HomeMy WebLinkAboutOpposition Letter - SB 707 (Durazo) - 09.05.2025
September 5, 2025
The Honorable Maria Elena Durazo
California State Senate
1021 O Street, Suite 7530
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: SB 707 (Durazo) Open Meetings: Meeting and Teleconference Requirements. Notice of
OPPOSITION
Dear Senator Durazo,
On behalf of the City of Cupertino, I am writing to express our opposition to Senate Bill (SB)
707. While our city strongly supports public transparency and accessibility, SB 707, as currently
drafted, would impose costly and inequitable new mandates on cities like ours without
providing the resources or flexibility needed for implementation.
SB 707 would create significant fiscal and operational challenges for our city, including:
• Providing two-way telephonic or audiovisual access for all meetings, halting
proceedings during any service disruption.
• Translating agendas into all “applicable languages” spoken by 20% or more of residents
with limited English proficiency.
• Designating a public space for community-submitted translations, even if inaccurate or
misleading.
• Creating and maintaining multi-language webpages for agendas, instructions, and
meeting procedures.
• Expanding outreach efforts and electronic systems for agenda access.
Additionally, the bill applies unevenly across California, treating cities of similar size differently
based solely on county population, while the state itself is exempt from these rules. Although
the recent amendment moved the implementation deadline to July 1, 2026, this extension is an
improvement over the original January 1, 2026 date but still does not provide sufficient time for
cities to fully budget, procure, and train for compliance. Additional time is necessary to ensure
responsible and effective implementation.
The City of Cupertino remains committed to transparency and public engagement. We
respectfully urge amendments to SB 707 to remove overly burdensome mandates, ensure fair
treatment of all cities, and provide adequate time and resources for compliance. For these
reasons, the City of Cupertino opposes SB 707 unless revised to address our concerns.
Sincerely,
Liang Chao
Mayor
City of Cupertino
cc. The Honorable Josh Becker
The Honorable Patrick Ahrens