OF YOU KNOW. THAT SEEMS TO BE THAT WOULD BE OUT OF OUR CONTROL. YES. CORRECT. I'M WONDERING IF THIS AND AM I READING CORRECTLY THAT I WAS WONDERING OR I WAS THINKING THAT I KNOW THE POLL WAS IN FEBRUARY AND THINGS HAVE CHANGED, BUT I'M WONDERING IF THERE'S THIS IS NO CRITICISM OF ANYBODY, BUT I'M WONDERING IF IT'S US. IS THERE SOMETHING WE'RE NOT PROVIDING? DOES CLOSING A PARK 39 PARKS ON THE 4TH OF JULY? DOES THAT MAKE PEOPLE SAY, WELL, SCREW YOU IF YOU'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE MY PARK OPEN ON MY 4TH OF JULY PICNIC, I DON'T WANT TO PAY FOR ANYTHING. DOES THE INCREASE IN LITTER AND CRIME IN THE PARKS? BECAUSE WHEN WE DO POLL PEOPLE AND SAY, WHAT DO YOU WANT IN A PARK? THEY SAY THEY WANT TO BE SAFE AND THEY WANT TO HAVE CLEAN RESTROOMS AND WATER FILLING STATIONS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, BUT NO ONE HAS SAID ANY OF THOSE THINGS IN THIS LACK OF SWIM FACILITIES. I MEAN, WE'VE GOT A REAL PROBLEM WITH BLUE GREEN ALGAE. THAT'S NOT OUR FAULT, BUT WE'RE LIMITING SWIMMING. THAT USED TO BE A VERY, VERY BIG THING IN THE PARK DISTRICT AND SUMMER AROUND HERE, AND THEN ACCESS TO PARKS THERE SEEM TO BE LIMITING AND MISSION PEAK, VARGAS, PLATEAU, PLEASANTON, RIDGE, THINGS LIKE THAT. IT'S SO, BUT NOBODY SAID THAT. NO, AND OUR FOCUS GROUP BORE THAT OUT TOO. WHEN WE ASKED PEOPLE, WE PROBED, YOU KNOW, FOCUS GROUPS ARE, YOU KNOW, SMALL GROUPS OF SESSIONS OF WHERE WE ASK A BUNCH OF OPEN ENDED QUESTIONS ABOUT THEIR OPINIONS, AND WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME ASKING PEOPLE ABOUT THE PARK, AND THERE'S NOT A LOT OF KNOWLEDGE OR AWARENESS OF THE DISTRICT ITSELF. THEY KNOW THE DISTRICTS WITH THEIR PARKS. THEY DON'T KNOW KIND OF WHAT GOES INTO MANAGING THEM, BUT BY AND LARGE, ALL THE YOU KNOW, EXPERIENCE, THE USERS EXPERIENCE IN THE PARKS IS VERY POSITIVE. THERE WAS NONE OF THAT. IT WAS MORE IT'S AGAIN, THE NO VOTE IS NOT A CRITICISM OF THE DISTRICT AND HE JOB YOU'RE DOING BECAUSE YOU SEE HOW GOOD YOUR JOB APPROVAL NUMBERS ARE. IT'S EITHER ANTI-TAX FOLKS WHO ARE ALWAYS ANTI-TAX. THEY SAY NO TO EVERYTHING, OR THERE'S A SEGMENT OF WORKING CLASS VOTERS WHO SUPPORT WHAT YOU'RE DOING BUT DON'T FEEL THEY CAN CAN CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY ANY MORE MONEY ON IT, AND SO THAT'S, THAT'S THE BIG DELTA RIGHT NOW. THAT'S FRUSTRATING, BUT THERE IS A SLICE I SHOWED YOU. THERE'S A SLICE OF LEFT LEANING VOTERS WHO ARE UNSURE UNDECIDED BECAUSE THEY, BUT THEN WHEN YOU EXPLAIN TO THEM THE NEED, THEY MOVE TO VOTING FOR YOU. SO IT'S A SMALL SLICE, BUT AN IMPORTANT SLICE BECAUSE THAT'S, YOU KNOW, GETTING TO TWO THIRDS IS VERY DIFFICULT AND THE MARGINS ARE SMALL, BUT WHAT WE SEE IS A SIGNIFICANT, YOU KNOW, A SMALL BUT IMPORTANT SEGMENT OF THE ELECTORATE THAT IS OPEN TO MORE INFORMATION. IT CAN BE PERSUADED, BUT THAT WOULD TAKE RESOURCES, EFFORT, YOU KNOW, A PUBLIC EDUCATION CAMPAIGN AS WELL AS A CONCERTED CAMPAIGN TO BE ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, IF YOU PUT IT ON THE BALLOT TO GO THROUGH BUT NO, I MEAN, LOOK, I'VE BEEN IN THESE KINDS OF MEETINGS WHERE I HAVE TO DELIVER A MUCH TOUGHER NEWS ABOUT THE PUBLIC'S ASSESSMENT OF THE DISTRICT OR THE AGENCY AND SAY, YOU CAN'T GO FORWARD BECAUSE THEY THINK YOU'RE NOT DOING A GOOD JOB OF MANAGING MONEY, AND THEY DON'T TRUST YOU. THAT'S NOT THE CASE HERE. THE CASE IS WE LOVE THE PARKS, AND PART OF IT IS YOU'RE A VICTIM OF YOUR OWN SUCCESS. I THINK YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB. I THINK THE PARKS ARE GREAT, BUT THEY DON'T SEE THE OTHER, BUT THE DUMPING PIECE IS IMPORTANT FACTOR. THE WILDFIRES, THE EXTREME WEATHER AND THE DUMPING ARE THINGS THAT VOTERS IN OUR FOCUS GROUPS, THEY REALIZE. THOSE ARE NEW ELEMENTS THAT YOU NEED MORE FUNDING FOR, BECAUSE THE DAY TO DAY EXPERIENCE THE PARK USER HAS. YES. IT'S NOT PERFECT. THERE ARE PROBLEMS WITH THE PARKS, BUT THEY'RE NOT TO THE SCALE. THEY WANT TO DO A PARCEL TAX, BUT THE FIRES, EXTREME WEATHER AND THE PROBLEMS YOU'RE FACING AND THE ILLEGAL DUMPING, THAT'S A NEW PROBLEM THAT JUSTIFIES ASKING FOR MORE MONEY. RIGHT. SO THAT'S WHAT YOU HAVE BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT TO FIX THE BATHROOMS, THE WATER. BECAUSE VERY FEW PEOPLE SEE THAT'S A BIG PROBLEM. THESE ARE MINOR THINGS. SO ASKING THEM FOR A PARCEL TAX TO HEN THEY THINK THE PARKS ARE IN GOOD SHAPE. NOT WORTH IT, BUT OH MY GOSH, THESE WILDFIRES ARE A BIG DEAL. THE ILLEGAL DUMPING I SEE IT MORE AND MORE OF IT. THAT'S A NEW PROBLEM, I SEE THAT. I CAN SEE WHY YOU NEED NEW MONEY TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM. YEAH. PRIORITIES. WE HAVE ONE, TWO. [01:15:02] WE HAVE FOUR TIERS. YEAH. SO THERE ARE A TOTAL OF 23 PRIORITIES TESTED HERE. OR WAS THERE A BROADER LIST OF PRIORITIES THAT THE RESPONDENTS WERE