BILL ANALYSIS SB 1450 Page 1 SENATE THIRD READING SB 1450 (Simitian) As Amended August 16, 2010 2/3 vote. Urgency SENATE VOTE :Not relevant WATER, PARKS & WILDLIFE 12-1 APPROPRIATIONS 17-0 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Huffman, Fuller, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Conway, | | |Anderson, Arambula, Tom | |Bradford, | | |Berryhill, Blumenfield, | |Charles Calderon, Coto, | | |Caballero, De La Torre, | |Davis, | | |Fletcher, Gatto, Bonnie | |De Leon, Gatto, Hall, | | |Lowenthal, Salas | |Harkey, Miller, Nielsen, | | | | |Norby, Skinner, Solorio, | | | | |Torlakson, Torrico | | | | | | |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------| |Nays:|Yamada | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY : Allows the Delta Stewardship Council (DSC) to use expedited contracting processes for development of a long-term management plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary (Delta Plan), which is due January 1, 2012. Specifically, this bill : 1)Allows the DSC to use competitive and streamlined processes to hire either consultant services or architectural and engineering (A&E) services. 2)States that those contracts will be for the purposes of: a. preparing the Delta Plan and associated environmental review; b. performing its responsibilities, or the responsibilities of the Delta Independent Science Board, with regard to the Bay-Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP); SB 1450 Page 2 c. determining the consistency of state and local public agency actions with the Delta Plan; or, d. performing scientific review to inform water and environmental decision-making in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary (Delta). EXISTING LAW : 1)Establishes the DSC to develop and implement a plan to achieve the co-equal goals of providing a more reliable water supply for California and protecting, restoring, and enhancing the Delta ecosystem. 2)Requires the DSC to act as a responsible agency under the California Environmental Quality Act with respect to the BDCP environmental impact report. 3)Requires the DSC to include the BDCP in the Delta Plan if the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) determines that the BDCP meets Natural Community Conservation Planning Act (NCCPA) requirements. 4)Requires the DSC to determine if state and local public agency actions are consistent with the Delta Plan. 5)Places the DSC in an oversight role regarding implementation of the BDCP by requiring the Department of Water Resources, or any successor agency charged with BDCP implementation, to report to the DSC on the implementation of the BDCP. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee analysis, potential, minor administrative cost savings to the council resulting from simplified contracting procedures. COMMENTS : The Delta is the largest estuary on the West Coast. It is both a haven for plants and wildlife and critical to California's economy, providing part of the drinking water supplies for two-thirds of Californians and irrigation water for over 7 million acres of highly productive agricultural land. Since late 2004, scientific and public attention has focused on SB 1450 Page 3 the unexpected collapse of several Delta fish species that are considered indicators of the estuary's health. Solutions to balance the competing uses of the Delta and the degradation of its ecosystem have been elusive. On September 17, 2006, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger created a new effort by Executive Order, the Delta Vision, to develop a durable vision for sustainable management of the Delta. SB 1 (Simitian), Chapter 5, Statutes of 2009-10 Seventh Extraordinary Session, implemented many of the Delta Vision strategies including creating the DSC as the governing body mandated to develop the Delta Plan, a comprehensive long-term management strategy for the Delta. Because of the pressing condition of the Delta, the Legislature required the DSC to adopt and begin implementing the Delta Plan by January 1, 2012. During a May 11, 2010, Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee oversight hearing on the DSC and the Bay Delta Conservation Plan, the issue was raised as to whether traditional contracting procedures are adequate given the expedited time frames for the DSC to develop and implement the Delta Plan and carry out of its various oversight functions. This bill is intended to provide a streamlined contracting process to help meet those expedited time frames. Amendments to this bill address concerns raised by representatives of A&E firms. In particular, the amendments differentiate between consultant services and A&E services contracts and require that contracts for A&E services still follow what is known as the Qualification Based Selection (QBS) process (commencing with Government Code Section 4525), which mandates A&E firms are selected competitively but based on qualifications rather than lowest bid. The amendments also maintain the ability of the DSC to expedite those A&E contracts by exempting the DSC from the QBS statute's requirements to adopt regulations prior to contracting. Analysis Prepared by : Tina Cannon Leahy / W., P. & W. / (916) 319-2096 FN: 0006033