BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 120
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 120 (Budget Committee)
As Amended June 8, 2011
Majority vote. Budget Bill Appropriation Takes Effect
Immediately
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|ASSEMBLY: | |(February 22, |SENATE: |22-13|(June 10, |
| | |2011) | | |2011) |
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(vote not relevant)
SUMMARY : Contains necessary statutory changes in the area of
natural resources and environmental protection to implement
changes to the Budget Act of 2011.
The Senate Amendments delete the Assembly version of this bill,
and instead:
1)Enable the Department of Conservation (Conservation) to use
the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administration fund as its main
appropriation, or clearing account.
2)Amend the Water Code to authorize the deposit of all monies
collected by the Wastewater Operator Certification Program
(WOCP) into the Wastewater Operator Certification Fund (WOCF)
and to ensure the funds are utilized in accordance with an
appropriation.
3)Narrow the state's liability for closed or partially closed
parks to only that needed by the Department of Parks and
Recreation.
4)Implement the Administration's proposal to reduce the
Department of Food and Agriculture's (CDFA) General Fund
budget by $15 million for 2011-12 Fiscal Year by utilizing
Special Funds, assessments and fee-for-service and reducing
program scope, workload, and activities. In addition, this
item discontinues General Fund support for three programs:
Weed Management Area (WMA), Noxious Weed, and Agriculture
Security and Emergency Response (ASER).
5)Extend the moratorium on issuance of suction dredge permits
for an additional five years, or until such time as new
regulations that fully mitigate all identified significant
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environmental impacts, and a proposed fee structure that will
fully cover all program costs, are in place.
6)Implement the elimination of three Advisory Committees/Review
Panels at the Department of Fish and Game: State Interagency
Oil Spill Committee Review Subcommittee; State Interagency Oil
Spill Committee; and, Commercial Abalone Advisory Committee.
7)Add an appropriation allowing this bill to take effect
immediately upon enactment.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill expresses the intent of the
Legislature to enact statutory changes relating to the 2011
Budget Act.
COMMENTS : Currently, Conservation uses the General Fund as its
clearing account which has a $4.5 million annual appropriation.
Enabling Conservation to use the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal
Administration Fund is consistent with the common practice
recommended by the State Controller's Office that a department
should use the fund with the largest appropriation as its
clearing account.
The WOCF receives deposits of fees from persons applying for an
operator certificate or renewing an operator certificate.
However, the WOCF does not receive deposits of fees from persons
applying for a contract operator registration or renewing such a
contract. The proposed amendments would allow the State Water
Resources Control Board to deposit all interest earnings and
fees collected by the WOCP into the WOCF and utilize the funds
for program activities.
When the Legislature passed the State Budget earlier this year,
it included an unprecedented, broad immunity to the state for
claims involving closed or partially closed state parks. Given
the timing, it was impossible to amend the language at that
time. The language presented now as a substitute gives the
state full protection for liability under the current Government
Code Sections without unprecedented reductions in the legal
rights of Californians.
CDFA held a number of stakeholder meetings to help identify the
most appropriate way to reduce the CDFA's General Fund budget.
According to the CDFA, ASER activities will continue through the
counties. CDFA states that it will explore alternative funding
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solutions for WMA and the Noxious Weed Program. However, in the
absence of a solution, CDFA weed management activities will be
discontinued or substantially reduced. Networks of local weed
management areas will need to collaborate to leverage funding
from federal and private sources. County agriculture
commissioners will need to coordinate and maximize resources to
eradicate, contain, or control noxious weeds. Absent a
solution, incipient infestations of noxious weeds will become
established and spread predominately in Northern California.
The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) has acknowledged in
previous years that the current fees for suction dredge mining
permits are inadequate to cover the full costs of the program.
The current statutory base fee for a permit is $25, which when
adjusted for inflation equates to approximately $40. The base
fee is $130 if an onsite inspection is required. Nonresident
base fees are $100 for a basic permit and $220 for onsite
inspection. The Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee's
analysis for SB 670 (Wiggins), Chapter 62, Statutes of 2009,
notes that DFG "has previously estimated that the permits cost
an average of $450 to process and to cover the costs of the
program, which if extrapolated to the approximate 3,000 permits
would result in an expenditure of about $1.3 million."
DFG's new estimate of revenue from 4,000 permits and onsite
inspection fees is $373,000. If the DFG's previous cost
estimates are accurate, the program will cost $1.8 million. The
gap between the current fees and the costs of the program result
in an estimated $1.5 million subsidy of the program from the
Fish and Game Preservation Fund and/or the General Fund.
The advisory groups proposed for elimination are no longer
necessary, have been non-functional for many years, or have
completed their statutory requirements.
Analysis Prepared by : Gabrielle Meindl / BUDGET / (916)
319-2099
FN:
0001240
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