BILL NUMBER: AB 737 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 3, 2013
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 19, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Fox
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Bonilla, Brown, Daly, Garcia, Harkey,
Roger Hernández, Muratsuchi, Perea, Torres, Wagner, Wieckowski, and
Williams)
(Coauthor: Senator Berryhill)
FEBRUARY 21, 2013
An act to add Article 7 (commencing with Section 12100.1) to
Chapter 1.6 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code, relating to unmanned aircraft systems, making an
appropriation therefor, and declaring the urgency thereof,
to take effect immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 737, as amended, Fox. Governor's Office of Business and
Economic Development: unmanned aircraft systems: test sites.
Existing federal law, the Federal Aviation Administration
Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, provides for the integration of
civil unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace system by
September 30, 2015. Existing federal law requires the Administrator
of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to develop and implement
operational and certification requirements for the operation of
public unmanned aircraft systems in the national airspace system by
December 31, 2015. Existing federal law requires the administrator to
establish a program, as prescribed, to integrate unmanned aircraft
systems into the national airspace system at 6 test sites. Pursuant
to this requirement, the administrator announced a request for
proposals from state and local governments to establish these test
sites.
Existing law establishes the Governor's Office of Business and
Economic Development, under the control of a director who is
responsible to the Governor, to serve as the Governor's lead entity
for economic strategy and the marketing of California on issues
relating to business development, private sector investment, and
economic growth. The office, among others, makes recommendations to
the Governor and the Legislature regarding policies, programs, and
actions to advance statewide economic goals.
This bill would require the director to prepare a proposal to
establish a test site in California and would authorize the director
to consult with the Governor's Military Council and other
specified state departments and private entities
in developing the proposal. This bill would require a local
government that submits a proposal to the FAA to also send a copy of
the proposal to specified state entities, thereby imposing a
state-mandated local program. This bill would require the director to
submit the proposal to the FAA if a local government does not submit
a proposal to the FAA by a specified date. The bill would create the
Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site Account in the State Treasury to
accept public and private contributions to the Governor's Office of
Business and Economic Development for the purposes of the bill, and
would continuously appropriate the moneys in the account to the
office to fund the development and completion of the application and
designation process for a test site in California, with any moneys
remaining in the account after test sites are designated to be
allocated by the office to the infrastructure and development of the
test site in the event a test site is designated in California. The
bill would provide that no moneys may be allocated after 2 years from
the enactment of the bill. This bill would require
the director to coordinate with any local government that submits a
proposal.
By requiring a local government to perform additional duties, this
bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: yes no .
Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes
no .
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) California has experienced deeper and more sustained job
losses in the aerospace manufacturing industry than has the rest of
the country over the last two decades. From 1990 through 2012,
payrolls in California's aerospace manufacturing industry fell by
65.9 percent compared to a 34.6-percent decrease in the rest of the
country and a 43.7-percent decrease in the country as a whole.
(b) In 2010, employment in California's aerospace manufacturing
industries totaled 109,700 jobs. Over three-fifths of these jobs were
in the aerospace products and parts manufacturing sector, and the
remainder were in the search, detection, guidance, aeronautical, and
nautical systems and instruments manufacturing sector. The aerospace
manufacturing industry paid wages totaling $10.7 billion in 2010.
Nearly 3 out of every 10 jobs in the American guided missiles and
space vehicles manufacturing industry were located in California in
2010.
(c) On February 14, 2012, President Obama signed into law the
Federal Aviation Modernization and Reform Act of 2012. The act
requires the Federal Aviation Administration to designate six sites
throughout the United States as unmanned aircraft systems test sites
in order to safely integrate unmanned aircraft systems into the
national airspace system.
(d) Unmanned aircraft systems represent one of the fastest growing
segments of the aerospace industry. Given the potential for
defense-related cutbacks currently under discussion at the national
level, it is in California's interest to pursue the location of an
unmanned aircraft systems test site in California.
(e) The expanded use of unmanned aircraft systems represents a
major step in aviation innovation and will present economic
opportunities for the communities that are selected for these test
sites and for the aerospace industry.
(f) A study conducted by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle
Systems International indicates that the industry has the potential
to create 100,000 jobs in the provision of unmanned aircraft in the
two largest markets for unmanned aircraft, namely agriculture and
public safety.
(g) California has a well-established and highly developed
aerospace industry that has a skilled and experienced workforce and a
tradition of entrepreneurship and innovation.
(h) California has a network of educational and research
institutions that has helped foster innovation in the aerospace
industry and develop a high technology sector.
(i) Aerospace manufacturing jobs are high-paying jobs providing
liveable wages that spur economic growth.
(j) The development of a coordinated proposal for California to
establish an unmanned aircraft systems test site can be accomplished
only by bringing together advocates, policymakers, industry, local
governments, and the public to address concerns, obtain information,
research issues, and evaluate alternative proposals.
SEC. 2. Article 7 (commencing with Section 12100.1) is added to
Chapter 1.6 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code, to read:
Article 7. Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Sites
12100.1. (a) The director shall prepare a proposal to establish
an unmanned aircraft systems test site in California according to the
directions contained in the Federal Aviation Administration's
Screening Information Request DTFACT-13-R-00002. The director shall
complete the preparation of this proposal and submit this
proposal no later than April 26, May 6,
2013.
(b) In preparing a and developing the
proposal, the director may consult with the following
departments and private entities Governor's Military
Council and other relevant entities, including, but not limited to
:
(1) The Office of Planning and Research.
(2) The Military Department.
(3) The Department of Veterans Affairs.
(4) The Employment Development Department.
(5) The Department of Transportation.
(6) Representatives of the aerospace industry.
(7) The California Unmanned Aircraft Systems Portal Consortium.
(8) The Southern California Unmanned Systems Alliance.
(9) Any other California applicant.
(10) Representatives of local government.
(11) Education and training entities.
12100.3. A The director shall coordinate
with any local government that submits a proposal to establish
a test site to the Federal Aviation Administration shall
also send a copy of the proposal to the director, the Governor, the
Assembly Select Committee on Aerospace, and the Senate Committee on
Energy, Utilities and Communications .
12100.4. If a local government does not submit a proposal to the
Federal Aviation Administration by April 26, 2013, the director shall
submit the proposal developed pursuant to Section 12100.1 to the
Federal Aviation Administration on or before May 6, 2013.
12100.5. The Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site Account is
hereby created in the State Treasury. The purpose of the account is
to accept public and private contributions to the Governor's Office
of Business and Economic Development for the purposes of this
article. The moneys in the account are continuously appropriated to
the office to fund the development and completion of the application
and designation process for a test site in California. Any moneys
remaining in the account after test sites are designated may be
allocated by the office to the infrastructure and development of the
test site in the event a test site is designated in California.
However, no moneys may be allocated from the account for any purpose
after a period of two years from the date that the bill enacting this
section in the 2013-14 Regular Session of the Legislature was
enacted.
SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates
determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs
shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of
Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
SEC. 4. SEC. 3. This act is an
urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the
public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of
the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts
constituting the necessity are:
In order to develop a coordinated proposal to establish an
unmanned aircraft systems test site in California before the deadline
set by the Federal Aviation Administration, it is necessary that
this act take effect immediately.