Legislative Agenda

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The City of Lafayette’s Legislative Agenda for 2025-26 is a source for residents, commissions and committees, and staff to understand the goals and policies that guide the City of Lafayette in its legislative strategy. In addition to the Legislative Agenda, this page provides links to the City of Lafayette's letters regarding the various bills being considered by the Legislature.

City Council Legislation Committee

Susan Candell, Council member, E-mail

Jim Cervantes, Council member, E-mail

To sign up to receive notices about City Council Legislation Committee meetings, visit our e-notification page then enter your name and email address; Next, in the Calendar section, select "City Council Subcommittees" to receive notices for these and other subcommittee meetings.

State Representatives

Tim Grayson, State Senator 9th District, Email via website form

Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, State Assembly Member, District 16, Email via website form

City of Lafayette Legislative Agenda for the 2025-26 Legislative Session

Adopted February 12, 2025

The City Council’s Legislation Committee and Townsend Public Affairs, Inc. (TPA) have prepared this report for the City of Lafayette outlining potential areas of state legislative interest for the 2025 Legislative Session. The report summarizes the City’s legislative principles and policy topics of interest to the City for the current and upcoming legislative years.

The strategic agenda includes advocating for legislation, regulations, and funding that is consistent with the City’s vision, goals and policies. If the City Council is supportive of the policies listed below, TPA will continue to research what can be accomplished through legislation, regulations, or direct advocacy with state agencies and other organizations to help address Lafayette’s needs.

LEGISLATIVE PRINCIPLES

Preserving Local Control

The City deeply values its ability and authority to exercise local control, offer excellent public services, and protect and enhance the quality of life for Lafayette residents and businesses. Advocacy efforts may include:

Monitoring and opposing legislation that may reduce municipal authority, particularly in the areas of land use planning, zoning and development review.
Supporting legislation that protects local revenue sources and prevents the imposition of unfunded mandates on cities.
Supporting legislation that rolls back/unwinds existing unfunded mandates or increases funding to cities.
Monitoring legislation that could impact the City’s ability to regulate the “sharing economy” (platforms such as Uber, Lyft, and Airbnb) as it develops.
Monitoring legislation that could impact commercial and/or recreational drone usage.
Monitoring legislation that could impact local telecommunications infrastructure.
Other related topics.

Housing

The City acknowledges that California is currently facing a housing shortage and supports legislation and policies to develop affordable housing that will accommodate the needs of the community, while still complying with local land use plans and policies. Advocacy efforts may include:

Supporting legislation that facilitates the streamlined construction and production of accessory dwelling units (ADUs).
Supporting legislation that would allow cities to count ADUs towards the fulfillment of their regional housing needs allocations (RHNA).
Supporting legislation that uses a county jobs-housing balance as a basis to allocate RHNA and funding.
Opposing legislation requiring the production of housing away from job centers, which would further burden the region’s strained transportation network and increase vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Opposing legislation that reduces funding to cities that do not meet their housing targets.
Supporting legislation that creates a permanent source of revenue —or strengthens existing revenue sources —to local governments for the production and preservation of affordable housing.
Supporting legislation that provides funding for local governments to address homelessness.
Monitoring legislation that would expand tenant protections.
Supporting legislation requiring housing and jobs to be evenly distributed across cities and counties throughout the state.
Supporting legislation that exempts high fire hazard areas from requirements to build higher density housing.
Monitoring legislation that impacts a city’s ability to approve or deny projects based on health and safety impacts.
Other related topics.

Fiscal Matters

The City supports legislation to fund economic development and to protect and fund essential city services. Advocacy efforts may include:

Continuing repeated interactions with elected representatives to predict fiscal year funding and to assess the City‘s ability to take advantage of political trends and preferences in the state and federal budgets.
Opposing legislation that diminishes the City’s ability to impose and collect impact fees.
Supporting legislation and initiatives that would provide funding for libraries, arts and cultural expression in Lafayette.
Supporting legislation and initiatives that would provide funding for open spaces, parks, trails, and other public amenities.
Supporting legislation and initiatives that would provide funding for economic development, downtown beautification and revitalization.
Supporting legislation that will return e-commerce/internet sales tax revenue to the jurisdiction where the buyer resides.
Supporting legislation that fully reimburses cities for agreements and loans with former redevelopment agencies.
Protecting local rate payers with regard to state utility mandates.
Monitoring legislation that affects Transient Occupancy Taxes and regulations regarding such.
Monitoring legislation impacting Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts, redevelopment agencies, or tax increment financing districts.
Supporting legislation aimed at protecting businesses and non-profits, either through financial assistance or by preventing evictions, during emergencies such as a pandemic.
Other related topics.

