To: Sonoma County Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): County Executive’s Office
Staff Name and Phone Number: David Guhin, Yvonne Shu, Katharine Gabor 565-2431
Vote Requirement: 4/5th
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Climate Resilience Comprehensive Action Plan Update and Mid-Term Measures Funding Recommendations and Strategic Plan Final Report
End
Recommended Actions:
Recommended action
A) Receive an update on the County’s Climate Resilience Comprehensive Action Plan (Climate Plan);
B) Approve funding recommendations for the Climate Plan mid-term measures; (4/5 vote)
C) Receive a final update on the County’s Five-Year Strategic Plan;
D) Approve staff recommendations for certain Climate and Strategic Plan one-time funding; (4/5 vote)
E) Authorize the County Executive Officer or designee to execute a funding agreement with Sonoma County Fair and Exposition, Inc. for two Climate projects totaling $901,425.
end recommended action
Executive Summary:
This item provides an update on implementation of the County’s Climate Resilience Comprehensive Action Plan (Climate Plan), including funding recommendations for mid-term measures. It also presents a final update on the County’s Five-Year Strategic Plan (2021-2026) and recommends amendments to previously approved one-time funding for Climate and Strategic Plan initiatives.
Discussion:
Climate Plan Update
Climate Resilience Comprehensive Action Plan (Climate Plan). In September 2024, the Board adopted the County’s Climate Resilience Comprehensive Action Plan (Climate Plan) <https://sonoma-county.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=6847082&GUID=2FDE916D-FA11-41CA-85EF-862A1FA994DE> and approved funding for implementation of near-term and future measures, including community engagement. Focused on County operations and organized into six sectors (Energy, Transportation, Waste, Water, Wildfire, and Natural and Working Lands), each measure has near-term, mid-term, or long-term sub-measures with goals for deployment by 2026, 2030, and beyond.
The last update to the Board (October 2025 <https://sonoma-county.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7711631&GUID=8DA137FF-8665-4981-9C04-545BFFF6B497>) included a detailed status of near-term measures. Progress on Climate Plan near-term measures has continued over the past year and is summarized in Attachment C. Climate highlights here include near-term measures and adjacent work by departments/agencies that helps achieve climate goals:
Wildfire Vulnerability Assessment
• In July 2026, the County entered a contract with Wuuii, Inc. to conduct a wildfire vulnerability assessment for County buildings and built assets which are not planned to be impacted by the County Government Center and related space and building impacts and modifications. The deliverables of this project will include building-hardening and defensible-space recommendations to support facility managers and other County staff in making informed recommendations about assets and facilities, and guide future planning, actions, and investments with respect to wildfire resilience. Project completion is expected mid-2027.
Fleet Decarbonization and EV Infrastructure
• Fleet electrification: Public Infrastructure will manage an EV vehicle replacement incentive program, funded with $400,000 in climate funding, for County departments/agencies. Incentives to replace gas-powered, light-duty fleet with EV’s will be approximately $5,000 for eligible sedans and $10,000 for eligible SUVs, and first-year commitments are anticipated to total $65,000. These incentives will be available until the funding is exhausted; vehicle replacement will occur over time as part of the regular fleet turnover schedule.
• Fleet charging infrastructure: Over the past year, Public Infrastructure completed installation of Fleet charging infrastructure at the Sheriff’s Office, and Fleet/Employee charging infrastructure at the Information Systems Department. Additionally, this Board item includes staff recommendations for four additional County charging projects. This installed and planned infrastructure will support further fleet conversion; a Fleet and CEO staff review of planned vehicle replacements for 2026 found that access to charging is a significant barrier.
• Support of Public EV charging: The County was the grant administrator for CalTrans funding that supported the development of a countywide Equitable EV Charging Plan. Any potential next steps and discussion resulting from this study are being facilitated by Sonoma County Climate and Transportation Authorities (SCTCA), who presented the study’s results at their September 14, 2026 <https://scta.ca.gov/event/rcpa-scta-board-of-directors-december-2026-09-14/> Board of Directors meeting. Public Infrastructure has also recently released a Request for Qualifications to identify a portfolio of on-call electric vehicle charging station vendors for use by the County and other community partners. Finally, due diligence with respect to permitting continues for the purchase of additional, portable, solar chargers for Regional Parks locations, utilizing federal appropriations.
