BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 727
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 727 (Stone)
As Amended April 30, 2013
Majority vote
NATURAL RESOURCES 6-1 APPROPRIATIONS 17-0
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|Ayes:|Chesbro, Garcia, |Ayes:|Gatto, Harkey, Bigelow, |
| |Muratsuchi, Skinner, | |Bocanegra, Bradford, Ian |
| |Stone, Williams | |Calderon, Campos, |
| | | |Donnelly, Eggman, Gomez, |
| | | |Hall, Ammiano, Linder, |
| | | |Pan, Quirk, Wagner, Weber |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Grove | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires, for maintenance dredging on granted public
trust lands, a local trustee of public trust lands (local
trustee) to notify the State Lands Commission (Commission) in
writing of the dredging project rather than submit a lease
application and processing fee. Specifically, this bill :
1)Declares that it is the intent of the Legislature to
streamline the process of dredging on granted tide and
submerged lands wherein mineral deposits are reserved to the
state when consistent with the preservation and promotion of
tideland trust activities, and to preserve tideland trust
revenue within the corpus of the trust.
2)Requires a local trustee or an applicant for dredging on
granted tide and submerged lands that intends to commence
dredging on granted public trust lands, upon which any right
to minerals on those lands is reserved by the state, to notify
the Commission, in writing, no later than 120 days prior to
the time dredging is commenced.
3)Requires the dredging notice to contain all of the following
information:
a) A description of the dredging to be conducted on those
lands, including a map and land description showing the
area and project site;
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b) A description of the amount of material to be dredged,
disposal amount, location, and means of disposal, if
available;
c) The time and manner in which dredging is to occur;
d) The relevant permits, authorizations, and approvals that
exist or must be obtained to complete dredging, or, if
applicable, demonstration of compliance with a dredged
materials management office plan that is administered by
the United States Army Corps of Engineers;
e) A declaration that the dredging is necessary for the
proper management of the grant consistent with the public
trust for commerce, navigation, and fisheries, or a
statement of why the dredging is necessary to be undertaken
for other purposes and a declaration that the dredging is
consistent with the statutory grant; and,
f) A statement with supporting documents that explains
whether the trustee anticipates receipt of any revenues
from the materials to be dredged, and, if so, in what
amounts.
4)Does not require, after submission of the written dredging
notice, a local trustee or applicant for dredging to enter
into a lease for the dredging if all of the following
conditions are met:
a) The dredging is maintenance dredging consistent with the
proper management of the granted lands;
b) The dredged material is not sold or used for a private
benefit; and,
c) The dredged material is disposed of at an approved
onshore or offshore disposal site.
5)Authorizes the Commission to require a lease for any dredging
on granted tide and submerged lands wherein the right to
minerals is reserved to the state if the proposed dredging
does not meet the conditions described in 3) above. The
Commission may delegate the authority to determine whether a
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lease is necessary to its executive officer. If the
Commission determines that a lease is required, the Commission
shall provide the grantee or applicant for dredging with
written notification of that determination within 30 days
after the Commission receives notification of the proposed
dredging. All applicable reimbursement costs shall be
submitted with the application for a lease, if a lease is
necessary.
6)Does not exempt a local trustee of tide and submerged lands or
other person or entity dredging on those lands from any permit
or other approval necessary to carry out dredging operations
that may be required by another local, state, or federal law.
7)Requires any revenue that is earned by a local trustee from
the dredging of granted lands to be held or spent in a manner
consistent with the trustee's existing obligations under the
Public Trust Doctrine and the specific terms of its grant of
lands.
8)Requires, if a local trustee receives any revenue from the
dredged materials not otherwise disclosed in the dredging
notice, the local trustee to immediately notify the Commission
in writing. The Commission may require the grantee to pay a
reasonable royalty and enter into a lease for the dredging.
If a grantee fails to notify the Commission, the Commission
may require the local trustee to remit all revenues to the
state.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Protects, pursuant to the common law doctrine of the Public
Trust (Public Trust Doctrine), the public's right to use
California's waterways for commerce, navigation, fishing,
boating, natural habitat protection, and other water oriented
activities. The Public Trust Doctrine provides that filled
and unfilled tide and submerged lands and the beds of lakes,
streams, and other navigable waterways (i.e., public trust
lands) are to be held in trust by the state for the benefit of
the people of California.
2)Establishes that the Commission is the steward and manager of
the state's public trust lands. The Commission has direct
administrative control over the state's public trust lands and
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oversight authority over public trust lands granted by the
Legislature to local governments.
3)Grants, in trust, state public trust lands to over 80 local
public agencies (i.e., local trustees) to be managed for the
benefit of all the people of the state and pursuant to the
Public Trust Doctrine and terms of the applicable granting
statutes.
4)Requires, generally, through individual granting statutes that
the mineral rights of the granted public trust lands are
reserved by the state.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, this bill has minor fiscal impact. Local grantees or
dredging applicants pay approximately $1,500 per dredging lease,
and there are approximately 7 to 10 leases per year.
COMMENTS : Since 1851, public trust lands have been
legislatively granted to local government entities to manage in
trust on behalf of the people of California. While these
entities manage these lands, most statutory grants reserve the
mineral rights to the state. These mineral reservations
stipulate that any dredging activities on these lands require a
dredging lease from the Commission.
When a local grantee of public trust lands applies for a
dredging lease with the Commission, it is responsible for the
Commission's staffing costs for processing the application.
These costs are approximately $1,500 and the processing can take
several months depending on the completeness of the application,
the Commission's meeting schedule, and staff resources.
According to Commission staff, if dredging will result in a
public good, the Commission does not charge an annual rent for
the lease.
In an effort to streamline the dredging lease process and to
more efficiently allocate Commission staff resources, this bill
will eliminate the requirement that dredging on granted public
trust lands requires a lease if: 1) the dredging is maintenance
dredging consistent with the proper management of the granted
lands, 2) the dredged material is not sold or used for a private
benefit, and 3) the dredged material is disposed of at an
approved onshore or offshore disposal site. The person or
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entity wishing to conduct the dredging will, however, be
required to notify the Commission of their intent to dredge and
include specific information about the project. No lease
application or fee will be required with this notice.
This bill does not affect other local, state, and federal
requirements associated with a dredging project, such as those
imposed by the Coastal Commission, the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, and Regional Water Quality Control Boards.
Analysis Prepared by : Mario DeBernardo / NAT. RES. / (916)
319-2092
FN: 0000472