Lafayette City Council Meets School Budget Crisis, Backs E-Bike Safety Rules

Lafayette's City Council moved unanimously on state legislation and governance housekeeping Tuesday, but the sharpest news came during council reports: local school districts have now cut $10 million combined, with instructional staff on the chopping block and the city about to inherit sole responsibility for crossing guards. Meanwhile, the Transportation Commission laid out a 2026 work plan that could reshape how people move through downtown.

• School districts face $10M in cumulative cuts; Lafayette School District will drop its 50% share of crossing guard funding, shifting costs to the city

• Council backs AB 2346, a state bill that would require e-bike speedometers and give cities authority to set local speed limits on paths and sidewalks

• SB 922 support protects over $1M in franchise fee revenue Lafayette uses for road maintenance after a court ruling threatened the funding stream

• BART defers station closures until fiscal year 2027-28 even if its November ballot measure fails, opting first for fare hikes and service cuts

• Burton Valley earns Firewise certification covering 917 homes and 3,000 residents

• Transportation Commission outlines ambitious 2026 agenda: smart signals, downtown parking study, multimodal mobility plan, and a long-overdue active transportation master plan

Schools Cut Deep, City Inherits Crossing Guard Bill

Councilmember Stella Wotherspoon delivered the meeting's most consequential news during council reports: Lafayette's two school districts are in serious financial distress, and the fallout is landing on the city's doorstep.

Why it matters: Lafayette School District has now cut approximately $6 million over three budget cycles. Previous rounds targeted back-office and non-student-facing areas, but the district has run out of room — PE specialists, library staff, and instructional positions are now being reduced. The Acalanes Union High School District faces an additional $2 million in cuts for a cumulative $4 million.

Where things stand: "For Lafayette School District, they're looking at I think 1.8 million for this coming fiscal year, but they've already cut in the past two. And so we're looking at a cumulative total of about 6 million that they've had to reduce," said Councilmember Wotherspoon.

The most immediate impact on the city: the Lafayette school board has decided to eliminate its 50% contribution to the crossing guard program and will no longer manage the contract. "They talked about their whole slate of items under consideration for cuts, and one of them was the crossing guard program, their 50% contribution to it. So they will not be putting that into their budget this coming year. And they will also not manage the contract," Wotherspoon reported.

Mayor Carl Anduri confirmed that the school board's decision stands regardless of whether the district's planned June ballot measure passes. The city will need to determine how — and whether — to absorb the full crossing guard program.

What's next: Lafayette School District is pursuing a June ballot measure to shore up revenue. Acalanes Union has also been considering a revenue measure. The city will need to address the crossing guard funding gap before the next school year.

Council Backs E-Bike Safety Bill and Franchise Fee Protection

Lafayette took three separate unanimous votes to update its 2026 legislative platform and formally support two state bills that would give cities new tools to regulate e-bikes and protect a revenue stream worth over $1 million annually.

E-Bike Rules Get Teeth

The basics: AB 2346, authored by Assemblymember Wilson, would require e-bikes sold in California starting in 2029 to have speedometers and front and rear lighting, require retailers to disclose bike classifications and age/helmet restrictions, authorize local jurisdictions to set e-bike speed limits on bike paths and multi-use paths, impose a statewide 15 mph limit for riders 15 and under, and set a 5 mph sidewalk limit.

Why it matters: Cities currently have limited authority over e-bike speeds on local paths. Casey Elliott of Townsend Public Affairs, the city's lobbyist, told the council that "the measure authorizes local jurisdictions to adopt overall speed limits for e-bikes both on bike paths and multi-use paths. And then it imposes statewide speed limit of 15 miles an hour on an e-bike for any rider aged 15 and younger."

Councilmember Jim Cervantes noted there are many e-bike bills in the current session, but flagged that the U.S. has lagged behind other countries on regulation. "This is a very laissez-faire approach we've been taking thus far," he said.

Councilmember Stella Wotherspoon raised an issue not covered by the bill: high-intensity LED headlights on e-bikes that blind pedestrians. She described them as effectively high beams and asked Elliott to bring the issue to Assemblymember Wilson's staff. Councilmember Wotherspoon also flagged that language in the platform about "high fire hazard areas" may be imprecise relative to Cal Fire's official severity zone classifications; Councilmember Susan Candell agreed to revisit the wording.

$1M+ in Road Revenue at Risk

The basics: SB 922, authored by Senator Laird, responds to a court case in Redlands where a judge found cities could not use waste hauling franchise agreement revenues for road maintenance. The ruling relied on an archaic vehicle code section about local road taxes that had nothing to do with how franchise fees are structured.

Why it matters: Lafayette collects over $1 million annually in franchise fee revenue that supports road upkeep. Elliott explained that "there's an archaic vehicle code section that had nothing to do with the topic at hand that says cities can't implement local road taxes. That was cited during the court case as the rationale for not allowing those funds to be used that way."

Councilmember Cervantes called the bill "the ultimate no-brainer" to support.

Decisions: All three items — the updated legislative platform (For: 5, Against: 0, Absent: 0), AB 2346 support (5-0), and SB 922 support (5-0) — passed unanimously.

