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RPVCCA_CC_SR_2015_02_17_F_ Support_Letter_Los_Angeles_Air_Force_BaseCITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES MEMORANDUM TO: HONORABLE MAYOR & CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS FROM: CAROLYNN PETRU, AICP, ACTING CITY MANAGE DATE: FEBRUARY 17, 2015 SUBJECT: LETTER OF SUPPORT FOR THE LOS ANGELES AIR FORCE BASE Project Manager: Kit Fox, AICP, Senior Administrative Analyst RECOMMENDATION Authorize the Mayor to sign a letter of support for the Los Angeles Air Force Base, as requested by EI Segundo Mayor Suzanne Fuentes, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and 4th District Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe. BACKGROUND On January 8, 2015, Staff attended the South Bay Cities Council of Governments' (SBCCOG) quarterly legislative briefing in Torrance. SBCCOG Executive Director Jacki Bacharach presented an overview of upcoming SBCCOG initiatives and legislative issues for 2015. One of the issues that was discussed extensively by attendees was fending off any possible closure of the Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB) in EI Segundo by expressing regional support for the base and its personnel. This matter was precipitated by a July 2014 article in Air Force Times about a "survey" that concluded that LAAFB was the worst -rated posting in the Air Force (see attached article). On February 2, 2015, 4t" District County Supervisor Don Knabe attended Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti's "Meeting of the Mayors," and announced that he would be introducing a motion in support of LAAFB at the Board of Supervisor's meeting on February 3, 2015 (see attached motion). Mayor Garcetti and EI Segundo Mayor Suzanne Fuentes urged the other mayors in attendance to send letters of support for LAAFB to the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the Air Force. Mayor Knight was at this meeting, and has asked Staff to agenize this matter for City Council consideration on tonight's agenda. DISCUSSION Supervisor Knabe's February 3rd motion describes the importance of LAAFB and the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) to the South Bay and the Los Angeles region. LAAFB and SMC account for nearly 6,000 direct civilian, military and contractor jobs and F-1 MEMORANDUM: Support Letter for Los Angeles Air Force Base February 17, 2015 Page 2 nearly 12,000 indirect jobs. These points are reiterated in the February 2nd letter signed by the mayors of twenty-six (26) Los Angeles County cities (see attachments). Closer to home, LAAFB personnel and their families are housed in two (2) housing complexes in San Pedro, located near the intersection of Western Avenue and West 25th Street. These residents presumably patronize businesses in both San Pedro and Rancho Palos Verdes, particularly within the Western Avenue corridor. The loss of these valuable community residents would have an adverse impact upon the local economy in the Eastview area. The Rancho Palos Verdes City Council has a long history of supporting LAAFB, and opposing any proposed closure or relocation of the facility and its personnel. Highlights are listed in the table below. Date City Council Action 08/21/1990 Authorized Mayor to sign letter opposing relocation of LAAFB 02/21/1995 Joined the City of EI Segundo in supporting retention of LAAFB 05/20/2003 Approved letter supporting LAAFB modernization effort 02/03/2004 Approved motion opposing closure of LAAFB 03/30/2004 Allocated $5,000 to LAAFB Regional Alliance 02/01/2005 Allocated $5,000 to LAAFB Regional Alliance Adopted resolution recommending that PVPUSD accept the students of active duty personnel 01/14/2008 Met with Assemblymember Karnette regarding legislation to allow PVPUSD to accept the students of active duty personnel Although the City was ultimately successful in supporting legislation that allowed Eastview residents' children to attend PVPUSD schools, similar efforts on behalf of the children of LAAFB personal have not been successful to date. There are no announced plans to shut down LAAFB and/or SMC at this time. However, if the City Council authorizes the Mayor to sign the draft support letter, Staff will continue to monitor this situation and provide future updates on an as -needed basis. CONCLUSION In conclusion, Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the Mayor to sign a letter of support for the Los Angeles Air Force Base, as requested by Mayor Fuentes, Mayor Garcetti and Supervisor Knabe. ALTERNATIVES In addition to the Staff recommendation, the following alternative actions are available for the City Council's consideration: Do not authorize the Mayor to sign the support letter for the Los Angeles Air Force Base. F-2 MEMORANDUM: Support Letter for Los Angeles Air Force Base February 17, 2015 Page 3 FISCAL IMPACT There is no fiscal impact associated with authorizing the Mayor to sign the letter supporting the Los Angeles Air Force Base. Attachments: • Draft Support Letter for Los Angeles Air Force Base • Air Force Times article regarding the worst 5 bases in the Air