Sacramento City Council Meeting - May 14, 2024: Hmong American Day, Procurement, Building Electrification, Police Commission
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Sacramento City Council Meeting - May 14, 2024
The Sacramento City Council met on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at 5:00 PM in the City Hall Complex. The meeting began with a closed session report, followed by a special presentation recognizing Hmong American Day. The council then moved through the consent calendar, public hearings, and discussion items, including a major procurement ordinance update, adoption of the Existing Building Electrification Strategy, and approval of the Sacramento Community Police Review Commission's 2024 Work Plan. The meeting adjourned at 7:53 PM.
Special Presentation: Hmong American Day
- Councilmember Vang and Councilmember Thao led a presentation recognizing May 14 as Hmong American Day, commemorating the fall of Long Cheng and the evacuation of Hmong soldiers in 1975. The presentation included a resolution, comments from community leaders, and a performance by the Ling Mo Shinge dance group. The mayor noted that 25% of the City Council is Hmong American.
Consent Calendar
- Items 1, 3, and 4 were approved by a single motion: Item 1 (approval of meeting minutes), Item 3 (authorization to apply for Active Transportation Program grants for Envision Broadway in Oak Park, Freeport Boulevard Safety and Mobility Project, and Northgate Boulevard Safety and Mobility Project), and Item 4 (confirmation of board and commission appointments).
- Item 2 (Ordinance on City Manager's purchasing and contracting authority) was pulled for separate discussion.
Item 2: Purchasing and Contracting Authority Ordinance
- Public testimony from janitors and security officers (SEIU USWW) highlighted lost wages and benefits after a 2010 change from prevailing wage to living wage. Councilmember Valenzuela moved to include amendments requiring prevailing wage and wage theft protections for janitorial and security staff. Staff argued the language was broader than intended and requested time for analysis. The council voted to approve the ordinance as presented and directed staff to return with a full analysis and proposed corrections no later than June 11, 2024. The motion (Valenzuela, seconded by Guerra) passed unanimously.
Public Hearings
- Item 5 (Housing and Dangerous Buildings Case Fees): Staff reported 130 properties with $100,295.32 in unpaid fees for liens. Four properties were removed. The council opened and closed the public hearing (one speaker) and approved the resolution unanimously.
- Item 6 (Code Compliance Case Fees and Penalties): Staff reported 366 properties with $742,681.16 in unpaid fees. Thirteen properties were removed. The council approved the resolution unanimously.
Discussion Item 7: Existing Building Electrification Strategy
- Associate Planner Laura Tuller presented the final draft strategy, grounded in the Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAP). The strategy aims to transition natural gas in existing buildings to carbon-free electricity by 2045, supported by SMUD's zero-carbon electricity goal by 2030. Key policies include reach codes for residential additions/remodels, panel upgrade requirements, and a benchmarking and building performance standards program for commercial buildings over 50,000 square feet (revised from 25,000 sq ft). The strategy does not mandate electrification of cooking equipment. Public comment included support from 350 Sacramento and a pilot program in Gardenland. Council discussion emphasized equity, tenant protections, workforce development, and the need for education and incentives. The strategy was adopted by unanimous vote.
Discussion Item 8: Sacramento Community Police Review Commission Annual Report
- Commission Chair Keyan Bliss presented a 196-page annual report and 2024 Work Plan. He summarized the commission's review of 2018 and 2019 recommendations (evaluating 38 as approved/implemented, 14 fully implemented, 18 not implemented), 2023 recommendations on military equipment use (MEU) and search/seizure policies, and the need for dedicated staffing. Public comment included criticism of the commission's lack of police experience and support for oversight. Councilmember Valenzuela moved to approve the Work Plan with the removal of a homelessness workshop from the scope. The motion passed. The mayor urged role clarity and committed to a joint workshop on challenges.
Public Comments – Matters Not on the Agenda
- Twelve speakers addressed topics including: the Ride of Silence (May 15), conditions in city shelters, criticism of the Police Review Commission, opposition to fee increases for home occupation permits, the need for rent control, and a call for language access services. Several speakers also raised concerns about the city's response to the Israel-Gaza conflict.
