BILL ANALYSIS
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| SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER |
| Senator Fran Pavley, Chair |
| 2009-2010 Regular Session |
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BILL NO: SB 458 HEARING DATE: April 14, 2009
AUTHOR: Wolk URGENCY: No
VERSION: April 2, 2009 CONSULTANT: Dennis O'Connor
DUAL REFERRAL: No FISCAL: Yes
SUBJECT: Conservancies: Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
Conservancy.
BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW
Existing law authorizes various conservancies to acquire,
manage, direct the management of, and conserve public lands in
the state. In order to promote the conservation of the state's
resources, the state Legislature has created nine conservancies:
1.Baldwin Hills Conservancy
2.California Tahoe Conservancy
3.Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy
4.San Diego River Conservancy
5.San Gabriel & Lower Los Angeles Rivers & Mountains Conservancy
6.San Joaquin River Conservancy
7.Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy
8.Sierra Nevada Conservancy
9.State Coastal Conservancy
As state departments, all conservancies, with the exception of
Coachella, are run by a board with a state majority. Many of
the state-appointed members on other boards, however, are
limited to local representatives.
Under the Johnston-Baker-Andal-Boatwright Delta Protection Act
of 1992, the legal delta is defined to include specific lands
within Contra Costa, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano, Yolo,
Alameda.
PROPOSED LAW
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This bill would establish the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
Conservancy
The purpose of the conservancy would be to support efforts that
advance both environmental protection and the economic
well-being of Delta residents in a complementary manner,
including:
Enhance habitat and habitat restoration.
Protect agriculture and working landscapes.
Increase recreation and public access in the Delta, including
linkages to areas outside the Delta.
Promote tourism and economic vitality in the Delta.
Promote Delta legacy communities.
Protect historical and cultural resources.
Assist local entities in the implementation of their Habitat
Conservation Plans (HCPs) and Natural Community Conservation
Plans (NCCPs).
Facilitate safe harbor agreements for adjacent landowners.
Promote environmental education.
The conservancy's jurisdiction would be limited to the legal
Delta.
The board would consist of 11 voting members and four nonvoting
members.
The 11 voting members of the board would be:
The Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency, or his or her
designee.
The Director of Finance, or his or her designee.
The chairperson of the Delta Protection Commission, or his or
her designee.
One public member appointed by the Contra Costa County Board
of Supervisors, who is a resident of the county.
One public member appointed by the San Joaquin County Board of
Supervisors, who is a resident of the county.
One public member appointed by the Sacramento County Board of
Supervisors, who is a resident of the county.
One public member appointed by the Solano County Board of
Supervisors, who is a resident of the county.
One public member appointed by the Yolo County Board of
Supervisors, who is a resident of the county.
One public member appointed by the Governor.
One public member appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules.
One public member appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.
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The four nonvoting members would be:
A designee of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and
Development Commission for coordination purposes.
A designee of the State Coastal Conservancy for coordination
purposes.
One Member of the Senate and one Member of the Assembly, to
the extent that this participation is not incompatible with
their positions as Members of the Legislature. The appointed
Members shall represent a district that encompasses a portion
of the Delta.
The terms of the members would be:
The public member appointed by the Governor shall serve at his
or her pleasure.
The locally appointed public members shall serve for a term of
four years, with a two-term limit.
The public members appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules
and the Speaker of the Assembly shall serve for a term of four
years, with a two-term limit.
The Members of the Senate and Assembly shall serve for a term
of four years, with a two-term limit.
The Conservancy would have the authority to:
provide grants and loans to state agencies, local public
agencies, nonprofit organizations, and tribal organizations to
further the goals of the conservancy.
acquire from willing sellers or transferors interests in real
property and improve, lease, or transfer interests in real
property
enter into an agreement with a public agency, nonprofit
organization, or private entity, for the construction,
management, or maintenance of facilities authorized by the
conservancy
acquire water or water rights to support the goals of the
conservancy
The Conservancy would not have the power of eminent domain.
The Conservancy, within two years of hiring an executive
director, would be required to create and adopt a strategic plan
to achieve the goals of the conservancy. The plan would be
required to:
Describe its interaction with local, regional, state, and
federal land use, recreation, water and flood management, and
habitat conservation and protection efforts within and
adjacent to the Delta.
Establish priorities and criteria for projects and programs,
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based upon an assessment of program requirements,
institutional capabilities, and funding needs throughout the
Delta.
Be consistent with the Resource Management Plan developed by
the Delta Protection Commission and the Central Valley Flood
Protection Plan.
The bill would create the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
Conservancy Fund in the State Treasury. Moneys in the fund
would be available, upon appropriation, for the purposes of the
conservancy.
The bill would make numerous find and declarations regarding the
unique values of the Delta and the advantage of having a
conservancy.
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT
According to the author, "California has a long and successful
history with conservancies and there is widespread agreement
that such an entity would succeed in the Delta as long as there
is adequate local input and control. Conservancies are able to
address unique solutions in communities of key interest. They
are a flexible arrangement with tools to fit the situation. They
have been as varied as the large Coastal Conservancy to the
Baldwin Hills Conservancy and provide a forum for state and
local interests to work to find solutions and raise funds to
solve problems and improve communities."
"The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Conservancy will support
efforts that advance both environmental protection and the
economic well-being of Delta residents in a complementary
manner."
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: None Received
COMMENTS
County Appointments. Local governments typically do not appoint
public members to state agencies. In order to get local input
on such boards, usually one of two methods is employed. Either
(1) the appointment is an elected member of a board of
supervisors or city council, selected by the board or council,
or (2) the board or council provides a list of nominees from
which the Governor selects and appoints the public member.
Should this bill move forward, the author should consider
changing the appointment process to one of the two options.
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Reports to the Legislature
Conservancies typically report to the Legislature on their
activities and progress on a regular basis. Should this bill
move forward, the author should consider requiring annual or
some other regular report to the Legislature.
Related Bills: Each of the following bills address one or more
aspect of problems the Delta.
Senate:
SB 12 (Simitian)A compressive bill that largely mirrors the
recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Task Force
SB 229 (Pavley)Institutes an interim governance structure for
the Delta
SB 457 (Wolk)A compressive bill that builds on many, but not
all, of the recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Task
Force
Assembly:
AB 13 (Salas)Establishes a Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
Conservancy.
AB 39 (Huffman)Intended to become a comprehensive bill on the
Delta
SUGGESTED AMENDMENTS: None
SUPPORT
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (If Amended)
Natural Resources Defense Council (In Concept)
Planning and Conservation League
The Nature Conservancy
Trust for Public Land
OPPOSITION
None Received
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