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?A5 PEACEfrom page 1 ................................................. Within a few hours, both CSAC and the League had received personal apologies from Mr. Peace. He at- tended a meeting of the Executive Committee of the California State Association of Counties, where he apologized to a roomful of county officials. He also spent about 45 minutes on the phone with League Executive Director Chris McKenzie and apologized several times for his remarks. With both the county officials, and with Mr. McKenzie, Mr. Peace also engaged in a constructive discussion about the need for long -term structural reform of the state -local fiscal relationship - with all parties agreeing that this is the discussion that must occur. Both McKenzie and county officials were also able to stress the importance of taking the VLF issue off the table, and particularly the current year cuts, before local governments would feel there was any basis in which to engage in long -term discussion about fiscal reform. Most urnently the immediate goal is for city officials to keep up the pressure on the Legislature to pass ABX1 4. The measure was passed by the Assem- bly Budget Committee today and will be heard on the Assembly floor on Tuesday, probably after 12:00 p.m. (See related budget article, page 1.) It is then sent to the Senate for consideration in that house. Keep up the lobbying on this legislation. It is a necessary part of a budget solution for both local governments and the state. CITIES from page 1 ............ • • • • "The strong response from city officials is an enor- mous help in our lobbying work over at the Capitol," said Dwight Stenbakken, League Director of Legislation. "Legislators who may not have realized how important the VLF is to funding police and fire and other essential services certainly understand that now." At the end of the day there was a sense that an offensive statement had become instead an opportunity to begin the long process of starting the dialogue we all know must occur. Clearly, there's an ongoing need to inform and educate legislators and state officials about the risks to public safety and other critical services if VLF funds are not restored. An editorial which ran today (January 24) in the Sacramento Bee put the issue succinctly. Entitled "Keeping Promises: Don't Steal the Car Tax From Locals ", the piece took the new Finance Director to task for his statement, saying, "...everything Peace is saying about the VLF is either flat wrong or dubious. The VLF isn't crack cocaine. It's more like the mother's milk of local law enforcement, fire safety, public health, parks and libraries, providing a stable underpinning for city and county services for decades." The Bee editorial concluded, "(Governor) Davis and Peace are right that the VLF ought to be part of the governor's proposed discussions on restructuring California's broken budget system and state -local relationship. Everything ought to be on the table. "But those discussions have a better chance to succeed if they start in an atmosphere of trust. The best way to establish that trust is to have the state live up to its VLF promises instead of indulging an old bad habit: punishing cities and counties for unwise decisions at the state Capitol." (The entire editorial can be viewed on the Sacramento Bee's website at www.sacbee.com.) Visit the League's Official Web Site-- www.cacities.org Cities who have not yet adopted resolutions are urged to act on them as soon as possible — even If they are not adopted for several weeks. While the ABX1 4 is moving, then: is no guarantee that it will continue to move quickly. This is a tough vote for legislators; they need to be reminded of how important it is for their city services that VLF funding continue uninterrupted. WATER BOARD DELAYS HEARING ON PHASE I I STORM WATER PERMIT The State Water Resources Control Board has "pulled" from its February 4 hear- ing agenda, discussion and probable adop- tion of the new Phase II Storm Water Permit. Board staff indicated that this action is a result of the recent Ninth Circuit Court deci- sion on the federal regulations for the Phase II permit. Required by federal law, the Phase II permit generally applies to cities under 100,000 population. The Board staff, like interested groups in California and in other states, are sorting through the decision and awaiting guidance from U.S. EPA. As soon as the League has more information on the status of the Phase II permit, we'll share it with cities. PRIORITY FOCUS /PAGE 6