Over the next few days a tremendous amount of media coverage will focus on redistricting of state legislative and congressional districts. Much of the story will focus on the Citizens Redistricting Commission (CRC). Previously the California State Legislature carved their own maps, often in closed processes, to create personal fiefdoms. Strangely enough the majority party usually came out ahead. Many thought they did a poor job, which is why the voters of California took away their power and handed it to the CRC in 2008.

But not all redistricting is handled this way in California. All 58 California Counties and every City with council districts (usually just larger cities) are currently slicing and dicing maps based on census data. From Del Norte to Imperial and all parts in between district lines are being shifted to balance population and maintain communities of interest. While the public is involved, the final decision is made by a majority of the elected officials in that jurisdiction.

So how does one go about drawing districts? Through transparency. Most jurisdictions are scheduling a series of public hearings to seek input. A number are taking cues from the CRC and appointing their own commission (advisory only). Several offer access to detailed mapping programs to draw your own suggestion, like Santa Barbara County. No matter what tools are employed, open meeting laws and common democratic ideals push local governments and their elected officials to be inclusive and responsible.

With this short look at California redistricting the cautionary tale is clear. Keep the process open, information available, and conversations public and people will usually trust the decision. Even if a Supervisor or Councilmember argues a little too forcefully for their district to be drawn a certain way they will have to do so looking constituents (and the media) in the eye.

When Long Beach passed its carryout bag ordinance on May 17th, it became the fourth jurisdiction in Southern California to pass such an law. Despite the failure of the Legislature to pass AB 1998 and create a single state-wide standard, SoCal governments have mostly passed bills that closely mirror the County of Los Angeles, which was the first jurisdiction to pass such an ordinance in the region.

There are only a few weeks left before most grocers must begin implementing the new regulations. A few things to consider:

1) CGA is producing a poster that you can post in your stores to prepare your customers for Los Angeles County ordinance.

2) The County is prepared to cooperate with stores to give out free reusable bags and educate consumers about the upcoming changes to the checkout process. If you are interested in working with the County, call Nilda Gemeniano at 626-458-5184.

3) LA County information

4) Santa Monica information

5) Calabasas information

6) Long Beach information

In addition, the County has provided CGA with some answers to common questions about the their ordinance:

1) For EBT customers, do we give free recyclable paper bags to the customers that are purchasing taxable non food items with the cash portion of their publically funded EBT card?

WIC and SNAP participants are the only customers to be provided free carryout bags for their purchases. Affected stores would develop and incorporate into their operations methods of confirming customer participation in these programs.

2) Do we charge 10 cents for the small bags such as number #8, #12 and #735? Sometimes these small bags are used to wrap and protect individual items, such as wine and glassware, and sometimes these bags are used as final carryout bags for small items.

When paper bags are being used as carryout bags, they must be charged 10 cents/bag.

3) Are the small poly carryout bags that are used for greeting cards authorized to keep in the stores, and do we charge 10 cents for them?

Affected stores must not use any plastic carryout bags except for produce/food bags. Paper bags that are used to carry out greeting cards and other small items will be charged 10 cents/bag. The stores should ask the customer if they want a bag.

4) We have a large carryout bag with handles for our hot food in the Service Delis. Do we need to discontinue using this bag? If we are authorized to keep this bag, do we charge the 10 cent fee?

If the service deli is part of the affected store, then they must stop using plastic carryout bags. If this large carryout bag is a paper bag, the deli/store must charge 10 cents/bag.

5) Do we charge sales tax on the 10 cent bag fee?

Los Angeles County is not a taxing agency. In developing the Ordinance, we contacted the State Board of Equalization. They advised us that since the paper carryout bag is a “container”, it falls under the Container Rule – Reg. 1589. As long as there are taxable items in the paper bag the charge would be subject to tax, but if there are no taxable items in the paper bag the charge would not be subject to tax.

The three largest plastic bag manufacturers in the US have filed a lawsuit claiming “irreparable harm” from statements on a website. The offending website belongs to ChicoBag, a California based reusable bag manufacturer.

Hilex Poly, Superbag Operating, and Advance Polybag filed the suit in South Carolina (important later) claiming the ChicoBag statements regarding plastic bags are ruining business. Each statement on ChicoBag’s website includes a citation from a government agency or major media outlet.

ChicoBag is the brainchild of Andy Keller who invented a reusable bag that folds into itself to create a pouch for easy transport. Andy also gave birth to the Bag Monster who has testified in city halls and state legislatures begging elected officials to not ban him.

Hilex Poly is the company that spent nearly $2 million in the final months of last year’s legislative session to defeat AB 1998, a statewide bag ban bill. It is also rumored to be a major contributor to the legal fight against local governments to invalidate their ordinances.

So why is South Carolina important? It is the home of Hilex Poly and has no Anti-SLAPP laws. A Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) is considered a tactic to intimidate a defendant into submission and cost them a considerable amount of money in the process.

I will let you come to your own conclusions on what may really be going on. Before deciding for myself I have a few questions you may share:

Why would Hilex Poly not sue the EPA, National Geographic Society, and the Los Angeles Times who authored the environmental statements?
Why not sue environmental organizations who regularly demean plastic bags in aggressive ways?

If Hilex Poly wins will there be a funeral for the Bag Monster and will the coffin be Single-Use or Reusable?

On May 26 the Marin County Single Use Plastic Advisory Committee (SUPAC) finalized their recommendations on carryout bag and food packaging regulations. The purpose of this committee is to provide policy recommendations to six Marin County cities in order to create regional consistency. The SUPAC is made up of the cities of Mill Valley, Novato, San Anselmo, San Rafael, Sausalito, and Tiburon.

