Happy Valentine’s Day to all!  It’s a great day to celebrate love, and if you’re reading this you have love for what’s happening at the San Diego City Council.  On Tuesday, Councilmembers will consider establishing a special temporary committee to provide oversight and reform of the San Diego Housing commission.  The Council will also weigh a reduction in cannabis production fees and cannabis operating fees.

From the Office of Council President Sean Elo-Rivera  

City Council Meeting – February 15, 2022 – 10 a.m.

Council Meeting Agenda

10 a.m. – Consent Agenda, Ceremonial Proclamations, Closed Session public comment, non-agenda public comment

11 a.m. – Closed Session

2 p.m. – Information and Discussion Agenda

17 items fill the Consent Agenda including appointments to the Citizens Advisory Board on Police and Community Relations, the San Diego Park and Recreation Board, Mobility Board and the Board of Library Commissioners.

Ceremonial Proclamations:

Item 30 – Day of Remembrance 2022 commemorates the 80th anniversary of the President Franklin Roosevelt signing Executive Order 9066 in 1942 which led to the mass incarceration of 120,000 persons of Japanese ancestry.

Item 31 – San Diego Fire-Rescue Department Station 45 Celebration Day expresses gratitude to the brave Firefighters and lifeguards of Station 45 in Mission Valley for rescuing two people who were swept up by flood waters in December of 2021.

Item 32 – Father Peter Escalante Day recognizes Reverend Escalante for his life of good works, devotion and lifelong commitment to the Church.

Item S504 – Black History Month celebrates the month during which we celebrate the many achievements, contributions, and sacrifices made by African Americans to our economic, cultural, spiritual, and political development.

Item S507 – Ben Cravatt Day honors a chemist at Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla who was recently awarded the 2022 Wolf Prize in chemistry for his work developing anti-cancer drugs.

On to the Discussion Agenda…

Item 330 - Undergrounding Memorandum of Understanding with SDG&E – City staff and SDG&E have negotiated an Undergrounding Memorandum of Understanding as required by the Electrical Franchise Agreement.  This item would adopt an Ordinance authorizing the Mayor or designee to enter into an agreement with SDG&E for purposes of performing the underground conversion of existing overhead facilities consistent with the attached.

Item 331 - Adoption of an ordinance amending Chapter 3, Article 4, Division 1 of the San Diego Municipal Code to Reduce the Current Tax Rate for Cannabis Production Facilities (CPFs) in the City of San Diego from 8% to 2% - On November 8, 2016, voters in the City of San Diego approved Measure N, which imposed an initial gross receipts tax of 5% on all non-medical cannabis businesses (subsequently raised to 8% per San Diego Municipal Code section 34.0112(c)) and mandated that the tax cannot exceed 15%. On September 11, 2017, Ordinance No. O-20859 was introduced to regulate the cannabis industry relative to commercial cultivation, manufacturing, storage, and distribution of medical and recreational cannabis, and to allow by-right cannabis testing labs. Ordinance No. O-20859 went into effect on November 17, 2017. The proposed action is to reduce the current tax rate for Cannabis Production Facilities (CPFs) from 8% to 2%, effective 60 days after approval by the full City Council.

Item 332 - Proposed Cannabis Business Division Operations Fee – The proposed action is to reduce the current tax rate for Cannabis Production Facilities from 8% to 2%, effective 60 days after approval by the full City Council.  Cities across California and in the San Diego region currently have set tax rates for cannabis production below the City of San Diego’s current tax rate of 8% of gross receipts.  This makes the City of San Diego less competitive across California and across the region in the cannabis industry.

Item S505 - Creation of a Temporary Special Issues Council Committee Named the Select Committee on San Diego Housing Commission Oversight and Reform, and Appointments of Councilmembers to the Committee – This item would establish a temporary standing committee on San Diego Housing Commission Oversight and Reform for a period set to end November 30, 2023.  Specific tasks would be to provide oversight to the San Diego Housing Commission and considering reforms to the governance and structure of the Commission.  It would also confirm the Council President’s appointments of Councilmember Stephen Whitburn as Chair, Councilmember Chris Cate as Vice Chair, Councilmember Joe LaCava, and Councilmember Marni Von Wilpert as members.

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To participate in the meeting, click on the agenda and follow the instructions. 

You can watch the meeting on cable TV channel 24 or AT&T channel 99, or  stream it online (external link). 

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