Hold a public hearing to consider a recommendation by the Planning Commission to adopt a resolution amending the 2030 Countywide General Plan to address Environmental Justice and Climate Action policies, as mandated by State law and find that the project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The amendments would update the Land Use and Community Character Element, Conservation and Open Space Element, and Health and Safety Element of the General Plan. (No general fund impact) (Lindbo/Trebec)

As part of the California Housing and Community Development grant provided for the 6^th Cycle Housing Element update of Yolo County’s 2030 Countywide General Plan (“General Plan”), De Novo Consulting Group conducted a broader assessment of the State's general plan requirements to ensure Yolo County's compliance with new legal requirements. Together with De Novo, staff has prepared an amendment to the General Plan to address Senate Bill (SB) 379 that requires the County to include climate adaptation and resiliency strategies in the Safety Element upon the next revision of the Housing Element, and SB1000 that requires the County to identify environmental justice communities (called "disadvantaged communities") in the unincorporated area of the County and address environmental justice in the General Plan. Further details are provided in the related White Paper included as Attachment A to this staff report.

Summary of Proposed Changes 
The following summarizes the amendments made to the various elements of the General Plan, which have been provided in full as Attachment B.  Attachment C contains excerpts of the proposed amendments for ease of reference.

Land Use and Community Character Element
An Environmental Justice (EJ) section has been added to the Land Use and Community Character Element, which begins with a discussion of the framework on pages LU-6 and LU-12 through 15. New goals, policies, and actions are identified on pages LU-29, LU-30, and LU-50 to address equitable decision-making with respect to distribution of public facilities and services, as well as provisions for safe and healthy environments, with an emphasis on equity for disadvantaged and vulnerable communities.

The EJ section includes a map on page LU-14 showing census tract 101.02 as being identified by the State as a disadvantaged community (reference Attachment C). The identified area includes a portion of West Sacramento and a sparsely populated region of the unincorporated area of the County between the Sacramento River and Yolo Bypass north of the city. For the purposes of complying with SB 1000, this is the only identified disadvantaged community within the unincorporated area of Yolo County. Four new policies and three actions include equitable health considerations, engagement, and promotion of redevelopment without displacement of existing residents. 

Conservation and Open Space Element
The Conservation and Open Space Element includes several additions and updates as follows: Section I. Energy Conservation includes four new policies (page CO-84) regarding promotion of energy efficiency and renewable energy. An additional action supporting local Clean Energy Programs is proposed on page CO-86. Additionally, Section J. Climate Change has been updated to align with new statewide greenhouse gas reduction goals (pages CO-86 to CO-90).

Health and Safety Element
The Health and Safety Element includes updates to address climate adaptation and resiliency requirements in accordance with SB1000 (pages HS-3 and HS-4). Section 2. Flood Hazards includes updates to a policy and action on page HS-27 to emphasize reduction of risks associated with climate-related flood events. Section 3. Wildlands Fires includes several updates to address evacuation and fire protection planning. Background information is provided on pages HS-33 and HS-34, with two new maps showing fire history for the County on pages HS-37 and HS-38; updated policies and actions can be found on pages HS-39 and HS-40.  

A new Section 7 was added to the Health and Safety Element to address Climate Adaptation and Resiliency on pages HS-49 to HS-51 that includes a new goal with six new policies and four new actions. Goals and policies include minimizing risk through climate adaptation strategies that enhance and promote community resilience. Actions identify planning for climate change resiliency and provision of cooling centers for combating heat emergencies.

Planning Commission
On November 10, 2022, the Planning Commission unanimously recommended that the Board of Supervisors approve the resolution adopting the proposed amendment to the General Plan with a modification to Action CO-A118 in the Conservation and Open Space Element (page CO-86), as proposed by the Clarksburg Citizen Advisory Committee.  Action CO-A118, a new implementation measure supporting new Policy CO-7.15 (page CO-84), was originally drafted to encourage that all 'public facilities' would participate in local clean energy programs, such as Valley Clean Energy. The Action has been modified to encourage that all 'County-owned and maintained facilities' participate in local clean energy programs to provide flexibility for locally owned public facilities. 

Citizens Advisory Committees
The proposed General Plan amendments were reviewed and discussed with the Capay Valley, Clarksburg, Dunnigan, and Esparto Citizens Advisory Committees (CACs). A summary of CAC recommendations can be found in the Planning Commission Staff Report in Attachment F.  A common theme among the CAC comments include concern that the policies were not necessarily designed to address the local needs of any particular community.

Staff concurs that the policies and actions represented in the proposed amendment are broad based, but will serve to ensure that any future long-range planning efforts, such as community plan updates, take into consideration the unique needs of the community with respect to the issue areas surrounding climate change adaptation, resiliency, and environmental justice. Staff respects the thought and time that went into each CAC's recommendations that were provided for the Planning Commission's consideration.

Staff also consulted with the County Sustainability Manager and interested staff at the County Health and Human Services Agency with particular interest in Environmental Justice issues. Although no specific recommendations were provided at this time, it was agreed that Planning staff would continue to work with interested parties to develop additional EJ and climate adaptation policies for future updates of the General Plan. As stated above, these future endeavors would ensure a more localized approach for addressing issues unique to Yolo County and its residents.

Staff concurs with the Planning Commission's recommendation and is seeking Board approval to adopt a resolution to amend the General Plan to satisfy requirements related to climate adaptation, resiliency, and environmental justice issues.