Blogs

Federal Legislative Update: Week of January 19, 2025

By Morgan Leskody posted 15 hours ago
House and Senate Action The House is the only chamber in session this week. House House leaders are nearing the finish line on the full slate of FY 2026 appropriations, with a four-bill minibus expected to move this week, roughly 10 days ahead of the January 30 funding deadline. The package is expected to include Defense, Homeland Security, Labor-HHS-Education, and Transportation-HUD, along with several potential add-ons that have bipartisan support. While appropriators are optimistic about the outcome, the package does face some headwinds. For example, funding for the Department of Homeland Security is expected to be particularly contentious for ...

RiGHT Launches Innovative Revegetation Project (CO)

By Kristin Withrow posted 16 hours ago
On Long-Term Agricultural Property in Alamosa County This article was originally published in the Valley Courier by Jocelyn Catterson, Community Engagement Director, Rio Grande Headwaters Land Trust on December 28, 2025 DEL NORTE — The Rio Grande Headwaters Land Trust (RiGHT) is launching an innovative project on a 140-acre agricultural property in Alamosa County, in partnership with Wetland Dynamics, LLC, the Partners for Fish & Wildlife Program, and landowners Brian and Lindsay Meredith. Situated in the historic floodplain of the Rio Grande, the land has been in production for decades and has been managed organically since 2017. The property ...

NSDA supports Protecting & Enhancing Tax-exempt Municipal Bonds

By Morgan Leskody posted 20 hours ago
NSDA joins coalition letter with the Public Finance Network, including hundreds of thousands of public sector entities that issue debt to finance and build the infrastructure that contributes to strong economies at the state and local levels across the country. There is broad bipartisan support in Congress to enhance municipal bonds for state and local governments, thereby providing a more powerful, cost-effective way to drive further investment and economic growth. We urge members of Congress to join in supporting these bipartisan provisions: Restore the Tax-Exemption for Advance Refunding Municipal Bonds, Support Small Issuers, Eliminate Sequestration for Existing ...

CSDA Files Amicus Briefs In Support of Districts – 2025 Wrap-Up

By Morgan Leskody posted 21 hours ago
By: @Mustafa Hessabi , CSDA Chief Counsel As 2025 drew to a close, CSDA continued to represent the voice of special districts in the courts. As part of CSDA’s efforts to represent the interests of independent special districts wherever law or policy is made – including the courts – CSDA has tracked dozens of cases and has acted in key cases described below that may influence the revenues, operations, or governance of public agencies. CSDA receives insights on its amicus efforts from the Legal Advisory Working Group , comprised of attorneys throughout the state with experience serving the unique needs of special districts and the communities they serve. ...

Grants Update: Week of January 19, 2025

By Morgan Leskody posted 22 hours ago
New Grant Opportunities Department of Energy FY 2026 Digitizing Utilities Prize Round 3: Resilient Grid Innovation WHAT DOES IT FUND? The purpose of this program is to incentivize technology development partnerships with interdisciplinary teams of software developers and data experts to transform digital systems, data analytics, and grid resource integration for the electric sector. Click here for more information. WHO'S ELIGIBLE? Eligible applicants are private entities, nonfederal entities, tribes, municipalities, and academic institutions. TOTAL FUNDING AMOUNT? $2.4 million WHEN IS IT DUE? April 9, 2026 (Phase 1); December ...

Make or Break for Two Costly Pension Reform Measures Opposed by CSDA

By Morgan Leskody posted 5 days ago
By: @Aaron Avery As the second year of the 2025-2026 Legislative Session kicks into high gear, the State Legislature is dispensing with “two-year” bills left over from 2025. January 31 is the last day for bills still in their “house of origin” (i.e., the State Assembly for Assembly Bills), to pass to their second house. Two important public pension bills subject to January 31 deadline include AB 1383 [McKinnor] Public employees’ retirement benefits , and AB 1439 [Garcia] Public retirement systems: development projects: labor standards . AB 1383 seeks to make several significant changes to public pension plans, which would undermine the landmark pension ...

