Heidi Skinner, one of three top county lawyers who resigned earlier this year following the abrupt July departure of former County Counsel Claudia Silva, is on track to become National City’s next city attorney.
The National City Council on Tuesday will vote whether to hire Skinner as interim city attorney following the equally abrupt departure late last year of former City Attorney Barry Schultz. Schultz announced in December he would not be renewing his contract.
Councilmembers praised Skinner’s professionalism and said they would consider options for a permanent city attorney at the end of her four-month interim contract. She will be paid a salary equivalent to $263,000 annually plus a $750 per month car allowance.
Background: Skinner and two other high-level attorneys departed the county shortly before the arrival of new County Counsel Damon Brown, who previously served as a special assistant state attorney general.
Skinner left the county with a $239,392 payout, as our Lisa Halverstadt reported. She comes to National City at a time of turmoil at City Hall. Numerous top city leaders, including the city manager, city attorney, director of human resources and director of housing and community development, have departed within the last year.
Why San Diego Community Power Says They Are Not A Company
Our environment reporter, MacKenzie Elmer, has been covering San Diego’s public, not-for-profit, government-run, renewable energy buying and selling entities for a minute.
But leaders of San Diego Community Power wanted to make it clear what their organization is not: a company. They demanded Elmer make a correction when she described it as a company. (It’s worth noting that lots of things are corporations, including the city of San Diego.)
So she wrote about the argument and it became a nice little explainer about the current state of our energy companies, agencies and governments.
Sacramento Report: Dems Rarely Vote ‘No.’ Why One Did
Dems rarely vote “no” on legislation by the time it reaches the Assembly or Senate floor, so a recent vote caught Sacramento reporter Nadia Lathan’s attention.
State Sen. Catherine Blakespear voted no on a bill related to a 2026 housing law that makes it easier to build apartments near major transit stations. The new bill changed the definitions of commuter rail and high frequency commuter rail so more cities would be subject to the state’s housing law.
Blakespear told Lathan that she recognizes that there are a lot of ambitious housing bills, but that this one “goes too far.”
Read the Sacramento Report here.
VOSD Podcast: Era of Big Swings
On the latest episode of the VOSD Podcast, chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party, Will Rodriguez-Kenedy joined our hosts to talk about national and local news.
He shared his thoughts on November races and what he wants to see from the region’s leaders. You can listen to the full show here.
ICYMI: Our show is on YouTube. You can watch the episode here, if that’s your thing.
Politics Report: Autopsy of a Fallen Vacation Rental Tax
If the San Diego City Council wants to put something on the ballot, it has to go through the Rules Committee. Even if there may be a majority of support for it on the full Council, it must go through the committee.
For his Politics Report (for members) Scott Lewis examined why, with the benefit of hindsight, Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera’s proposed tax on empty second homes and vacation rentals could not make it through that committee.
Plus: Could Former City Councilmember Mark Kersey be coming to a Taxpayers Association near you?
Read the Politics Report here.
In Other News
- The Chula Vista City Council this evening will hold a special meeting to consider adopting a resolution that would put the city on record condemning Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Minnesota and amend the city’s flag policy to enable flags to be lowered for two weeks in commemoration of what the resolution calls “lives lost due to federal immigration enforcement actions.”
- California transit agencies are having a tough time. Ridership is low, electric buses are breaking down, and they’re in a funding crisis. A state transit task force was created to address these problems, but their latest report just summarized the issues. (Times of San Diego)
- North County residents are getting some relief after a sharp increase in energy fees. The board of the Clean Energy Alliance, the community choice energy program serving seven municipalities in North County, voted to adopt a $10.6 million rate relief credit for its customers. (Union-Tribune)
- It’s confirmed, San Diegans are really that friendly. A new study from online real estate broker Redfin ranks San Diego as the nation’s seventh most neighborly city. (CBS 8)
The Morning Report was written by Mariana Martínez Barba. It was edited by Andrea Sanchez-Villafaña.