Force (published 7/21/14) • Supervisor Knabe's motion (introduced 2/3/15) • Supervisor Knabe's Facebook post (posted 2/4/15) • Signed support letter from Los Angeles County mayors (dated 2/2/15) • City Council Policy No. 29 WLegislative Issues\SBCCOG\Los Angeles AFB\20150217_LAAFBSupportLetter_StaffRpt.docx F-3 February 17, 2015 The Honorable Chuck Hagel The Honorable Deborah L. James Secretary of Defense Secretary of the Air Force 1000 Defense Pentagon 1670 Air Force Pentagon Washington, DC 20301-1000 Washington, DC 20330-1670 SUBJECT: Support for the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the Space and Missile Systems Center Dear Secretary Hagel and Secretary J As the Mayor of the City of Rancho Palos Verdes in Los Angeles County, I write on behalf of the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council to expressour strong support for the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the critical role it plays in our nation's defense. Los Angeles County and the Palos Verdes Peninsula have a rich history in aerospace, missile and defense technology and development. Los Angeles remains the top location for aerospace and defense in the nation because -`of its expansive supplier base of firms, skilled talent and unmatched export capacity. Los Angeles' national designation as an advanced aerospace manufacturing community, one of only twelve manufacturing communities selected nationwide, is testament to its strength within this industry as is its recent selection to host the Department of Commerce's first annual National Aerospace Foreiqn Direct Investment Expo. The Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB) and the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) are critical assets to the aerospace industry and the nation's ability to design the military technology necessary to adequately provide for our national defense. The biggest asset to our country's safety, !possessed by the LAAFB and SMC, is its unmatched skilled workforce based in Las Angeles. This brain trust, consisting of 5,879 directly employed military, civilian and contractor workers, and 11,776 indirectly employed, has made its home in Los Angeles and would be unlikely to migrate anywhere else if either the LAAFB or SMC moved some of its operations. This localized, highly -skilled workforce is essential to the success of the LAAFB and the SMC, and has time and again proven itself crucial to the defense of the United States of America. The SMC has provided the nation with highly -sophisticated intelligence -gathering infrastructure that has significantly contributed to the U.S. military's advancement in missions such as Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom, where SMC is noted as having added "unimaginable speed and precision to American military F-4 operations" through the use of space -based surveillance, communications, navigation and meteorology. As national defense continues to rely more on intelligence gathering, the role SMC has played in developing, acquiring, fielding and sustaining our military space systems cannot be overstated. SMC has proven to be a critical infrastructure asset to our national defense both in the past as well as for the foreseeable future. LAAFB's and SMC's location also bolsters its strategic importance to our national defense due to the following factors: Los Angeles County remains the top location for nation—still home to major prime contractor, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon and Ho and mid-sized companies in the A&D supply Los Angeles County also graduates more e developed sophisticated programs at comma needs of the aerospace and defense industn eers colle Espace and defense in the such as Northrop Grumman, well as home to more small anywhere else in the nation. in any other region and has and universities to meet the well into the futuii • The proximity to a significantly large aerospace and defense ecosystem of companies coupled with an unmatched skilled workforce available only in L.A. provide the LAAFB with unparalleled built-in benefits to advance ifs -mission. Los Angeles provides vital talent and connections to thelargest aerospace manufacturing base in the country to the LAAFB and SMC, which can be found nowhere else. Similarly, the Los Angeles Air Force base is a Los Angeles icon, keeping our region connected to the armed forces and the women and men who keen our country safe. Closer to home, LAAFB perso complexes in San Pedro, loc residents,patronize businese within the Western Avenue cc would have an adverse impar Verdes City Council has a loni allow the children of LAAFB, Palos Verdes Peninsula Unifi( The Rancho Palos Verdes Cif Space and Missile Systems C SMC would be detrimental to Force Base. Sincerely yours, Jim Knight Mayor City of Rancho Palos Verdes iel and their families are housed in two Air Force housing d near the"_border with Rancho Palos Verdes. These n both San Pedro and Rancho Palos Verdes, particularly dor, and the loss of these valuable community residents jpon our local,economy. In addition, the Rancho Palos isto y of supporting LAAFB. This