Casey Elliott
Since joining the firm in 2006, Casey has secured passage of numerous client-sponsored bills, as well as successfully advocated for millions of dollars in state funding, through the state budget, for our clients’ priority project.
Areas of policy expertise:
- State Budget
- Local Government
- Economic Development
- Community Colleges
- Municipal Finance
- Housing
- Water and Sanitation
- Legislative Process
Previous experience:
- Senior Legislative Assistant, Office of Governor Gray Davis
- Legislative Assistant, Assembly Member Thomas Umberg
- Senior Legislative Analyst, Secretary of State Bruce McPherson
- Legislative Analyst, Secretary of State Kevin Shelley
Housing and Economic Development:
- Working with the City of Oakland and the City of Santa Ana, Casey and Niccolo, helped advance legislation and state budget requests to secure funding for California’s largest cities to help address issues surrounding homelessness. These efforts culminated in the creation of the Homeless Emergency Aid Program (HEAP). Approved as part of the 2018 state budget, HEAP provided a $500 million block grant program designed to provide direct assistance to cities and counties to address the homelessness crisis. HEAP contained a specific pot of funding for large cities, including a combined $12.3 million for Oakland and Santa Ana.
- Building on the success of the HEAP program, in 2019 the State Budget created the Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) Grant Program, a $650 million grant that provides local jurisdictions with funds to support regional coordination and expand or develop local capacity to address their immediate homelessness challenges. The HHAP program maintained dedicated funding for California’s largest cities, including a combined $28.1 million for the cities of Oakland and Santa Ana.
- Casey worked closely with the City of Lafayette to establish a small business assistance program to help local businesses and non-profits lessen the economic impacts from the coronavirus. Casey was able to work with the City to promote the program, work directly with program participants to connect them with available state and federal resources, and work with businesses to secure funding. Ultimately, the small business assistance program worked with nearly 100 small businesses, which employed nearly 400 workers, and were able to secure over $1.5 million in direct funding for the businesses.
Water and Sanitation:
- Casey designed the legislative strategy for the City of Santa Ana to secure a direct funding allocation in the fiscal year 2018-19 State Budget in the amount of $4 million to upgrade water infrastructure within the City. Casey worked with the City’s legislative delegation, staff from the Assembly and Senate Budget Committees, and the Department of Finance to ensure funding was included in the State Budget for the City of Santa Ana to install advanced water metering infrastructure in the City. This funding will allow the City’s water customers to have real-time access to their water usage, which will help facilitate water conservation and reduce customers’ utility bills.
- Casey helped the Newhall County Water District co-sponsor Senate Bill 634 (Wilk) which established a new water district to serve as the primary water wholesaler and retailer for the Santa Clarita Valley. Casey coordinated efforts with the other impacted water agencies and stakeholders to develop a coalition of local support for the legislation. The legislation, which contained the enabling act for the new district as well as provisions that allowed for a modified LAFCO process, was approved by the Legislature and signed into law by Governor Brown.
- Casey helped the Orange County Water District sponsor the first legislation in the nation, Assembly Bill 2022 (Gordon), that would allow for the bottling of treated recycled water. Casey worked with the Legislature throughout the legislative process and gained support for the bill to ensure its successful passage. The bill was signed into law, thus allowing for the limited bottling of highly treated recycled water produced by the District’s Groundwater Replenishment System.
Local Governance:
- Through his work with the Department of Finance, the Legislature, and the Office of the Governor, Casey has been able to lessen the impact of RDA dissolution on TPA clients. Specific outcomes include: having over $35 million in projects in Santa Ana, Lafayette, Brea, and Hayward recognized as enforceable obligations; facilitating accelerated transfer of former RDA assets in Buena Park to allow for new development; and the passage of legislation to allow expenditure of certain development agency bond proceeds.
Higher Education:
- Casey helped the Rancho Santiago Community College District and Coast Community College District secure over $68 million in funding through the State Budget for three capital outlay facilities projects. Casey worked with the districts’ legislative delegation, budget committee staff, and the Community College Chancellor’s Office to advocate for the priority budget items, including having the projects recommended for funding by the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges. The funding for these three projects will allow for the design and construction of three new buildings that will provide state of the art learning environments for community college students in Orange County.
University of California, Davis, Bachelor of Arts, Political Science
Casey’s favorite memory at TPA is having the opportunity to spend time with Raiders’ legends Howie Long and Cliff Branch at a Raiders game. Christopher Townsend, and TPA, have been long-time supporters, and avid fans, of the Raiders, which has provided access to current and former players, and members of the team’s front office. The opportunity to meet with these professionals and discuss issues surrounding sports and politics has provided insight, and motivation, on how to accel at the highest level.