PCL Insider: News from the Capitol

FREEZE UPDATE: CALIFORNIA WARMLY RECEIVED IN RETURN TO BOND MARKET; BACK PAYMENTS, MORE BOND SALES LIKELY

When State Treasurer Bill Lockyer announced earlier this month that he planned to return California to the general obligation (GO) bond market after a nine month hiatus, organizations affected by the bond freeze anxiously waited to see how the sale would be greeted by investors.

We're happy to announce that California's return to the market this week was a stunning success. Here's how the sale unfolded:

Lockyer had planned to sell $4 billion in GO bonds over a three day run beginning on Monday, March 23rd. The first two days of the sale were scheduled to accommodate individual investors while the third day targeted institutional investors (mutual funds, money market funds, insurance companies, etc.).

By the end of the first day of the sale, Lockyer had sold $2.4 billion to individual investors. This positive trend continued on day two. On Midday Tuesday, Lockyer decided to open the sale to institutional investors and opted to end the sale at the close of business Tuesday, a full day early.

After the dust cleared, Lockyer had sold a total of $6.54 billion in GO bonds, far exceeding expectations.

Although the Department of Finance has yet to make a final determination, it's very likely that the extra $2.6 billion that was raised in the sale will be used to begin paying the back invoices for some of the public works projects that have been halted since mid-December.

Lockyer is also exploring a second large GO bond sale towards the end of April, taking advantage of the new "Build America Bonds" (BAB) program created by the federal economic stimulus package.

Unfortunately, environmental organizations around the state can't keep waiting for a chance to have their projects re-start. That's why PCL continues organizing groups across the state to discuss other funding options and provide updates on the ever-evolving situation here in Sacramento. To stay up to date on all bond freeze topics, please visit http://stopworkimpact.ning.com/.

'TEAMING WITH WILDLIFE' COALITION FINDS NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR FEDERAL INVESTMENT IN CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION

The past few weeks have been a busy time for the members of "Teaming with Wildlife," a coalition of more than 5,900 organizations supporting increased public funding for wildlife conservation and related education and recreation. That's great news for California where hundreds of conservation projects have been stuck because of the state bond freeze.

Here are two efforts that are particularly noteworthy:

In late February, Teaming members from across the country, including PCL, met with legislators in Washington D.C. to strengthen support for the federal government's State Wildlife Grants program, the nation's core program for preventing wildlife from becoming endangered. These grants help implement each state's Wildlife Action Plan and have been exceptionally helpful in California. The coalition is asking legislators to provide $85 million for the program in the 2010 federal budget, a small increase over previous years. Several members of California's congressional delegation have signed a letter in support of that request and we're asking other legislators to do the same.

Then last week in Washington D.C. Senator Johnson of South Dakota introduced the Teaming With Wildlife Act (S. 655), which provides state fish and wildlife agencies with $350 million annually from 2011-2016 to implement state Wildlife Action Plans. Not only would this provide a considerable boost in funding, it would tap into existing federal revenue from on-shore and off-shore oil and mineral development activities, helping advance the "polluter pays" concept.

It's time to team up to make sure state wildlife agencies have the funding they need to meet the conservation challenges of the twenty-first century. To find out more, contact PCL's Matt Vander Sluis. 

CALLING ALL DECISIONMAKERS: LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMISSION ANNOUNCES SB 375 WORKSHOPS

The Local Government Commission is partnering with the Governor's Office of Planning and Research and Senator Darrell Steinberg to host six workshops on SB 375 around the state. These day-long workshops will cover:

• How AB 32 and SB 375 relate to local governments
• Strategies for local government compliance
• Economic benefits
• How to take advantage of the new CEQA rules and exemptions
• Funding opportunities for planning and implementation
• Model programs and best practices that result in the most greenhouse gas emission reductions for your money

If you work in local government or follow local government issues, find the workshop closest to you and register today!