The Airport Land Use Commission is mandated by the State of California, and is considered to be a quasi-state entity.  The Commission is governed by the laws of the State of California, and it draws technical guidance from CalTRANS Division of Aeronautics.  In 1994, the Division of Aeronautics published a technical handbook which ALUCs throughout the state use to determine land use policies.  Oftentimes, an ALUC will use the services of an outside planning consultant to draft a land use plan for the commission.  Such is the case now with the ALUC in Contra Costa County.  The consultant is Shutt-Moen & Associates, and the lead planner for the consultant is Ken Brody. 

There are seven (7) members on most ALUCs, including Contra Costa's ALUC.  While they have considerable power to set land use policy, they are not directly elected, as by a general election.  Two (2) of the members are selected by the Contra Costa board of Supervisors, two (2) members are selected by the Airport Manager (Mr. David Mendez), two (2) members are selected by the Mayor's Conference of Contra Costa County, and the last member is selected by the other six (6) commissioners on the ALUC. 

Currently,  three members of Contra Costa's ALUC are, or have been, pilots.