Transportation Commission Maps Out a Packed 2026

Transportation and Circulation Commission Chair Bart Carr presented the commission's annual work plan, outlining a suite of interconnected studies that will shape Lafayette's infrastructure for years.

Why it matters: Multiple major planning efforts — smart signals, downtown parking management, a multimodal mobility plan, and an overdue active transportation master plan — are converging in 2026, with results flowing to council later this year.

Where things stand: The commission is fully staffed at seven members for the first time in years. "This is the first time in a long time that we've been completely fully staffed, full membership, which is really nice," Chair Carr said.

The 2026 work plan includes the Lafayette Aqueduct Pathway extension from Dolores to Pleasant Hill Road (100% design funded, expected completion end of 2026), a Smart Signals project for real-time traffic optimization, and a Downtown Parking Management Study with strategies already presented to the commission. A Mount Diablo Corridor Multimodal Mobility Plan launches in summer 2026 as a comprehensive parent study, along with a Moraga Road planning exercise for pedestrian and bicycle access.

Carr described the urgency of combining two outdated plans: "The bikeways plan was written in 2006 and has not been updated. I think the last update to the walkways plan was in 2015. So they both need updating. And the idea is to join those two together in one big update and do that this year, which is grant dependent."

Staff member Patrick, the city's Transportation and Circulation Program Manager, reported that MTC's Transit Oriented Communities policy was finalized about 10 days ago, which will require a BART station access and circulation analysis. The School Street/Topper pathway project faces environmental review delays due to Caltrans natural resources requirements, though utility relocation will proceed this year.

What's next: Potential ribbon cuttings this year include the Town Center pathway, BART bike station, and the Connecting Lafayette project. The Active Transportation Master Plan hinges on a pending Caltrans grant.

BART Pulls Back on Station Closure Threats — for Now

Councilmember Stella Wotherspoon briefed the council on a significant shift in BART's contingency planning.

Why it matters: BART's board has decided that if its November ballot measure does not pass, it will not close any stations in its initial response — reversing earlier messaging that put 10 low-revenue stations on the chopping block.

Where things stand: Instead of closures, BART will drop some lines, raise fares and parking fees, and cut administrative costs. Station closures would only be considered in fiscal year 2027-28. "If their measure does not pass in November, then they will not close any stations," Councilmember Wotherspoon reported.

Councilmember John McCormick asked whether BART actually saves significant money from closures; Wotherspoon explained BART used revenue curves to identify stations where closure costs wouldn't exceed lost revenue. McCormick noted the original announcement was "very poorly worded."

The city is working to invite BART to the Tri-Cities meeting hosted by Moraga. Wotherspoon also flagged upcoming BART construction work on Brown Avenue and El Nido Ranch Road that may require road closures in March.

Council Codifies Mayor Selection Process

Mayor Carl Anduri presented a resolution formalizing the previously informal process for selecting the mayor and vice mayor, modeled after Walnut Creek's approach.

"There's no urgency to do this. I just think from a transparency standpoint, if anyone asks how do you pick your mayor and vice mayor, we can say, well, we've got a resolution for that," Mayor Anduri said.

Councilmember Jim Cervantes praised the move: "I really appreciate the thoughtfulness that went into this. I really like your comment here, doing this while the waters are calm."

Decisions: The resolution passed unanimously (For: 5, Against: 0, Absent: 0).

Minor Items

• Consent calendar approved unanimously (5-0), with Item 11A pulled for a minor amendment.

• Council minutes amended to strike a land acknowledgement reference on page three, clarifying the acknowledgement occurs only at the first meeting of each month. Passed 5-0.

• New Senior Planner Craig Tambernini was introduced by City Manager Tracy Robinson, strengthening the city's planning capacity ahead of the general plan update.

• Burton Valley certified as a Firewise neighborhood — 917 homes, 3,000 residents, led by about 70 volunteers, reported Councilmember John McCormick.

• Citizens Police Academy starts March 24, per Councilmember McCormick.

• DEIB committee plans an April 11 event at Acalanes High School and is transitioning to become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, with the Community Foundation of Lafayette serving as a fiscal stopgap.

• Measure H oversight committee held its first meeting, Mayor Anduri reported.

• Town Hall Theatre presentation: Managing Director Morgan Daly highlighted the 80-year-old company's four annual main stage shows, pay-what-you-can performances, and youth education programming. "At Town Hall, we believe that the arts are not a luxury. They are an essential part of a healthy and thriving community," she said.

• Youth Commission co-chairs Addison Stevens and Miela Shoe delivered their final annual report before graduating. Events ranged from the annual Haunted House to a revived Tri-City Dance for middle schoolers. New middle school and early high school commissioners are already onboarding.

• Lafayette's 2026 Citizen of the Year dinner honoring Carol Singh Singer was held March 19.

• Creeks Committee member Christy Runbush resigned; two new members were recently approved to maintain capacity.

• FY 2026-27 budget process kicks off this week, with the management team meeting Thursday to review council priorities and develop departmental work plans.

• Item 16B was removed from the agenda before adoption.

• Lamorinda Muslim Community temporarily installed a crescent moon sculpture in Lafayette Plaza to welcome Ramadan, on display through March 20 coinciding with Eid al-Fitr.