BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                               SB 1006
                                                                       

                      SENATE COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
                        Senator S.  Joseph Simitian, Chairman
                              2009-2010 Regular Session
                                           
           BILL NO:    SB 1006
           AUTHOR:     Pavley
           AMENDED:    April 5, 2010
           FISCAL:     Yes               HEARING DATE:     April 19, 2010
           URGENCY:    No                CONSULTANT:       Amber Hartman
            
           SUBJECT  :    CLIMATE CHANGE: STRATEGIC GROWTH COUNCIL

           SUMMARY  :    
           
            Existing law  :

           1) Under the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006  
              (CGWSA):

              a)    Requires the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to  
                 determine the 1990 statewide greenhouse gas (GHG)  
                 emissions level and approve a statewide GHG emissions  
                 limit that is equivalent to that level, to be achieved  
                 by 2020, and sets various requirements to meet this  
                 requirement.  (Health and Safety Code 38500 et seq.).

              b)    Requires ARB to ensure that GHG emission reduction  
                 requirements and programs, to the extent feasible,  
                 direct public and private investment toward the most  
                 disadvantaged communities in the state and provide an  
                 opportunity for certain entities to participate in and  
                 benefit from statewide efforts to reduce GHG emissions.   
                 (38565).

              c)    Requires ARB to adopt GHG emission limits and  
                 reduction measures by regulation on or before January 1,  
                 2011, to become operative January 1, 2012.  ARB must  
                 meet certain requirements in adopting the regulations  
                 (e.g., minimize costs; not disproportionately impact  
                 low-income communities; ensure reductions are real,  
                 permanent, quantifiable, verifiable, and enforceable).   
                 (38562).

           2) Under the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply,  








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              Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of  
              2006 (Proposition 84):

              a)    Authorizes approximately $5.4 billion in general  
                 obligation bonds for safe drinking water, water quality  
                 and water supply, flood control, natural resource  
                 protection, and park improvements, of which $90 million  
                 is specified for planning grants and incentives and $90  
                 million for urban greening programs.

              b)    Specifies that the planning grants and incentives  
                 include revolving loan programs and other methods to  
                 encourage the development of regional and local land use  
                 plans that are designed to promote water conservation,  
                 reduce automobile use and fuel consumption, encourage  
                 greater infill and compact development, protect natural  
                 resources and agricultural lands, and revitalize urban  
                 and community centers.

           3) Under the Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection  
              Act (SCCPA) of 2008 (SB 373 (Steinberg) Chapter 728,  
              Statutes of 2008):

              a)    Requires metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs)  
                 to include sustainable communities strategies in their  
                 regional transportation plans for the purpose of  
                 reducing greenhouse gas emissions and complying with  
                 CGWSA.

              b)    Establishes a process for aligning planning for  
                 housing, land use, transportation and greenhouse gas  
                 emissions for the 17 MPOs in the state.

           4) Under the Strategic Growth Council and Climate change  
              Reduction Law (Public Resources Code 75120 et seq.):

              a)    Establishes the Strategic Growth Council (SGC)  
                 comprised of the Director of the Office of Planning and  
                 Research; the Secretary of the Resources Agency; the  
                 Secretary for Environmental Protection; the Secretary of  
                 Business, Transportation and Housing; the Secretary of  
                 California Health and Human Services; and one member of  
                 the public to be appointed by the Governor.  (75121).









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              b)    Requires the SGC to identify and review activities  
                 and funding of programs of member state agencies  
                 including improving air and water quality, meeting the  
                 CGWSA requirements and encouraging sustainable land use.  
                  (75125).  The SGC must also review and comment on the  
                 state's five-year infrastructure plan (Government Code  
                 13100 et seq.) and the State Environmental Goals and  
                 Policy Report.  (65041).

              c)    Authorizes the SGC to manage and award grants and  
                 loans for three programs, including an urban greening  
                 program (75129), from funds established by the Safe  
                 Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control,  
                 River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006.  (Public  
                 Resources Code 75125(d)(7)).  Financial assistance may  
                 be awarded to a city, county, or nonprofit organization  
                 for implementing an urban greening project with a  
                 certain percentage for revolving loans or grants.   
                 (75129).

            This bill  , under the Strategic Growth Council and Climate  
           Change Reduction Law, requires the SGC to:

           1) Identify and review activities of member state agencies  
              that will address climate change impacts.

           2) Provide guidelines and information to local and regional  
              agencies that will enable climate change adaptation  
              strategies to protect ecosystem functions, use  
              nonstructural approaches for community protection, and  
              avoid emission of greenhouse gases and environmental  
              degradation.

           3) Expand the list of agencies under the urban greening  
              program that can receive financial assistance to include  
              council of governments, countywide authority, metropolitan  
              planning organization, local government, special district,  
              or joint powers authority if at least one of the parties to  
              the joint powers authority qualifies as an eligible  
              applicant.