Grants Update: Week of January 12, 2026

By Morgan Leskody posted 7 days ago
New Grant Opportunities Department of Agriculture FY 2026 Circuit Rider Program: Technical Assistance for Rural Water Systems WHAT DOES IT FUND? The purpose of this program is to provide technical assistance to rural water systems that are experiencing day-to-day operational, financial, or managerial issues. Click here for more information. WHO'S ELIGIBLE? Eligible applicants are public bodies, nonprofit corporations, and Indian tribes that have rural water systems and the legal authority to own and operate water facilities. TOTAL FUNDING AMOUNT? Rather than providing monetary awards, this program provides technical assistance to ...

Lawmakers Soliciting WRDA Proposals

By Morgan Leskody posted 7 days ago
Congressional committees have begun gathering input to develop the next Water Resources Development Act (WRDA 2026), continuing a long-standing bipartisan process. Congress has enacted a WRDA every two years since 2014, and the most recent bill ( WRDA 2024 ) was signed into law in January 2025. WRDA legislation authorizes civil works projects carried out by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, including port and harbor improvements, inland waterways, flood risk management, storm protection, ecosystem restoration, and other water resources infrastructure. Projects included in WRDA originate at the local level and require a non-federal sponsor (i.e. ...

Federal Legislative Update: Week of January 12, 2026

By Morgan Leskody posted 7 days ago
House and Senate Action The House and Senate are both in session this week. House The House gaveled into session earlier today, and lawmakers are slated to consider a handful of noncontroversial bills on the suspension calendar (requires 2/3 majority for passage). Later in the week, the House is expected to consider a two-bill "minibus" spending package (more on this below). The full schedule is available here . Senate The Senate will begin consideration of a three-bill FY 2026 spending package that cleared the House last week. The legislation includes funding for the following spending bills: Energy and Water Development, Interior-Environment, ...

Newly Revised Brown Act Compliance Manual Now Available

By Morgan Leskody posted 7 days ago
CSDA’s newly revised Brown Act Compliance Manual is now available for members to download at no cost. The updated guide reflects recent changes and includes the full text of the Brown Act in the appendix. Printed copies will be available in the CSDA Bookstore by the end of the week for those who want copies to share with their board. Visit the Brown Act Revamp Resources page to download your copy and access additional resources. Download Now

CSDA and LAO Respond to Governor’s January “Workload” State Budget Proposal

By Morgan Leskody posted 7 days ago
By: @Ophelia Szigeti Last Friday, California Department of Finance Director Joe Stephenshaw presented the Governor’s Budget for 2026-2027. Director Stephenshaw emphasized that Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposal is a “workload” budget and is focused on funding baseline cost increases and program adjustments necessary to ensure the May Revision is fiscally sound. Director Stephenshaw also noted that the budget continues to build on prior investments made by the Governor and the State Legislature in education, public safety, childcare, housing, homelessness, and climate change, while maintaining a focus on long-term fiscal sustainability. He emphasized that ...

Deadline January 30: CSDA Survey to Understand PRA Request Impacts

By Morgan Leskody posted 8 days ago
By: @Marcus Detwiler CSDA is looking to survey its members to assess the scope, scale, and impact on special districts and other local agencies to comply with the California Public Records Act (PRA); this effort is in concert with similar efforts being undertaken by fellow local government association stakeholders. The results of this survey will inform CSDA’s advocacy work and allow our association to better represent special districts on this issue that broadly affects our diverse membership. Participation from all types of special districts, large and small, will promote well-informed public policy. Individual survey responses will not be shared outside ...

Local Control Benefits as Authors Pull Two-Year Bills

By Morgan Leskody posted 8 days ago
By: @Kyle Packham Following opposition from CSDA and coalition partners, the authors of AB 874 and SB 430 respectively have pulled their bills from consideration this week. AB 874 (Ávila-Farías) would have required local agencies to adopt a fee deferral loan program for affordable housing projects. Meanwhile, SB 430 (Cabaldon) would have regulated the use of automated decision systems (ADS). AB 874 and SB 430, which were “two-year” bills, had been set for hearing on Wednesday, January 13 in their respective first-house policy committees. Both measures would have restricted local control and strained budgets for essential services at a time where special ...

