BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                      



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                  AB 1492|
          |Office of Senate Floor Analyses   |                         |
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                                 THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 1492
          Author:   Assembly Budget Committee
          Amended:  8/7/12 in Senate
          Vote:     27 - Urgency

           
           SENATE BUDGET & FISCAL REVIEW COMMITTEE  :  11-0, 8/15/12
          AYES:  Leno, Alquist, DeSaulnier, Evans, Hancock, Liu, 
            Lowenthal, Negrete McLeod, Simitian, Wolk, Wright
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Emmerson, Anderson, Fuller, Gaines, La 
            Malfa

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  Not relevant


           SUBJECT  :    Budget Act of 2012:  Timber Harvesting

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill makes various changes related to 
          Timber Harvest Plans and revenues to implement the budget 
          actions as part of the 2012-13 budget package.

           ANALYSIS  :    The bill includes the following changes:

          1.Allows a timber harvest plan approved after July 31, 2012 
            to be in effect for a period of not more than five years 
            with extensions authorized for a two-year period.  

          2.Establishes the Timber Regulation and Forest Restoration 
            Fund in the State Treasury and imposes a new assessment 
            on lumber as follows:
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             A.   Imposes an assessment on lumber products and 
               engineered wood products at a rate of one percent of 
               gross receipts from the sale of those products.

             B.   Funds are required to be available upon 
               appropriation for administrative costs, and for 
               purposes relating to the regulatory activities of the 
               Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, and other 
               state and local agencies involved in the management of 
               forest lands.

             C.   Funds may be made available for management of 
               forest lands, the cost of managing forest resource 
               programs in the state, and for certain grants to state 
               and local public agencies for fire protection, fire 
               suppression and restoration activities.

             D.   Retailers may be reimbursed for costs to set up 
               collection systems.  The fee may be itemized on 
               receipts.

          1.Requires the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency 
            annually to submit a report to the Joint Legislative 
            Budget Committee on the activities of all state 
            departments, agencies and boards relating to forest and 
            timberland regulation.

          2.Allows civil action by a public agency to recover damages 
            caused in a fire but limits the measure of damages for 
            injuries to timber, trees, or underwood negligently cause 
            by fire to the actual damages suffered.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  Yes   Fiscal Com.:  Yes   
          Local:  Yes

          This bill should not result in any changes to the budget 
          act in related budget actions.

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  8/29/12)

          California Association of Professional Scientists

           OPPOSITION  :    (Verified  8/29/12)

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          California Republican Assembly
          Home Depot
          Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
          Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
          Lowe's Company LTD
          Lumber Association of California and Nevada
          National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association
          Retail Industry Leaders Association
          San Diego Gas and Electric Company
          Valley Industry and Commerce Association

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    The California Association of 
          Professional Scientists state, "A functional and credible 
          Timber Harvest Review Program requires meaningful 
          participation from each of the reviewed team agencies.  
          While all of the agencies face budget constraints that 
          limit participation, the situation at DFG is particularly 
          shocking.  Repeated cuts to DFG's Timber Harvest Review 
          Program have reduced staffing from over 50 PY's in 2006-07 
          to less than 10 PY's in the current fiscal year.  These 
          cuts have left DFG without the capacity to protect our 
          wildlife resources in vast areas of the state.  The 
          proposal shifts the costs of reviewing logging plans from 
          the General Fund to the end user.  Such an assessment would 
          be exceedingly minor for any one consumer, but 
          cumulatively, it provides enough resources to adequately 
          and sustainably fund a multi-agency Timber Harvest Review 
          Program.  In the end, AB 1492 will offer better stewardship 
          of our states valuable forest resources and result in a 
          healthier and cleaner environment."

           ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION  :    The Retail Industry Leaders 
          Association state, "The proposed one percent tax on 
          consumers who purchase limber or wood products in 
          California is one that has the potential to further cripple 
          an industry that ha show slight signs of recovery following 
          an economic downturn unprecedented in its length and 
          especially acute for the housing industry.  Furthermore, 
          retailers and their customers should not have to shoulder 
          the burden of funding regulatory activities related to the 
          Timber Harvest Plan review.  This initiative does not 
          benefit the retail or construction industries, but rather 
          serves as an alternative to a direct fee or tax on 

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          landowners who apply for timber harvesting permits."


          DLW:n  8/29/12   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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