Sustainable Solutions Turnkey (SST) Program
The SST program, a $28 million PG&E contract for energy efficiency, renewable energy generation, and energy storage improvements at County owned facilities made significant progress. Installation of major components of the project, photovoltaic carports at the Sheriff’s Office, and Battery Energy Storage Systems at the County Administration Center and Los Guillicos was completed; these systems are currently awaiting permission to operate from PG&E, expected in the next 8-12 months. Other components of the project including installation of LED lighting, water conservation fixtures, or heat pump water heaters were completed; in some cases, project scope was adjusted in response to external factors or contractor performance issues.
Climate Collaboration
Staff have been hosting quarterly Climate Convening with partner departments/agencies. These meetings provide a forum for each department/agency to share climate-related updates, challenges, and priorities both for elements included in the Climate Plan and work occurring outside of it. These regular touchpoints enhance cross-departmental awareness and strengthen collaboration.
Since joining ICLEI USA-Local Governments for Sustainability in December 2025, the County has leveraged its membership to access technical resources, explore opportunities to support its next greenhouse gas inventory, and participate in peer forums and climate and sustainability training. These activities support knowledge sharing, staff development, and the County’s ongoing climate resilience efforts.
Funding Recommendations for mid-term measures of the County’s Climate Plan
When the Climate Plan was adopted in September 2024, $4.63 million was set aside for future progress against mid-term measures, without being allocated to specific projects. In June 2026, CEO staff sought input from partner departments/agencies to identify County Operations projects aligned with the goals and measures of the Climate Plan with priority on: 1) implementation of building electrification and energy-efficiency improvements; 2) electrification of the County fleet; 3) increased diversion of waste from landfills; and 4) compliance with regulatory requirements and mandates. Projects were also evaluated on their ability to reduce GHG emissions, enhance climate resilience, leverage external or matching funding, or close a funding gap. Based on these criteria, staff selected twelve projects, totaling $4.68 million, to recommend for mid-term measure funding. Recommended projects and funding amounts are as follows, with additional detail available in Attachment A.
|
Energy |
|
Jockey Club Heat Pump HVAC System |
$495,405 |
|
Finley Hall Heat Pump HVAC System |
$406,020 |
|
Transportation |
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Spring Lake Clean Fleet Charging Hub |
$699,970 |
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Sonoma County Transit & City of Sonoma Partnership for Electric Bus Charging Infrastructure |
$400,000 |
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Brickway Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure |
$750,000 |
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Employee Incentives for Clean Commute Program (through June 2027) |
$21,600 |
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Redesigned Employee Clean Commute Program (through 2030) |
$175,000 |
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West County Services Center Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure |
$750,000 |
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Water |
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Upper Watershed Restoration-Monte Rio Redwoods Regional Park |
$210,000 |
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Wildfire |
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Fuel Reduction and Prescribed Fire-Vehicle and Equipment |
$280,000 |
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Natural and Working Lands |
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Completion of Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Communities Conservation Plan Public Review Draft |
$250,000 |
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Grazing Expansion-Carrington Coast Ranch Regional Park |
$250,000 |
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Total Mid-term Measure Funding Recommendation |
$4,687,995* |
* The $50,000 difference between the $4.68 million project total and the $4.63 million allocated by the Board will be reconciled through the proposed reallocation of funding from near-term to mid-term measures, as detailed in the next section.
The list of recommended projects includes over $900,000 to update infrastructure at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds. Approval of this item would delegate authority to the County Executive Officer or designee, with County Counsel review, to execute an agreement with Sonoma County Fair and Exposition, Inc. The agreement would fund 1) replacement of the existing HVAC system at the Jockey Club, which is at the end of its useful life and unable to reliably heat or cool the facility, with high-efficiency heat pump technology ($495,405); and 2) installation of a heat pump heating and cooling system at Finley Hall, identified as an emergency-use facility, to replace the current outdated equipment ($406,020). Both projects would replace fossil fuel-based equipment with efficient electric alternatives.
Strategic Plan Final Update
Since its approval in 2021, significant progress has been made toward achieving the 76 objectives that underlie the 23 goals in the County’s Five-Year Strategic Plan. The Plan’s five pillars -- Healthy and Safe Communities, Organizational Excellence, Racial Equity and Social Justice, Climate Action and Resiliency, and Resilient Infrastructure - represent priorities for both the Board and the community. The Strategic Plan provides an organizing framework for the Board’s and community’s priorities. At the Plan’s conclusion, 46 objectives are 100% complete and 13 are at 80-99% complete. Other objectives experienced staff or priority changes since the Plan’s inception in 2021 or made significant, but not complete progress, toward changes that take a longer than five years.