GIVEN THAT WE DON'T SEE BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T? SO IN THIS SURVEY THERE WERE THIS IS THE FULL LIST. SO IT'S QUITE A LOT I MEAN, 23. YEAH, IT'S A LONG, AND SO WE OBVIOUSLY HIGHLIGHTED THE HIGHEST PRIORITIES, BUT BUT YOU CAN SEE ON A RELATIVE SCALE LIKE THESE ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT, THE ONES THAT TESTED THE BEST, AND THEN THE BOTTOM OF THE LIST WATER FILLING STATIONS, FOR EXAMPLE. AGAIN, NOT THAT THEY'RE NOT IMPORTANT, BUT ON A RELATIVE SCORING, THEY SCORED LOWER THAN THAN ILLEGAL DUMPING. SO I'M WONDERING MAYBE IT'S A QUESTION FOR ERICH, BUT WHAT THE ORIGIN OF THESE 23 PRIORITIES WERE? I'M WONDERING HOW CLEAN UP DUMPING GOT ON THE LIST IN THE FIRST PLACE. WELL, SO OUR LAST SURVEY WAS EVEN LONGER LIST AND IT CAME FROM I THINK THE ALL THE PRIORITIES THE DISTRICT HAS. IT CAME FROM THE PLAN, THE STRATEGIC PLAN. SO WE STARTED WITH A VERY, VERY LONG LIST FROM THE PREVIOUS SURVEY. WE CALLED IT DOWN FROM THAT AND THE FOCUS GROUPS AND THE ILLEGAL DUMPING, AS I MENTIONED, CAME FROM, YOU KNOW, A REFERENCE THAT LISA BROUGHT UP IT'S AN INCREASING PROBLEM, AND OUR JOB IS, AS POLLSTERS AND CONSULTANTS, IS TO BRAINSTORM. WE BRAINSTORM WITH ERICH AND LISA, WHAT ARE THE THINGS? WHAT WOULD YOU DO? WHAT ARE THE NEEDS? BECAUSE WE'RE LOOKING FOR THINGS THAT PEOPLE WOULD WANT TO FUND THAT THEY WOULD SEE AS AN ISSUE, AND SO THROUGH THE LAST SURVEY AND FOCUS GROUPS, THE LIKE PRESERVING PARKLANDS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS, WE SEE THAT POPS IN THE FOCUS GROUPS. IT POLLS WELL. SO LET'S TEST THAT. SO IT'S A COMBINATION OF WHAT ERICH AND LISA PROVIDED US BASED ON THE DISTRICT'S NEEDS, AS WELL AS PAST SURVEY RESEARCH AND FOCUS GROUPS, AND THIS IS THE LIST, AND SO IT'S STILL THIS LIST IS CULLED DOWN FROM THE FIRST POLL WE DID, BUT YOU SEE IT STILL HAS A LOT OF COMPONENTS TO IT, AND COMMUNICATION, OUR EXPERIENCE IS THE LESS YOU SAY, THE BETTER, THE MORE SIMPLE YOU CAN SAY, THE MORE FOCUSED YOU ARE. VOTERS ARE VERY SHORT ATTENTION SPANS. SO IF YOU CAN LIST ONE THING OR THREE THINGS AND THAT'S IT, YOU'RE BETTER OFF DOING THAT. YEARS AGO, THE SURPRISE NUMBER ONE ITEM OF IMPORTANCE THAT WE GOT IN ONE OF THESE SURVEYS, ERICH WOULD REMEMBER, BUT IT WAS CREEKS. WE LIKE CREEKS AND IT HADN'T BEEN ON OUR RADAR, AND EVER SINCE THEN, CREEKS HAVE BEEN ON OUR RADAR AND WE EVEN CREATED A PROGRAM OUT OF WAS IT WW SPECIFICALLY TO SUPPORT CREEKS? AND WE WERE SUCCESSFUL WITH THAT, AND AS AN ASIDE, IT WAS GREAT THAT OUR PUBLIC BROUGHT THAT TO OUR ATTENTION BECAUSE IT REALLY WAS AN ISSUE AND HAS BECOME AN ISSUE, AND AT LEAST IN MY COUNTY, CONTRA COSTA CREEKS AND WATERSHEDS HAVE BECOME A MAJOR FOCUS OF ATTENTION, AND THAT'S A REALLY GOOD THING, IS THIS SUGGESTS TO US THAT IF WE WERE GOING TO GO OUT NOW FOR A TAX REVENUE MEASURE, WE TELL OUR PUBLIC THAT WE'RE GOING TO DEVOTE A CERTAIN PERCENTAGE OF IT TO CLEANING UP DUMPING. YEAH. I MEAN, IDEALLY, YES, I KNOW AND ERICH AND LISA HAVE TOLD ME ABOUT MAKING EFFORT TO TRY TO PROVIDE FUNDING FOR THAT CURRENTLY, BUT YEAH, I COULD SEE THAT. THAT'S WHAT IT'S TELLING ME IS, I MEAN, YEAH, I MEAN AND WILDFIRE TOO, BUT LOOK, I THINK THE CLEANUP DUMPING BECAUSE YOU SEE HOW WELL IT DOES WITH EVERYBODY AND IT'S A NEW PROBLEM THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS. SO I COULD SEE A SCENARIO WHERE THE REASON YOU NEED A PARCEL TAX IS BECAUSE YOU HAVE THIS NEW PROBLEM THAT'S OUTSIDE OF THE PURVIEW OF WHAT THE DISTRICT HAS DONE IN THE PAST, AND I DID THE GRIZZLY PEAK BIKE RIDE A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO IN THE 75 MILER, WHICH IS I TOLD ERICH AND LISA I WAS LIKE, IT WAS LIKE A TOUR OF ALL YOUR WONDERFUL PARKS. I WAS LIKE, NORTH AND THEN DOWN AND EVERYWHERE I SAW YOU DID WILDCAT TO CASTRO VALLEY. YEAH, YEAH. GOOD FOR YOU. WELL, IT WAS IT WAS A LONG RIDE. YEAH, IT WAS, BUT A BEAUTIFUL RIDE. IT WAS LIKE A TOUR OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT, BUT, MAN, I SAW ALL THE ILLEGAL DUMPING THAT WE TALKED ABOUT. I MEAN, IT WAS EVERY PARK I WENT BY, THERE WAS, YOU KNOW, MATTRESSES, WASHING MACHINES, CARS, AND I WAS LIKE, ALL RIGHT, I SEE WHAT THE SURVEY WAS TALKING ABOUT NOW. SO BUT YEAH, I MEAN, BUT YOU COULD SEE A WHOLE CAMPAIGN OF, YOU KNOW, FOCUSED ON AND THE BEAUTY OF BEAUTY. THE SAD PART OF THE DUMPING IS IT'S, YOU KNOW, HORRIBLE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, HORRIBLE FOR THE PARKS, AND IT'S A PROBLEM THAT'S AND YOU CAN SEE IT, LIKE, POST-COVID, LIKE THE FRAYING OF OUR SOCIETY. RIGHT? I MEAN, THIS IS THE YOU SAW THE WRONG TRACK NUMBERS. PEOPLE FEELING VERY PESSIMISTIC. YOU SEE THE RISE IN HOMELESSNESS AND PEOPLE FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, KIND OF THE STATE AND OUR COMMUNITY ARE FALLING APART, AND THAT'S AN