has included efforts to �rsohnel to attend the world-class public schools of the School 'District. Council supports the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the enter, and firmly believes any attempted relocation of the national defense and the mission of the Los Angeles Air F-5 cc: Susan Brooks, Mayor Pro Tem, City of Rancho Palos Verdes Brian Campbell, Councilmember, City of Rancho Palos Verdes Jerry Duhovic, Councilmember, City of Rancho Palos Verdes Anthony Misetich, Councilmember, City of Rancho Palos Verdes Don Knabe, 4th District Supervisor, County of Los Angeles Suzanne Fuentes, Mayor, City of EI Segundo Eric Garcetti, Mayor, City of Los Angeles Joe Buscaino, 15th District Councilmember, City of Los Angeles Jacki Bacharach, Executive Director, South Bay Cities Council of Governments Carolynn Petru, Acting City Manager, City of Rancho Palos Verdes Kit Fox, Senior Administrative Analyst, City of Rancho Palos Verdes M:\Legislative Issues\SBCCOG\Los Angeles AFB\Draft LAAFB Support Letter.docx F-6 http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20140721 /N EWS/307210026/ Bringing up the rear: The 5 worst bases in the Air Force Jul. 21, 2014 - 06:OOAM / airforcetimes.com Average commute in the Washington area is roughly half an hour. Methodology for ranking bases To compile our ranking of 68 Air Force bases, we collected and analyzed hundreds of pieces of information. Air Force Times evaluated statistics in a dozen categories: school quality, cost of living, housing costs, commissary size, base exchange size, size of on -base health care facilities, crime rates, commute times, pollution levels, climate, unemployment rates and sales taxes. We then assigned each category a score on a 10 -point scale. ■ To come up with a school quality score, we used the website GreatSchools.com, a respected resource for ranking and comparing schools used by real estate agents and real estate websites such as Zillow and Realtor.com. GreatSchools evaluates schools on a 10 -point scale based on a combination of their standardized test scores, whether students are improving from year to year, and college readiness, defined as how well students take and score on SAT and ACT tests, and their graduation rates. We searched for all rated schools within a 10 -mile radius of each base and averaged their scores to come up with an overall school score. ■ We pulled information on cost of living, housing, crime rates, commute times, pollution levels, climate, unemployment rates and sales taxes from the website Sperling's Best Places, which compiles demographic and other data on communities around the country. We used formulas to convert the raw data from each category into a 10 -point scale. BestPlaces. net's crime statistics had low numbers for low crime rates and high numbers for high crime rates. We converted the statistics so lower crime rates would result in higher scores for bases. ■ Sperling's Best Places also provided data it collected on the size and type of on -base commissaries, exchanges and health care facilities, and rankings on a 10 -point scale. Of course, not all categories are equally important to service members. We'd wager school quality, for example, is a greater concern than the sales tax rate. So we weighted each category. Scores for the most important categories — schools, cost of living, housing and commissaries — were tripled. The next most important categories — crime, health care facilities, commute times and exchanges — were doubled in value. And the last four categories — pollution levels, climate, unemployment rates and sales taxes — got no additional weighting. Finally, we added up the scores and stacked the bases. Based on Air Force Times research, these are the five least -popular bases — from fifth worst to worst — to be stationed in the Air Force: 5. (tied) Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington, D.C. Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, formerly Bolling Air Force Base, ends up in our bottom five primarily due to the Washington area's abysmal traffic — year after year, ranked the worst in the country — and high cost of housing. The average commute in the Washington area is roughly half an hour, and hits nearly 40 minutes in the area right around Bolling — well longer than the average 25 -minute commute nationwide. F-7 Page 1 of 4 Feb 05, 2015 11:52:27AM MST http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20140721 /N EWS/307210026/ A home in nearby Fairfax County, Virginia, has a median cost of $455,300. And an Arlington, Virginia, house hits a punishing median cost of $583,400 — well over triple the $170,100 median home cost nationwide. Sweltering summers — the average high temperature in July hits an always -muggy 89 degrees — and high crime rates in the District of Columbia also dragged Bolling's score down. Bolling's crime score was 3 out of 10, much lower than the nationwide average of 6. Nearby Northern Virginia's schools are popularly known as among the best in the country, and some live up to that reputation. But other schools received low rankings from the Great Schools website, dragging the Washington area's school score into the average range of 6 out of 10 possible points. 5. (tied) Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts Hanscom Air Force Base near Bedford, Massachusetts, has a lot going for it. In our survey, it ended up with one of the highest school rankings — 8 out of 10 — the lowest crime rates—receiving 9 points out of 10, far greater than the nationwide average of 6 — and lowest unemployment rates — 3.9 percent compared with 6.1 percent nationally. But the area's high cost of living and housing prices — partly because it is about a 25 -mile drive from Boston —landed Hanscom in the bottom five. A home in Bedford will run you a median cost of $546,500. In an interview, Debra Westervelt, Hanscom's capital asset manager, acknowledged that the Bedford housing market is "pretty tight," and said many airmen assigned there choose to live on base for that reason. But Westervelt said if someone really wants an off -base home, her office can usually find something for them within 20 or 30 minutes of Hanscom. As the only active -duty military base in New England, spokesman Justin Oakes said, Hanscom hosts many civilians and service members from other branches of the military, which also leads to a high occupancy rate on base. "We're pretty full," Oakes said. To help airmen mitigate the cost of living — which Westervelt acknowledged can sometimes make it tough to make ends meet — Hanscom offers an on -base fitness center, Olympic -size swimming pool, bowling alley, movie theater, community center, several playgrounds, and a bank, as well as a commissary and medical clinic. "For such a small base, we do have quite a lot of amenities," Oakes said. Hanscom has a total workforce of 5,828, including 922 active duty service members and 92 reservists. The rest are civilian government employees and contractors. Bedford is a great place to raise children, said Lisa Pizarro, the school liaison officer at Hanscom. The nonprofit group America's Promise Alliance, which was founded by Colin Powell, has listed Bedford as one of the 100 Best Communities for Young People five times. And at the end of each school year, Pizarro said, Bedford High School holds a party for students whose families are transferring away from Hanscom, which is attended by base leaders. "It's more of a celebration," Pizarro said. "You might be leaving, but you're always part of the community." F-8 Page 2 of 4 Feb 05, 2015 11:52:27AM MST http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20140721 /N EWS/307210026/ 3. (tied) McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas Disappointing schools, higher -than -average crime rates, and high taxes combined to place McConnell Air Force Base, located near Wichita, Kansas, near the bottom of our list. The average GreatSchools.com ranking of schools within a 10 -mile radius was 4 out of a possible 10. McConnell's crime score was 3 out of a possible 10, lower than the nationwide average score of 6. And sales taxes there are 7.15 percent, higher than the usual 6 percent. While McConnell has a large commissary, its small medical clinic and disappointing base exchange also hurt the base's ranking. And it's hot, too. According to Sperling's Best Places, average July temperatures in Wichita hit a scorching 93 degrees. 3. (tied) Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi The on -base amenities for Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi are disappointing. The base's commissary is small, its only medical facility is a clinic, and its small exchange is just a shoppette. There are 2,744 people assigned to Columbus, including 1,447 military service members, 598 contractors, and 472 civil servants. The 7 percent sales tax is higher than the nationwide average of 6 percent, and summer hits hard, averaging 92 -degree temperatures in July. And if your spouse hopes to find a job in the local community, that's going to be tough — Columbus' unemployment rate is a staggering 12.9 percent, more than double the nationwide rate. Staff Sgt. Jason Do has been stationed at Columbus for five years and called it "one of the worst bases" in the Air Force. "I'm realizing more and more that it is just a black hole for enlisted members," Do said. "Everything closes early on base and around town. It's so small that there is no chow hall. Columbus is a career -ending base, where many have retired [or] separated due to just being stuck at the base." Do said Columbus' exchange is horrible, and he usually goes to Wal-Mart instead. "It's hard to find anything that'll fit, and there isn't much selection" at the exchange, Do said. "It's easier sometimes to ask a friend to get you something when they are TDY." Do says that for airmen stationed in Columbus, it's tough to afford to eat healthily and stay fit. Since there's no chow hall, he tries to find healthy foods off base. But that food is much more expensive than junk food, he said, meaning he sometimes has to make a choice between eating healthily and making ends meet. And Do said the Basic Allowance for Housing in the Columbus area — he gets $807 a month — is far too low for airmen to live on. "A lot of people have to have roommates just to not live in a bad area, which Columbus, Mississippi, has many of," Do said. "I also know that a lot of enlisted members have a second job to support their families." On the bright side, traffic is light. 