BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2761
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Date of Hearing: May 5, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 2761 (Committee on Natural Resources) - As Introduced:
February 23, 2010
Policy Committee: Natural
ResourcesVote:9-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill (1) explicitly allows the State Geologist to enter
into geologic contracts with school districts, among other
entities, and (2) deletes the requirement that the Attorney
General (AG) must be the legal advisor for the Division of Oil,
Gas and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) within the Department of
Conservation (DOC).
FISCAL EFFECT
Potential savings of an unknown minor amount to DOGGR, which
will be able to use in-house attorneys instead of the AG's
office for routing and other division-specific matters (Oil,
Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund).
COMMENTS
1)Rationale . According to the author, State Geologist routinely
contracts with state and federal governmental entities for a
variety of geological services. However, while the department
has implied authority for contracts with school districts for
geologic hazard assessment, there is no express statutory
authority for the geologist to contract with them, which may
invite unwarranted challenges and subject the State Geologist
to unnecessary costs.
Additionally, the author describes a provision of existing
law-"a relic of 1939"-that requires the AG to perform all
legal services for DOGGR, including review of permits,
proposed regulations, environmental impact reports, and
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communications associated with public records requests. The
author contends it more appropriate that these services be
performed by DOC's in-house counsel, rather than the AG.
2)Background .
a) State Geologist Contracting . The State Geologist
routinely contracts with state and federal governmental
entities for a variety of geological services. Since 1990,
the Department of General Services (DGS), Division of the
State Architect (DSA) has contracted with the State
Geologist to review geologic hazard reports and proposed
mitigations for school construction plans. DSA has
historically secured the geologist's assistance through
interagency agreements and has provided direct
reimbursement to the geologist, with funding provided by
fees paid to DSA by school districts. Recent DSA policy
changes require the State Geologist to work directly with,
and seek funding from school districts for reviews of
geologic hazard reports and proposed mitigations associated
with proposed school construction projects. This requires
the execution of individual contracts with school
districts. Existing law provides no explicit authority for
the geologist to contract with school districts.
b) DOGGR Attorneys . DOGGR regulates oil, gas, and
geothermal well operations throughout the state. The
division issues production permits and oversees the
drilling, operation, maintenance, as well as the plugging
and abandonment of wells. The DOGGR also provides detailed
production reports on oil and gas output in the state.
Existing law requires the AG to perform all legal services
for DOGGR, including review of permits, proposed
regulations, environmental impact reports, and
communications associated with public records requests;
advising DOGGR management on policy or regulatory changes;
and coordinating response to subpoenas, among other things.
It is arguably more appropriate for DOC's in-house
attorneys to perform this work than for the AG's office to
do so.
3)There is no support or opposition registered to this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Jay Dickenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081
AB 2761
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