EXAMPLE. SO LIKE THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE A PARCEL TAXES ARE VERY, VERY EFFECTIVE WHEN IT'S LIKE WE HAVE A SPECIFIC PROBLEM WE'RE TRYING TO SOLVE. [01:20:07] RIGHT, AND THE FACT THAT IT'S A NEW PROBLEM, BECAUSE THE THING IS, BECAUSE THE VOTERS THINK SO HIGHLY OF YOU, THEY'RE LIKE, WHERE'S THE NEED FOR FUNDING? RIGHT? AND THEN IF YOU SAY, HEY, THERE'S A NEW PROBLEM, WE'RE TRYING TO SOLVE THIS ILLEGAL DUMPING, WE NEED ADDITIONAL FUNDING TO SOLVE IT. THEN THEY SAY I SEE, BECAUSE THEN IT'S NOT A REFLECTION ON YOUR MANAGEMENT OF YOUR DAY TO DAY AFFAIRS. IT'S A NEW PROBLEM YOU'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS, AND IF I MAY, DIRECTOR COFFEY, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. ERICH PFUEHLER, OUR CHIEF OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS, AND LISA BALDINGER, OUR LEGISLATIVE POLICY ANALYSIS, THEY DON'T DO THEIR WORK IN SILOS. ACTUALLY, THEY GO THROUGH A VERY COMPLEX VETTING SYSTEM IN COMMUNICATING AND GETTING INFORMATION FROM PEOPLE THAT DELIVER THE MISSION OF THE PARK DISTRICT, AND I UNDERSTAND IF I'M RECOLLECTING CORRECTLY, IN ONE OF THEIR SOLICITING INFORMATION AND SOLICITING FEEDBACK, IT WAS THROUGH THE OPERATIONS DIVISION. IT WAS IN FACT AGM LISA GOORJIAN WHO SHARED WHAT OUR STAFF IS SEEING OUT IN THE PARKS PERTAINING TO ILLEGAL DUMPING. SO WE WERE ABLE TO BRING FORWARD WHAT OUR STAFF ARE SEEING EVERY DAY IN THE PARKS. WE SHARE THAT INFORMATION WITH ERICH AND ERICH, AND LISA PUT IT IN THEIR MACHINE TO SEE HOW THAT HOW THIS INFORMATION TESTS WITH THE VOTERS. SO THAT'S YEAH, I WOULD GUESS THAT IT IS AN ISSUE THAT WOULD TEST SIMILARLY. NUMBER ONE, IF YOU WERE DOING THIS FOR A COUNTY OR A CITY, AS WOULD HOMELESS ISSUES, AND IN OUR EXPERIENCE WITH EITHER OPEN ENDED QUESTIONS OR FOCUS GROUPS. WERE FOLKS CONCERNED ABOUT HOMELESS ISSUES INSOFAR AS THEY IMPACT OUR PARKS? YEAH. WE ASKED ABOUT HOMELESSNESS IN THAT IT DIDN'T RESONATE AS MUCH AS THE DUMPING PIECE, LIKE BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T SEE HOMELESS IN THE PARKS AS MUCH. YEAH, THAT'S WHAT THAT'S WHAT THAT WAS TELLING ME. YEAH. IT'S KIND OF THE DUMPING PIECE. NO, LOOK, I MEAN, THIS IS WHY YOU DO RESEARCH. BECAUSE THINGS CHANGE AND THINGS EVOLVE, AND BUT NO, I THINK BUT, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, PARCEL TAX ISN'T FOR THIS YEAR, BUT IN THE FUTURE, BUT I KNOW THE DUMPING PIECE. I DON'T SEE IT GETTING BETTER, AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S A CLASSIC BROKEN WINDOW THEORY IS ONCE PEOPLE START DUMPING, THEY SEE, OH, I CAN DUMP MY TRASH THERE TOO. IT'S GOING TO GET YOU MAY GET WORSE. INTERESTING. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR ME IN THE SURVEY? ONE, I'M WONDERING IF YOU GOT A SENSE FROM FOCUS GROUPS OR THE SURVEY GENERALLY WHETHER EAST BAY PARKS IS RECOGNIZED AS A INDEPENDENT LOCAL GOVERNMENT AS OPPOSED TO YOU KNOW, EAST BAY PARKS IS, YOU KNOW, I USE THE PARKS. THEY'RE GREAT PARKS, AND I FEEL REALLY GOOD ABOUT THAT PARK SYSTEM, BUT ARE PEOPLE AWARE OF YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE NOT PART OF THE STATE PARK SYSTEM OR WE'RE NOT COUNTY PARKS OR MUNICIPAL PARKS? I ASK THAT BECAUSE PAST SURVEYS HAVE INDICATED THAT I BELIEVE UP TOWARD 20 SOMETHING PERCENT OF RESPONDENTS WEREN'T ABLE TO IDENTIFY US AS A LOCAL GOVERNMENT. YEAH, THAT'S KIND OF I MEAN, WE YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THE JOB APPROVAL NUMBERS PEOPLE GIVE YOU STRONG JOB APPROVAL NUMBERS. SO CLEARLY BUT IN THE FOCUS GROUPS, AGAIN, THESE WERE SWING VOTERS. SO THEY ARE, YOU KNOW, EITHER UNDECIDED OR SOFT. YES. VOTERS, WHICH MEANS THEY'RE NOT, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE NOT STRONGLY APPROVING OF THE PARK DISTRICT AND OF THE PARCEL TAX. SO WHICH MEANS THEY TEND TO BE LOWER INFORMATION VOTERS, THEY'RE NOT AS ENGAGED, AND DON'T KNOW AS MUCH, AND OF THE FOCUS GROUP RESPONDENTS SOME HAD A SENSE THAT YOU WERE LIKE IT OWN ITS OWN ENTITY, OTHERS HAD NOT MUCH SENSE, BUT SO IT WAS A LITTLE FUZZY, I WOULD SAY, BUT YEAH, THE 16% COULDN'T RATE THE JOB YOU'RE DOING RIGHT, BUT AND THEN 41% SAY SOMEWHAT APPROVE, BUT YOU KNOW, IN THE SOME PEOPLE GOT CONFUSED WITH STATE AND LOCAL PARKS, BUT, BUT WHEN WE ASKED, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S AN EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK? ALMOST EVERYBODY HAD A LOCAL PARK, REGIONAL PARK THAT THEY USED, I MEAN, AND QUITE FRANKLY, GOING INTO THEM, WE THOUGHT THERE'D BE MORE CONFUSION, BUT NO, IT'S YOUR PARKS. YOUR PARTICULARLY YOUR CROWN JEWELS ARE VERY WELL KNOWN. RIGHT. THE AND IT'S CLEAR THOSE ARE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARKS. RIGHT, AND SO AND SO I FOR A PARK DISTRICT, I CAN TELL YOU IT WAS IMPRESSIVE HOW WELL KNOWN YOU ARE AS [01:25:07] A