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RCA seeks more federal land-acquisition funding as state budget outlook worsens
Summary
RCA staff told the board it has applied for increased federal land‑acquisition funding, backing a program target of $100 million while acknowledging near-term Senate and House discretionary proposals of roughly $22 million and $18.7 million; staff warned state deficits and staffing shortages at CDFW could slow permit processing.
At the Jan. 5 meeting, Andrew (RCA staff) gave the board a state and federal legislative update, laying out RCA advocacy priorities and the current budget outlook.
Andrew said the California Legislature reconvened for the second year of its two‑year session and that Governor Gavin Newsom’s budget proposal was due later in the week. He cited the state Legislative Analyst’s Office projections of a near‑$18 billion structural deficit and noted the LAO projects that deficit could grow to about $35 billion by fiscal year 2027–28. Andrew said staff will monitor the governor’s budget for possible impacts to programs of interest to the RCA, especially those that affect land acquisition in support of habitat conservation under the MSHCP.
On federal advocacy, Andrew said RCA staff met with House Appropriations Committee professional staff and submitted applications for discretionary land‑acquisition funding tied to the MSHCP goals. He described a program target of $100,000,000 as an aspirational goal for increased land‑acquisition grant funding, while acknowledging that current congressional proposals show substantially lower discretionary levels: "there's a senate proposal that's around $22,000,000 and the house proposal, which is about $18,700,000," he said. Andrew added that RCA also sought report language to direct federal partners to meet their land‑acquisition commitments under the plan.
Board members pressed staff on details. A Riverside representative asked which federal items would support the RCA’s goals; Andrew reiterated the discretionary grant applications and said staff would continue to advocate for higher funding. A Corona member asked for a consolidated one‑page sheet summarizing RCA’s requests for use when meeting with local state and federal representatives; Andrew agreed staff would prepare it for distribution.
Board members also raised concerns about state budget pressure and implementation capacity. Aaron (speaker 15) warned that state finance choices may shift general‑fund obligations to voter‑approved bond funds (citing Proposition 4) and that staffing shortages at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife could delay permit processing and slow application reviews that affect RCA projects.
Next steps: staff will monitor the governor’s budget release and congressional appropriations progress and provide a one‑page summary for board members engaging with representatives.
