Existing law provides for the formation of the Sacramento-Yolo Port District, as prescribed, and establishes the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission, composed of 5 members. Existing law requires that 4 members be appointed by the City Council of the City of West Sacramento, and one member be appointed by the Board of Supervisors of Yolo County.

This bill would specify that the term of those members appointed to the commission is 4 years from the date of appointment, and would provide that commission members serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority. The bill would authorize the replacement of commission members by the appointing authority prior to the end of that 4-year term, in the manner set by law for appointments by the appointing authority.

Existing law provides for the formation of the Sacramento-Yolo Port District, as prescribed, and establishes the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission, composed of 5 members. Existing law requires that 4 members be appointed by the City Council of the City of West Sacramento, and one member be appointed by the Board of Supervisors of Yolo County.

This bill would specify that the term of those members appointed to the commission is 4 years from the date of appointment, and would provide that commission members serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority. The bill would authorize the replacement of commission members by the appointing authority prior to the end of that 4-year term, in the manner set by law for appointments by the appointing authority.

Existing law provides for the formation of the Sacramento-Yolo Port District, as prescribed, and establishes the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission, composed of 5 members. Existing law requires that 4 members be appointed by the City Council of the City of West Sacramento, and one member be appointed by the Board of Supervisors of Yolo County.

This bill would specify that the term of those members appointed to the commission is 4 years from the date of appointment, and would provide that commission members serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority. The bill would authorize the replacement of commission members by the appointing authority prior to the end of that 4-year term, in the manner set by law for appointments by the appointing authority.

Existing law provides for the formation of the Sacramento-Yolo Port District, as prescribed, and establishes the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission, composed of 5 members. Existing law requires that 4 members be appointed by the City Council of the City of West Sacramento, and one member be appointed by the Board of Supervisors of Yolo County.

This bill would specify that the term of those members appointed to the commission is 4 years from the date of appointment, and would provide that commission members serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority. The bill would authorize the replacement of commission members by the appointing authority prior to the end of that 4-year term, in the manner set by law for appointments by the appointing authority.

Existing law authorizes the district to acquire and dispose of real and personal property, as specified. Existing law, notwithstanding that authorization, prohibits the district from selling or dismantling the Deepwater Channel or the North Terminal Property without the prior consent of the City of Sacramento, the County of Sacramento, and the County of Yolo, or selling or leasing, for nonmaritime purposes, land in excess of 10 acres located north of Southport Parkway and west of Lake Washington, unless, prior to executing a sale or lease, the board of the Sacramento-Yolo Port District makes a written finding, based on substantial evidence in the record, that the proposed sale or lease is necessary to maintain the financial viability of the port.

This bill would delete that provision prohibiting the port district from selling or leasing for nonmaritime purposes, those lands north of Southport Parkway and west of Lake Washington, unless, prior to executing a sale or lease, the board makes that specified finding.

 CONSENT 

Bill No: AB 1226

Author:

:

Vote:

SENATE GOVERNANCE & FIN. COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/21/17

AYES: McGuire, Nguyen, Beall, Hernandez, Hertzberg, Lara, Moorlach

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-0, 4/20/17 (Consent) - See last page for vote

SUBJECT:

SOURCE: Port of West Sacramento

DIGEST:

This bill authorizes the City of West Sacramento and Yolo County to replace an appointed member to the Sacramento-Yolo Port District prior to the end of their four-year term of office.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Provides for the formation and organization of River Port Districts governed by a five-member port commission.
2. Establishes a four-year term of office from the time of appointment for port commissioners.
3. Provides for staggered terms by requiring the first appointed chairman to hold office for two years, and the remaining commission members to classify themselves by lot, to hold office respectively for one, two, three, and four years.
4. Requires the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission to be composed of five members selected and appointed as follows:
   1. Four Commissioners appointed by the City of West Sacramento City Council. Requires Commissioners to be residents of the City of West Sacramento. Authorizes appointed Commissioners to be members of the City Council. Requires appointments to be made in the manner set by law for appointments by the City of West Sacramento; and,
   2. One Commissioner appointed by the Yolo County Board of Supervisors. Requires the Commissioner to be a resident of the City of West Sacramento. Authorizes the appointed Commissioner to be a member of the Board of Supervisors. Requires the appointment to be made in the manner set by law for appointments by Yolo County.

