BILL NUMBER: AB 875	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Chesbro

                        FEBRUARY 22, 2013

   An act to amend Section 4629.6 of, and to add Article 5.5
(commencing with Section 4564) to Chapter 8 of Part 2 of Division 4
of, the Public Resources Code, relating to resource protection and
management.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 875, as introduced, Chesbro. Forest management.
   The Z'Berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973 prohibits a person
from conducting timber operations, as defined, unless a timber
harvesting plan prepared by a registered professional forester has
been submitted to, and is approved by, the Department of Forestry and
Fire Protection. Existing law establishes the Timber Regulation and
Forest Restoration Fund in the State Treasury, and requires that all
revenues received from a specified assessment imposed on the retail
sale of lumber products, as defined, and engineered wood products, as
defined, less amounts deducted for refunds and reimbursements, be
deposited into the fund. Existing law requires that moneys deposited
into the fund be expended, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for
specified purposes, including to fund existing restoration grant
programs.
   This bill would include the funding of projects relating to salmon
and anadromous trout species to this list of purposes.
   This bill would require the State Board of Forestry and Fire
Protection and the department, with the guidance of other entities,
including harvest plan review agencies, to conduct pilot projects, to
be completed by January 1, 2017, to determine and implement
processes that would result in long-term efficiencies and cost
savings while ensuring environmental performance that would protect
and restore vital soil, water, wildlife, timber, and forest values
and resources. The bill would require these pilot projects to focus
on certain things, including reforming and standardizing requirements
for vital information on a CalWater planning watershed basis. The
bill would require funding and personnel for the development and
implementation of the pilot projects to be from existing department
and responsible agencies' budgets and personnel. The bill would
require all documents that form the basis for the pilot projects to
be posted on the department's Internet Web site and the findings and
recommendations of the pilot projects to be presented at one or more
public meetings.
   The bill would require the board to develop recommendations and
pass regulations for providing electronic public access to all
relevant documents that assist the department in administering timber
harvest regulations, in ensuring the protection and recovery of
forest and watershed health and productivity, and in monitoring.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  This act shall be known and may be cited as the AB 1492
Implementation Act for Forest Restoration, Ecological Performance,
and Program Efficiencies.
  SEC. 2.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
   (a) There are numerous water bodies in California that have been
declared by the State Water Resources Control Board to be impaired
due to excessive sedimentation, high water temperatures, and
pollutants.
   (b) Sequestration of carbon in forest lands is a vital component
of California's climate change strategy as articulated by the Climate
Action Team and the State Air Resources Board.
   (c) The regions of California that have state or federally listed
anadromous salmonid species are often predominately forest lands that
are subject to the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973,
pursuant to Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 4511) of Part 2 of
Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, for purposes of review and
approval of timber harvest plans. These plans include, but are not
limited to, timber harvest plans (THPs), nonindustrial timber
management plans (NTMPs), sustained yield plans (SYPs), and program
timberland environmental impact reports (PTEIRs).
   (d) Important gains have been made in forest land resource
protection and conservation since the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest Practice
Act of 1973, including the application of the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and various state and federal water
quality and fish and game statutes and regulations.
   (e) There are still opportunities for improvement by the
development of a comprehensive cumulative effects review process that
is conducted in cooperation with landowners and other stakeholders.
An effective cumulative effects review process can provide the
information necessary to restore and recover fish and wildlife
populations, to improve the quality and quantity of timber, to take
actions to reduce fire hazards, to sequester carbon, to produce
energy, and to create jobs.
   (f) In 2012 the Legislature passed, and the Governor signed,
Assembly Bill 1492 (Chapter 289 of the Statutes of 2012). This law,
among other things, provided for the financing of the review and
approval process for the plans described in subdivision (c). Key
intent language in that law called for reform of that process to
ensure that efficiencies for that process were determined and
implemented, and that environmental performance was ensured.
   (g) In addition and related to the key role of an improved
cumulative effects evaluation and response, cited above, there is a
need to determine effective and useful information organization and
accessibility, to enable recovery of the referenced forest and
watershed resources and to provide sets of adequate monitoring
protocols that meet the dual need for efficiencies and environmental
performance.
