December Legislative Update
Wednesday, December 21, 2022
by: Craig Benedetto & Marshall Anderson, Legislative Advocates

Section: Government Affairs




Legislative Update
December 2022
By Craig Benedetto & Marshall Anderson, Legislative Advocates

2022 GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS - CERTIFIED
The registrar of voters has now concluded their count and certified the results of the November
2022 election. Nothing has changed for the key races and initiatives BOMA was watching. A
couple of smaller city council races were very close in their results, so please check the full
updated and certified count by CLICKING HERE for other races not covered below.
In terms of key races, Measure B, which repeals the “People’s Ordinance” to allow for trash fees
to be collected narrowly passed. Also passing by a slim margin was Measure C, which would
raise the height limit within the Midway District. BOMA supported candidate David Alvarez also
won a full term in the California Assembly
Below is the full updated summary of the winners that BOMA SD has been tracking:
● San Diego City Council, District 2: Incumbent Dr. Jen Campbell
● San Diego City Council, District 4: Incumbent Monica Montgomery-Steppe
● San Diego City Council, District 6: Newcomer Kent Lee
● San Diego City Council, District 8: Incumbent Vivian Moreno
● Mayor of Chula Vista: John McCann
● Sheriff: Undersheriff Kelly Martinez
● District Attorney: Incumbent Summer Stephan
● Treasurer-Tax Collector: Incumbent Dan McAllister
● County Assessor/Recorder/Clerk: Deputy Assessor Jordan Marks
● County Board of Supervisors, District 4: Incumbent Nathan Fletcher
● County Board of Supervisors, District 5: Incumbent, Jim Desmond
● U.S. House of Representatives, District 48: Incumbent Darrell Issa
● U.S. House of Representatives, District 49: Incumbent Mike Levin
● U.S. House of Representatives, District 50: Incumbent Scott Peters
● U.S. House of Representatives, District 51: Incumbent Democrat Sara Jacobs
● U.S. House of Representatives, District 52: Incumbent Juan Vargas
● State Senate, 18th District: Current Chula Vista Councilmember Steve Padilla
● State Senate, 38th District: Mayor of Encinitas, Catherine Blakespear
● State Senate, 40th District: Incumbent Brian Jones
● 75th Assembly District: Incumbent Marie Waldron
● 76th Assembly District: Incumbent Brian Maienschein
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● 77th Assembly District: Incumbent Tasha Boerner-Horvath
● 78th Assembly District: Incumbent Chris Ward
● 79th Assembly District: Incumbent Dr. Akilah Weber
● 80th Assembly District: Incumbent David Alvarez
● Measure B (Repeal “People’s Ordinance” to allow for charging for trash collection in
areas of the City of San Diego): Passed
● Measure C (Midway Height Initiative to eliminate the 30 foot limit within the
Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan area): Passed
● Measure D (Repeal of the Project Labor Agreement Ban in the City of San Diego):
Passed
COVID-19 UPDATES
● The federal government announced this week that they are making more, free COVID-19
tests available to the public. The announcement by the Biden administration comes as
COVID-19 is spreading during the winter months. Four tests per household will be made
available and can be ordered on-line at covidtests.gov.
● The California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board voted this week to end
the rule that required employers to pay employees who can’t work due catching
COVID-19 on the job site. In making the decision, the board noted the increase in
vaccinations and the difficulty in enforcing given how broadly COVID has spread and
proving it was actually caught on the job. The new rules will last for two years. The
Board noted that new permanent rules are being developed and several said that they
hoped to include a requirement that sick workers get paid. For more information, please
CLICK HERE.
● The City of San Diego City Council voted this week to extend the declared state of
emergency for 60 more days citing the State’s declaration has not yet expired. The
action comes as COVID rates rise throughout the county. For more information, please
CLICK HERE.
CITY OF SD DSD ANNUAL HOLIDAY CLOSURES AND CONSTRUCTION RESTRICTIONS
● CLOSURES – The City of San Diego’s Development Service offices will be closed for
business on Monday, December 26th and Monday, January 2
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in observance of the
Christmas and New Year’s Holidays. Additionally, in person payments, in person records
and ALL virtual appointments will be unavailable between Tuesday, December 27th and
Friday, December 30th
. During these closures, on-line services will still be available by
visiting HERE.
