BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 745
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 745 (Levine)
As Amended May 20, 2014
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |75-0 |(January 21, |SENATE: |33-0 |(June 5, 2014) |
| | |2014) | | | |
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Original Committee Reference: L. GOV.
SUMMARY : Increases, from $10,000 to $25,000, the amount for
which open space districts may enter into contracts without a
formal bid process for supplies, materials, labor, or other
valuable consideration for any purpose.
The Senate amendments delete language that increased, from
$10,000 to $25,000, the amount for which the Marin County Open
Space District (MCOSD) may enter into contracts without a formal
bid process for supplies, materials, labor, or other valuable
consideration for any purpose, and instead allow this increased
threshold for all open space districts in California.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Allows the general manager of a park and/or open space
district, with the approval of the district's board, to bind
the district, in accordance with board policy, and without
advertising, for the payment for supplies, materials, labor,
or other valuable consideration for any purpose other than new
construction of a building, structure, or improvement in
amounts not exceeding $10,000, and for the payment for
supplies, materials, or labor for new construction of a
building, structure, or improvement in amounts not exceeding
$25,000.
2)Authorizes the general managers of the East Bay Regional Park
District, the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, and
the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space
District, with the approval of those districts' boards, to
bind those districts, in accordance with board policy, and
without advertising, for the payment for supplies, materials,
labor, or other valuable consideration for any purpose,
including the new construction of any building, structure, or
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improvement in amounts not exceeding $25,000.
3)Requires all expenditures authorized pursuant to 1) and 2)
above, to be reported to the respective board of directors at
its next regular meeting.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Authorized the general manager of the MCOSD, with the approval
of the MCOSD board, to bind the MCOSD, in accordance with
board policy, and without advertising, for the payment for
supplies, materials, labor, or other valuable consideration
for any purpose, including the new construction of any
building, structure, or improvement in amounts not exceeding
$25,000.
2)Required all expenditures authorized pursuant to 1) above, to
be reported to the MCOSD board of directors at its next
regular meeting.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS :
1)This bill increases the dollar amount for which open space
districts may contract, without a public bid, for supplies,
materials, labor, or other valuable consideration for any
purpose, be it for new construction or for
non-construction/maintenance work. This bill is sponsored by
the Marin County Board of Supervisors.
2)The MCOSD is the local government agency responsible for
preserving public open space in Marin County. Its mission is
to enhance the quality of life in Marin through the
acquisition, protection, and responsible stewardship of ridge
and bay lands and environmentally sensitive lands targeted for
preservation in the Marin Countywide Plan. MCOSD lands
represent examples of northern California environments
including oak-bay woodlands, savanna, grasslands and salt
marsh. These habitats are managed to protect and enhance
their natural, undeveloped character while accommodating
educational activities and trail-oriented uses such as hiking,
horseback riding and mountain bicycling. The five members of
the Marin County Board of Supervisors serve as the MCOSD Board
of Directors.
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According to the MCOSD Web site, "Since its inception in 1972,
the MCOSD has acquired and preserved nearly 16,000 acres of
marshland, forests, creeks, and rolling hills that define the
character and quality of life in Marin, promote health and
wellness, and protect important natural habitats and ecosystem
functions. These lands include over 200 miles of unpaved
roads and trails that consist of former logging and ranch
roads, fire roads that are shared use trails, narrow
recreation trails, and wildlife trails. Over time, many of
these trails have been improved and opened for use by hikers,
dog walkers, equestrians, bird watchers, mountain bikers, and
those who want to be immersed in nature in their recreation
pursuits.
"In addition to the recreation opportunities of the preserves,
the preserves provide critical benefits to the ecosystem
including carbon sequestration, the natural cleaning of our
water and air, and the protection of wildlife. The roads and
trails provide access for other agencies' community and
emergency services (e.g., Marin County Fire, Marin Municipal
Water District).
"The demand for recreational use of the roads and trails grows
every year, as do conflicts among user groups and impacts from
use to the natural environment. Trails not sanctioned by the
MCOSD have developed as a result of repetitive informal
cross-country use, and the unauthorized construction of trails
by private parties on the MCOSD lands. Roads and trails,
especially unplanned informal trails, can have a number of
undesirable effects on the natural environment. They can
contribute sediment to streams, fragment habitat, provide
opportunities for the influx or spread of invasive weeds, and
create visual scars through once lushly vegetated areas. The
MCOSD has struggled to keep up with the maintenance,
mitigation, enforcement, and improvement of the formal and
informal roads and trails system."
3)Park and/or open space districts generally must comply with
state law requiring them to publicly bid new construction and
maintenance work that will exceed specified costs. This is
consistent with state law for all local agencies, based on
policy that seeks to balance open and transparent use of
public funds with efficient and cost-effective government
operations. For park and/or open space districts, the
thresholds under which a district may contract without public
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bidding are $25,000 for new construction, and $10,000 for
non-construction work.
The Legislature has allowed exceptions to these thresholds for
three districts: the East Bay Regional Park District, the
Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, and the Sonoma
County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District. The
general managers for these entities may contract without
public bidding for supplies, material, labor and other items
for work that isn't new construction costing up to $25,000.
All such expenditures must be reported to the respective
boards at their next regular meeting. These exceptions are
rooted in a recognition that public bidding may not be
cost-effective in all cases, particularly when the costs of
time delays and resources expended on contract preparation and
bidding are disproportionate to a contract's scope and total
cost. This bill would extend this increased contracting
authority to all open space districts in California.
4)According to the Marin County Board of Supervisors, sponsor of
this bill, "The current $10,000 limit set forth in the
California Public Resources Code is over thirty years old and
does not reflect cost increases that have occurred since?
Enactment of this legislation would reduce the time required
for project implementation, and save the Open Space District
and the County of Marin thousands of dollars annually in the
cost of staff time related to the preparation and processing
of contracts for the Board of Directors consideration."
5)There is legislative precedent for this bill, including the
following prior bills:
AB 953 (Simitian), Chapter 23, Statutes of 2002, increased the
non-bid spending cap for non-construction items to $25,000 for
the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District and the Sonoma
County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District.
AB 584 (Aroner), Chapter 135, Statutes of 1999, raised the
non-bid spending cap for non-construction items to $25,000 for
the East Bay Regional Park District.
6)Support arguments: Supporters note that this bill will allow
open space districts to carry out their missions in a more
cost-effective and efficient manner.
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7)Opposition arguments: None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Angela Mapp / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958
FN: 0003538