   (h) Given the complexities, the involvement of multiple
stakeholders, and the need to make positive progress in the needed
reforms, it is necessary to undertake pilot projects that will enable
formalization of measures that will accomplish the efficiencies
referred to in subdivisions (f) and (g) and ensure environmental
performance consistent with the responsibilities and needs of each of
the stakeholders. The pilot projects conducted for purposes of this
act will have the following attributes:
   (1) A multidisciplinary approach.
   (2) Qualified representatives of the range of stakeholders.
   (3) Rigorous procedures.
   (4) Transparency.
   (5) Appropriate and varied locales.
   (6) Well-documented and thought-out goals, processes, and
findings.
  SEC. 3.  Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 4564) is added to
Chapter 8 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, to
read:

      Article 5.5.  Watershed Pilot Projects


   4564.  (a) The board and the department, guided by the Natural
Resources Agency and the California Environmental Protection Agency,
in partnership with harvest plan review agencies, the range of public
stakeholders, and the scientific community, shall conduct pilot
projects to determine and implement processes that result in
long-term efficiencies and cost savings while ensuring environmental
performance that will protect and restore vital soil, water,
wildlife, timber, and forest values and resources.
   (b) The pilot projects shall initially focus on:
   (1) Reforming and standardizing requirements for vital information
on a CalWater planning watershed basis by establishing basic
templates for mapping and other information. The templates shall
provide basic and electronically accessible information deemed
necessary by the agencies, plan submitters, and the public to
understand and fulfill their legal responsibilities.
   (2) Making the evaluation of and response to cumulative impacts
credible and effective.
   (3) Enabling restoration measures to be identified for listed
anadromous salmonids and other wildlife, watersheds, and the forest
itself.
   (4) Determining appropriate and effective monitoring procedures
and standards.
   (c) The industry, agencies, and the public shall have the
opportunity to participate in the development and implementation of
the pilot projects in a transparent process.
   (d) Initial pilot project results shall include the development of
guidelines for conducting a cumulative effects evaluation on a
planning watershed scale, and shall address the potential
project-specific planning watershed cumulative effects of timber
harvesting activities.
   (e) All pilot projects shall:
   (1) Take place at the appropriate spatial scale.
   (2) Use reproducible, preferably quantitative, methods of
evaluation as the primary means of determining baseline, or existing
physical, chemical, or biological parameters, or both.
   (3) Document the findings, conclusions, and recommendations.
   (4) Be conducted by persons and entities with relevant training
and experience.
   (5) Have consultation with, and seek comment from, appropriate
scientific experts and the public, including, but not limited to,
qualified fisheries and wildlife biologists, in order to develop
evaluation and implementation guidelines that are feasible,
enforceable, and protective of the public trust.
   (6) Use information from the State of Washington's Watershed
Analysis Manual, the Methods Manual developed by the State of
California's North Coast Watershed Assessment Program, the Recovery
Strategy for California Coho Salmon, the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration fisheries' recovery plans for California
evolutionarily significant units, the State Wildlife Action Plan, and
from other pertinent reports, programs, and guidance documents.
   (7) Include significant primary goals such as to effectively
protect, maintain, and contribute to the restoration of properly
functioning habitats for recovery of listed species, restoration of
quality timberlands, or other goals deemed appropriate under Section
4564. Some of these goals may include reducing the risk of wildfire
with special consideration for human communities, reducing
sedimentation and soil loss, achieving long-term carbon sequestration
in on-site tree growth and other on-site forest carbon pools, and
protecting and restoring unique attributes of a given planning
watershed.
   (f) Pilot projects shall be consistent with state and federal
mandates governing coho salmon recovery and restoration of impaired
water bodies. Pilot projects shall also reflect the established joint
policies between the board, the department, the Department of Fish
and Wildlife, and the Fish and Game Commission.
   (g) Funding and personnel for the development and implementation
of pilot projects shall be provided from the department's existing
budget and personnel. Harvest plan review agencies participating in
the pilot project shall first utilize funds from any appropriation
made pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 4629.6. Additional
funding shall be sought from private and public sources, statewide
and nationally, with an emphasis on receiving support from
educational institutions.
