Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Legislative Affairs topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County Intergovernmental Relations briefs committee on special session, budget priorities and bills
Summary
The Office of Intergovernmental Relations updated the committee on state and federal activity, including special-session budget bills, committee assignments for the new legislative session, and county legislative priorities; the committee accepted the report.
The Santa Clara County Office of Intergovernmental Relations (IGR) briefed the Finance and Government Operations Committee on Jan. 22 about early activity in the 2025-26 California legislative session and the 119th U.S. Congress, the governor's special session and the state budget outlook.
Monica Tong, program manager with IGR, and Elaine Trinn summarized committee assignments for the county's legislative delegation and highlighted that Governor Newsom had called an extraordinary (special) session focused on safeguarding communities and disaster response.
Trinn told the committee about key special-session budget proposals under consideration in Sacramento, including $25,000,000 to the California Department of Justice for legal defense costs, $15,000,000 to the Judicial Council for Legal Services Trust Fund Commission and nonprofit legal services providers, and $10,000,000 to the state Department of Social Services for expansion of immigration services to existing vendors. The special-session wildfire response budget bill would authorize $2,500,000,000 for initial emergency response and recovery expenditures.
IGR also summarized the governor's proposed 2025-26 budget, noting a two-year structural gap of about $45 billion from 2024-25 and a modest projected surplus of $363,000,000 in the current summary; IGR said additional trailer-bill language is expected and the May revision and legislative negotiations will follow.
IGR noted approved county legislative proposals, including AB 243 (introduced by Assemblymember Patrick Arons) to help systems-involved youth demonstrate financial independence for financial aid, and a reappropriation of the California Health Facilities Financing Authority's community services infrastructure grant program through June 2028. The committee moved to receive the report; the motion passed by roll call. There were no public comments on this item.
Supervisors on the committee urged continued IGR monitoring of threats to county budgets, particularly federal funding and Medi-Cal payments, and encouraged use of county subject-matter experts to inform delegation members and help advocate for county priorities.
