To: Board of Supervisors
From: Public Works
Agenda Section: Consent
SUBJECT:
title
Regional Capacity Building Projects and Supplemental Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2021-22 (4/5 vote required)
end
RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Review the staff report and associated supporting documents;
2. Authorize the Humboldt County Public Works Director, or a designee thereof, to be the authorized Grantee representative and execute grant agreements in a form substantially similar to the two (2) attached agreements, and any amendments thereto, as well as any other documents, including, without limitation, professional services agreements and sub-grantee agreements, necessary to accept and administer funding made available through (1) the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program and (2) the Humboldt Area Foundation/Wild Rivers Community Foundation;
3. Authorize the Humboldt County Auditor-Controller to process the attached fiscal year (FY) 2021-22 supplemental budget request (4/5 vote required); and
4. Authorize the Humboldt County Auditor-Controller to create two (2) interest-bearing trust accounts for advance payments of grant funds associated with the aforementioned two (2) grant agreements.
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SOURCE OF FUNDING:
• Funding Source #1: Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program Grant from the California Department of Conservation
• Funding Source #2: Fire Response Capacity Grant from Humboldt Area Foundation/Wild Rivers Community Foundation.
DISCUSSION:
The first grant has been awarded through the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity (‘RFFC”) program which seeks to increase regional capacity to prioritize, develop and implement projects that improve forest health and fire resiliency, facilitate greenhouse gas emissions reductions, and increase carbon sequestration in forests throughout California. The Department of Conservation administers the RFFC program funding and elected to provide a second block grant to the North Coast Resource Partnership (“NCRP”) to build on an existing RFFC program underway in the north coast region. The investment of these funds is intended to rapidly increase the pace and scale of wildfire, forest and community resiliency work by developing a substantial suite of priority projects ready for implementation.
The second grant has been awarded to the NCRP by the Humboldt Area Foundation/Wild Rivers Community Foundation to support the Fire Response Capacity Project. This investment is intended to support strengthening long term sustainability of fire response programs of area Tribes and very rural fire departments and protection districts, through capacity building.
The NCRP was initiated in 2004 as a water management collaborative between the counties of Humboldt, Sonoma, Modoc, Mendocino, Trinity, Del Norte and Siskiyou. The NCRP is now a successful coalition of North Coast Counties and Tribes and has expanded the scope of its focus to include forest and watershed resiliency to the impacts of wildfire. In 2005, the NCRP leadership designated the County of Humboldt as the Regional Contract Administrator for the NCRP. Humboldt County staff, in the capacity of Regional Contract Administrator, will oversee regional distribution of funding and work with existing and new contractors to implement the programs mentioned above. Existing NCRP staff and consultants will be key implementation partners, including West Coast Watershed (“WCW”) and the California Indian Environmental Alliance (“CIEA”).
WCW has been a long-term NCRP partner, providing planning and coordination services through development of the North Coast Integrated Regional Water Management Plan, providing technical support for project proponents, responding to calls for proposals for NCRP funding opportunities, preparing funding applications, and providing staff support to the NCRP governing and technical bodies since its inception in 2004. CIEA has been the NCRP Tribal Coordinator since 2014 and is the trusted representative chosen by the Tribal Representatives on the NCRP governing body to facilitate the implementation of NCRP programs on their behalf. All work will be completed under the guidance of the NCRP Leadership Council and in partnership with the County of Humboldt as the grant recipient and administrator.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Accepting these two (2) grants will bring $2,960,000 of state funding and $400,000 of philanthropic funding into the north coast region to support multi-year planning and capacity building projects. The recommended supplemental budget for FY 2021-22 will increase appropriations in the Public Works budget (1720289) by $3,360,000. Acceptance of the grant funds will not impact the Humboldt County General Fund.
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK:
The recommended actions support the Board of Supervisors’ Strategic Framework by protecting vulnerable populations and creating opportunities for improved safety and health.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
North Coast Resource Partnership; California Department of Conservation; Humboldt Area Foundation/Wild Rivers Community Foundation.
ALTERNATIVES TO STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
The Board of Supervisors may choose not to accept the funding made available through the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program or the Fire Response Capacity Grant. However, this alternative is not recommended because of the regional forest and community wildfire resiliency benefits that will be gained from implementation of both Projects.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. State of California Department of Conservation Grant Agreement Template
2. Humboldt Area Foundation/Wild Rivers Community Foundation Award Letter and Agreement Template
3. Supplemental Budget Request Regional Capacity Building Projects for FY 2020-2021
PREVIOUS ACTION/REFERRAL:
Board Order No.: C-42
Meeting of: 5/7/2019
File No.: 19-652