DISTRICT AND HOW WELL YOU KNOWN. YOUR PARKS ARE KNOWN AS BEING REGIONAL PARKS, RIGHT? SO, BUT, YEAH, THERE'S ALWAYS MORE EDUCATION TO BE DONE BUT YOU'RE MUCH BETTER ESTABLISHED THAN THE KIND OF UNIQUE AGENCY THAT YOU ARE, RIGHT. AS A KIND OF A REGIONAL AGENCY. YOU'RE YOU'RE MUCH BETTER KNOWN THAN I WOULD HAVE SUSPECTED YOU WOULD BE. THAT'S HELPFUL. THANK YOU. YEAH. I HATE TO ASK THIS ONE MORE TIME. LIKELY VOTER. YES, AND HAS THAT CHANGED? BECAUSE I WOULD ASSUME. WELL, I WON'T TELL YOU WHAT I ASSUME A LIKELY VOTER WAS 20 YEARS AGO, BUT NOW WITH MAIL IN BALLOTS, HAS THAT CHANGED? WELL, THE ELECTORATE'S CHANGED A LOT OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS. I MEAN, IT'S A LOT MORE DIVERSE, A LOT MORE YOU KNOW, VOTERS OF COLOR, LATINO AND ASIAN AMERICAN IN PARTICULAR, AND YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THE POPULATION HAS GROWN. RIGHT? SO IT'S YEAH I KNOW YOUR DISTRICT. IT'S ONE OF THE MOST DIVERSE ELECTORATES IN THE COUNTRY, AND THAT'S WHY WE DID FOCUS GROUPS OF CAUCASIAN, LATINO AND ASIAN AMERICANS. OUR SURVEY INCLUDED ALL OF THEM, INCLUDING AFRICAN AMERICANS AS WELL. SO, NO, I MEAN, THE DISTRICT'S CHANGED A LOT, AND, AND IT'S AND WHAT WE'VE SEEN IS, IS JUST, YOU KNOW, THE WORKING CLASS SEGMENT OF THE DISTRICT IS MUCH MORE DIVERSE, RIGHT? MUCH MORE WORKING PEOPLE OF COLOR AND THOSE ARE THE VOTERS WHO IN WITH INFLATIONARY TIMES, ARE PULLING BACK ON YOUR PARCEL TAX AND ON EVERYTHING LIKE ACROSS THE BOARD FINANCIALLY THEY ARE MUCH LESS RELIABLE, LESS LIKELY NOW TO SUPPORT FUNDING, EVEN THOUGH THEY'RE THEY MAY BE GOOD DEMOCRATS AND BELIEVE IN GOVERNMENT. POCKETBOOK ISSUES ARE REAL CONCERN FOR A LOT OF THOSE WORKING CLASS VOTERS. IT SO DOES YOUR GROUP DO WHEN YOU DO YOUR RESEARCH? IF YOU SUGGEST THAT IN OUR SURVEY OF 800 LIKELY VOTERS, DO YOU DO? DO YOU SAY THERE'S 3.8 MILLION PEOPLE IN ALAMEDA AND CONTRA COSTA COUNTY? CAN YOU FIGURE OUT WHAT NUMBER IS LIKELY? AND THEN CAN YOU GO BACK AFTER AN ELECTION AND SAY, OOPS, WE WERE WRONG. WE THOUGHT, YOU KNOW A MILLION AND A HALF PEOPLE ARE GOING TO VOTE, BUT ONLY A MILLION VOTED, AND YOU ANALYZE THAT I UNDERSTAND OR I DON'T UNDERSTAND, BUT I'M TOLD THAT IN AN OFF YEAR ELECTION, YOU'RE GOING TO GET A CERTAIN AMOUNT IN A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION THAT THE THERE ARE MANY MORE LIKELY VOTERS BASED ON AN EXCITING PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OR THINGS LIKE THAT. DO YOU DO YOU MEASURE THOSE THINGS? YEAH, NO. FOR SURE. I MEAN, OUR DEFINITION OF LIKELY IS I MEAN, THE BEST PREDICTOR OF WHO'S GOING TO VOTE IN A SIMILAR ELECTION IS PEOPLE WHO VOTED IN PAST ELECTIONS. RIGHT, AND IF YOU LOOK AT BANDS OF TURNOUT, YES, THERE'S VARIABILITY, BUT IT TENDS TO ONLY FLUCTUATE BY A FEW POINTS UP OR DOWN IN TERMS OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION YEAR, FOR EXAMPLE. NOW THERE ARE BIG DIFFERENCES IN A PRESIDENTIAL VERSUS GUBERNATORIAL ELECTION, BUT THIS WAS A LIKELY PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION THAT WE MODELED AND, YOU KNOW, BUT, YOU KNOW, A YEAR OUT, IT'S VERY HARD TO PREDICT WHO EXACTLY WILL VOTE, BUT YOU'LL GET A VERY GOOD SENSE OF JUST WITHIN A RANGE OF WHAT IT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE AND LOOK BEING WHERE YOU ARE IN SUPPORT FOR PARCEL TAX WITH THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION ELECTORATE CLEARLY NOT QUITE AT TWO THIRDS, THAT MUCH WE CAN TELL YOU WITH A LOT OF CERTAINTY RIGHT NOW, IF YOU WERE AT, YOU KNOW, 64%, THEN YOU'RE LIKE, WELL, YOU KNOW, THEN IT WILL DEPEND ON TURNOUT AND EVERYTHING ELSE, BUT, YOU KNOW, AND THEN A GUBERNATORIAL ELECTION WOULD LOOK LIKE IT WOULD BE A VERY DIFFERENT ELECTORATE. I'M SORRY. YOU KEEP REMINDING ME OF QUESTIONS AND I APOLOGIZE. TELL ME IF MY ASSUMPTION IS WRONG. AFRICAN AMERICAN RESPONDENTS DON'T SHOW UP HERE. IS IT BECAUSE THE RAW NUMBERS INVOLVED CREATE, YOU KNOW, A MATHEMATICAL PROBLEM? YEAH. SO THEY'RE IN THE SURVEY AND THEY'RE IN THE CROSSTABS, BUT THEY'RE TOO SMALL TO LOOK AT INDIVIDUALLY WITH, WITH STATISTICAL RELIABILITY. THAT'S WHAT I WAS. YEAH. SO THAT'S JUST IT'S ABOUT 5% OF THE DISTRICT IS AFRICAN AMERICAN, AND SO IT'S JUST TOO SMALL TO REPORT ON THE PRESENTATION, BUT THEY'RE IN THE CROSS TABS. WE DO LOOK AT THAT DATA, BUT, YOU KNOW, LATINOS AND ASIAN AMERICANS MAKE UP A MUCH LARGER PERCENTAGE AND A MORE SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE IN TERMS OF THE ELECTORATE AND OF SWING VOTERS WHO ARE MORE, YOU KNOW, LIKE YOU SAW THE ASIAN-AMERICAN WOMEN IN PARTICULAR WERE VERY PERSUADABLE ON THIS ISSUE AND LATINOS LESS LIKELY TO SUPPORT IT TODAY BECAUSE OF INFLATION AND HARDER TO PERSUADE RIGHT NOW, BUT HOPEFULLY THE ECONOMIC TIMES GET BETTER. THEY'LL BE MORE WILLING TO BE MORE GENEROUS AND OPEN UP THEIR POCKETBOOKS FOR