Title
Supervisors Hidahl and Parlin recommending the Board:
1) Find that a public benefit is derived from supporting the National Association of Counties and the Western Interstate Regions Boards of Directors efforts to establish the National Center for Public Lands Counties to give public land counties an opportunity to demonstrate how prosperous public lands counties create a prosperous United States;
2) Approve a contribution of $8,708.50 to the California State Association of Counties for the National Association of Counties and the Western Interstate Regions Boards of Directors efforts to establish the National Center for Public Lands Counties and authorize the Auditor-Controller to disburse funding for the same; and
3) Approve and authorize the Chair to sign a budget transfer increasing revenue in the American Rescue Plan Act Special Revenue Fund by $435,436 for the Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Fund allocation the County has received and increasing appropriations for the National Center for Public Lands Counties contribution and contingency to balance the fund. (4/5 vote required)
FUNDING: Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Fund.
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DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
The National Association of Counties (NACo) and the Western Interstate Regions (WIR) Boards of Directors has established the National Center for Public Lands Counties (The Center) to give public lands counties an enhanced opportunity to demonstrate how prosperous public lands counties create a prosperous United States. The Center will utilize traditional and new media-such as podcasts and video interviews-to tell these stories and also develop detailed, individual research and written county profiles. Counties know that telling our stories is our most powerful tool in bringing resources and attention to our communities. CSAC is working with NACo to ensure that the Center appropriately emphasizes the importance of recreation economies and does not solely focus on extraction based public lands. The Center will report to the NACo and WIR Board of Directors on its financial health and issue an annual report on research and progress at the annual WIR Conference.
To fund this once-in-a-generation opportunity, NACo is requesting counties make a one-time contribution to get the Center up and running. While each county may decide if and how much they would like to contribute, the requested amount is equivalent to one percent of each county’s allocation under the LATCF, which was awarded through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). County contributions will be collected through CSAC and passed along to NACo.
On January 3, 2023, with Legistar item 22-2269, the Board authorized the Auditor-Controller to electronically apply for the LACTF funding. The County received the first of two LATCF allocations in January 2023. It is requested that the Board approve a budget transfer to budget the January 2023 LACTF allocation of $435,425.24, the contribution of $8,709 to CSAC, and budget the remaining $426,717 in Contingency in the ARPA
Special Revenue Fund. The remaining LACTF funding will be moved to General Fund Contingency with the Fiscal Year 2023-24 Recommended Budget.
ALTERNATIVES
The Board could choose not to approve this contribution.
PRIOR BOARD ACTION
See above.
OTHER DEPARTMENT / AGENCY INVOLVEMENT
Chief Administrative Office
FINANCIAL IMPACT
On January 3, 2023, when the LACTF funding was approved by the Board it was recommended that the funding be allocated in the Fiscal Year 2023-24 Budget to replenish the $5,000,000 in Excess General Fund Contingency authorized by the Board on December 6, 2022 for the Mosquito Fire debris removal (Legistar item 22-2174). Approval of this item will lower the amount of funding available to replenish Contingency by $8,708.50.
CLERK OF THE BOAR FOLLOW UP ACTIONS
None
STRATEGIC PLAN COMPONENT
Economic Development
CONTACT
Lori Parlin