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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023 Exhibit A Johnston GroupPage 1 of 7 September 1, 2022 Exhibit A Scope of Work and Summary of Accomplishments This Exhibit presents some of the major accomplishments achieved in 2022 and outlines a Scope of Work in prioritized order for 2023. 2022 Major Accomplishments The Johnston Group helped the City of Bremerton make major gains in 2022 in support of its federal legislative agenda. Specifically, we accomplished the following key goals: 1. Finalized the $2.5 million in Congressional funding for the Quincy Square project a. Secured delegation support for this funding. b. Tracked the distribution of the funding through the federal Agency and the regulatory process. c. Worked with Bremerton staff to analyze funding requirements and modify any restrictions on the funding pending environmental review. 2. Reviewed Bremerton Capital Improvement projects with City staff and analyzed the federal funding opportunities contained in the following legislative funding opportunities: a. American Recovery Plan (ARPA); b. Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, including: i. Safe Streets and Roads for All Program ii. Reconnecting Communities Pilot Grant Program iii. Culvert Removal, Replacement and Restoration Program iv. Broadband Development and Deployment v. Charging and Fueling Infrastructure vi. Bridge Investment Program vii. Carbon Reduction Program viii. Local and Regional Project Assistance Grants c. Appropriations bills with FY’22 earmarks and unresolved FY’23 earmarks, and; d. Inflation Reduction Act (aka the Climate bill). Coordinated with city staff about various projects in the areas of utility infrastructure, stormwater management, broadband deployment, transit and transportation infrastructure, housing and community development. 3. Continued work in support of the Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP) at the Department of Defense. a. Secured a $30 million funding increase in the program to $90 million which would allow the Department of Defense to make infrastructure and quality of life grants to communities that support military installations. b. Continued to work with delegation offices to ensure that the funds granted by DCIP are able to meet military community needs. DocuSign Envelope ID: 282EB614-323A-4A3B-80E9-E53F5430906E Page 2 of 7 September 1, 2022 c. Working to align the recommendations from the PSNS Commuter Workforce Study with funding opportunities via the DCIP. 4. Lobbied for a medium sized set aside for federal transportation grants so that cities between 10,000 and 75,000 have more competitive access to grant programs. We made some progress in the Bipartisan Infrastructure bill and saw the RAISE grant program change so that half of its awards must go to cities before 200,000 in population size. As a result, two medium sized Washington State Cities won RAISE grant awards in 2022 for the first time. 5. Continued to elevate Bremerton as a regional leader of 33 Washington cities in support of the medium sized city provisions. 6. Supported the creation of a new federal grant program led by Reps. Derek Kilmer and Senator Maria Cantwell for local governments to use for salmon recovery efforts focusing on culvert replacement and fish barrier removal. This new program was included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure bill and funding is pending the Appropriations bills currently under deliberation. 2023 Proposed Agenda The 2023 scope of work builds on our short-term success from 2022 and continues to build support in 2023 and for longer-term initiatives in the years ahead. Additionally, we follow the work being done by partner agencies and organizations and will levy support when and where appropriate. Some of these organizations include the Association of Washington Cities, the Association of Defense Communities, the Puget Sound Regional Council and Kitsap County, among others. These items are listed in priority order. 1. Bringing federal funding to the City’s top infrastructure priorities. With Members of Congress restoring earmarking authority, the City has ample opportunity to position its priority projects for federal support. In 2021, the City secured Congressional support for $2.5 million to complete the Quincy Square project. Our work in 2023 will be to align Bremerton projects within the changing earmark regulations and rules so that Bremerton has access to the funds without overt restrictions or delay. 2. Transitioning the OLDCC funded report on the Pedestrian and Commuter needs for the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard into grant funding opportunities through the Defense Community Infrastructure Program. DocuSign Envelope ID: 282EB614-323A-4A3B-80E9-E53F5430906E Page 3 of 7 September 1, 2022 The Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS) is a key economic factor for the City of Bremerton with insufficient parking, pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure and drop-off areas for a commuting workforce. The City has done an excellent job of researching the challenge and looking at potential mitigation strategies and is the final stages of completing a $690,000 grant from the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA) – now called the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) – at the Pentagon to develop a comprehensive strategy and capital plan. This grant fits with the Joint Land Use Study conducted for the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Naval Base Kitsap and enjoys the support of the Base Commander and the Congressional delegation. This grant is expected to develop a comprehensive set of prioritized infrastructure projects with correlating cost estimates for completion. The City intends to apply for funding within the Defense Community Infrastructure Program (see below) to fund these projects once the study is complete. Part of our work in 2023 will be to ensure that funding is maintained and to keep our congressional delegation informed about the work being done as key milestones are hit. This grant will result in a blueprint that will we use to seek federal funding to support the city’s improvements. 3. Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP) In 2018, Congress included the creation of the Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP) in the Defense Authorization bill with an initial authorization of $100 million for the program. This program was the result of a multiple-year effort led by the City of Lakewood and pushed by former Rep. Denny Heck with the support of Rep. Derek Kilmer and Rep. Adam Smith. This new federal initiative created a new funding program for the Department of Defense to help cities construct infrastructure that serves military installations. Congress failed to fund the program in 2018 but we were able to get $50 million appropriated in 2019 to establish the program and support the first round of grants. As 2020 unfolded, the OLDCC established the DCIP with an emphasis on projects that enhanced military quality of life and de-emphasized infrastructure. In 2021, we increased the amount of funding available to $60 million and successfully re- prioritized infrastructure in the grant awards. This is key to our strategy of using the DCIP to fund the infrastructure improvements identified by the OEA-funded PSNS Commuter Workforce Study. In 2022 the funding grew to $90 million but we did not see the prioritization of traditional infrastructure projects that we were expecting. In 2023, funding the DCIP and ensuring that the program adequately prioritizes the types of projects we envision needing in Bremerton – specifically via the PSNS Commuter Workforce Study – is our top priority. 4. Transportation, Climate and Infrastructure Programs and Funding DocuSign Envelope ID: 282EB614-323A-4A3B-80E9-E53F5430906E Page 4 of 7 September 1, 2022 Congress and President Biden enacted the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill in December 2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022. These two bills provide dozens of grant and program funding opportunities for the City of Bremerton. As the funding programs are created and implemented, the City will make sure that these programs are viable funding programs for the City’s needs and priorities. We have a substantial concern that national grant programs disadvantage medium sized cities without a specific set aside so that cities of similar size compete on equal ground. Several proposals in both House and Senate bills have new programs identified for competitive grant funding (see below for a selected list). Influencing how these programs are developed by the agencies and ensuring they are set up in ways that make Bremerton’s projects accessible and competitive will be a top priority. Each of these new programs provide an opportunity for the City to position projects and compete for funding. We will work to modify the infrastructure grant programs to create a medium sized city set aside and to ensure that program criteria meet the needs of the City of Bremerton. For the climate infrastructure programs recently enacted, we will be working to establish similar criteria in new programs that will be implemented in 2023. Selected New and Expanded Programs Funded by the December 2021 Infrastructure Bill: • Safe Streets and Roads for All Program • Reconnecting Communities Pilot Grant Program • Culvert Removal, Replacement and Restoration Program • Broadband Development and Deployment • Charging and Fueling Infrastructure • Bridge Investment Program • Carbon Reduction Program • Local and Regional Project Assistance Grants 5. Transportation and Infrastructure Policy Changes  Medium Sized City Set Aside Most federal infrastructure spending has a rural set aside which is critical for smaller communities to be able to access federal dollars. There is no comparable medium sized city set aside. Instead, medium sized cities compete against large cities like Seattle, Portland and Los Angeles for limited resources. Medium sized cities need a defined pool to compete within so as to make federal funds available in a way that simply aren’t in their current status. As Congress debates a new Transportation bill and considers the continued funding of the RAISE Program (formerly known as the BUILD or TIGER discretionary grant program), the City should lobby for a portion of federal infrastructure dollars be set aside for medium DocuSign Envelope ID: 282EB614-323A-4A3B-80E9-E53F5430906E Page 5 of 7 September 1, 2022 sized cities. This policy position is consistent with the work the city has been doing for years and is supported broadly by similar sized cities throughout the state. As for proof as to why this set aside is needed, since the RAISE program was created in 2009, not a single award has been made to a city in Washington State between 10,000 and 75,000 in population size. The RAISE program is the key federal funding program for local infrastructure investments. Yet, all cities compete within the same funding pool, putting smaller and medium sized cities at a competitive disadvantage for funding even as the transit and commuter challenges are similar to those of larger communities. There are efforts in Congress to create funding tiers so that cities of similar size can compete for federal funds. The City should support efforts to designate a portion of federal transportation spending for cities between 10,000 and 75,000 in population size. In 2021, we were able to get a medium sized city set aside in two of the new transportation grant programs in the House-passed transportation bill. This was the first time that Congress recognized the problem and designed a funding strategy to address it. In 2022, our effort led to half of the RAISE grants being made available to cities under 200,000 in population size. As a result, two medium sized cities in Washington State were awarded RAISE grants in 2022. Simply put, our efforts need to make a medium sized city set aside established in more grant programs and modify the population band to be between 10,000 and 100,000 to make it a more viable strategy for Bremerton.  