BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                       



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                  SB 1488|
          |Office of Senate Floor Analyses   |                         |
          |1020 N Street, Suite 524          |                         |
          |(916) 651-1520         Fax: (916) |                         |
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                                    CONSENT


          Bill No:  SB 1488
          Author:   Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee
          Amended:  As introduced
          Vote:     27

           
           SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE  :  9-0, 4/13/10
          AYES:  Pavley, Cogdill, Hollingsworth, Huff, Kehoe,  
            Lowenthal, Padilla, Simitian, Wolk

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  Senate Rule 28.8


           SUBJECT  :    State lands:  tidelands and submerged lands

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill modifies the Public Resources Code to  
          require a survey of the trust lands granted to the City of  
          Pittsburg in 2006 be completed by January 1, 2013, and  
          exclude Browns Island from the same grant, and allows the  
          Land Bank Fund to be used to create access to public trust  
          lands.

           ANALYSIS  :    The State Lands Commission (SLC) exercises the  
          state's ongoing oversight authority over all of the state's  
          public trust lands.  These include filled and unfilled tide  
          and other submerged lands as well as the beds of navigable  
          rivers, lakes and streams.  These lands cannot be bought or  
          sold but the state's administrative authority to manage  
          them may be granted by the Legislature to local agencies,  
          subject to the public trust, for specific uses of statewide  
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          benefit.  The public trust is a set of guiding principles  
          that direct the state to hold its title to public trust  
          lands in a manner to protect the public's interest in  
          activities that are typically water dependent or related.   
          While continually evolving to meet changing public needs,  
          these activities include, for example, navigation,  
          commerce, fishing, recreation and environmental protection.  
           The Legislature has been making grants of these lands  
          since the state's inception. 

          In 2006, the City of Pittsburg sponsored AB 2324  
          (Canciamilla), Chapter 275, Statutes of 2006, which  
          replaced several existing legislative grants of tide and  
          other submerged lands to the city with a single grant  
          subject to the public trust and certain other provisions.   
          Pittsburg sought the legislation in order to simplify the  
          development plans of its port, speed clean-up of  
          contaminated industrial areas, boost its economic growth  
          and create jobs.

          The SLC is also the trustee of the Land Bank Fund (LBF)  
          created pursuant to the Kapiloff Land Bank Act of 1982.   
          There are certain restrictions on the LBF's operation.  The  
          LBF may receive funds from:

          1. Title settlements which may be used to purchase specific  
             LBF parcels and the conveyance of those interests to the  
             state.

          2. Project applicants for the purposes of mitigation.
           
          3. Any party for projects to provide for the management and  
             improvement of real property held by the SLC to provide  
             open space, habitat and public access. 

          This bill modifies the Public Resources Code to require a  
          survey of the trust lands granted to the City of Pittsburg  
          in 2006 be completed by January 1, 2013, and exclude  
          Brown's Island from the same grant, and allows the LBF to  
          be used to create access to public trust lands.

          FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  Yes   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  No








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           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  4/26/10)

          City of Pittsburg
          State Lands Commission


           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    The proposed bill addresses two  
          items of concern to the SLC which, if passed, will improve  
          its ability to meet its public land management and resource  
          protection goals.


          CTW:mw  4/27/10   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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