Sacramento Law and Legislation Committee Meeting - January 4, 2022
STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE
Sacramento Law and Legislation Committee Meeting - January 4, 2022
The Law and Legislation Committee of the Sacramento City Council met via teleconference on Tuesday, January 4, 2022, at 1:03 p.m. The meeting was called to order by Chair Jay Schenirer and adjourned at 1:48 p.m. All four members were present: Eric Guerra, Jeff Harris, Katie Valenzuela, and Jay Schenirer. The committee reviewed and acted on four agenda items, including the city's legislative platform, cannabis code amendments, and vacant lot registration.
Consent Calendar
- Item 1: Law and Legislation Log (File ID: 2022-00017) – Approved unanimously without discussion. The log documents city lobbying activities and positions on state and federal legislation.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Joe Devlin (Northern California Cannabis Alliance) – On Item 2, requested the city add support for state legislation eliminating the cannabis cultivation tax (currently $161 per pound), citing the industry's economic strain. On Item 3, expressed support for most proposed cannabis code changes, urging the committee to view regulations through the lens of business sustainability and parity with other industries.
- Kimberly Cargyle (CEO of Therapeutic Alternative) – On Item 3, thanked staff for aligning local regulations with state law, saving time and money for all parties. Urged committee members to vote yes.
- Brenda Ruiz (Sacramento Food Policy Council) – During public comment on non-agenda matters, supported councilmembers' direction on vacant lot exemptions and community garden access. Noted that the Urban Agriculture Incentive Zone expired in 2019 and requested a renewed program and better access to vacant lot owner information for community advocates.
Discussion Items
- Item 2: Review and Approval of City’s State and Federal Legislative Platform (File ID: 2021-01465) – Consuelo Hernandez, Director of Governmental Affairs, presented the updated 2022 platform, which includes perennial priorities (housing, homelessness, climate action, public safety, local authority) and new items: support for federal Build Back Better Act provisions, infrastructure funding for infill development, cyber attack protection, and inclusive economic development. Councilmember Valenzuela requested explicit inclusion of “Medicare for All” language; staff confirmed “universal healthcare” was already included, which Valenzuela accepted. Councilmember Schenirer requested cannabis-related language reflecting the city's $22 million annual revenue and support for state equity grants and favorable tax structures, to be drafted by staff. The platform was approved as amended unanimously.
- Item 3: Ordinance Amending Chapter 5.150 and Section 8.132.050 – Cannabis Businesses and Illegal Cultivation (File ID: 2021-01323) – Davina Smith, Cannabis Manager, presented a periodic cleanup ordinance aligning local rules with state law. Key changes: streamlining background checks (businesses retain records rather than submitting change forms), increasing delivery vehicle carry limit from $3,000 to $5,000, removing vehicle age limit, aligning motor carrier permits with state DMV requirements, requiring labor peace agreements for businesses with 20+ non-supervisory employees, updating security requirements with police input, adding processes for cessation of operations, removing display size limits on accessories, and establishing an abandoned application provision. For illegal cultivation appeal fees, staff proposed disconnecting the flat $250 fee to allow council to set a higher fee (average appeal costs exceed $1,500 each), while retaining fee waivers for low-income appellants. Councilmember Valenzuela raised concerns about deleting the definition of “collective or cooperative dispensaries.” Staff explained the section is outdated (state no longer allows such models) and that any future cooperative provisions should apply across all permit types via a comprehensive policy review. Valenzuela agreed to delete the section after staff committed to bringing back broader cooperative language as part of upcoming EPS study discussions. The ordinance was approved as amended unanimously for forwarding to City Council.
- Item 4: Ordinance Relating to Vacant Lot Registration (File ID: 2021-01366) – Peter Lemos, Code and Housing Enforcement Chief, briefed the committee on the existing vacant lot registration program (adopted 2018) and recommended amendments. The program currently registers approximately 3,500 lots annually (down from 6,000 due to development and exemptions). Staff proposed adding defined exemptions (e.g., lots adjacent to a primary residence and well-maintained), stronger enforcement for nuisance lots (securitization, no-trespassing signs, cleanup timelines), and vegetation height limits to address fire hazards. Councilmembers Guerra and Valenzuela supported exemptions for adjacent, maintained lots. Councilmember Harris requested a provision requiring vegetation height limits to prevent fire hazards (current code only allows enforcement when weeds are dead and a fire hazard, which leads to weeds up to 4 feet high by May). Staff was also directed to explore ways to connect community groups with lot owners for interim uses like community gardens. Councilmember Valenzuela suggested reviving the Urban Agriculture Incentive Zone (expired 2019) and improving public access to owner information. No formal vote was taken; direction was provided to staff to draft amendments and bring back to committee.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Calendar (Item 1) – Approved unanimously.
- Item 2 (Legislative Platform) – Approved as amended (4-0) and forwarded to City Council. Amendments include adding cannabis-related language and clarifying universal healthcare support.
- Item 3 (Cannabis Ordinance) – Approved as amended (4-0) and forwarded to City Council. Amendment: removed the definition of collective/cooperative dispensaries with commitment to revisit broader cooperative policy during EPS study discussions.
- Item 4 (Vacant Lot Registration) – Committee provided direction to staff: (1) add exemptions for adjacent, maintained lots; (2) strengthen nuisance lot enforcement (securement, trespassing signs, cleanup timelines); (3) include vegetation height limits to prevent fire hazards; (4) explore mechanisms to connect community groups with lot owners for interim uses; (5) investigate renewal of Urban Agriculture Incentive Zone. Staff to bring back ordinance amendments for committee consideration.
Meeting Transcript
Chair Staff is ready when you are. Okay, let's go ahead and call this meeting of the law and legislation committee to order. Um, Madam Clerk, please go ahead and call the role to establish a quorum. Thank you. Councilmember Guerrett is expected momentarily. Um Councilmember Valenzuela. Vice Chair Harris. And Chair Shaneer. I am here. Um let's go ahead and and I believe we are the first uh committee to do this uh on the land acknowledgement. So I'm gonna ask Councilmember Valenzuela if she would uh read that. Okay, thank you. Please raise for the opening acknowledgments and honor of Sacramento's indigenous people and tribal lands to the original people of this land, the Nissanong people, the Southern Maidu Valley and Plains Miwak, Patwin Went II peoples and the people of the Wilton Rancheria, Sacramento's only federally recognized tribe. May we acknowledge and honor the Native people who came before us and still walk beside us today on these ancestral lands by choosing to gather today and the act of practice of acknowledgement and appreciation for Sacramento's Indigenous Peoples History Contributions and Lives. Thank you. Thank you, Councilwoman. Appreciate that. Um let's go ahead and go to our consent calendar, which is our log. Any comments on that? I'll move consent. Okay, have a motion. I'll go back a second. Okay. Ms. Valenzuela will second. Um Madam Clerk, go ahead and call the roll, please. Thank you. Um Councilmember Valenzuela. Yes. Uh Councilmember Gatta. He's joining us now. Councilman, Councilmember Gato, we're voting on the consent calendar, which is the law and legislation log. Yes, uh Guerra I. Thank you. Um, Vice Chair Harris. I and Chair Shaneer uh here, uh here and I. Sorry, I was looking at the notes from Council Member Garrett. He and I both had trouble getting into this today. So uh we have a unanimous vote on the log. Let's go ahead and go to item two, which is uh review and approval of the city state and federal legislative platform. Ms. Hernandez, nice to see you. Happy New Year. And we can't hear you. We can't hear you. And you're not muted. Nope. Nope. Could you mind that whole thing? Do you want to call back in?
openpublica.com