Application Improvements for Federal Funding Applying for federal grants requires a substantial investment of time and resources from the City with no guarantees of funding. The Biden Administration has developed combined application portals for similar grants projects or for projects that may be eligible for multiple funding sources. The City of Bremerton should support these efforts to streamline the federal application process and more easily qualify projects into multiple funding sources. Substantial work in this area is anticipated in 2023 and beyond. 6. Defense Policy / Issues As the host community to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Naval Base Kitsap, the City is keenly impacted by Defense policies. The following issues comprise a key portion of our 2023 federal policy agenda.  Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) DocuSign Envelope ID: 282EB614-323A-4A3B-80E9-E53F5430906E Page 6 of 7 September 1, 2022 The City should support a BRAC round to focus limited federal funding on critical military infrastructure needs. The City urges Congress to invest in the Office of Economic Adjustment with any BRAC round. While the prospects of a BRAC round over the next few years are unlikely, the DOD and our congressional delegation are supportive, including most importantly, Rep. Adam Smith who is the Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee with jurisdiction over this issue. A BRAC round is the best way to direct military construction and infrastructure funding to the bases and locations that need the most investments. More, for bases that see an increase in missions or personnel following a BRAC, Congress should consider creating a new funding support to address deficiencies on those installations.  Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) As Congress moves forward with annual Defense Authorization bills, preserving funding for the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) – formerly known as the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA) – at the Pentagon is a key priority for the City. OLDCC funds economic studies and planning for cities that experience reductions or growth in their military installations. We expect OLDCC to continue to be a critical partner to the City for many of our shared initiatives in support of PSNS and NBK. Funding for OLDCC is under persistent threat and the City should lobby for stable funding for OLDCC in recognition of its strong role in the economic growth in our region.  Association of Defense Communities Engagement The Association of Defense Communities (ADC) has the potential to become a key ally for the City. The ADC’s support for the Defense Infrastructure Program was key to enactment in 2018. Additionally, its steadfast support for the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) has been critically important for the viability of that agency. The City should look for ways to deepen its relationship with ADC and consider participating in ADC conferences with the eventual goal of seeking committee and board positions with ADC.  Support for Military Construction Projects at PSNS and NBK As the City develops its relationships with base leadership at PSNS and NBK, it should lobby for projects at both installations that the bases are seeking funding support for within the congressional spending bills. In 2022, the Appropriations bills funded a limited number of earmarks in the Military Construction space for the first time. We will monitor this and look for ways to support projects at PSNS and NBK and to implement the recommendations of the PSNS Commuter Workforce Study. DocuSign Envelope ID: 282EB614-323A-4A3B-80E9-E53F5430906E Page 7 of 7 September 1, 2022  Carefully watch shipyard budgets for PSNS and advise City about impacts The Navy has identified a multi-billion infrastructure needs at its major shipyards but has failed to adequately fund the need to date. Watching this budget and analyzing its impacts on the City of Bremerton will be a key priority for the Johnston Group in 2023 and the years ahead. 7. Community and Economic Development Programs  Continuation of Earmark Authority Congress has reinstated earmarking authority in 2021 and we want to support the continued use of congressionally-directed spending in 2023 and beyond.  Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) and the Home Investment Partnership Program (HOME) o The City of Bremerton uses Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Home Investment Partnership Program (HOME) funding to support local initiatives that benefit the City’s vulnerable population. Funding in the CDBG program increased by 30% in 2018 after falling to a decade low in 2017 and has been holding steady at that rate since then. The City should support the CDBG and HOME program at the federal level and lobby for increased funding that could be put to use in Bremerton immediately. The CDBG program was used by Congress extensively as a distribution mechanism for federal relief funding for the COVID pandemic. However, those program increases in the CDBG budget are temporary and responsive to the pandemic – not permanent increases in the program.  Support Municipal Tax Policy Congress has adjusted various tax policies that have a direct impact on the City of Bremerton, including the New Markets Tax Credit, the Affordable Housing Tax Credit and the State and Local Sales Tax Deduction. These policies, in addition to policies that would negatively value municipal bonding authority, remain under debate in Congress in 2022 and are expected to continue in 2023. The City should advocate for strong municipal authority and tax credits that facilitate economic development and meet our region’s critical housing needs. DocuSign Envelope ID: 282EB614-323A-4A3B-80E9-E53F5430906E