1. Los Angeles Air Force Base F-9 Page 3 of 4 Feb 05, 2015 11:52:27AM MST http://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20140721 /NEWS/307210026/ It may be fun to have pristine beaches and Disneyland practically in the backyard of your duty station. It also may drain your bank account. Cost of living and housing prices are through the roof around Los Angeles Air Force Base, helping to land it at the bottom of our list of Air Force bases. BestPlaces.net's cost of living score for nearbyEI Segundo, California, is 218, more than double the nationwide average of 100. The median home cost there is a whopping $766,000. The 9 percent sales tax and 7.6 percent unemployment rate are also high. And the schools are middling, with average ranking of 5 within 10 miles. Despite the astronomical costs of living in L.A., BAH rates are surprisingly low. For example, a staff sergeant without dependents in L.A. gets a monthly BAH of $1,704 and a chief master sergeant without dependents gets $2,373. There are at least a dozen other locations where airmen receive more — not just places like New York City and Honolulu, but also West Point, New York; Oakland, California; Fort Monmouth, New Jersey; and New Haven, Connecticut. Capt. Angel Vargas, a group practice manager for the 375th Medical Group at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, who was previously stationed at L.A., said that he loved the near -constant 70 -degree weather there, as well as all the social things to do. But he estimated food and housing expenses there were easily three to four times as much as in the Scott area. "That's more money I can spend on my daughter now, on after-school events," Vargas said. "It's better for my family." See a map of all the bases Join trending discussions in the military's #1 professional community. See what members like yourself have to say from across the DoD. Start your day with a roundup of top defense news. Aiforc�irrws VAM"" . fff V AMIR LOANil.i► a flightlines blog IR7U65- PT365 e -newsletters. Sign up now for free Military Times E -Reports. Choose from Money and Education. Subscribers: log in for premium Courtesy of = —OPERATION HOMEFRONT F-10 Page 4 of 4 Feb 05, 2015 11:52:27AM MST MOTION BY SUPERVISOR DON KNABE AGN. NO. February 3, 2015 The Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB) and the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) are critical assets to the aerospace industry and the nation's ability to design the military technology necessary to adequately provide for our national defense. The biggest asset to our country's safety, possessed by the LAAFB and SMC, is its unmatched skilled workforce based in Los Angeles. This brain trust, consisting of 5,879 directly employed military, civilian, and contractor workers and 11,776 indirectly employed, has made its home in Los Angeles and would be unlikely to migrate anywhere else if either the LAAFB or SMC moved some of its operations. This localized, highly skilled workforce is essential to the success of the LAAFB and the SMC, and has time and again proven itself crucial to the defense of the United States of America. The SMC has provided the nation with highly sophisticated intelligence gathering infrastructure that has significantly contributed to the U.S. military's advancement in MOTION SOLIS RIDLEY-THOMAS KUEHL KNABE ANTONOVICH F-11 missions such as Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom where SMC is noted as having added "unimaginable speed and precision to American military operations" through the use of space -based surveillance, communications, navigation and meteorology. As national defense continues to rely more on intelligence gathering, the role SMC has played in developing, acquiring, fielding and sustaining our military space systems cannot be overstated. SMC has proven to be a critical infrastructure asset to our national defense both in the past as well as for the foreseeable future. LAAFB's and SMC's location also bolsters its strategic importance to our national defense due to the following factors: • Los Angeles County remains the top location for aerospace and defense in the nation—still home to major prime contractor operations, such as Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon, and Honeywell, as well as home to more small and mid-sized companies in the A&D supply chain than anywhere else in the nation. • Los Angeles County also graduates more engineers than any other region and has developed sophisticated programs at community colleges and universities to meet the needs of the aerospace and defense industry well into the future. • The proximity to a significantly large aerospace and defense ecosystem of companies coupled with an unmatched skilled workforce available only in L.A. provide the LAAFB with unparalleled built-in benefits