Jennifer Capitolo is a member of Nossaman's Public Policy Practice Group. Ms. Capitolo is a Senior Policy Advisor who assists clients with a wide range of issues including grant funding, housing, economic development, and advocacy for local governments.
Prior to joining Nossaman in 2011, Ms. Capitolo served for seven years as the Senior Director of the State Capitol office for a top-10 state lobbying firm. Ms. Capitolo has helped secure hundreds of millions of dollars in state and federal funding for parks, higher education, museums and libraries, transportation projects, and infill and transit-oriented developments throughout California.
Ms. Capitolo is one of a select few legislative advocates in Sacramento who is expert at understanding and navigating state agency funding programs on behalf of qualified public and private institutions. Her largest funding achievement to date was a State of California grant award for $47 million in infrastructure funding for City of Hayward to develop a new mixed use project at the Hayward BART Station.
She also maintains close relationships with decision makers at federal level from her work as a Senior District Aide to U.S. Congresswoman Barbara Lee. As part of Representative Lee's Oakland staff, Ms. Capitolo coordinated the Congresswoman's grant outreach program, allowing her to work with federal, state and private grant giving organizations on behalf of public and private non-profit institutions in the 9th Congressional District.
Her experience in state government includes serving as a Senior Field Representative in Hayward for former California Assemblymember now Senator Ellen Corbett, and as an analyst in the Department of Finance under former Governor Gray Davis, where she reviewed fiscal affairs and prepared budget policies for the Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs and the Department of Mental Health.
On the local level, Ms. Capitolo led a community based collaborative partnership for the City of Berkeley Department of Mental Health aimed at the creation of a new detoxification center in Alameda County. She also created program standards for a Homeless Locker Program for the City of Berkeley and served as an advisor to the Oakland City Council on Head Start programs as a member of the Oakland Head Start Advisory Panel.
Representative Work
City of Oakland. Provided legislative and funding advocacy services to the City of Oakland including the development of a successful legislative proposal in 2007, Senate Bill 67 (Perata), which defined "sideshow" related reckless driving activities and associated penalties. Also participated in a lobbying coalition in 2008, to draft Assembly Bill 499 (Swanson) to create a pilot program in Alameda County to provide supervised counseling and treatment programs for sexually exploited minors accused of prostitution offenses.
City of Fullerton. Assisted the City of Fullerton in submitting a successful application for $1.35 million in funding from the State Department of Housing and Community Development along with statewide designation as a California Catalyst Community for their Fullerton Transportation Center Infill and Transit Oriented Development project.
City of Hayward. Drafted two successful grant applications for the City of Hayward, South Hayward BART Station development project through the Department of Housing and Community Development which resulted in a $47 million grant award, $30 million through the Infill Infrastructure Grant program and $17 million through the Transit Oriented Development grant program.
City of Dinuba. Drafted a successful application for the City of Dinuba, in partnership with Chelsea Investment Corporation, to secure $2.4 million through the Infill Infrastructure Grant program. Also, worked in coordinate with Chelsea Investment Corporation, on behalf of the City of Dinuba, to secure a HOME allocation for $3 million.
City of San Juan Capistrano. Worked with the City of San Juan Capistrano to sponsor AB 1867 by Assemblywoman Diane Harkey to provide cities with an additional option for developing affordable housing units through the RHNA process. Specifically, the proposal allows local governments to count rehabilitated ownership units, not just rental units, for credit under the RHNA process. Despite initial opposition, she successfully worked with the affordable housing advocates, to draft a proposal that met the needs of the City of San Juan Capistrano and allowed the affordable housing advocates to remove their opposition. AB 1867 (Harkey) was signed into law by the Governor in September 2010 and became state law in January 2011.
Emerald Fund, Inc. Drafted a successful application for Emerald Fund for $11.5 million through the Department of Housing and Community Development, Infill Infrastructure Grant program for 333 Harrison, a 326 unit apartment complex which includes 49 affordable units intended for rent to families earning 30 percent of the San Francisco median income.
Nehemiah Corporation of America. Similar to the City of Fullerton, assisted the City of Sacramento and Nehemiah Corporation in submitting a successful application for $1.35 million in funding from the State Department of Housing and Community Development along with statewide designation as a California Catalyst Community for the Township 9 infill housing project.