BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                           Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair


          SB 1241 (Kehoe) - Land use: general plan: safety element: fire 
          hazard impacts.
          
          Amended: May 3, 2012            Policy Vote: NR&W 5-2, Gov&F 7-1
          Urgency: No                     Mandate: Yes
          Hearing Date: May 24, 2012      Consultant: Marie Liu
          
          SUSPENSE FILE.  AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED.

          
          Bill Summary: SB 1241 would require cities and counties to 
          address fire risk in state responsibility areas (SRA) and very 
          high fire hazard severity zones in the safety element of their 
          general plans upon the next revision of the housing element. 
          This bill also requires cities and counties to make certain 
          findings regarding available fire protection and suppression 
          services before approving a tentative map or parcel map.

          Fiscal Impact: 
               Ongoing costs between $100,000 and $250,000 from the 
              General Fund from 2013-14 through 2018-19, for the Board of 
              Forestry to review safety element updates as required by 
              this bill.
               One-time costs of $285,000 from the General Fund for 
              2013-14 for the update of CEQA guidelines.

          Background: The Board of Forestry (board) is required to 
          identify all lands where the state has the primary financial 
          responsibility for preventing and suppressing fires. These state 
          responsibility areas (SRAs) are generally lands that are (or 
          were, prior to development) largely covered by trees, brush, and 
          grass and other undeveloped lands. All other lands are primarily 
          the financial responsibility of local (local responsibility 
          areas, LRAs) or federal agencies. 

          The director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire 
          (CDF) is required identify fire hazard severity zones in LRAs, 
          although a local agency has discretion to alter these zones for 
          more effective fire protection.

          Every city and county must adopt a general plan with seven 
          required elements on land use, circulation, housing, 








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          conservation, open space, noise, and safety. The purpose of the 
          general plan is to guide all major land use decisions, which are 
          required to be consistent with the plan. Existing law requires 
          the housing element to be updated on a specific schedule, 
          depending on geographic location. Existing law also requires 
          local agencies to submit the safety element of their general 
          plan to the Board of Forestry (board) for review. The board may 
          offer recommendations for changes regarding the use of SRA or 
          very high fire hazard severity zone lands in order to protect 
          life, property, and natural resources from unreasonable wildland 
          fire risks. The local agency must consider the board's 
          recommendations but they are not required to adopt them.

          The Subdivision Map Act regulates how local officials approve 
          the conversion of larger parcels into marketable lots. 
          Subdivisions of more than four lots require a city or county to 
          adopt a tentative map while smaller subdivisions usually require 
          a parcel map.

          The Office of Planning and Research (OPR) develops guidelines 
          for the implementation of the California Environmental Quality 
          Act ("CEQA Guidelines"), including the criteria lead agencies us 
          to determine whether an environmental impact report is needed. 
          OPR is required to review the CEQA guidelines every two years 
          for possible updates. 

          Proposed Law: This bill would require a city or county, when it 
          next revises its housing element, to also update the safety 
          element to address the risk for fire on lands classified as SRA 
          or very high fire hazard severity zones. The update must 
          include:
           Consideration of guidance given in the Office of Planning and 
            Research's (OPR's) Fire Hazard Planning document, 
           Specific information regarding fire hazards, and
           A set of goals, policies, and objectives to protect the 
            community from unreasonable wildfire risks and a set of 
            feasible implementation measures to achieve these goals, 
            policies, and objectives. 

          This bill would also require a city or county to make the 
          following findings before approving a tentative map or parcel 
          map:
           That the design and location of each lot are consistent with 
            any applicable regulations adopted by the board regarding 








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            defensible space requirements,
           That structural fire protection and suppression services will 
            be available for the subdivision, and
           That the subdivision meets the regulations regarding road 
            standards for fire equipment, to the extent practicable.

          This bill would also require OPR, as part of its next review of 
          CEQA guidelines, to cooperate with CDF in recommending changes 
          to the CEQA guidelines regarding fire hazard impacts on lands 
          classified as SRA and very high fire hazard severity zones. 
          These recommendations shall be reviewed by the Secretary of the 
          Natural Resources Agency, and if certified, incorporated into 
          the CEQA guidelines.

          This bill would also require OPR to update its Fire Hazard 
          Planning document by January 1, 2014.

          Related Legislation: The provisions that require a city or 
          county to update its safety element to address fire risks are 
          very similar to SB 1207 (Kehoe) 2010 and SB 505 (Kehoe) 2009, 
          both of which were vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger citing cost 
          concerns. 

          Staff Comments: Regarding the provisions requiring a city or 
          county to update its safety element to incorporate fire risks 
          and to make certain findings before approving a tentative or 
          parcel map: These provisions impose an additional costs on local 
          governments and thereby create a mandate. However, because local 
          governments have existing authority to charge fees to support 
          their planning activities, this bill contains language declaring 
          that this mandate is not reimbursable.

          By requiring all safety elements to be updated, this bill 
          dramatically increases the amount of safety elements that must 
          be reviewed by the board over the course of the next five years. 
          Currently CDF reviews about 6-10 safety element updates a year. 
          This bill would increase the number of reviews to approximately 
          50 per year for the next five years as safety element updates 
          are phased in (assuming about 250 counties and cities will have 
          either SRA or very high fire severity zones in their 
          jurisdiction). CDF estimates that the board will need additional 
          staff  to complete this review at a cost between $100,000 and 
          $250,000 annually.









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          Regarding the provisions requiring OPR to work with CDF to 
          update its CEQA guidelines in respect to fire hazard impacts: 
          OPR estimates that the CEQA guideline update will cost OPR 
          approximately $100,000 and CDF estimates a minimum cost of 
          $185,000 for a total of $285,000.

          CDF's fiscal estimate for this bill also includes $1.4 million 
          to provide local agencies with assistance in updating their 
          safety elements. Staff notes that while the board is responsible 
          for reviewing the proposed updated safety elements, the bill 
          does not require CDF to provide assistance in preparing the 
          update. As this is not a required duty, staff believes this is 
          not a cost attributable to this bill.

          Regarding the provisions requiring OPR to update its Fire Hazard 
          Planning document: OPR estimates that it will cost approximately 
          $50,000 to update this document.

          Proposed Author Amendments: Delete the requirement for OPR to 
          update its Fire Hazard Planning document.