The committee started with the premise to ban plastic bags and polystyrene food packaging with the intent to add additional regulations on top of those mandates. Several Statewide and Bay Area based environmental groups brought options for regulation to the discussion. Their proposals would mandate food retailers use food packaging brought in by customers (e.g. Tupperware), mandating use of beverage containers brought in by customers, and fees on non-durable takeout food containers.

CGA led a coalition of business interests who vigorously opposed the proposals based on threats to food safety, operational challenges, and financial impact. In order to maintain food safety under these mandates grocery stores would be forced to make significant physical and operational changes, which would have cost several thousands of dollars annually to continue to provide food items prepared in-store. Ultimately representatives of the six cities rejected the proposals.

The SUPAC recommendation will include a single-use bag ordinance similar to the already passed Marin County ordinance consistent with CGA policy. It will also recommend a ban on the use of polystyrene foam food packaging for food packaged in-store with exemptions for raw meats, poultry, and fish which has minimal impact on grocery stores.

There is a chance 10 Sonoma County jurisdictions could pass a bag ban at the exact same moment. Synchronizing watches is not involved. What is involved is the Sonoma County Waste Management Agency (SCWMA).

SCWMA is a joint powers authority (JPA) comprised of the nine incorporated cities and the County of Sonoma charged with solid waste disposal. As a JPA they can pass ordinances that apply to all member jurisdictions, like garbage disposal rates. In this case SCWMA is pursuing bag regulation.

The benefit of this approach is SCWMA would perform only one EIR and pass only one ordinance which saves time and money. The alternative is each jurisdiction performing their own environmental review and drafting their own ordinance at a cost of over $2 million. For grocers it provides instant regional consistency eliminating cross border competition concerns.

SCWMA representatives agreed at their May meeting to check-in with their home jurisdictions to gauge willingness to proceed. An ordinance banning use of plastic bags at checkout and requiring a retailer retained charge on paper, similar to San Jose, is the current proposal. By August we should know which jurisdictions are interested and who is not. It is important to note a unanimous vote is required for the SCWMA to enact an ordinance of this type.

In the absence of a County Supervisor the Governor of California picks the replacement, not the voters, according to state law. After the untimely passing of Marin County Supervisor Charles McGlashan in late March it was up to Governor Jerry Brown to appoint his replacement. Enter new Marin County Supervisor member Kathrin “Kate” Sears.

Sears is a Marin County native with an impressive resume of legal and government work. She is not known for her work in Marin County, but is known for her work with the former State Attorney General. As Supervising Deputy Attorney General she extracted an $8.6 billion settlement from Bank of America on a predatory lending lawsuit. Yes – Her boss at the time was current Governor Jerry Brown.

While whispers of cronyism may exist, Supervisor Sears will likely earn the respect of Marin County quickly. As a 3rd District native, former Sausalito Planning Commissioner, and top-ranked litigator all signs indicate Sears will do well. Some in the press are predicting Sears will be an “intellectual surprise” for the Board and push them to up their game – Let’s hope. I am sure having the Governor on speed-dial will help her and Marin County tremendously.

We wish the best of luck to Supervisor Spears. But knowing the hectic and personal nature of local government she may prefer suing big banks instead. We will know soon enough since next March she must decide to run as an incumbent Supervisor or move on.

After months of debate, Long Beach passed a carryout bag ordinance tonight that will be implemented on August 1, 2011. The ordinance mostly mirrors the Los Angeles County bag ordinance, which passed in November, 2010. Importantly, the new ordinance drops the County’s quarterly reporting requirement. CGA will offer members additional information on Long Beach’s new ordinance in the coming weeks.

Half Moon Bay Food Packaging Ordinance

Half Moon Bay has placed a food packaging ordinance on their May 17 agenda. This ordinance would ban the use of polystyrene packaging for food packaged in-store. An exemption for raw meats, poultry, fish and eggs in included. If passed, the ordinance goes into effect August 1, 2011.

Half Moon Bay is adopting by reference the San Mateo County ordinance passed earlier in the year. This process means the San Mateo County ordinance will apply to all food retailers in Half Moon Bay. Several San Mateo County jurisdictions are using this process to save staff time and create consistency between neighboring jurisdictions.

A copy of the Staff Report and ordinance is available here as Agenda Item 10.

Major flooding is heading to California on May 17-19, and CGA will be in the thick of the emergency response. Don’t worry, it’s only an exercise!
Every year the California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA) stages a comprehensive three-day training disaster exercise called Golden Guardian. For 2011, the emergency event will be a catastrophic flood. In response, federal, state, and local emergency management personnel across California are activated to respond as if it is a real emergency.

Dave Heylen, Matthew Dodson, and I will act as liaisons between the government response and California businesses. CGA is a formal partner with CalEMA as part of the Business and Utilities Operations Center (BUOC). Our role will include notifying California businesses of dangers and coordinating needed donations ranging from private helicopters to bottled water.

In the event of a real emergency, CGA’s partnership with CalEMA will provide you the best information available to protect your business and employees, as well as help Californians survive and recover from the incident.

After whithering opposition from CGA and other business advocacy groups, Council voted down a staff recommendation to ban all forms of polystyrene prepared food containers last night and ordered staff to study educational and outreach options to reduce the future use of the products. While Hermosa Beach is a small beach community, the scope of its proposed ordinance would have set a bad precedent by banning such a wide range of products. Meanwhile, Los Angeles County is still working on a task force to examine ways to reduce polystyrene use.