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BACKGROUND <br />As part of the settlement of litigation over the expansion of the Altamont Landfill, the <br />parties to the litigation agreement (Alameda County, Waste Management of Alameda <br />County, the cities of Livermore and Pleasanton, and various environmental groups) <br />agreed that the County would impose a fee totaling $1.25 per ton at the Altamont Landfill <br />and Resource Recovery Facility effective January 2001. Each January thereafter, the <br />fee would be adjusted to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the <br />most recent 12-month period. The portion of the fee that funds the Education Account <br />increased to $0.29 cents per ton effective January 1, 2007. The jurisdictions currently <br />paying this fee are Oakland, San Francisco, Alameda, San Leandro, Castro Valley, Oro <br />Loma, Albany, Hayward, and Dublin. <br />The Altamont Settlement Agreement Education Advisory Board meets approximately <br />once a month. The Education Advisory Board consists of five voting members including <br />two members from the Northern California Recycling Association, one member from the <br />City of Pleasanton, one member from the City of Livermore, and one member from the <br />Alameda County Recycling Board. <br />The Education Advisory Board can propose the allocation of funds in the Education <br />Account to support diversion education programs, job training in the field of waste <br />diversion and recycling, and to mitigate the impacts of the Altamont Landfill on the <br />affected neighboring community. The balance in the Education Account as of October <br />30, 2007 was $1,035,777.12. <br />DISCUSSION <br />The Altamont Settlement Agreement requires the Education Advisory Board to submit a <br />proposed allocation of funds on an annual basis by April 1St. In accordance with the <br />Altamont Settlement Agreement, concurrence by the Northern California Recycling <br />Association (NCRA), the cities of Pleasanton and Livermore, and Alameda County is <br />necessary to fund any proposed allocation from the Education Account. <br />This is the fifth request for annual authorization of the expenditure plan from the <br />Education Advisory Board. On February 4, 2008, the Education Advisory Board <br />unanimously agreed to propose the 2008-09 Expenditure Plan to the authorizing <br />entities. The attached expenditure plan outlines a process for funding mini-grants, <br />annual competitive grants, multi-year grants, and Board-initiated projects and sets <br />funding goals for each grant category. For Fiscal year 2008-09, the Board is proposing <br />to award a maximum of $60,000 in mini-grants, $230,000 in project grants, $50,000 for <br />Board-initiated projects, $50,000 for multi-year grants, $10,000 for landfill mitigation <br />projects and $15,000 for administrative support to the City of Pleasanton. It is expected <br />that the majority of grant applications will come from environmental educators and <br />programs. Additional mini-grants may be awarded from unexpended funds allocated for <br />the 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07, and 2007-08 fiscal years, held in stewardship by the <br />City of Pleasanton. <br />Page 2 of 3 <br />