This bill:

1. Authorizes the appointing authorities, the City of West Sacramento and Yolo County, to replace their appointment to the Commission prior to the end of the four-year term of office in the manner set by law for appointments by the appointing authority.
2. Requires appointed Commissioners to serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority.

Background

The Harbors and Navigation Code provides for the formation of harbor and port districts and grants them authority to maintain, secure, and operate some of California’s coastal and river ports. According to the most recently published special districts annual financial report, there are 13 port and harbor special districts throughout the state.

The Sacramento-Yolo Port District (Port) was formed in 1947 to develop and maintain a deep water port for the northern California Region. Upon formation, the Port was governed by a five-member Commission. Following the incorporation of the City of West Sacramento in 1988, the Legislature expanded the Commission to seven members: two members appointed by the City of Sacramento, two members appointed by Sacramento County, one member appointed by Yolo County, one member appointed by the City of West Sacramento, and one member jointly appointed by the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County.

In January 2006, the appointing jurisdictions of the Port unanimously approved a binding agreement permanently giving West Sacramento three additional seats on an "interim" seven member Commission. The agreement created a mechanism to reimburse the City and County of Sacramento for their original investment in the Port of Sacramento, and contained an agreement to sponsor state legislation to permanently modify the boundaries of the Port and reduce the size of the Commission to five commissioners: four appointed by the West Sacramento City Council and one appointed by the Yolo County Board of Supervisors. The Legislature codified the agreement by adopting AB 2939 (Wolk, 2006).

River Port District Law requires the four year terms of commissioners to be staggered. However, the commissioners of the Port also serve as West Sacramento City Councilmembers and Yolo County Supervisors. These staggered terms on the commission often do not align with their elected terms with the City and County, causing inconsistencies that can lead to vacancies. To ensure that the Commission has sufficient representatives, the Port of Sacramento wants to make certain that the appointment process for commissioners is consistent with their elected terms as city councilmembers and county supervisors.

Comments

Purpose of the bill. Existing law for river port districts requires a staggering of port commissioner terms, which has proven to be problematic and inconsistent with the timing and the manner in which the City of West Sacramento makes its commission appointments which can lead to prolonged commissioner vacancies. Assembly Bill 1226 amends Harbors and Navigation Code Section 6830.1 to allow members of the Port Commission to serve at the pleasure of the appointing governing body and authorizes their replacement prior to the end of the Commissioner’s term in elected office. The increased appointing flexibility will allow the Port to avoid lengthy commissioner vacancies and facilitate smoother leadership transitions.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Fiscal Com.: Local:

SUPPORT: (Verified 6/23/17)

Port of West Sacramento (source)

OPPOSITION: (Verified 6/23/17)

None received

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-0, 4/20/17

AYES: Acosta, Aguiar-Curry, Travis Allen, Arambula, Baker, Berman, Bigelow, Bloom, Bocanegra, Bonta, Burke, Caballero, Calderon, Cervantes, Chau, Chávez, Chen, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Cunningham, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Eggman, Flora, Fong, Frazier, Friedman, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gipson, Gloria, Gomez, Gonzalez Fletcher, Gray, Grayson, Harper, Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Kiley, Lackey, Levine, Limón, Low, Maienschein, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Reyes, Rodriguez, Rubio, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Voepel, Waldron, Weber, Wood, Rendon

NO VOTE RECORDED: Brough, Choi, Gallagher, Mathis, Patterson, Ridley-Thomas

Prepared by:

6/23/17 9:47:08

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNANCE AND FINANCE

Senator Mike McGuire, Chair

2017 - 2018 Regular

River port districts: Sacramento-Yolo Port District

Authorizes the City of West Sacramento and Yolo County to replace an appointed member to the Sacramento-Yolo Port District prior to the end of their four-year term of office.

Background

The Harbors and Navigation Code provides for the formation of harbor and port districts and grants them authority to maintain, secure, and operate some of California’s coastal and river ports. According to the most recently published special districts annual financial report, there are 13 port and harbor special districts throughout the state.

The Sacramento-Yolo Port District (Port) was formed in 1947 to develop and maintain a deep water port for the northern California Region. Upon formation, the Port was governed by a five-member Commission. Following the incorporation of the City of West Sacramento in 1988, the Legislature expanded the Commission to seven members: two members appointed by the City of Sacramento, two members appointed by Sacramento County, one member appointed by Yolo County, one member appointed by the City of West Sacramento, and one member jointly appointed by the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County.