Council Comments – Ideas, Questions, AB1234 Reports
- Councilmembers announced upcoming community events: World Peace Rose Garden anniversary (May 18), Cinco de Mayo event at Miller Park, Sacramento Low Rider Commission event, Food Truck Mania, North Natomas Night Market, Grant High School Hmong American Day, May Day block party, Trucks and Such, Southland Park spring mixer, Burbank Bash Carnival, MLK Library renovation meeting, Social Handmade Marketing ribbon cutting, VeloRama bike event, a 311 workshop, and a movie night in Oak Park. Councilmember Jennings highlighted the Del Rio bike trail ribbon cutting.
Key Outcomes
- Adopted consent calendar items 1, 3, and 4.
- Approved Item 2 (procurement ordinance) with direction to staff to return by June 11 with analysis on prevailing wage and wage theft protections for janitorial/security staff.
- Approved resolutions for Items 5 and 6 (nuisance abatement special assessments) as amended.
- Adopted the Existing Building Electrification Strategy (Item 7) unanimously.
- Approved the Sacramento Community Police Review Commission's 2024 Work Plan (Item 8) with the removal of a homelessness workshop; a joint workshop to address staffing and process issues was committed.
- Meeting adjourned at 7:53 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon, everyone. The Sacramento City Council, please come to order. Would the clerk call the roll, please to establish quorum. Thank you. Councilmember Kaplan. Councilmember Tao. Councilmember Valenzuela. For the record, Mayor Pro Tem Talamantis would be absent this evening. Vicemor Maple. Here. Councilmember Jennings. Councilmember Vang. We expect Councilmember Gadda momentarily and Mayor Steinberg. I am here. Councilmember Vang, would you please lead us in the land acknowledgement? I'll lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Please stand if you are able. The Nissanon people, the Southern Maidu, Valley and Plains Miwok, Putwin and Wintu peoples, and the people of Walton Rancheria, Sacramento's only federally recognized tribe. May we acknowledge and honor the native people who came before us and still walk besides us today on this ancestral land by choosing to gather today in the active practice of acknowledgement and appreciation for Sacramento Indigenous Peoples History, contributions, and lives. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and the Republic for which it stands. Again, a very good afternoon to you. Sorry that we are uh a few minutes late. We had um we had a closed session, but we begin with a very very special presentation uh today recognizing Hmong American Day, and of course, presented by the resplendent Councilmember Mai Vang. Thank you so much, Mayor. I will be co-presenting this with my colleague, Councilmember Sean Tao. Uh, just wanted to wish you all happy May 14th and also happy Hmong American Day, which is which is actually today. Mark for uh May 14 marks the day uh the fall of Longjing. It was a Lao Ishin military base um in Laos, and it was the last U.S. air base in Laos during the Seeker War when the Hmong was recruited by the CIA to fight alongside the United States to cut the supply trail during the Vietnam War. Um, as many of you know the story, there was a complete genocide of our people after we withdrew our troops. Um and mark uh May 14th does mark a very important day because it was um the last airlift evacuations of Hmong soldiers uh and their families from Hongjing to the refugee camps in Thailand, and eventually many resettling here in the United States and right here in Sacramento. The Hmong community is not just a Hmong story, uh, but it's also an experience that I often share that it's very similar to other communities as well. It's a story of war, displacement, trauma, but it's also stories of Sacramento of resilience. Um and the Hmong people have sacrificed so much for freedom and democracy. Um, as a Hmong daughter myself, uh, I'm forever grateful for my elders and our ancestors who paved the way so that I could be up here on the diets fighting for the people. And in just one and two generations in 49 years, Hmong refugees and their children are now teachers, scientists, entrepreneurs. We have our first Hmong Olympians, Dunisa Li, and elected officials across the United States. Uh that we also call home because as the Hmong people, we also don't have a country, right? Our country is here in the United States. It's actually all over. We live in France, right, in China, but many of us after the Vietnam War, after the secret war, settled in the United States. Uh, and I'm so grateful uh to live in this country. Um, and with that, I'm gonna hand it over to uh Councilmember Shantao to also say a few words and introduce our guest today, who we will be presenting a very important resolution. Thank you, Councilmember Vang. Uh today is Mmong American Day. Uh back to what Councilmember Vang said. Um May 14th, 1975 was the fateful day that uh Hmong American the Hmong and Laos, you know, the fall of our uh the base Long Chang and CIA evacuation of Laos that uh you know symbolize a mass exodus of Hmong and Laos to Thailand and refugee camps and then into the United States. Uh we lived as substance farmer before then and come to the United States with a big culture change. But look at us now. 45 for 49 years, and you know, we have elected officials, we have Hmong Americans who won the Olympic Gold Medalists representing the United States, and uh we can only go further.
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