Environmental Protection

The City supports legislation and policies that promote sustainable development, improve environmental standards, streamline the regulatory process, provide incentives and funding for preservation of natural resources, and support sustainable energy policies. Advocacy efforts may include:

Supporting legislation that conserves open space and natural resources.
Supporting legislation to increase funding for climate action planning.
Supporting legislation to increase funding for green buildings, electric vehicle charging stations, building electrification and related infrastructure.
Supporting legislation that supports and funds climate adaptation solutions, flood management practices, and wildfire fuel management.
Monitoring legislation that imposes state mandates on cities to fund climate adaptation solutions.
Monitoring legislation that impacts environmental review policy or CEQA.
Other related topics.

Transportation

The City supports legislation and policies that promote investing in the planning and implementation of complete streets, regional and local transportation and traffic congestion relief projects, the maintenance and rehabilitation of aging transportation infrastructure, and building system capacity expansions where appropriate. Advocacy efforts may include:

Supporting funding for Vision Zero planning and implementation.
Supporting legislation to fund alternative modes of travel including expanding transit services.
Supporting funding for new pedestrian and bicycle facilities.
Supporting funding for the expansion of local school bus programs.
Supporting new statewide funding opportunities for the ongoing maintenance and repair of local roads and highways.
Supporting efforts to address regional transportation congestion.
Monitoring legislation for the expansion of ADA facilities, public access and accessible transit services.
Other related topics.

Emergency Preparedness

The City supports legislation to access funding and resources to provide high quality police, fire, and emergency management. Advocacy efforts may include:

Supporting legislation that provides funding to local agencies for evacuation planning, disaster preparedness, fire suppression and prevention, hazardous materials mitigation, and rescue emergency medical services.
Supporting legislation that provides funding and resources for promoting and enforcing defensible space within a high fire hazard area.
Supporting legislation and funding to implement or improve upon natural disaster early warning systems.
Supporting legislation and grants to fund the planning, logistics and execution of emergency/disaster management plans for residents, business, visitors and animals.
Supporting legislation that provides reimbursement for costs associated with public safety power shutoffs.
Supporting legislation that provides funding or other incentives for retrofitting and other seismic preparedness activities.
Monitor legislation and regulatory activity related to the availability, and affordability, of business, homeowners and renters insurance for properties located within areas of increased risk of wildfire.

Public Health and Safety

The City supports legislation to access funding and resources to provide high quality police, fire, emergency management, emergency medical and public health services. Advocacy efforts may include:

Supporting legislation to fund the purchase of supplies for first responders addressing a pandemic or other emergency.
Opposing legislation that constrains the ability of local counties or cities during public health emergencies to make determinations regarding closures based on local conditions.
Supporting legislation that would ensure a robust and coordinated federal and state response to public health emergencies.
Monitoring legislation on the sale of e-cigarettes.
Monitoring legislation/research on the potential safeguards regarding the purchase, distribution, consumption and cultivation of cannabis.
Monitoring legislation related to local law enforcement’s use of force policies, law enforcement training standards, alternative responses to non-emergency calls, and other police reform efforts.
Supporting legislation to reform public utilities in order to ensure the reliable, safe and sustainable delivery of energy and communications to the community.
Supporting legislation to address systemic racism reflecting Lafayette’s commitment to being a welcoming, inclusive, tolerant and safe community for all.
Supporting the funding of additional behavioral health programs and services.
Other related topics.

Elections

The City supports legislation to reduce unnecessary and costly procedures for conducting municipal elections, while streamlining voter registration efforts to ensure all eligible residents can vote freely. Advocacy efforts may include

Supporting legislation that encourages and expands civic engagement and voter participation in elections.
Monitoring legislation that lowers or increases the voting requirements for passage of local special purpose agency funding propositions.
Monitoring legislation that affects municipal elections.
Monitoring legislation that affects the California Voting Rights Acts and by-district elections.
Other related topics.

Government Transparency and Efficiency

The City supports government transparency, public access to records and supports legislation that facilitates these principles while still allowing for necessary and efficient municipal operations and services. Advocacy efforts may include:

Monitoring legislation that affects the Brown Act.
Supporting legislation that would permanently allow local governments to conduct certain public meetings through teleconference, or other technology platform that allows for robust public participation.
Monitoring legislation that affects special districts and joint powers authorities and regulations of such.
Monitoring legislation that affects the Public Records Act.
Monitoring legislation that affects the Political Reform Act.
Supporting legislation that would promote tele-commuting for public and private sector employers.
Supporting legislation that would expand affordable broadband services for all, particularly in the education sector.
Opposing legislation that impacts the ability of local governments to utilize digital communication.
Other related topics.