In January 2006, the appointing jurisdictions of the Port unanimously approved a binding agreement permanently giving West Sacramento three additional seats on an "interim" seven member Commission. The agreement created a mechanism to reimburse the City and County of Sacramento for their original investment in the Port of Sacramento, and contained an agreement to sponsor state legislation to permanently modify the boundaries of the Port and reduce the size of the Commission to five commissioners: four appointed by the West Sacramento City Council and one appointed by the Yolo County Board of Supervisors. The Legislature codified the agreement by adopting AB 2939 (Wolk, 2006).

River Port District Law requires the four year terms of commissioners to be staggered. However, the commissioners of the Port also serve as West Sacramento City Councilmembers and Yolo County Supervisors. These staggered terms on the commission often do not align with their elected terms with the City and County, causing inconsistencies that can lead to vacancies. To ensure that the Commission has sufficient representatives, the Port of Sacramento wants to make certain that the appointment process for commissioners is consistent with their elected terms as city councilmembers and county supervisors.

Proposed Law

Assembly Bill 1226 specifies that the term of the members appointed to the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission must be four years from the date of the appointment. The bill clarifies that Commission members serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority and can be replaced prior to the end of the term in the manner set by law for appointment by the appointing authority.

State Revenue Impact

No estimate.

Comments

1. Purpose of the bill. Existing law for river port districts requires a staggering of port commissioner terms, which has proven to be problematic and inconsistent with the timing and the manner in which the City of West Sacramento makes its commission appointments which can lead to prolonged commissioner vacancies. Assembly Bill 1226 amends Harbors and Navigation Code Section 6830.1 to allow members of the Port Commission to serve at the pleasure of the appointing governing body and authorizes their replacement prior to the end of the Commissioner’s term in elected office. The increased appointing flexibility will allow the Port to avoid lengthy commissioner vacancies and facilitate smoother leadership transitions.

Assembly Actions

Assembly Local Government 8-0

Assembly Floor 74-0

Support and Opposition

(6/1/17)

Support: Port of West Sacramento.

Opposition: Unknown.

-- END --

SENATE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNANCE AND FINANCE

Senator Mike McGuire, Chair

2017 - 2018 Regular

River port districts: Sacramento-Yolo Port District

Authorizes the City of West Sacramento and Yolo County to replace an appointed member to the Sacramento-Yolo Port District prior to the end of their four-year term of office.

Background

The Harbors and Navigation Code provides for the formation of harbor and port districts and grants them authority to maintain, secure, and operate some of California’s coastal and river ports. According to the most recently published special districts annual financial report, there are 13 port and harbor special districts throughout the state.

The Sacramento-Yolo Port District (Port) was formed in 1947 to develop and maintain a deep water port for the northern California Region. Upon formation, the Port was governed by a five-member Commission. Following the incorporation of the City of West Sacramento in 1988, the Legislature expanded the Commission to seven members: two members appointed by the City of Sacramento, two members appointed by Sacramento County, one member appointed by Yolo County, one member appointed by the City of West Sacramento, and one member jointly appointed by the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County.

In January 2006, the appointing jurisdictions of the Port unanimously approved a binding agreement permanently giving West Sacramento three additional seats on an "interim" seven member Commission. The agreement created a mechanism to reimburse the City and County of Sacramento for their original investment in the Port of Sacramento, and contained an agreement to sponsor state legislation to permanently modify the boundaries of the Port and reduce the size of the Commission to five commissioners: four appointed by the West Sacramento City Council and one appointed by the Yolo County Board of Supervisors. The Legislature codified the agreement by adopting AB 2939 (Wolk, 2006).

River Port District Law requires the four year terms of commissioners to be staggered. However, the commissioners of the Port also serve as West Sacramento City Councilmembers and Yolo County Supervisors. These staggered terms on the commission often do not align with their elected terms with the City and County, causing inconsistencies that can lead to vacancies. To ensure that the Commission has sufficient representatives, the Port of Sacramento wants to make certain that the appointment process for commissioners is consistent with their elected terms as city councilmembers and county supervisors.

Proposed Law

Assembly Bill 1226 specifies that the term of the members appointed to the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission must be four years from the date of the appointment. The bill clarifies that Commission members serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority and can be replaced prior to the end of the term in the manner set by law for appointment by the appointing authority.

State Revenue Impact

No estimate.