The Strategic Plan has been instrumental in elevating important initiatives, and the Board’s approval of one-time funding to support Strategic Plan projects advanced efforts that would otherwise have stalled. However, a five-year timeline is inevitably subject to changes in priority, budget and staffing, necessitating adjustments to thoughtfully developed implementation plans. Other mechanisms, such as Board’s Key Items Calendar (KIC), department/agency head workplans, and departmental strategic plans, are also avenues to document strategic priorities. Should the County pursue another Strategic Plan, it may be useful to consider a shorter timeline and establishing goals and objectives at a higher level, to ensure their continued relevance and alignment with departmental/agency plans.
Attachment B summarizes activity from the past year for each objective. Highlights from each pillar include:
Climate Action & Resiliency (CAR)
• Ag + Open Space, in collaboration with key partners, created over 192 educational events and visits that reached over 2,675 landowners from regions that have a high propensity for wildfires, enabling landowners to understand how to improve the health of their forests and watersheds.
• Community interest in energy efficiency workshops continues, with 396 registered attendees in CY 2025 and 200 registered attendees year-to-date in CY 2026.
Healthy & Safe Communities (HSC)
• Human Services’ Open Doors website, launched in September 2025 to connect individuals with local safety net services, has received 25,637 unique users to date.
• The Housing Element's Housing Action Plan includes 100 implementation actions across 32 broad programs to support the Housing Element's goals and policies. Of those 100, 58 are ongoing measures and 42 are specific actions. The County has completed 26 of the specific actions, 14 are in progress, and two are not yet started.
Organizational Excellence (OE)
• The Department of Emergency Management (DEM) completed an extensive overhaul of its county training and education program that includes emergency operations center (EOC) responders and general disaster service worker (DSW) training.
• In FY 2025-26, Human Resources offered 227 unique courses, resulting in 11,701 course completions.
Racial Equity & Social Justice (RESJ)
• In spring 2026, the Office of Equity (OOE) launched the Racial Equity Initiatives (REI) Tracker, building on the LEAD training cohort’s final project (completed spring 2025), in which Core Team Liaisons identified and highlighted racial equity initiatives within their departments. The REI Tracker formally gathers racial equity work across departments to strengthen collaboration, identifies where support may be needed, and in partnership with County Counsel, ensures compliance with applicable law and policy.
• DEM and OOE received a two-year grant to enhance local emergency preparedness and response plans to incorporate financial empowerment services for residents and began the planning phase of this work in 2026.
Resilient Infrastructure (RI)
• The Information Systems Department (ISD) completed the Teams and SharePoint online migration in spring 2025, enabling secure remote access and improved collaboration regardless of location.
• Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Hall received solar generation and battery storage to support emergency shelter and heating/cooling functions. Cloverdale Veterans Memorial Building generator/battery work is nearing completion. Emergency-grade Wi-Fi at veterans buildings and completed Petaluma Veterans seismic improvements provide related resilience benefits.
Recommendations to previously approved Strategic Plan and Climate funding
The Board approved $10 million from discretionary funds to support specific Strategic Plan projects in February 2022 and February 2023. The Board also approved $10 million from the PG&E Settlement Fund to create the Climate Resilience Fund (CRF) to support specific climate resilience projects. On October 6, 2026, the Board approved rebudgeting and internal operating transfers for select Strategic Plan and CRF projects to support continued implementation through FY 2026-27.
Staff recommends approval of the following changes:
1 - Reallocation of $846,300 in Climate Plan near-term measure funding to support additional Climate Plan measures
When the Board approved the Climate Plan in September 2024, it also approved $2.2 million to support a range of near-term measures. Validation with departments/agencies of near-term measures over the past year resulted in a more focused and realistic scope for some of the previously funded near-term measures, resulting in a recommendation that $846,000 be reallocated to mid-term measure projects. Attachment C provides a status update outlining the basis for the recommended funding reallocation.
