Board adopts 2025 federal and state legislative platform with added insurance language; Ferguson Group updates advocacy wins

The Mono County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to adopt its 2025 federal and state legislative platform, adding new draft language urging federal and state action to expand access to home and fire insurance and to protect existing policies and policyholders from cancellations.

Sandra Mobley, County Administrative Officer, summarized edits to the county’s platform, saying staff added emphasis on housing diversity, forest health and wildfire prevention, wastewater and drinking-water infrastructure, cybersecurity, disaster preparedness and broadband equity. She said the county had worked with the Ferguson Group for federal advocacy since 2022 and that the platform was updated annually.

Jeremiah Van Auken of the Ferguson Group outlined advocacy activity in Washington, D.C., and pointed to several outcomes and pending items: he said a $1,000,000 appropriation for evacuation and emergency response routes was included in the House fiscal year 2025 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development bill, and that legislative language for a U.S. Forest Service waterline extension at a Bridgeport housing complex was included in the Interior and Environment appropriations bill. Van Auken said a submitted emergency medical service station modifications request was not funded in FY25 but could be resubmitted in FY26.

Van Auken presented proposed new platform language on insurance. The board discussed edits: Supervisor McFarland asked to broaden a draft phrasing—removing “living in hazardous areas” and replacing it with wording to ensure insurance remains available to all individuals, to better capture renters, businesses and homeowners. Van Auken said additional language would be added under the disaster response section to: support a federally available fire-insurance option analogous to the National Flood Insurance Program, support legislation protecting homeowners with active insurance plans from cancellation, and oppose insurer efforts to cancel existing homeowner policies. The board asked staff to incorporate supervisory edits and to publish the final platform.

The board adopted the platform on a motion and roll-call vote: Supervisors Dugan, Crites, Peters, McFarland and Chair Salcedo voted yes. The clerk announced “5 yeses, 0 noes. Motion passes.”

Van Auken and Mobley also briefed supervisors on near-term federal activity that could affect the county including appropriations, reconciliation bills, potential changes to tax and infrastructure programs and reauthorization efforts for Secure Rural Schools and PILT; supervisors suggested further refinements to platform language about public-lands disposal, transfers and funding for federal land management and gateway-community projects. Van Auken said staff will work with the CAO to incorporate the board’s edits and publish the platform.