BILL NUMBER: AB 1301	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 21, 2013

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Bloom

                        FEBRUARY 22, 2013

   An act to  amend Section 75002 of   add
Sections 3017 and 3203.5 to  the Public Resources Code, relating
to  water resources   oil and gas  .



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1301, as amended, Bloom.  The Safe Drinking Water,
Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection
Bond Act of 2006.   Oil and gas: hydraulic fracturing.
 
   Under existing law, the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal
Resources in the Department of Conservation regulates the drilling,
operation, maintenance, and abandonment of oil and gas wells in the
state. The State Oil and Gas Supervisor supervises the drilling,
operation, maintenance, and abandonment of wells and the operation,
maintenance, and removal or abandonment of tanks and facilities
related to oil and gas production within an oil and gas field
regarding safety and environmental damage. Existing law requires an
operator of a well, before commencing the work of drilling the well,
to obtain approval from the supervisor or a district deputy. Under
existing law, a person who violates any provision specific to the
regulation of oil or gas operations is guilty of a misdemeanor. 

   This bill would define "hydraulic fracturing" and would prohibit
hydraulic fracturing in oil and gas operations until the Legislature
enacts subsequent legislation that determines whether and under what
conditions hydraulic fracturing may be conducted while protecting the
public health and safety and the natural resources of the state.
 
   Because this bill would create a new crime, 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 no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.  
   The Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control,
River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006, approved by the voters
as Proposition 84 at the November 7, 2006, statewide general
election, finds and declares that protecting the state's drinking
water and water resources is vital to the public health, the state's
economy, and the environment.  
   This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to that
provision. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . State-mandated local program:  no
  yes  .


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

   SECTION 1.    Section 3017 is added to the  
Public Resources Code   , to read:  
   3017.  "Hydraulic fracturing" means a technique used in preparing
a well that typically involves the pressurized injection of water and
chemicals, compounds, and materials into an underground geologic
formation in order to expand existing fractures or create new
fractures in that formation, thereby causing or enhancing the
production of oil or gas from a well. Hydraulic fracturing shall
include the terms "fracking," "hydrofracking," "hydrofracturing,"
"unconventional shale drilling," and other colloquial terms
referencing this drilling technique. 
   SEC. 2.    Section 3203.5 is added to the  
Public Resources Code   , to read:  
   3203.5.  (a) Notwithstanding any other law, hydraulic fracturing
operations are prohibited.
   (b) This section shall remain in effect until the Legislature
enacts subsequent legislation that determines whether and under what
conditions hydraulic fracturing may be conducted while protecting the
public health and safety and the natural resources of the state.

   SEC. 3.    No reimbursement is required by this act
pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local
agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a
new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or
changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of
Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a
crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the
California Constitution.  
  SECTION 1.    Section 75002 of the Public
Resources Code is amended to read:
   75002.  The people of California find and declare that protecting
the drinking water and water resources of the state are vital to the
public health, the economy of the state, and the environment.