Title
Staff Report for Rules Committee Discussion of City Council Participation in Legislative Advocacy Work in Washington, DC
Staffreport
Per City Council direction at the February 6, 2017 Council meeting, staff provides the following information for the Rules Committee's consideration regarding the selection process for City Council members who wish to travel to Washington DC to attend annual conferences or conduct legislative advocacy work.
BACKGROUND & ANALYSIS
Each year, the Mayor and/or some members of the City Council may choose to travel to Washington, D.C. to attend the U.S. Conference of Mayors Winter meeting in January, or the National League of Cities - Congressional Cities Conference in March. While in the Capitol, they may have the opportunity to meet with San Leandro's elected representatives or staff in Congress, or with federal agency staff. These interactions allow the Mayor and members of the City Council to learn more about various grant opportunities, and to advocate San Leandro's needs and interests at the federal level. These interactions are coordinated by the City's federal advocacy representative Len Simon, with the support of City staff, and may include the presentation of written material in support of city projects, or advocacy efforts related to various policy areas that are of direct relevance to the City. These efforts have proven successful in recent years, as demonstrated by various federal grant awards that the City received. Examples include two grants from the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) office (a $250,000 award for two school resource officers, and an approximately $75,000 award for engagement efforts with Chinese-speaking community residents), as well as a $2.1 million grant from the US Department of Commerce - Economic Development Administration for the expansion of the Lit San Leandro fiber optic loop.
Currently, there is no formal process for determining which members of the City Council participa...
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