YOU. YEAH. OKAY. THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT. I THE LAST QUESTION, I PROMISE. DID YOU TEST RESPONDENTS IN TERMS OF WHETHER THEY LIVE IN A LABOR HOUSEHOLD? [01:30:07] I THINK WE DID IN PAST SURVEY RESEARCH, BUT I DON'T KNOW IF WE DID IT IN THIS ONE. CAMPAIGNS I'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN THAT WAS A STANDARD. WHAT'S THAT? POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS, THAT'S A STANDARD QUESTION. YES. SCREEN. YEAH. WE SCREEN PEOPLE OUT IF THEY WORK IN CAMPAIGNS OR ELECTED OFFICIALS, BUT BUT THE UNION HOUSE, I DON'T KNOW IF WE DID IT IN THIS SURVEY. OKAY. JUST CURIOUS. THANK YOU. GREAT. DO WE HAVE ANY COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON THIS? BEN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. INFORMATIVE. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. WE'LL NOW MOVE TO AN UPDATE ON THE GRANTS FROM MAY 22ND, 2024 TO JUNE 17TH, 2024. YEAH. JUST. WELCOME, KATY. OKAY. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON. KATY HORNBECK GRANTS MANAGER. I'LL KEEP THIS SNAPPY. SO REPORT ON THE GRANTS APPLIED AND GRANTS AWARDED IN THIS REPORTING PERIOD, WHICH IS BETWEEN MAY 22ND AND JUNE 17TH FOR GRANTS APPLIED. THERE WERE FIVE APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED IN THIS PERIOD. THE TWO THAT I'LL HIGHLIGHT, NUMBER FOUR AND NUMBER FIVE FOR THE RICHMOND BAY TRAIL GAP CLOSURE PROJECT. WE SUBMITTED TWO APPLICATIONS. ONE TO CALTRANS IS ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION PROGRAM. THIS IS THEIR SEVENTH CYCLE. WE'VE WE HAVE SUBMITTED APPLICATIONS PRETTY MUCH EVERY CYCLE. WHEN I WENT BACK THROUGH OUR RECORDS. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE'RE APPLYING FOR THIS PROJECT. THE TWO SUCCESSES WE'VE HAD WITH THIS PROGRAM WERE BOTH IN CYCLE THREE AND FOUR, 4 MILLION FOR THE DOOLITTLE BAY TRAIL PROJECT, AND THEN 4 MILLION FOR THE MAPLE BAY TRAIL PROJECT BETWEEN PINOLE SHORES AND OR SAN PABLO BAY AND PINOLE SHORES. NUMBER FIVE. SO THIS IS A NEW PROGRAM THROUGH THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION CALLED THE ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT PROGRAM. WE APPLIED FOR THE SAME PROJECT, BUT SPECIFICALLY FOR THE DESIGN AND PLANNING PHASE, AND THIS WAS BECAUSE THIS PROGRAM REQUIRED THAT TO APPLY FOR CONSTRUCTION FUNDS, THE TOTAL PROJECT COST HAD TO EXCEED 15 MILLION, AND WE WON. THIS PROJECT DOES NOT CURRENTLY COST THAT MUCH, AND TWO, WE DIDN'T HAVE A PROJECT READY RIGHT NOW THAT WAS AT THAT DOLLAR AMOUNT. SO WE WENT WITH WE DECIDED WE WANTED TO APPLY WITH THIS PROJECT AND GO FOR PLANNING AND DESIGN FUNDS. THE OTHER THING WE CONSIDERED WAS FOR CONSTRUCTION AS A NEW GRANT PROGRAM. THEY WERE ONLY ANTICIPATING TO AWARD 3 TO 4 PROJECTS IN A VERY LARGE DOLLAR AMOUNT. SO IT WOULD WAS GOING TO BE EXTREMELY COMPETITIVE FOR THOSE FUNDS. SO WE DECIDED TO GO FOR THE DESIGN FUNDING WHERE THEY ANTICIPATED DOING MANY, MANY MORE AWARDS, AND THE LAST THING I'LL HIGHLIGHT ABOUT THIS PROGRAM, SINCE IT IS NEW THEY WERE PRIORITIZING PROJECTS WHERE THERE WERE WHAT THEY CALLED SPINES BUILT FOR ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION, INCLUDING SIDEWALKS, BIKEWAYS AND TRAILS, AND WE'RE GOING TO BE IN HIGH DEMAND DESTINATIONS WITHIN A COMMUNITY. SO WE FELT THAT AFTER REVIEWING ALL THE CRITERIA AND WHAT THEIR PRIORITIES WERE, THIS PROJECT WAS THE BEST FIT IN, THE MOST READY FOR PLANNING AND DESIGN FUNDS. AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE WERE NO GRANT AWARDS ANNOUNCED IN THIS PERIOD. I HAVE NOTICED THERE IS A BIT OF A SLOWDOWN IN AWARD ANNOUNCEMENTS COMING OUT, AS WELL AS SOLICITATIONS FOR GRANT APPLICATIONS. I SUSPECT THIS IS LARGELY DUE TO THE STATE BUDGET AND AGENCIES FIGURING OUT WHAT MONEY THEY HAVE, HOW THEY'RE GOING TO BE ALLOCATING TO THEIR PROGRAMS, AND WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO PRIORITIZE WITH THE MORE LIMITED FUNDS THAT THEY HAVE. SO HOPEFULLY I'LL HAVE MORE TO REPORT IN OUR NEXT MONTH'S PRESENTATION, AND WITH THAT, I'M HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. COLIN, GO AHEAD. YES. A COUPLE KATY THE WILDCAT CREEK WATERSHED ASSESSMENT. THAT'S NOT TRIGGERING A MEMORY FOR ME. THIS IS A PROJECT LED BY STEWARDSHIP. IT'S WHAT THE PROJECT NAME IS, ALLUDES TO. IT'LL BE AN ASSESSMENT OF THE ENTIRE WATERSHED. IT'LL BE CO-LED WITH ASSUMING WE ARE FUNDED. SAN FRANCISCO ESTUARY INSTITUTE. SO REALLY DETERMINING MY UNDERSTANDING IS WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE WATERSHED AND WHAT IS GOING TO BE NEEDED IN THE LONG TERM. SO IT'S A BIT OF IT'S ESSENTIALLY A PLANNING PROJECT. [01:35:01] IT'S NEW. OKAY. THAT'S WHY I HAVEN'T HEARD ABOUT IT, AND YEAH. OR MAYBE I HAVE AND JUST HAVEN'T REGISTERED, BUT IT SOUNDS GOOD. THE BAY TRAIL CLOSURE GAP