ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA — Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley commented on yesterday’s Board of Supervisors meeting where the Board voted on a new grant program for low-income seniors in need of housing repairs, an administrative office lease agreement for the OC Health Care Agency’s Behavioral Health Services Outreach and Engagement Street Team to provide services in South County, a grant application to address coastal erosion in Capistrano Beach, a grant award for Orange County’s Victim Compensation Program, and support positions on legislation addressing the fentanyl epidemic and public electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
Supervisor Foley released the following statements highlighting the votes by the Board of Supervisors from the April 9, 2024 meeting:
Safe Homes for OC Seniors Program: Created a new program that grants up to $20,000 to low-income seniors living in Orange County for eligible housing rehabilitation repairs or improvements. In January, Supervisor Foley worked with county staff to expand the program to residents living in unincorporated communities and small cities within the Orange County Urban County Program, which includes the cities of Brea, Cypress, Dana Point, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Woods, San Juan Capistrano, Seal Beach and Stanton.
“Seniors living on fixed incomes are often forced to make impossible choices, weighing whether to purchase one basic necessity over another,” said Supervisor Foley. “Too often, important expenses like home safety repairs are deprioritized over more urgent needs like paying for housing, medication or groceries. This program provides support to older Orange County residents in need and helps ensure that they have a safe place to live.”
Grant Funding for Orange County:
- Capistrano Beach Nature Based Solutions to Erosion: Applied for a competitive grant application that would fund the design of a nature-based solution for erosion at Capistrano Beach. This application will finalize design of a buried cobble berm topped with a vegetated sand dune, which will increase resiliency of the public beach and infrastructure assets by reducing beach erosion and creating dune ecosystems that act as a natural buffer against coastal flooding.
“Orange County must prepare for the impacts of climate change and coastal erosion on our beaches,” said Supervisor Foley. “Decades of neglect resulted in our communities seeing our beaches shrink over time. This grant application marks a step in the right direction to address coastal erosion, invest in climate resiliency, and protect coastal communities through nature-based solutions.”
- Crime Victim Compensation Program: Secured more than $1.6 million for Orange County’s Victim Compensation Program. Funding will be used to support a specialized team that will assist in processing applications, bills, emergency awards, and providing ongoing customer service throughout the claims process in order to provide restorative financial assistance to victims of crime.
“A key component of public safety is providing a safety net to victims,” said Supervisor Foley. “This funding helps crime survivors get back on their feet by increasing access to services and emergency housing assistance.”
Advocating for OC on State Legislation: Adopted positions on several pieces of state legislation, including:
- Senate Bill 21 (Umberg) - SUPPORT: Adopted a support position on Senate Bill 21, by Senator Tom Umberg, which is the reintroduction of Alexandra’s Law. This bill will combat the fentanyl epidemic by holding drug dealers accountable when they knowingly and willfully cause the deaths of others.
“We must hold the fentanyl drug dealers to account when they poison our communities,” said Supervisor Foley. “After supporting Alexandra’s Law last year when Senator Umberg first brought it forward, I once again strongly support SB 21 to address the fentanyl crisis in Orange County and across California. As we continue to see fentanyl deaths in our community, we must prosecute the drug dealers responsible for these deaths while providing treatment for users and education for families.”
- Assembly Bill 2815 (Petrie-Norris) - SUPPORT: Adopted a support position on Assembly Bill 2815, by Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris, which would establish a grant program for repairing electric vehicle charging infrastructure located on public parking spaces. This bill will support communities in Orange County transition to zero-emission vehicles by helping ensure that public charging infrastructure is widely available to everyone.
“If we want more people to drive electric vehicles, we must have the public charging infrastructure in place,” said Supervisor Foley. “As an electric vehicle driver myself, I know the challenge finding convenient, quick, and accessible charging stations. I support AB 2815 to help communities in Orange County continue our climate progress and reduce carbon emissions by investing in the public infrastructure necessary for a collective transition to zero-emission vehicles.”
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Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2022 to represent the newly established District 5, which includes the cities of Aliso Viejo, Costa Mesa, Dana Point, a large portion of Irvine, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Newport Beach, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, as well as the unincorporated areas of Coto de Caza, Emerald Bay, Ladera Ranch, Las Flores, Rancho Mission Viejo, Stonecliffe and Wagon Wheel. This is her second term on the Board of Supervisors, where she previously served District 2.
Supervisor Foley’s Board appointments include the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA), OCFA Legislation & Public Affairs Committee Chair, Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), OCTA Legislative and Communications Committee Vice Chair, Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency, Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA), TCA Joint Environmental Committee, Coastal Greenbelt Authority, Newport Bay and South Orange County Watershed Executive Committees, Ocean Institute, San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) Community Engagement Panel, Spent Fuel Solutions Coalition Co-Chair, Orange County Housing Finance Trust Chair, and the Orange County Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council.