   (h) All documents that form the basis for the pilot projects that
are developed pursuant to this section shall be posted on the
department's Internet Web site.
   (i) Notwithstanding subdivision (h), findings, recommendations,
and actions resulting from pilot projects shall be publicly
accessible on the board's Internet Web site, along with copies or
links to public documents that provide additional relevant
information, including the scientific basis for analytical tools,
supporting science, and data that is relied upon in the guidelines.
   4565.  The board, with the assistance of a multidisciplinary
technical advisory committee, and in consultation with the Natural
Resources Agency, the California Environmental Protection Agency, and
other entities, as determined by the board, shall develop
recommendations and adopt regulations, if necessary, for providing
electronic public access to all relevant documents that assist the
department in administering timber harvest regulations, in ensuring
the protection and recovery of forest and watershed health and
productivity, and in monitoring. Watershed-specific information shall
be organized by the CalWater planning watersheds, which may then be
conglomerated into larger aggregations, as appropriate.
   4566.  (a) The pilot projects required by this article shall be
completed by January 1, 2017.
   (b) The findings and recommendations of pilot projects shall focus
on the collection, organization, distribution, and use of
information that will more efficiently and effectively assist
cumulative effect analyses, post harvest monitoring, and forest
restoration activities. The goal of these recommendations shall be to
meet (1) the needs of each of the agencies and the public and
private stakeholders and (2) the criteria of creating efficiencies
and ensuring environmental performance.
   (c) The findings and recommendations shall be presented at one or
more public hearings, depending on the scope and spacial extent of
those findings and recommendations. The initial hearing shall be
before the board, with all pilot project-involved agencies required
to be present.
   (d) Upon making a finding that the recommendations satisfy the
goals specified in subdivision (b), the board shall implement the
recommendations. If the board determines that regulations are
necessary to implement those recommendations, the board, in
consultation with the department, the Department of Fish and
Wildlife, the State Water Resources Control Board, and the Department
of Conservation, shall adopt the regulations by January 1, 2018.
  SEC. 4.  Section 4629.6 of the Public Resources Code is amended to
read:
   4629.6.  Moneys deposited in the fund shall, upon appropriation by
the Legislature, only be expended for the following purposes:
   (a) To reimburse the State Board of Equalization for its
administrative costs associated with the administration, collection,
audit, and issuance of refunds related to the lumber products and
engineered wood assessment established pursuant to Section 4629.5.
   (b) To pay refunds issued pursuant to Part 30 (commencing with
Section 55001) of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.
   (c) To support the activities and costs of the department, the
Department of Conservation, the Department of Fish and  Game
  Wildlife  , the State Water Resources Control
Board, and regional water quality control boards associated with the
review of projects or permits necessary to conduct timber operations.
On or after July 1, 2013, except for fees applicable for fire
prevention or protection within state responsibility area classified
lands or timber yield assessments, no currently authorized or
required fees shall be charged by the agencies listed in this
subdivision for activities or costs associated with the review of a
project, inspection and oversight of projects, and permits necessary
to conduct timber operations of those departments and boards.
   (d) For transfer to the department's Forest Improvement Program,
upon appropriation by the Legislature, for forest resources
improvement grants and projects administered by the department
pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 4790) and Chapter 2
(commencing with Section 4799.06) of Part 2 of Division 4.
   (e) To fund existing restoration grant programs  , including
programs described in subdivision (b) of Section 6217.1 relating to
salmon and anadromous trout species  .
   (f) To the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for
fuel treatment grants and projects pursuant to authorities under the
Wildland Fire Protection and Resources Management Act of 1978
(Article 1 (commencing with Section 4461) of Chapter 7 of Part 2 of
Division 4).
   (g) To the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to
provide grants to local agencies responsible for fire protection,
qualified nonprofits, recognized tribes, local and state governments,
and resources conservation districts, undertaken on a state
responsibility area (SRA) or on wildlands not in an SRA that pose a
threat to the SRA, to reduce the costs of wildland fire suppression,
reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote adaptation of forested
landscapes to changing climate, improve forest health, and protect
homes and communities.