            COMMENTS  :

            1) Purpose of Bill  .  According to the author, "Under this  








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              bill, the SGC would create and distribute adaptation  
              information to local governments and regional agencies.   
              These entities can incorporate this information into their  
              planning and project plans."

            2) Addressing climate change  .  Climate change refers to  
              long-term changes in temperature, precipitation, wind  
              patterns and other parts of earth's climate system.  The  
              Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines  
              climate change as "any change in climate over time, whether  
              due to natural variability or as a result of human  
              activity."  For some time, scientific research increasingly  
              attributes these climate changes to GHGs, especially those  
              generated from use of fossil fuels.  Scientists indicate  
              that the earth is warming faster than any time in the  
              previous 1,000 years, and the 10 warmest years of the last  
              century occurred in the last 15 years.  A rise in  
              temperature accompanied by climate change affects how  
              organisms live, adapt, and survive.

              Climate change adaptation strategies refer to human  
              attempts to adapt to and ameliorate physical changes in our  
              environment that result from climate changes such as rising  
              sea levels.

            3) MPOs as funding recipients  .  Expanding the list of  
              available recipients of funding to include metropolitan  
              planning organizations (MPOs) indirectly expands the  
              ability of the Council to affect the SCCPA.  Given that  
              there are 17 MPOs, this amended list authorizes funding to  
              an organization with jurisdiction that covers a larger land  
              area than those under current law. 

            4) Outstanding issues  .  
            
              a)    Technical amendments are needed to achieve internal  
                 consistency between the words "financial assistance"  
                 (page 4, line 31), "grants" (page 4, line 37), "loans or  
                 grants" (page 6, line 3), and "grants" (page 6, line  
                 10).  The last three instances should all be replaced  
                 with the term "financial assistance" and the term should  
                 be defined in 75120 in a manner that is consistent with  
                 Proposition 84.









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              b)    Technical amendments are needed on page 4, line 33  
                 and page 6, line 7 "joint powers authority" should be  
                 stricken in both places because it is redundant with the  
                 phrase that follows it.

              c)    Technical amendments are needed on page 4, line 31  
                 after "a", insert "city, county, special district" and  
                 on page 4, line 33 strike "local government, special  
                 district", with similar changes included on page 6,  
                 lines 3 to 10.  References to "countywide authority"  
                 also need to be stricken (page 4, line 32 and page 6,  
                 line 5).

              d)    For clarification, on page 2, line 17 the words  
                 "conserve, protect, restore" should be inserted before  
                 the word "enhance" to conform with U.S. Natural  
                 Resources Conservation Service guidelines.

              e)    For clarification, the term "nonstructural" (page 2,  
                 line 18) should be either defined or stricken.  While it  
                 is likely the author's intent is to discourage sea wall  
                 construction and reinforcement, it is conceivable the  
                 undefined word "nonstructural" might prevent the  
                 creation of an artificial wetland or park as an  
                 appropriate climate change adaptation strategy because  
                 it could be considered a "structural" effort.

            5) Related legislation  .  Governor Schwarzenegger issued  
              Executive Order S-3-05 June 1, 2005, to establish emission  
              reduction targets for the state, require the Secretary for  
              Environmental Protection to coordinate oversight efforts  
              with certain other entities to meet the targets, and set  
              various reporting requirements.

           AB 32 (Nunez/Pavley) Chapter 488, Statutes of 2006, requires  
              the ARB to determine the 1990 statewide greenhouse gas  
              (GHG) emissions level and approve a statewide GHG emissions  
              limit that is equivalent to that level, to be achieved by  
              2020 - and sets related requirements (see Summary above).

              AB 596 (Evans) of 2009 would have established the Community  
              Planning Grant and Loan Fund and authorized the SGC to  
              expend the revenues in the fund, upon appropriation by the  
              Legislature, for certain purposes.  (Died Assembly  








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              Appropriations suspense file).

              SB 406 (DeSaulnier) of 2009 would have levied vehicle  
              registration fees to pay for SCCPA.  It also would have  
              increased the communication between the Planning Advisory  
              and Assistance Council (PAAC) and the SGC and added a new  
              duty for SGC to consult with and coordinate its  
              recommendations with PAAC.  (Vetoed by the Governor).

              SB 1445 (DeSaulnier) requires the SGC to consult with and  
              coordinate its recommendations with the PAAC within the  
              Governor's Office of Planning and Research.  (Approved by  
              the Senate Local Government Committee April 7, 2010 (3-2);  
              to be heard by the Senate Transportation and Housing  
              Committee April 20, 2010).

            SOURCE  :        Audubon California, Defenders of Wildlife, The  
                          Nature Conservancy  

           SUPPORT  :       Tree People, Watershed Conservation Authority  

           OPPOSITION  :    None on file