Response to Federal Actions

At the first meeting in January 2025, the Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution that affirms the County's commitment to democracy and all members of our community -- regardless of race, gender identity, age, ability, religion, sexual orientation, or immigration status. The Board also supported the State's immediate $25 million commitment for immigration-related legal services the first week of the Trump Administration. The County also keeps an updated, comprehensive list of Immigrant Rights & Resources on our website.

Marin has also advocated for state legislation and funding that supports our immigrant communities, including Marin's Assemblymember Damon Connolly's bill AB 419 to provide Know Your Rights guidance in public schools. During State Budget negotiations, the Board of Supervisors urged the Legislature to not freeze Full Scope Medi-Cal for residents with "unsatisfactory immigration status" (UIS) -- as was proposed in the Governor's May Revise Budget. In Marin, nearly 13,000 UIS children, adults, and older adults are enrolled in Medi-Cal. The Final 2026 Budget Act did ultimately freeze and scale back UIS Medi-Cal, but to a lesser extent than in the Governor's May Revise.

Several months later, the Board of Supervisors allocated $500,000 toward local immigration legal services and direct support services. The Office of Equity awarded that funding to:

• Marin County Office of Education and Immigration Legal Defense to provide pro bono, immigration legal services to families and students
• Community Action Marin to create an Immigrant Emergency Assistance Fund

In September 2025, the Board of Supervisors formally supported Proposition 50, Election Rigging Response Act, which the Legislature and Governor placed on the ballot for the November 4, 2025 statewide special election.

The Board of Supervisors' 2026 Legislative Platform includes a substantially expanded immigration section that highlights protections to local autonomy and opposes federal actions that withhold funding from jurisdictions that do not participate in immigration enforcement, and supports access to critical services such as Medi-Cal and CalFresh for all residents, regardless of immigration status.

In December 2025, the Board sent a letter in response to the Department of Homeland Security's proposed rulemaking on “public charge” rules -- strongly opposing the rescinding of the 2022 rule, outlining how it would directly undermine public health and community trust of all residents in Marin.

During the February 2026 Budget Workshops, the County of Marin’s proposed budget for the 2026-28 fiscal years does not include funding from the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP). After extensive conversations with community members, stakeholders, and peer counties that share Marin County’s commitment to equity, the proposed budget recommends pausing participation in the program and one-time funds to support jail operations will be absorbed within the County's General Fund and incorporated into the multiyear financial forecast.

The Board of Supervisors strongly opposed Budget Reconciliation (also known as H.R. 1) as it moved through the House of Representatives and the Senate in spring 2025. After H.R. 1 (One Big Beautiful Bill) was ultimately signed into law over the summer, the Board heard an extensive Informational Report from the Office of the County Executive and Health and Human Services on local impacts, and how to support Marin's low-income, vulnerable residents on Medi-Cal and the providers that serve them.

As a part of the FY 2025-2026 Budget, the Board of Supervisors allocated an additional, one-time $500,000 contribution to the County's Community Grants and Nonprofits program to support our nonprofit and CBO partners that may have federal grants at risk. County leadership has also been regularly communicating with our nonprofit partners, acknowledging the serious concern and uncertainty, and the effect of it on local programs that are vital to the health, well-being and resilience of Marin County residents.

During the extended government shutdown, the Board supported state intervention to ensure CalFresh (SNAP) food benefits go uninterrupted to families in need, and supported the extension of Covered California subsidies. The Board also approved allocating $800,000 in emergency funding to provide direct food assistance to CalFresh recipients during the shutdown, to be matched by donations from Marin Community Foundation and private donors.

In April, the County of Marin signed a comment letter alongside other local jurisdictions opposing a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) proposed rule which would prohibit mixed status households from living in public housing and Section 8 units and effectively force these families to either separate or forgo prorated rental assistance for eligible mixed status household members.

The Informational report on H.R. 1 also included information about the phasing out of federal electric vehicle credits. Marin Clean Energy (MCE) saw a 4x increase in low- and moderate-income customers in EV rebate demand ahead of H.R. 1's expiration of the federal tax credit on September 30, and in response added $1 million to cover local applications.

The County has also increased local investment in our climate goals and initiatives -- despite federal pullback -- approving the addition of the County's first-ever Climate Director and adding 4 new staff to their team to comprehensively address sustainability and sea level rise, as part of the Office of the County Executive reorganization, approved by the Board as part of the FY 2025-2026 Budget.

The Board has affirmed its 2018 Resolution that supports a ban on new drilling, fracking, and other well stimulation in federal and state waters off the California coast and prohibits any new federal oil and gas leases in the Pacific, Atlantic or Arctic oceans and the eastern Gulf of Mexico. The development of on onshore facilities supporting offshore oil and gas is currently prohibited in Marin County, and in 2020 the Board of Supervisors passed an ordinance to ensures that regardless of any state or federal legislative acts to supersede local authority, those facilities would only be allowed if approved directly by Marin County voters.

The Board also provided comment on the Department of Interior's RFI in spring 2025, in strong opposition to any new oil and gas lease sales in the Pacific Region as part of the 11th National Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program. On November 18, the Board adopted a resolution reaffirming Marin's opposition to offshore drilling and deep-sea mining, and joining the Local Government Outer Continental Shelf Coordination Program -- a coalition that includes Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Sonoma, Mendocino, Humboldt, San Francisco, Santa Cruz County (and City), San Mateo, and San Diego to collectively oppose any expansion of offshore drilling off the California coast. In May 2026, the Board of Supervisors approved a $29,000 contribution to support the coalition's analysis and response to federal actions.

The Board of Supervisors continues to submit opposition to the accelerated planning efforts currently underway by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) including the Draft Proposed 5-Year Leasing Program (DPP), Call for Information and Nominations for the Central California OCS Planning Area (which includes Marin County) and Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement.

Marin County has joined three federal lawsuits -- along with a coalition of cities and counties from across the nation -- against the Trump Administration to protect our autonomy and local funding, led by our County Counsel. California is the nation’s largest donor state to the federal government, contributing more in federal taxes than it receives in federal spending.

• S.F. v. Trump: challenges executive actions that attempt to withhold federal funding unless local governments cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.
• Fresno v. Turner: challenges new federal grant conditions related to immigration enforcement, abortion access, gender, and diversity, equity and inclusion in grants that finance affordable housing, social services, reliable transit, and essential airport and highway infrastructure.
• Santa Clara v. Noem: challenges unlawful and unrelated conditions in grants from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agenda (FEMA) that prohibit any DEI programs and require grantees to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement officials.