Comments

1. Purpose of the bill. Existing law for river port districts requires a staggering of port commissioner terms, which has proven to be problematic and inconsistent with the timing and the manner in which the City of West Sacramento makes its commission appointments which can lead to prolonged commissioner vacancies. Assembly Bill 1226 amends Harbors and Navigation Code Section 6830.1 to allow members of the Port Commission to serve at the pleasure of the appointing governing body and authorizes their replacement prior to the end of the Commissioner’s term in elected office. The increased appointing flexibility will allow the Port to avoid lengthy commissioner vacancies and facilitate smoother leadership transitions.

Assembly Actions

Assembly Local Government 8-0

Assembly Floor 74-0

Support and Opposition

(6/1/17)

Support: Port of West Sacramento.

Opposition: Unknown.

-- END --

Date of Hearing: April 5, 2017

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 1226 (

Author:McCarty) – As Amended Ver:March 28, 2017

SUBJECT: River port districts: Sacramento-Yolo Port District.

SUMMARY: Authorizes the City of West Sacramento and the County of Yolo to replace an appointed member to the Sacramento-Yolo Port District Commission (Commission) prior to the end of their four-year term of office, as specified. Specifically, this bill:

1. Authorizes the appointing authorities, the City of West Sacramento and Yolo County, to replace their appointment to the Commission prior to the end of the four-year term of office in the manner set by law for appointments by the appointing authority.
2. Requires appointed Commissioners to serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Provides for the formation and organization of River Port Districts governed by a five- member port commission.
2. Establishes a four-year term of office from the time of appointment for port commissioners.
3. Provides for staggered terms by requiring the first appointed chairman to hold office for two years, and the remaining commission members to classify themselves by lot, to hold office respectively for one, two, three, and four years.
4. Requires the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission to be composed of five members selected and appointed as follows:
   1. Four Commissioners appointed by the City of West Sacramento City Council. Requires Commissioners to be residents of the City of West Sacramento. Authorizes appointed Commissioners to be members of the City Council. Requires appointments to be made in the manner set by law for appointments by the City of West Sacramento; and,
   2. One Commissioner appointed by the Yolo County Board of Supervisors. Requires the Commissioner to be a resident of the City of West Sacramento. Authorizes the appointed Commissioner to be a member of the Board of Supervisors. Requires the appointment to be made in the manner set by law for appointments by Yolo County.

FISCAL EFFECT: None

COMMENTS:

1. Sacramento-Yolo Port District. The Sacramento-Yolo Port District (Port) was formed in 1947 to develop and maintain a deep water port for the northern California Region. Upon formation, the Port was governed by a five-member Commission. Following the incorporation of the City of West Sacramento in 1988, the Legislature expanded the Commission to seven members: two members appointed by the City of Sacramento, two members appointed by Sacramento County, one member appointed by Yolo County, one member appointed by the City of West Sacramento, and one member jointly appointed by the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County.

In January 2006, the appointing jurisdictions of the Port unanimously approved a binding agreement permanently giving West Sacramento three additional seats on an "interim" seven member Commission. The agreement created a mechanism to reimburse the City and County of Sacramento for their original investment in the Port of Sacramento, and contained an agreement to sponsor state legislation to permanently modify the boundaries of the Port and reduce the size of the Commission to five commissioners, four appointed by the West Sacramento City Council and one appointed by the Yolo County Board of Supervisors.
AB 2939 (Wolk), Chapter 284, Statues of 2006, made these changes to the Port's boundaries and governance structure.

1. Bill Summary. Pursuant to existing law, the Port is governed by a five-member Commission composed of four Commissioners appointed by the City of West Sacramento and one Commissioner appointed by Yolo County. The Port's Commissioners are appointed to four-year terms. This bill authorizes the appointing authorities, the City of West Sacramento and Yolo County, to replace an appointed Commissioner prior to the end of their term in a manner set by law for appointments by the appointing authority. This bill maintains the four-year term of office from the date of appointment and requires Commissioners to serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority. This bill is sponsored by the Port.
2. Author's Statement. According to the author, "AB 1226 would make much needed updates to the laws governing the Port of West Sacramento. These updates make a simple change to the terms of port commissioners with the goal of reducing vacancies."
3. Arguments in Support. The Port states that existing law "…is problematic because it is inconsistent with West Sacramento's process for commission appointments, and creates the potential for extended vacancies on the Port Commission. AB 1226 will facilitate smoother leadership transitions on the Port Commission."
4. Arguments in Opposition. None on file.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Port of West Sacramento [SPONSOR]

Opposition

None on file

Analysis Prepared by: Misa Lennox / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958