While the total amount of Climate funding will not change, the reallocation of this amount from near-term measures will A) bridge the gap ($50,000) between the total amount for the proposed mid-term projects today and the previously allocated mid-term measures amount; and B) allow future award to climate projects currently under development.
|
Near-term measure funding approved in September 2024 |
$2,266,300 |
|
Less anticipated or completed near-term measure expenditures |
($1,420,000) |
|
Recommended reallocation to mid-term measures |
$846,300 |
2 - County Executive’s Office (CEO) and Sonoma Public Infrastructure (SPI); reallocation of a CRF Electric Vehicle (EV) project balance
SPI successfully completed an EV charging project with CRF funding -- procurement and installation of two dual-port ChargePoint EV chargers within the secured parking lot behind the Sheriff’s Office building. The project’s final scope and budget was less than the originally conceived project. Staff recommends reallocation of the balance to support a portion of a proposed mid-term measure project, the West County Services Center EV Charging Infrastructure. Following reconciliation and verification of the final balance, staff will return to the Board for approval of the appropriate budgetary adjustments.
3 - Department of Health Services; scope change for $268,000 in one-time Strategic Plan funding
The Board originally approved $268,000 to develop a program to help people experiencing homelessness apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits using the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) SSI/SSDI Outreach, Access, and Recovery (SOAR) model.
Since then, SAMHSA has discontinued funding and support for the SOAR model, and the national training and infrastructure needed to establish new SOAR programs are no longer available. As a result, DHS staff propose redirecting the $268,000 to support the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS). This proposed use is consistent with the intent of the original funding request and would advance objectives under Strategic Plan’s Healthy & Safe Communities pillar.
4 - Office of Equity; scope change and extension of time to expend $145,000 in one-time Strategic Plan funding
The Office of Equity (OOE) has a balance of $145,000 from the funding previously allocated to support a variety of objectives Racial Equity & Social Justice pillar. They are requesting use of this one-time funding beyond FY 2026-27 until fully expended, so that they can support:
A) as-needed translation and interpretation needs;
B) extra help to support the Racial Equity Action Plan; and
C) non-OOE, County staff that support the facilitation of trainings, such as Racial Equity Foundations
Strategic Plan:
All
Racial Equity:
No
Was this item identified as an opportunity to apply the Racial Equity Toolkit?
Prior Board Actions:
• 10/6/26 Rebudgeted funds for select Strategic Plan and Climate Resilience Fund projects
• 7/7/26 Approved vendor contract for Wildfire Vulnerability Assessment and funding for SPI staff support of project
• 10/28/25 Received update on Climate Plan
• 2/11/25 Received Strategic Plan and Climate Resilience Fund updates
• 9/10/24 Approved Climate Resilience Comprehensive Action Plan and funding for near-term measures
• 2/7/23 Received update and approved year 2 Strategic Plan funding recommendations
• 10/25/22 Allocated funding for Round 2 of the Climate Resilience Fund
• 2/1/22 Received update and approved year 1 Strategic Plan funding recommendations
• 2/1/22 Allocated funding for Round 1 of the Climate Resilience Fund
• 3/2/21 Approved Five-Year Strategic Plan
Fiscal Summary
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Expenditures |
FY26-27 Adopted |
FY27-28 Projected |
FY28-29 Projected |
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Budgeted Expenses |
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Additional Appropriation Requested |
$4,630,956 |
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Total Expenditures |
$4,630,956 |
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Funding Sources |
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General Fund/WA GF |
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State/Federal |
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Fees/Other |
$4,630,956 |
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Use of Fund Balance |
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General Fund Contingencies |
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Total Sources |
$4,630,956 |
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Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
Strategic Plan and Climate Resilience Fund amounts exist as fund balance in the Designated Purposes Fund and PG&E 2017 Fire Settlement Fund, both housed in the Non-Departmental Budget. Any budgetary actions that may result to the scope changes outlined in the section, “Recommendations to previously approved Strategic Plan and Climate funding,” will come back to the Board during the second quarter consolidated budget process.
The Board approved $4,630,956 in September 2024 for future measures of the Climate Plan. Staff will return during second quarter consolidated budget process for approval of the appropriate budgetary adjustments and actions related to funding of Climate Plan mid-term measures.
If certain projects are ready prior to the second quarter consolidated budget process, staff will return separately to the Board for approval of budget adjustments.
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Staffing Impacts: |
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Position Title (Payroll Classification) |
Monthly Salary Range (A-I Step) |
Additions (Number) |
Deletions (Number) |
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Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
Attachments:
Attachment A: Climate Plan mid-term measure recommended funding
Attachment B: Strategic Plan update
Attachment C: Climate Plan near-term measure status
Presentation
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board: