2025 Annual Meeting: Government Finance and Administration Policy Committee Recap

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By
Eric Lawyer, Emma Jungwirth, Julissa Ceja Cardenas
Date Published
December 11, 2025

During the 131st CSAC Annual Meeting in Santa Clara County, the Government Finance and Administration (GFA) Policy Committee met to discuss veterans’ services, balancing data privacy and government efficiency, and increasing local revenues through new initiatives and policies. The meeting featured panels and presentations from a wide range of participants like state legislators, research experts, and advocates.  

During our first panel, Senator Bob Archuleta and Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo, chairs of their respective Committees on Military and Veterans Affairs, along with representatives from the California Association of County Veterans Services Officers (CACVSO), emphasized the need for legislation that protects veterans in our state and shared details about the current services provided by CVSOs. Click here to read our letter in support of their bill, SB 694 (Archuleta).  

We were also joined by Assemblymember Chris Ward’s Legislative Director and the California Policy Lab’s Executive Director to discuss data privacy in the public sector. The perspectives shared were informative and highlighted the need for collaboration across sectors and government entities to ensure safety, efficiency, and equitable policies as technology continues to evolve. 

Lastly, attendees heard from HdL Companies’ Director of Client Services, a specialist in tax services, who gave a presentation (see slide 9) on the breakdown of possible revenue streams for counties including tax ballot initiatives, cost recovery fees, and an overview of intergovernmental funding. The legislative advocate for California Association of County Treasurers and Tax Collectors also highlighted SB 346 (Durazo, 2025) This bill will help counties track and regulate short-term rentals and collect appropriate transient occupancy taxes, improving collection of a source of revenue for counties.  

The panels and discussions at the GFA policy committee meeting encouraged county leaders to explore solutions and seek clarity on many issues they encounter firsthand. Additionally, the GFA Policy Committee members discussed 2026 policy priorities, which included protecting counties from runaway legal liability stemming from AB 218 (Gonzalez, 2019); pursuing meaningful reform for workers compensation, the public records act (PRA), and state-imposed mandate reimbursement; and finally, advocating to ensure that any legislation regulating the use of Artificial Intelligence and related technologies is sensible and implementable.  

All CSAC Policy Committee meeting materials are available on the CSAC website HERE.  

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