Oakland · issues
Civic issues
Topics getting the most attention in Oakland public meetings, ranked by how frequently they come up.
Increasing Civil Penalties for Nuisance Properties
The council advanced an ordinance to raise maximum daily fines for continuous property nuisances and code violations from $1,000 to $10,000 to deter bad actors who treat fines as a cost of doing business.
City of Refuge Sanctuary Ordinance
The council gave final approval to codify Oakland's sanctuary city policies into municipal code, protecting immigrant residents and ensuring city resources are not used for federal civil immigration enforcement.
Police Surveillance Technology Contracts (Cellebrite and Peregrine)
The council approved contract renewals for Cellebrite mobile extraction tools and Peregrine records search platforms for the police department, sparking intense community debate over civil liberties and international vendor ties.