AT POINT PINOLE. MY COMMENT IS I'M EXTRAORDINARILY HAPPY TO SEE YOU FOLKS FOCUSING ON THAT PROJECT. ERICH KNOWS I'VE BEEN POUNDING THE TABLE ABOUT IT FOR YEARS, AND IT'S ACTUALLY HAPPENING AND FUNDING IS COMING, AND I THINK THAT HOPEFULLY FEEDS OFF ITSELF. SO IF CALTRANS SEES THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A MILLION COMING NEXT YEAR FROM A FEDERAL EARMARK FUNDING FROM POSSIBLE OTHER FUNDING, IT'S GOING TO START FEEDING ON ITSELF. SO I'M REALLY, REALLY HAPPY TO SEE THAT, AND I HOPE CALTRANS UNDERSTANDS THAT THIS REPRESENTS RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR THEM, BECAUSE THEY HAVE PUT FUNDING INTO PREVIOUS SEGMENTS OF THE SAN PABLO BAY TRAIL. YOU KNOW, I'VE SEEN CALTRANS ON THE SIGNS THAT WE PUT UP AS WE COMPLETE THOSE PROJECTS. EXTENDING ALL THE WAY TO THE GEORGE MILLER TRAIL. SO IT SHOULD JUST CHECK ALL THE BOXES FOR CALTRANS ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION FUNDING. SO FINGERS CROSSED. YEAH. JUST TO TAG ON TO WHAT YOU SAID. PART OF WHAT WE REALLY EMPHASIZE IN OUR GRANT APPLICATION WAS THE DIFFERENT BAY TRAIL COMPONENTS THAT HAVE BEEN COMPLETED ALONG THE WAY, AND HOW THOSE HAVE RECEIVED VARIOUS DEGREES OF FUNDING OR SOURCES OF FUNDING AND PROVIDE A MAP TO THAT END BUT YES, THIS IS A GREAT PROJECT, RIGHT, FOR TO START REALLY STRIKING WHILE THE IRON'S HOT, AND SO YOU'LL SEE THIS COME UP MULTIPLE TIMES AS WE SEE THAT TRANSPORTATION FUNDING GET ANNOUNCED. SO THANK YOU. I JUST WANTED TO REINFORCE THAT. WELL, THANKS, KATY APPRECIATE ALL YOUR GOOD WORK. THANK. WE'LL MOVE NOW TO THE UPDATE ON THE LOCAL ACTIONS TAKEN BY OTHER JURISDICTIONS. WELCOME, BRIAN. HI, BRIAN. GOOD AFTERNOON. MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE, BRIAN HOLT, CHIEF OF PLANNING, TRAILS GIS. LET ME SEE IF I HAVE MY STUFF UP IN HERE. GREAT. HAVE A GOOD VIEW. WE CAN STICK WITH THAT. YEAH. GOOD AFTERNOON AGAIN, CHIEF. CHIEF OF PLANNING TRAILS GIS. BRIAN HOLT HERE TO PRESENT OUR LOCAL ACTIONS REPORT LOCAL, LOCAL JURISDICTIONS REPORT. JUST HAVE TWO ITEMS FOR YOU TODAY. RELATIVELY SHORT, UNFORTUNATELY RELEVANT TO THE TO THE TWO MEMBERS WHO HAPPEN TO BE HERE. SO THAT'S VERY GOOD. THE FIRST ITEM IS WE HAVE A NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF A DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT FOR THE CAPITAL CORRIDOR PROJECT, THE SOUTH BAY CONNECT PROJECT. THIS IS A RELOCATION OF THE CAPITAL GUARD, OR PASSENGER RAIL, FROM ITS EXISTING UNION PACIFIC ROUTE BETWEEN OAKLAND NEWARK TO ROUTE THAT'S CLOSER TO THE SHORELINE. SO RELEVANT TO RELEVANT TO A COUPLE OF OUR PARKS INCLUDED ARDENWOOD AND THE HAYWARD REGIONAL SHORELINE. SO, IF YOU CAN SEE HERE THE BLACK AND BLUE DASHED LINE IS THE EXISTING CAPITAL CORRIDOR RIGHT OF WAY OR CAPITAL CORRIDOR ROUTE AND THE YELLOW IS THE PROPOSED ROUTE. THERE WOULD BE A NEW STATION PROPOSED NEAR ARDENWOOD, AND THEN CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS THAT NEED TO BE MADE ALONG THAT ROUTE TO, TO ACCOMMODATE THE CAPITAL CORRIDOR. THE INTENT OF THIS IS TO REDUCE RAIL CONGESTION ON THE EXISTING ROUTE, AND REDUCE TRAVEL DELAYS AT VARIOUS RAILROAD CROSSINGS IN SAN LEANDRO AND HAYWARD. OUR STAFF HAS BEEN LOOKING AT THIS JUST FOR ITS POTENTIAL TO IMPACT THE HAYWARD SHORELINE, AND AS A FAMILIAR WITH. CERTAINLY DIRECTOR WAESPI IS VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE VARIOUS PROJECTS GOING ON AT THE HAYWARD SHORELINE. THAT THIS PROJECT WOULDN'T NECESSARILY CONFLICT WITH ANY OF THOSE. IT'S STILL IN THE EARLY ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT PHASE. SO WE ARE WELL, I SHOULDN'T SAY WE I THINK WE ARE EXPLORING THE POSSIBILITY OF SUBMITTING A COMMENT LETTER THROUGH HASPA, THROUGH THE HAYWARD AREA SHORELINE PLANNING AGENCY. WE ARE CONSULTING WITH THE TRUSTEES ON THAT, BUT BASICALLY THE COMMENT LETTER WOULD JUST BE RAISING SOME TECHNICAL COMMENTS REGARDING THE ENVIRONMENTAL [01:40:08] ANALYSIS, JUST RAISING CERTAIN ITEMS THAT WE THINK SHOULD BE EVALUATED AS THEY CONTINUE THEIR ASSESSMENT. OF COURSE, THIS IS, LIKE I SAY, EARLY ON IN THE PROJECT, AND THERE'LL BE LOTS OF NEED AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR COORDINATION AS IT MOVES FORWARD. SO ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT ONE? I CAN'T SEE BY YOUR MAP, BUT HOW CLOSE TO ARDENWOOD IS THAT? IT'S RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET. ACTUALLY, IT'S ON PRIVATE PROPERTY NEAR ARDENWOOD. THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW DOES IDENTIFY THE POTENTIAL NEED TO PERHAPS USE A PORTION OF ARDENWOOD FOR CONSTRUCTION STAGING. THAT'S WELL ON DOWN THE ROAD. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO ENGAGE WITH IN THE FUTURE. I CAN'T NECESSARILY SAY IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD SUPPORT OR HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT. OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE SOME CONCERNS ABOUT IT, BUT CERTAINLY SOMETHING TO A CONVERSATION FOR ANOTHER DAY, BUT OF COURSE, THE OTHER THE OTHER POSSIBILITY THERE IS MORE TRANSIT ACCESSIBLE PARKS. SO SOMETHING TO CONTINUE TO WATCH OUT FOR THERE, AND IS THAT THE NAME ARDENWOOD STATION? I DON'T I DON'T KNOW THAT'S POSITIVE, AND I DON'T KNOW THAT'S THE OFFICIAL NAME. THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. YEAH. I THINK WE'D SUGGEST IF WE DO COMMENT THAT. HEY, THAT'S A GOOD NAME. WELL, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY EVEN BETTER. WE HAVE AN OLD TRAIN STATION THERE. YEAH. ARDENWOOD FARM, ARDENWOOD FARM STATION. WE GOTTA GET REGIONAL PARK. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GREAT. THANKS, BRIAN. OKAY, SO MOVING ON FROM THERE. JUMP BACK UP. JUST SO I GOT THE NARRATIVE HERE, BUT THE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, I KNOW DIRECTOR COFFEY IS VERY FAMILIAR WITH THIS. THE LOCAL AGENCY FORMATION COMMISSION, LAFCO CONTRA COSTA LAFCO APPROVED THE BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT ANNEXATION FOR THE FREE SOUTHWEST PROJECT INTO THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH, CONTRA COSTA WATER DISTRICT AND DELTA DIABLO DISTRICT. SO THIS IS A PROJECT THAT WE HAVE BEEN ENGAGED WITH FOR FOR QUITE A LONG TIME. AND PROPOSES ANNEXATION INTO THE PITTSBURGH CITY LIMITS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF 1500 HOMES, AND A PORTION OF THE PROPERTY TO BE PRESERVED AS OPEN SPACE. OF COURSE, WE ENGAGED ON THIS PROJECT. WE'RE PARTY TO A SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT. REGARDING SOME OF THE POTENTIAL WE POTENTIAL IMPACTS TO THURGOOD MARSHALL REGIONAL PARK, HOME OF THE PORT CHICAGO 50. WE HAD EXPRESSED CONCERNS ABOUT VIEWSHED IMPACTS AND WHATNOT TO THE VISITOR CENTER. SO SO WE'VE BEEN MONITORING THIS PROJECT. IT WAS APPROVED PROJECTS MOVING FORWARD AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO MONITOR. ANY QUESTIONS? THAT MAP IS OURS, ISN'T IT? THIS MAP IS OURS. THAT ISN'T ACTUALLY WHAT WAS APPROVED BY THE CITY. THIS IS NOT OURS. THIS IS A MAP THAT WAS DEVELOPED EARLY ON AND DOES NOT REFLECT THE CURRENT APPROVAL. IT IS OUR MAP. NO, IT IS OUR MAP THAT YOU'RE SAYING. NO, IT IS OUR MAP. IT'S NOT THE CURRENT PROJECT. THAT'S WHAT I WAS INTERESTED IN. IT LOOKED FAMILIAR AS OUR HOPED FOR. YEAH, EXACTLY. EXACTLY. PERHAPS. SHOULD HAVE. NO. THAT'S OKAY. I UNDERSTOOD THAT I COMPLETELY ON MY OWN, AND DIRECTOR WAESPI GOING OUT OF MY WAY TO IDENTIFY MY COMMENTS AS PERSONAL TO ME, AS IN A NEARBY OBSERVER OF THAT PROJECT I SUBMITTED TO LAFCO THIS SUGGESTION THAT THEY NOT APPROVE THIS ANNEXATION IN ORDER TO FORCE THE PARTIES INVOLVED TO EXPLORE SOME NOT SOME A PROPOSED COMPROMISE THAT WOULD CUT BACK ONLY 20 TO 25 HOUSES AND PERHAPS BE A BETTER GUARANTEE OF RIDGELINE PROTECTION. SO DESPITE MY FEELING, I MADE A VERY PERSUASIVE ARGUMENT. IT WAS TOTALLY DISREGARDED. SO I DID WANT TO APPRECIATE YOUR EFFORT TO MENTION TO YOU THAT I MADE A PERSONAL EFFORT WITH LOTS OF DISCLAIMERS THAT OUR LAWYER WOULD APPRECIATE. ALL RIGHT, AND THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR YOU TODAY. HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS OR IF YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS FOR FUTURE ITEMS, HAPPY TO BRING THOSE FORWARD TO YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, BRIAN. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE'LL MOVE NOW TO UPDATE ON SITE VISITS AND MEETINGS. ERICH PFUEHLER, CHIEF OF GOVERNMENT AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS, AND GIVEN THE OUR WE APOLOGIZE. [01:45:03] WE SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT YOU ALL LUNCH, BUT I WILL COMMENT BRIEFLY ON TWO SITE VISITS WE HAD SINCE THE LAST TIME WE MET, AND I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO ADD THAT FLORES SANTOS IS RETURNING TO GOVERNMENT AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS TO WORK ON THE THESE SITE VISITS, AMONG OTHER THINGS. SO I'M HOPEFUL THAT SHE'LL BE PRESENTING AT OUR NEXT LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE. SHE WAS GREAT FOR THE AMBASSADOR PROGRAM FOR AT LEAST A MONTH. I REALLY APPRECIATED HER EFFORTS ON BEHALF OF THE AMBASSADOR PROGRAM FOR THIS TIME PERIOD. WE DID HAVE A SITE VISIT AT RODDY RANCH FROM ANISSA WILLIAMS, WHO IS MAYOR OF OAKLAND BUT ALSO AFFILIATED WITH SENATOR GLAZER'S OFFICE, AND SHE WANTED TO BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW THE PROJECT WAS COMING ALONG IN TERMS OF THE TIMELINE, AND AFTER HEARING OUR STAFF'S COMMENTS AND PLANNING AND FINANCING, THEY WERE VERY PLEASED TO LEARN THAT WE WERE IN SOME WAYS FARTHER ALONG THAN SOME OF THE OTHER