State and Federal Officials Attend CSDA Virtual Tour on Funding Infrastructure for Housing

By Morgan Leskody posted 8 days ago
By: @Chris Palmer For the sixth year running, CSDA hosted a virtual special districts tour for more than 50 state and federal legislative staffers. The event, held December 9, 2025, focused on funding infrastructure essential for housing and featured the Chino Valley Fire District, Eastern Municipal Water District, and Desert Recreation District. Building more housing is not possible without critical services such as water, sewer, fire protection, parks, and more. Therefore, funding this infrastructure is foundational to addressing California’s pressing housing needs. How should communities pay for the costs to install infrastructure necessary to build ...

Governor Releases 2026

By Ophelia Szigeti posted 11 days ago
The Governor has released his budget plan for the 2025-2026 year. This press conference can be viewed on the Governor's Youtube page here .

Sen. Padilla Drafting Legislation to Expand Federal Support for Firefighting Water Infrastructure

By Morgan Leskody posted 14 days ago
Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) is developing legislation to address a long-standing gap in federal support for water infrastructure needed for wildfire response. The senator's staff is circulating draft language that would amend the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) to allow funding for certain projects that support both drinking water systems and wildfire suppression. Under current rules, the DWSRF excludes projects needed primarily for fire protection. The draft proposal would create a narrowly tailored exception for projects that provide both drinking water and wildfire suppression benefits, are located in communities at high wildfire risk, and serve ...

Congress Releases Three-Bill FY 2026 Funding Package

By Morgan Leskody posted 14 days ago
Ahead of a January 30 government funding deadline, House and Senate appropriators have released the text of a minibus funding package that includes three (of the 12) fiscal year 2026 spending bills, including those covering Energy and Water Development, Commerce-Justice-Science, and Interior-Environment. These bills fund a wide range of programs critical to a number of special districts, including water infrastructure and Bureau of Reclamation activities, wildfire management and land stewardship programs at the Department of the Interior, Environmental Protection Agency grant programs, and more. House leaders could bring the package to the floor as early ...

Need to Know the New AB 339 Labor Notice Rules Now in Effect?

By Morgan Leskody posted 14 days ago
By: @Aaron Avery On December 15, 2025, CSDA teamed up with its partners at Rural County Representatives of California, California State Association of Counties, Urban Counties of California, and League of California Cities on a live webinar discussing what agencies need to know about implementing AB 339 (Ortega) Local public employee organizations: notice requirements . A recording of the webinar is now available to CSDA members on-demand here: AB 339 Explained: New Labor Notice Rules for Public Contracting . CSDA was a leader in the coalition opposed to AB 339; however, Governor Newsom signed a pared back version of the law in October. Effective January ...

$8 million grant highlights importance of collaboration to fund Truckee-Area Forest Health Improvement Projects (CA)

By Kristin Withrow posted 15 days ago
Caption: Ben Gwerder (Tahoe Donner Association), John Groom (Tahoe Donner Association), Lindsay Ryan (Tahoe Donner Association), Scott Bower (Martis Camp), Dan Joannes (Truckee Donner Land Trust), Danielle Bradfield (Feather River Forestry), April Shackelford (North Tahoe Fire), Dillon Sheedy (Truckee Fire), Jaime Haddad (Martis Camp), Rich Steffke (USFS), Joe King (SPI). This article was originally published in the Sierra Sun on October 15, 2025. TRUCKEE, Calif. – Seven different entities and Truckee Fire Protection District (TFPD) joined forces to secure $7 million in state funding from CAL FIRE’s Forest Health Program, supported by California ...

Governor Newsom to deliver State of the State Address next week

By Kyle Packham posted 21 days ago
Moments ago, the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom issued the following press release: SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom will deliver his State of the State address before a joint session of the California Legislature on Thursday, January 8, 2026. WHERE: California State Capitol* WHEN: Morning of Thursday, January 8, 2026 LIVESTREAM: Governor's Twitter page , Governor's Facebook page , the Governor's YouTube page , and the Governor's Instagram page . This event will also be available to TV stations on the LiveU Matrix under "California Governor."