BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 141
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: Gorell
VERSION: 8/12/13
Analysis by: Erin Riches FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: August 20, 2013 URGENCY: YES
SUBJECT:
Port Hueneme: infrastructure damage: urgency
DESCRIPTION:
This bill appropriates $2 million from the General Fund to the
City of Port Hueneme for emergency measures to prevent erosion
and flood damage to roads and properties along Hueneme Beach.
ANALYSIS:
The City of Port Hueneme (pronounced "Wy-nee'mee") is located in
Ventura County. The port, Port Hueneme, is the only deep-water
harbor between Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area and is
the US Port of Entry for the state's central coast region. The
US Navy and the Oxnard Harbor District share the port.
Construction of the port in 1939-40 significantly impeded the
down-coast movement of sand, causing erosion to down-coast
beaches including Hueneme Beach. The federal River and Harbor
Act of 1954 authorized the US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to
construct the Channel Islands Harbor with a sand trap. Since
then, the Corps has undertaken biennial dredging of
approximately one million cubic yards of material from the trap
and placed it along the down-coast shoreline to restore and
maintain it.
In the 2012 cycle, due to federal budget cuts, the Corps moved
only 400,000 cubic yards from the Channel Islands Harbor trap to
Hueneme Beach. According to the city, high winds and storms
following the Corps' December 2012-January 2013 deposit of sand
at Hueneme Beach resulted in the near total loss of all the
newly placed sand within the first few months of the year. In
addition, shoreline erosion reached Surfside Drive, a road
paralleling Hueneme Beach. The next scheduled Corps dredging
cycle is not until November 2014.
AB 141 (GORELL) Page 2
On April 24, 2013, the city declared a local state of emergency
and sought assistance at the local, state, and federal levels.
Representative Julia Brownley (D-Oak Park) is working with
multiple federal agencies, the White House, and Congress to
secure funds and authorization for an interim dredge cycle to
restore the sand deficit along Hueneme Beach. In addition,
Senator Jackson is working with the California Parks and
Recreation Department's Division of Boating and Waterways
seeking a temporary loan until federal funding comes through.
In the meantime, the city obtained emergency permits from the
California Coastal Commission and the Corps to place rock below
the eroded section of Surfside Drive as a temporary stopgap.
The city placed the first section of boulders in July and plans
to extend it further down the beach as funds become available,
unless the Corps receives authorization and funding to perform
an interim dredge cycle.
This bill appropriates $2 million from the General Fund to the
City of Port Hueneme to implement emergency measures to prevent
damage to streets and property along Hueneme Beach from beach
erosion and flooding.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The author states that the rapidly eroding beach in
Port Hueneme is threatening public roads, homes, and the
port's commercial infrastructure. The city had to remove an
outdoor shower after several feet of sand eroded beneath its
foundation and was forced to close the Port Hueneme Pier after
a piling broke and compromised the integrity of its
foundation. The city estimates that absent further action,
the ocean will breach the sea wall protecting the road and
overflow into residential areas by the end of summer. The
city has spent $1.3 million to build a temporary 500-foot-long
blockade on the most threatened part of the beach; city
officials estimate they will need to build an additional 900
feet to hold back the ocean until the next Corps dredging.
The city needs $2 million to erect the remaining blockade.
The author states that it is in the best interest of the state
to protect its coastline infrastructure by providing critical
assistance to the City of Port Hueneme.
2.A worthy cause, but one of many . While this project may have
merit, the committee may wish to consider the fairness of
funding one local project at the expense of hundreds of other
worthy candidates.
AB 141 (GORELL) Page 3
3.Gut and amend . This bill originally pertained to general
election ballots, but was amended on August 12, 2013, to
relate to the City of Port Hueneme.
Assembly Votes: Not relevant
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday, August
14, 2013.)
SUPPORT: None received.
OPPOSED: None received.