AgdaPkt 2019-04-08 Joint SA PFA - Laserfiche WebLink

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7.B. - Page 8 of 42 Attachment 2 Historical Background Early Efforts In December 2013, Congresswoman Jackie Speier, Assemblymember Rich Gordon, and County Supervisor Dave Pine convened a conference titled "Meeting the Challenge of Sea Level Rise in San Mateo County" that initiated the County's efforts to plan for sea level rise, including launching in 2015 its "Sea Change SMC" initiative and commencing a countywide sea level rise vulnerability assessment. At the May 2015 C/CAG Board meeting, Supervisor Pine and County staff presented proposed plans for the County to begin addressing multi -jurisdictional flooding and sea level rise. To ensure all its member agencies were included in decisions on how best to address these challenging issues, C/CAG convened an ad-hoc group to evaluate options and make recommendations to the C/CAG Board. C/CAGAd-hoc Water Committee In December 2015 C/CAG convened an ad-hoc Water Committee to discuss opportunities for better countywide coordination, communication, and collaboration on integrated water issues to improve efficiency and maximize funding opportunities, including for state and federal grants. The ad-hoc Water Committee met throughout 2016 and, after exploring various options for a more comprehensive approach to water management, including presentations by numerous agencies that are already doing integrated water management outside of San Mateo County, ultimately recommended C/CAG establish a standing committee as a first step toward greater levels of countywide collaboration and decision making. It also recommended the committee primarily focus on the "orphan" issues of stormwater, flooding, and sea level rise rather than water management issues related to groundwater, water supply, or wastewater since those are already being worked on by others, such as through the Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency, water purveyors, and sanitary agencies/special districts. CICAG Countywide Water Coordination Committee The Countywide Water Coordination Committee (Committee) convened in May of 2017 with four city elected officials representing geographic areas in the county and one member of the Board of Supervisors. After establishing its focus on funding advocacy, information and education, and inter -agency collaboration, the Committee quickly began planning the March 30, 2018 water summit, "Floods, Droughts, Rising Seas, Oh My!" This summit, attended by over 300 people, closed with a video address by Congresswoman Speier urging San Mateo County and the 20 cities and towns to create a joint flood control agency to better compete for federal funds to address sea level rise. In response to this call to action, the Committee, over the subsequent months, began investigating options for taking more formal action to address integrated water management in the county, including creation of a new or modified agency to coordinate efforts on sea level rise, coastal erosion, flooding, and regional stormwater management. To support this effort, the C/CAG Board added three additional members to the Committee, including the C/CAG 200