PROJECTS THAT SENATOR GLAZER HAS SUPPORTED. SO THAT WAS A GOOD CHECK IN WITH HIS OFFICE, AND THEN OUR OTHER SITE VISIT WAS AT THE TIDEWATER STAGING AREA. THIS WAS TO BRING MORE ATTENTION TO THE FUNDING NEED TO FURTHER THE DEVELOPMENT OF THAT PARK AND CREATE MORE GREEN SPACE, AND WE DID HAVE A VERY GOOD REPRESENTATION IN TERMS OF CROSS GOVERNMENTAL. SO WE HAD STATE, LOCAL COUNTY SUPERVISOR. WE DID ALSO HAVE REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE COASTAL CONSERVANCY THERE AND WAS AN OPPORTUNITY, AS DOCTOR ALVAREZ KNOWS, IT WAS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO TALK TO SOME OF THE LEGISLATIVE STAFF ABOUT THE STATE BUDGET AND THE CLIMATE BOND, AND WE DID MAKE THE CASE THAT THE CLIMATE BOND FUNDING SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN IN LIEU OF STATE BUDGET FUNDING, AS WE HAVE SEEN AND TO SOME EXTENT, DOUG'S PRESENTATION LAID OUT, THAT IS ESSENTIALLY WHAT HAPPENED. SO THERE IS ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR RESOURCE PROTECTION AND BUILDING RESILIENCY, BUT IT WILL BE COMING MOSTLY IN THE FORM OF THE BOND. THERE IS STILL A FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT CHUNK OF THE $54 BILLION THAT WERE ALLOCATED SEVERAL YEARS AGO THAT DO REMAIN IN MANY OF THE CLIMATE RESILIENCY POTS, BUT THE DIRECT ALLOCATIONS TO COASTAL CONSERVANCY AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD ARE ESSENTIALLY BEING BACKFILLED BY THE CLIMATE BOND, BUT THE SITE VISIT WENT VERY WELL AND ALL THAT ATTENDED WERE WERE PLEASED WITH THE PROGRESS THAT WE'VE MADE AND I THINK IN ADDITIONALLY AND JUST REMEMBERING SEEING KATY WALK IN THE ROOM, I BELIEVE WE HAVE GOTTEN SOME FUNDING FOR THIS PROJECT, THAT IT HAD TAKEN US A LONG TIME TO RECEIVE FUNDING FOR, SO WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO RECEIVE MORE, AND WITH THE SUPPORT OF SOME OF THESE ELECTED OFFICE SITES, ELECTED OFFICE STAFF, I THINK THAT WILL BE POSSIBLE. SO WITH THAT, THAT WERE THOSE WERE THE ONLY TWO THAT WE REALLY HAD SINCE THE LAST TIME THIS COMMITTEE MET. GREAT. THANK YOU. ANY COMMENTS QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, ERICH. THIS IS GREAT. I WAS WONDERING IF YOU COULD FOLLOW UP. YOU KNOW, A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO WE TALKED ABOUT VERY ROBUST PROGRAMING, MEETING WITH LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS. I THINK THERE WERE LIKE 54 MEETINGS SCHEDULED. WHERE ARE WE AT ON THAT? ARE WE PROGRESSING ALONG THE LINES? I WILL DEFER TO MY COLLEAGUE. OKAY. PROGRESSING? YES. LISA BALDINGER, LEGISLATIVE AND POLICY MANAGEMENT ANALYST AND I HAVE THE HONOR OF COORDINATING THIS PROGRAM. SO A COUPLE THINGS ARE MOVING FORWARD RELATIVE TO IT. AS YOU NOTED, DIRECTOR WAESPI, IT IS A NUMBER OF MEETINGS, AND SO WHAT WE'RE WANTING TO DO IS DO THE BULK OF OUR WORK ON THE FRONT END TO KEEP US ORGANIZED, AND SO STAFF HAS PUT TOGETHER A COMPREHENSIVE REPORT OF ALL OF THE MEETINGS, IDENTIFIED THE LEAD BOARD MEMBERS, AND PUT TOGETHER A PROPOSED PRIORITIZATION OF THE MEETINGS AND WHAT THIS MEANS IS THAT AS WE SHARED WITH THE BOARD AND MOVING THIS FORWARD, IS THAT WE'D LIKE TO WORK TO COORDINATE ONE MEETING PER BOARD MEMBER AT ALL TIMES, AND SO WE WOULD BE WORKING ON SEVEN MEETINGS AT A TIME, AND SO WHERE WE ARE IS THIS WEEK, WE'LL BE SITTING DOWN WITH THE GENERAL MANAGER TO REVIEW THE PRIORITIZATION OF MEETINGS AND GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF HER SCHEDULE, HER OPPORTUNITIES. BECAUSE FOR HER TO ATTEND 45 MEETINGS WOULD BE QUITE A LIFT, AND SO IDENTIFYING AREAS WHERE SHE CAN DELEGATE A DESIGNEE OR DEPENDING ON HER INTERESTS, AND SO FOLLOWING THAT, WE'LL BE SHARING THE PRIORITIZATION LIST WITH EACH OF THE BOARD MEMBERS TO REVIEW YOUR MEETINGS, AND THIS IS ALSO THE OPPORTUNITY WHERE YOU CAN IDENTIFY AN ADDITIONAL BOARD MEMBER TO JOIN YOU IN THE MEETING IF DESIRED, DEPENDING ON THE ISSUES OR INTERESTS, AND SO ONCE WE HEAR BACK FROM YOU ALL THAT YOU AGREE [01:50:05] WITH THE PRIORITIZATION, WHO YOU WOULD LIKE TO INVITE TO JOIN YOU, WE'LL START WORKING GETTING THEM ON YOUR CALENDARS, AND SO WE ALSO HOPE TO INTRODUCE AN ADDITIONAL TEAM MEMBER OUR SECOND LEGISLATIVE ASSISTANT. THOSE INTERVIEWS ARE UNDERWAY THIS WEEK, AND THEY WILL ALSO BE HELPING TO SUPPORT THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS ON THIS INITIATIVE. GREAT. THANKS. OF COURSE. OKAY. NOW WE MOVE TO ANNOUNCEMENTS. DOES ANYONE IN THE ROOM HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT? ANYONE HAVING A BIRTHDAY OR ANYTHING? NO? ANYTHING FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER? OKAY, IN THAT CASE, THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE. WE ARE ADJOURNED. THANKS FOR A GREAT MEETING. I GOT ONE ON THE 24TH OF JULY. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.