Sacramento Law and Legislation Committee Meeting - October 13, 2020

The Law and Legislation Committee of the Sacramento City Council met by teleconference on Tuesday, October 13, 2020, from 1:01 p.m. to 1:57 p.m. Members present were Jay Schenirer (Chair), Steve Hansen (Vice Chair, arrived at 1:02 p.m.), Jeff Harris, and Eric Guerra. The consent calendar was adopted unanimously, and all four discussion items were forwarded to the City Council by unanimous votes.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the Law and Legislation Log (File ID 2020-01169).
• Received and filed the Legislative Advocacy Correspondence (File ID 2020-01170).
• No public comments were received on the consent calendar.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Item 4 (Southeast Industrial Area cannabis delivery cap): Malachi Amen of the Institute for More urged the committee to allow the cap to expire while keeping room for core program applicants, and said that if the cap is extended, core participants should be the exclusive recipients. Allen Fong, a commercial property owner at 5360 South Watt Avenue with core applicants seeking permits, opposed the cap or wanted core applicants exempted or allowed above the cap, citing reduced pandemic-era traffic. A caller identifying herself as Ms. Brown, a District 6 core participant and graduate, strongly opposed the cap, saying it would take away opportunities she and other operators had worked for.
• Item 5 (Folsom Boulevard Special Planning District): Kevin McCarty, a District 6 caller speaking for the Sacramento cannabis industry and a Folsom Boulevard property owner with a pending cannabis dispensary CUP application, objected to the draft ordinance's grouping of licensed cannabis dispensaries with check cashing, massage, and tobacco retailers. He supported the SPD's goals but asked that pending CUP applications be exempted or grandfathered. Staff noted letters of support from the Power and Alliance and the College Glen Community Neighborhood Association.
• No public comments were received on Items 3 or 6.
• No public comments were offered on matters not on the agenda.

Discussion Items

• Item 3 - Youth Seats on Commissions: The committee reviewed an ordinance adding youth seats (ages 14-22 at appointment) to the Parks and Community Enrichment Commission, the Sacramento Arts, Culture, and Creative Economy Commission, and the Sacramento Community Police Review Commission. A recorded message from Sacramento Youth Commission Vice Chair Naomi Piper Pell supported the proposal, as did youth commission staff. Members raised concerns about youth preparedness, the age appropriateness of the police commission, legal and ethics obligations for minors, and the professional expertise needed on some commissions. The committee directed that the three affected commissions review the item, that an implementation and staffing plan be developed, and that the City Attorney further review minors' legal capacity.
• Item 4 - Southeast Industrial Area Cannabis Delivery Permits: Staff reported that 31 delivery-only dispensary Business Operating Permits had been issued in the Southeast Industrial Area, leaving 19 permits available under the 50-permit cap; the previous cap had expired October 2, 2020. Staff initially said 20 applications were pending, including five core applicants, but later in the meeting referenced 28 pending applications. Staff found no significant crime impact, but noted traffic impact was difficult to measure because delivery vehicles must be unmarked and pandemic traffic patterns were atypical. The Power and Alliance supported extending the cap until a traffic analysis was completed, with core applicants receiving priority.
• Item 5 - Folsom Boulevard Special Planning District (M20-002): The committee reviewed a CEQA exemption resolution, ordinances creating Chapters 17.408 and 17.409 to establish two Special Planning Districts along Folsom Boulevard between 63rd and 69th Streets and between Howe and Watt Avenues, and rezoning parcels to add the SPD suffix. The proposed SPDs prohibit check cashing facilities, massage parlors, tobacco retailers, and cannabis dispensaries. The Planning and Design Commission had recommended approval unanimously. Staff confirmed that the one pending cannabis CUP applicant had been advised of the pending ordinance before applying.
• Item 6 - Portable Leaf Blowers: The committee reviewed an ordinance adding Chapter 8.70 to the Sacramento City Code prohibiting portable leaf blower operation when the downtown Sacramento Air Quality Index is greater than 100. Councilmember Harris asked that the trigger be clarified as 101 or higher. Enforcement would be complaint-driven and begin with education and outreach; staff identified 378 licensed gardener/landscaper businesses. The committee also directed that city climate staff bring back recommendations on accelerating the phase-out of two-stroke engines and adopting electric equipment.

Key Outcomes

• Consent Calendar adopted unanimously (4-0).
• Item 3: Unanimous motion (4-0, Guerra/Schenirer) to forward the youth seat ordinance to City Council, with the additional directions noted above.
• Item 4: Unanimous motion (4-0, Guerra/Schenirer) to forward a three-month moratorium/extension of the Southeast Industrial Area delivery cap to City Council and to bring the item back at a February 2021 Law and Legislation Committee meeting. The draft minutes describe forwarding an ordinance; the transcript specifies the three-month moratorium request. Stakeholder discussions on traffic analysis and core applicant participation were also directed.
• Item 5: Unanimous motion (4-0, Guerra/Harris) to forward the CEQA exemption, SPD ordinances, and rezoning to City Council, with a request for information on where the pending cannabis applicant would be moving from.
• Item 6: Unanimous motion (4-0, Harris/Guerra) to forward the portable leaf blower ordinance with the 101 AQI clarification and the electric-adoption direction.
• Chair Schenirer asked staff to schedule a 2021 discussion on anti-displacement policies, partly related to Aggie Square development.
• The meeting adjourned at 1:57 p.m.