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C.120

To:	Board of Supervisors
From:	John Kopchik, Director, Conservation & Development Department
Date:	October 18, 2016

Contra

Costa

County

Subject:

Comments on CalEnviroScreen 3.0

APPROVE	OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR	RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On: 10/18/2016

APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED

OTHER

Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:

John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Mary N. Piepho, District III Supervisor
Karen Mitchoff, District IV Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor

Contact:

Jody London, 925-674-7871

I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: October 18, 2016
David Twa,

BY:	, Deputy

RECOMMENDATION(S):

APPROVE and AUTHORIZE comments to the California Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment on the draft CalEnviroScreen 3.0 that would change the definition of "disadvantaged communities" and affect access to Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds.

FISCAL IMPACT:

If CalEnviroScreen 3.0 is adopted, several areas in Contra Costa County will no longer be classified as "disadvantaged communities" for purposes of accessing Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds. This means the County, and cities within the County, will have priority for fewer funds. The exact amount is not known.

BACKGROUND:

On October 6, 2016, the California Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment released a draft version of CalEnviroScreen 3.0, the tool that determines which communities will be classified as "disadvantaged" for purposes of accessing Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds. CalEnviroScreen 3.0 uses different indicators than were used in the previous version. This results in significantly fewer Northern California communities, including communities in the Bay Area, being identified as "disadvantaged communities" than previously. This in turn reduces opportunities for access to Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds generated through the Cap and Trade Program. In Contra Costa County, the number of disadvantaged communities drops from 23 to 12. The attached map prepared by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District compares the areas considered "disadvantaged" under the current version 2.0 of CalEnviroScreen with the proposed version 3.0.

The attached draft comment letter provides additional detail and conveys a number of arguments for maintaining access to funding for communities in the County.

CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:

If the Board does not approve this action, the County will not be able to comment on a State policy change that has negative impacts for the County.

CHILDREN'S IMPACT STATEMENT:

The proposed comments will support the following outcome in the Children's Report card: Children and youth are healthy and preparing for a productive adulthood. "Disadvantaged communities" for purposes of CalEnviroScreen are communities that are disproportionately burdened by multiple sources of pollution. Children living in these communities are exposed to more pollution than other children, and can be more severely affected by adverse health impacts and developmental issues. The new definition of CalEnviroScreen means some communities in the County will have less access to funds that could improve conditions for children.