to advance its mission. F-12 Los Angeles provides vital talent and connections to the largest aerospace manufacturing base in the country to the LAAFB and SMC, which can be found nowhere else. Similarly, the Los Angeles Air Force base is a Los Angeles icon, keeping our region connected to the armed forces and the women and men who keep our country safe. History has shown us that we must be forever vigilant so that this incredible asset to our national security and regional economy is not threatened by closure or relocation. I, THEREFORE, MOVE that the Board of Supervisors send a five signature letter to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James expressing our firm support for the Los Angeles Air Force Base and stating that any relocation attempt of the Space and Missile Systems Center would be detrimental to national defense and the mission of the Los Angeles Air Force Base. I, THEREFORE, FURTHER MOVE that the Board of Supervisors send a five -signature letter to the Mayors of the County's eighty-eight cities encouraging them to pass resolutions in support of the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the Space and Missile Systems Center to the Secretaries of Defense and the Air Force. SUP:DK F-13 PEOPLE > o Post 3,227 lig,;; .v❑ie something on Ihis Page Invite your friends to like Mrs Page ABOUT Los Angeles County Supervisor representing the 4th District hrp-1A— Knabe.cbmr Suggest Eons PHOTOS Don Knabe Yesterday. the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to send a letter to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James about the importance of Los Angeles Air Force Base to our region and to our national defense. We are also asking all 88 Los Angeles County mayors to join us In our efforts to Keep the Fur Force Base in EI Segundo where It belongs. The Base has been rumored to be threatened by closure or relocation. it Is an absolutely critical economic driver in not only the South Bay, but for the entire region. Over 5,000 people are directly employed there, and It creates another 11.700 jobs locaty. The Base Is a majorjob creator, and this region cannot afford to lose it. L�e t;GnrnlPr:1 Share 11541+ •.100% Don Knabe's Facebook Post February 4, 2015 F-14 February 2, 2015 Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James 1400 Defense Pentagon 1690 Air Force Pentagon Washington, DC 20301-1400 Washington, DC 20330-1670 Dear Secretary Hagel and Secretary James, As city leaders within Los Angeles County, we write to express our strong support for the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the critical role it plays in our nation's defense. Los Angeles County has a rich history in aerospace, missile, and defense technology and development. Los Angeles remains the top location for aerospace and defense in the nation because of its expansive supplier base of firms, skilled talent, and unmatched export capacity. Los Angeles' national designation as an advanced aerospace manufacturing community, one of only twelve manufacturing communities selected nationwide, is testament to its strength within this industry as is its recent selection to host the Department of Commerce's first annual National Aerospace Foreign Direct Investment Expo. The Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB) and the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) are critical assets to the aerospace industry and the nation's ability to design the military technology necessary to adequately provide for our national defense. The biggest asset to our country's safety, possessed by the LAAFB and SMC, is its unmatched skilled workforce based in Los Angeles. This brain trust, consisting of 5,879 directly employed military, civilian, and contractor workers and 11,776 indirectly employed, has made its home in Los Angeles and would be unlikely to migrate anywhere else if either the LAAFB or SMC moved some of its operations. This localized, highly skilled workforce is essential to the success of the LAAFB and the SMC, and has time and again proven itself crucial to the defense of the United States of America. SMC provides the nation with highly sophisticated intelligence gathering infrastructure that has -significantly contributed to the U.S. military's advancement in missions such as Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom where SMC was noted as having added "unimaginable speed and precision to American military operations" through the use of space -based surveillance, communications, navigation and meteorology. As national defense continues to rely more on intelligence gathering, the role SMC has played in developing, acquiring, fielding and sustaining our military space systems cannot be overstated. SMC has proven to be a critical infrastructure asset to our national defense both in the past as well as for the foreseeable future. F-15 LAAFB's and SMC's location also bolsters its strategic importance to our national defense due to the following factors: • Los Angeles County remains the top location for aerospace and defense in the nation—home to major prime contractor operations, such as Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon, and Honeywell, as well as Aerospace Corporation which is physically connected to LAAFB and home to more small and mid-sized companies in the aerospace and defense supply chain than anywhere else in the nation. • Los Angeles County graduates more engineers than any other region and has developed sophisticated programs at community colleges and universities to meet the needs of the aerospace and defense industry well into the future. • Proximity to a significantly large aerospace and defense ecosystem of companies coupled with an unmatched skilled workforce available only in Los Angeles provides LAAFB with unparalleled built-in benefits to advance our nation's defense mission. Los Angeles provides LAAFB and SMC vital talent and connections to the country's largest aerospace manufacturing base. Similarly, the Los Angeles Air Force Base is a Los Angeles icon, keeping our region connected to the armed forces and the women and men who keep our country safe. Neither SMC nor Los Angeles would be as strong without the other. We, the mayors of the cities in Los Angeles County, support the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the Space and Missile Systems Center, and firmly believe any relocation attempt of the SMC would be detrimental to national defense and the mission of the Los Angeles Air Force Base. Sincerely, City of jos A006t= LL -5 City ofD� City of -7_,zAPLZ City of ' z - 2 Ci City of City of `' �� iii.^ .�. i X40 K4 City F-16 jzlla,1�1,c� City of 061 ity of o4o.6i MMMENI M� Ci of � U -4//7"m 1/1, a,kL"- &� - 1L-"� City of d, 6-, 41 LVL city o ,,w �\ ey City of C 91,1.5 d n/ City of City of City of City of F-17 CITY COUNCIL POLICY NUMBER: 29 DATE ADOPTED/AMENDED: 08/01/95 (amended 02/19/02 & 03/04/14) SUBJECT: Legislative Activities of the City Council POLICY: It shall be the policy of the City Council that the staff shall prepare and present periodic legislative updates for the Council's review and consideration. The legislation monitored Legislative Guidelines shall address issues at the regional, County, State and Federal level and shall focus upon anticipated or proposed laws, regulations, rules, or policies that may impact the City or the region. The legislation monitored will include both those issues that the City Council decides either to support or oppose and those that they choose to identify as issues of concern, but not take a position on. The determination of what position to take on pending legislation shall be solely that of the City Council. Staff will periodically, at the request of a Council member, place matters of pending legislation on the City Council agenda for consideration. Staff will provide regular updates on the status of any legislative action affecting any issues of concern to the City Council through the Weekly Administrative Report. If the majority of the Council votes to support or oppose legislation, staff shall prepare the appropriate correspondence to the appropriate Federal, State, County and/or regional legislative representative(s) expressing the position of the City. Individual Council members may wish to support or oppose a specific piece of legislation whether the Council has taken a position on such legislation or not. Any legislative activity by an individual Council member, including preparing legislative correspondence, may be conducted by any Council member, who shall state that he or she is not acting on behalf of the City and is representing his or her own personal views. However, staff shall not assist in any legislative activity of an individual Council member, including the preparation of legislative correspondence, unless the legislative item has appeared on a Council agenda and has received a majority vote of the Council. The League of California Cities' "Legislative Bulletin" and any appropriate publication that summarizes legislation shall be provided as part of the Weekly Administrative Report to each member of the Council for review. F-18 BACKGROUND: The City Council initially adopted a policy for Council involvement in Federal and State legislative advocacy in 1995. Although the policy seems to have worked adequately over the first seven years, by 2002 it was thought that it did not allow the City to respond rapidly to requests to support or oppose legislation that may be before a committee or on the floor or the Assembly or before Congress and needs immediate action on the part of supporters or opponents. Therefore, the policy was amended in 2002 to address these perceived deficiencies. In 2014, the policy was amended again to revise the procedure for monitoring legislation, and to explicitly include legislative issues at the County and regional level. The City Council's revised legislative policy establishes an internal process for identifying, tracking and advocating its position on pending legislation synchronized to the fast -paced "legislation time clock." Through this proactive policy, the City Council hopes to have a stronger "voice" in the Peninsula/South Bay region, Los Angeles County, Sacramento and Washington, DC. F-19