Following the successful House passage of H.R. 7525 in May, U.S. Senators Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) and John Cornyn (R-TX) last week introduced a companion version of the Special District Grant Accessibility Act (SDGAA – S. 4673). The legislation would establish a first-ever formal definition of “special district” in federal law and ensure communities served by these local agencies are eligible for all appropriate forms of federal financial assistance.
“Special districts take on some of our nation’s biggest challenges at the local level and the introduction of the Special District Grant Accessibility Act will help to ensure our communities that rely on these local agencies for their water, fire protection, flood control, parks and other essential services receive full recognition and equal access to federal resources,” said Neil McCormick, chief executive officer of the California Special Districts Association. “We’re grateful to Senators Sinema and Cornyn for introducing this important legislation, and look forward to working with them to ensure its passage.”
Special districts are local public agencies created by community residents to deliver specialized services essential to their health, safety, economy and well-being. Like cities and counties, special districts are public agencies; however, they provide necessary services that many cities and counties do not.
If passed, this legislation would be the first time federal law has codified a formal definition for “special district,” despite the fact these special units of local government date back to the 18th century.
In addition to codifying this definition, the legislation would require the White House Office of Management and Budget to issue guidance to federal agencies requiring special districts to be recognized as local governments for the purpose of federal financial assistance determinations.
One of the leading factors driving the need for the SDGAA is the fact that special districts were omitted in COVID-19-era legislation that provided direct federal financial assistance to local governments for coronavirus relief and response activities (namely CARES Act funding and ARPA Fiscal Recovery Fund dollars). Unlike other forms of local government, special districts were excluded from receiving direct federal aid, despite many special districts providing essential public services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, including ambulance/EMS, hospital and open space services.
Compounding the problem, while special districts are eligible for most current federal funding opportunities, they –have faced unnecessary bureaucratic barriers to accessing certain grant programs due largely to the lack of clarity absent a formal definition. The SDGAA seeks to level the playing field by ensuring that special districts and the communities they serve have access to all appropriate and relevant federal funding streams.
The bill’s first stop in the Senate is expected to be the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. If approved by the committee, the legislation would then advance to the Senate Floor.
Currently, there are more than 2,000 special districts in California, providing a range of infrastructure and essential community programs across the country, including parks, water, sanitation, fire protection, ports, cemeteries, healthcare, electricity, pest control and libraries.
For more information, please visit the National Special Districts Coalition website.
About CSDA
The California Special Districts Association (CSDA) represents more than 1,000 special districts—local public agencies that provide essential services throughout California. These local service specialists provide irrigation, water, sanitation, fire protection, open space, park and recreation, cemetery, electricity, library, resource conservation, port and harbor, healthcare and other community services that in some way benefit California’s 39 million residents. Special districts are critical to California’s economy and infrastructure and operate on the front lines of addressing statewide challenges at the local level.