● CONSTRUCTION RESTRICTIONS – Beginning Thanksgiving Day, November 24, through
New Year’s Day, January 1, construction work on some public streets within the City of
San Diego will be prohibited. The restriction applies to construction activities that
adversely impact the public right of way, street parking, vehicle and bicycle travel lanes,
or pedestrian sidewalks and parkways. The restriction applies to streets adjacent to
major retail shopping areas, including Downtown La Jolla, Fashion Valley Mall, Westfield
Mission Valley, Westfield Town Centre, Las Americas Premium Outlets, and other
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prominent community retail shopping areas throughout the city. This year, Downtown
San Diego has been exempted from the annual restriction. To learn more, click HERE.
CARB APPROVES PLAN FOR CARBON NEUTRALITY BY 2045
The California Air Resources Board or CARB unanimously approved a new plan to achieve
carbon neutrality by 2045. The plan aims to reduce fossil fuel use by 86% within that
timeframe. The mandate to reach this date was signed into law earlier this year by Governor
Newsom. CARB was then tasked with how to achieve the goal and set a broad roadmap to
achieve it. It includes expansion of renewable power (see previous story and that seemingly
conflicting action) and requiring new residential and commercial buildings to use only electric
appliances. Transportation was also a key focus area requiring reductions in both aviation fuel
demand as well as that all medium duty trucks sold are zero-emission by 2040. For more
information, please CLICK HERE.
CPUC CHANGES RULES FOR ROOFTOP SOLAR COMPENSATION
The California Public Utilities Commission voted unanimously this week to change the rules for
rooftop solar. The new rules dramatically cut the so-called subsidies for new solar installations
while also providing financial benefits for adding battery storage as a part of those systems. The
new “Net Energy Metering” or NEM 3.0 program will change credits to those who have installed
solar from the “retail rate” of electricity to the “actual avoided cost” which is, in some
estimates, about 75% lower. If paired with batteries, given the cost of energy in the early
evening, the compensation rate would dramatically rise. Solar advocates decried the decision
claiming it will stifle new solar installations. For more information, please CLICK HERE.
FLETCHER TO STEP DOWN AS CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Supervisor Nathan Fletcher announced this week that he would step down as Chair of the Board
of Supervisors after two years, throwing his support behind current Vice Chair Nora Vargas. If
approved, Vargas would be the first Latina Chair of the Board of Supervisors in its history.
SD MAYOR GLORIA SUPPORTS NORA VARGAS FOR SANDAG CHAIR
Although he’s currently vice chair and in the queue to be chair, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria
announced this week he’s throwing his support behind County Supervisor Nora Vargas to be
Chair of the SANDAG Board of Directors. The SANDAG Board annually nominates their
leadership from their body. Catherine Blakespear, the former Chair, was recently elected to the
California State Senate. These leadership changes come at a tumultuous time for SANDAG as
they grapple with how to pay for their $66 billion Regional Transportation Plan. SANDAG has
asked for the state’s direction on a proposed vehicle mileage fee that has recently been
requested to be removed by a majority of the SANDAG Board. In addition, the expected citizen
ballot measure to increase the sales tax to pay for a portion of the plan failed to collect the
necessary signatures to qualify for the November 2022 ballot. The leadership decisions will be
made once all of the cities who make up SANDAG have decided who their representatives will
be. The recent election changed a number of current members, so more to come.
CITY OF SAN DIEGO ELECTS COUNCIL LEADERSHIP
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The City of San Diego’s City Council this week unanimously re-elected Councilmember Sean
Elo-Rivera as their Council President. Additionally, they approved new committee chairs. The
list of those positions are as follows:
● Rules Committee: Sean Elo-Rivera, Chair; Monica Montgomery-Steppe, Vice Chair
● Environment Committee: Joe LaCava, Chair; Marne von Wilpert, Vice Chair
● Community and Neighborhood Services: Jennifer Campbell, Chair; Sean Elo-Rivera,
Vice Chair
● Audit Committee: Stephen Whitburn, Chair; Vivian Moreno, Vice Chair
● Budget and Government Efficiency: Monica Montgomery-Steppe, Chair; Vivian
Moreno, Vice Chair
● Public Safety: Marne von Wilpert, Chair; Monica Montgomery-Steppe, Vice Chair
● Active Transportation and Infrastructure: Kent Lee, Chair; Joe LaCava, Vice Chair
● Economic Development and Intergovernmental Relations: Raul Campillo, Chair;
Monica Montgomery-Steppe, Vice Chair
● Land Use and Housing Committee: Vivian Moreno, Chair; Joe LaCava, Vice Chair
For more information on the City of San Diego Council Committee assignments, please CLICK
HERE.
CITY OF SAN DIEGO APPROVES NEW INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING POLICY
The San Diego City Council voted to adopt a new infrastructure funding policy this week to help
neglected neighborhoods get updated amenities like parks, libraries and fire stations. The new
prioritization methodology follows the Council’s approval of the “Parks for ALL of Us” and “Build
Better SD” programs which discuss the needs of underserved communities in the region. The
new funding methodology will allow for shovel ready projects to get moved to the front,
particularly if they’re in underserved communities where incomes are low as is access to
economic opportunity. The new program might delay infrastructure projects in developing
parts of the city, where CIP funding has usually been held within those community plan areas.
The new plan does give some priority to neighborhoods experiencing growth, so it will need to
be seen what if any delays might be seen. For more information, please CLICK HERE.
COUNTY ADOPTS NEW CONTRACTOR RULES FOR JANITORS, LANDSCAPERS AND SECURITY
The San Diego County Board of Supervisors adopted a new policy this week regarding the use of
private contractors providing janitorial, landscaping and security at County properties. The
policy, proposed by Supervisors Nathan Fletcher and Terra Lawson Remer, will create several
new requirements for contractors providing these services including: a worker retention
program, the need for a “labor peace agreement” with any “labor organization” that represents
employees performing work under the contract, a “wage theft” fund to be funded by contracts
for these services and a “collective bargaining agreement” preference. The policy will also set a
“wage floor” based upon a benchmarking analysis every five years, as well as requirements for
harassment prevention and training programs for all hired contractors. The County currently
has 21 contracts worth over $40 million that would be impacted by this new policy. For more
information, please CLICK HERE.
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LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE CHANGES APPROVED BY PLANNING COMMISSION
The City of San Diego’s Planning Commission voted to support the revised staff
recommendation for the annual Land Development Code Update last month. The Planning
Commission had previously declined to make a recommendation, which led to a month-long
delay to allow for resolution to a few issues, including those raised by the commercial real
estate industry. With this action, city staff said that the update would go to the City Council’s
Land Use and Housing Committee in January and the full Council in February of next year.
The code update package is brought forward annually to help maintain the Land Development
Code (LDC), ensure simplify the City’s development regulations, make the code more adaptable,
eliminate redundancies and contradictions, standardize the code framework, and increase
predictability in application of regulations. The proposed amendments typically streamline
regulatory requirements, reduce constraints, and provide additional incentives to increase the
supply of housing. As previously noted in these updates, the issue items are separated into five
categories; regulatory reforms, compliance with state law, corrections, clarifications and
amendments to align the code with the City’s climate, equity and housing goals.
In terms of changes proposed by staff to address concerns, the Planning Department did the
following:
Redefinition of Transit Priority Areas (TPA): Staff has come up with a newly defined designation
called “Sustainable Development Area” or SDA to replace TPA’s for the purposes of the City’s
Complete Communities program. Complete Communities allows for more density in certain
areas of the city that are adjacent to transit. The original SDA proposal indicated a significant
reduction in net developable acreage. Staff went back and look at its maps and made some
adjustments in certain areas of the city to better reflect transit access and, more importantly,
increase the acreage available for development. The new map shows a net difference of over
5,000 acres. A new interactive map was created that can show the differences in the old TPA
are, as well as the new SDA area. There are pipeline protections for properties that might no
longer be covered for the purposes of the city’s Complete Communities program, but that
would require a submitted application before January 1, 2024. To access the interactive map,
please CLICK HERE.
Change in uses allowed in RMX / EMX zone: Staff also, in response to stakeholder input, chose
to withdraw the proposal to prohibit self-storage and certain auto related uses, like sales and
repairs, in the EMX and RMX zones. They did continue to include prohibitions on self-storage in
areas covered by the Prime Industrial Land (PIL) land designation. Staff did note the withdrawn
proposal could be considered in next year’s code update package.
These changes were included in a memo to the Planning Commission, which can be accessed by
CLICKING HERE. To review the code update package from the City’s code update webpage,
please click HERE.
SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCIL DISCUSSES NEW RESIDENTIAL TENANT RIGHTS ORDINANCE
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Following a workshop convened by Council President Sean Elo-Rivera in October, San Diego
Mayor Todd Gloria and Elo-Rivera have proposed a new tenant relief framework. The press
release, found here, proposes the following concepts:
1. Provide additional notice to renters that clarifies “no fault” and “at fault” termination of
tenancies so that definitions are clear for renters and providers
2. City to explore long-term revenue stream to support renters and providers
3. Establish new services and resources for seniors and disabled individuals
4. Develop new renter resources related to noticing, online resources, and partnerships
with nonprofits
5. Just cause protections beginning day 1 of tenancy
6. Require additional relocation assistance beyond AB 1482 requirements
7. Provide additional time for seniors and disabled residents to find new housing when
receiving a no-fault termination notice
8. Provide additional time for renters to remedy violations that may be cause for eviction
City staff will now work to draft an implementing ordinance expected to come before the city
council in early 2023. At this time, commercial office and retail properties are not impacted, but
BOMA continues to monitor the situation.
WATER RATES IN SAN DIEGO EXPECTED TO DRAMATICALLY RISE
According to a recent analysis conducted by a City of San Diego’s Water Department consultant
Raftelis, San Diego will need to increase water rates by 17.6 percent over the next two years to
pay for the city's Pure Water sewage recycling system, cover rising import water prices, and
replace deteriorating pipes. Customers with single-family homes would see an average monthly
rate rise from $81.07 to $95.03 in November 2023 and upwards of $103.06 in January 2025.
According to city water officials, the increases are necessary to maintain and upgrade the 3,300
miles of pipeline, 49 pump stations, nine reservoirs, and three treatment plants that make up
the city’s water system. The increased charges will pay for 950 additional city water employees,
infrastructure repairs and improvements, as well as improvements to the city's customer care
system. The planned increases received preliminary approval from the city council's Budget
Committee on Wednesday. For more information about water billing rates, click HERE.
MWD DECLARES DROUGHT EMERGENCY
The Metropolitan Water District or MWD has declared a drought emergency as California faces
a fourth consecutive dry year. This action follows a similar declaration eight months ago. MWD
provides water for over 7 million people through the State Water Project. This includes the San
Diego County Water Authority. While new mandatory measures are included, direction was
given to member agencies to reduce water consumption. Some agencies have decided to
implement a mix of voluntary and mandatory conservation measures. San Diego’s agency has
indicated that the current curtailment requirements are sufficient given the other water
resources available to customers but noted that could change if the winter months don’t do
enough to increase supplies. For more information, please CLICK HERE.
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SAN DIEGO COUNTY APCD LOOKING AT NEW TRUCK RULES
There is an effort afoot by the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District (APCD) to propose
a new “Indirect Source Rule” or ISR on warehouse and logistic center related truck and cargo
handling equipment emissions. The proposal is rumored to be modeled after the recently
adopted and very controversial effort in Orange and Riverside Counties by the South Coast Air
Quality Management District to adopt an ISR for their warehouse related emissions. In the case
of the effort in Orange County and the Inland Empire, the commercial real estate industry was
heavily involved in fighting that effort. A lawsuit has been filed by the California Truckers
Association on the South Coast ISR and is pending in federal court. While there are very few
details, APCD has said that they are looking for input on the potential for mitigation
requirements for targeted emissions, including sustainability measures like new solar, EV and
electric trucks to transport goods. It could also include an impact fee as an offset to unmitigable
emissions. To get a sense of what might be proposed, please click HERE for information on the
South Coast AQMD ISR.
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