BILL NUMBER: AB 2395 ENROLLED
BILL TEXT
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 7, 2014
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 11, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 2, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 8, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 10, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 28, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Lowenthal
(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Gorell)
(Principal coauthor: Senator Jackson)
FEBRUARY 21, 2014
An act to add Section 6087 to the Harbors and Navigation Code,
relating to harbor districts.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2395, Lowenthal. Oxnard Harbor District: infrastructure
projects: funding.
(1) Existing law prescribes procedures for the formation of harbor
districts, and sets forth the powers of a district with regard to
the operation, management, and development of harbor facilities in a
district. Existing law authorizes the board of a harbor district,
among other things, to borrow up to $1,000,000 for the purposes of
acquiring land for constructing or operating any work, project, or
certain authorized facilities or for the making of improvements or
the purchase of equipment for the maintenance of those facilities, as
prescribed.
This bill would, notwithstanding that borrowing limit, authorize
the Oxnard Harbor District to borrow money by issuance of promissory
notes, or execute conditional sales contracts to purchase personal
property, in an amount or of a value not exceeding in the aggregate
at any one time the sum of $10,000,000, for the purposes of acquiring
land or constructing or operating any authorized work, project, or
facility, or for the making of any improvement, or the purchase of
equipment or for the maintenance of that equipment, in accordance
with prescribed procedures.
(2) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as
to the necessity of a special statute for the Oxnard Harbor District.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) The Oxnard Harbor District owns and operates the Port of
Hueneme. Although the Port of Hueneme is the only deep-water port
between the major Pacific Ocean ports of northern and southern
California, its depth at present is only 35 feet at mean lower low
water (MLLW). A depth of at least 40 feet at MLLW is necessary to
provide the port with the capacity to accommodate a wider variety of
vessels to meet anticipated demands. As a result, the Oxnard Harbor
District needs to finance several significant infrastructure projects
over the next several decades to expand the limited capacity of the
port.
(b) The existing one-million-dollar ($1,000,000) limit on the
borrowing of money set forth in Section 6084 of the Harbors and
Navigation Code impedes the Oxnard Harbor District's ability to
develop the infrastructure and systems necessary to continue the
development of the Port of Hueneme to expand the port's capacity and
meet anticipated demands.
(c) In December 2013, the Oxnard Harbor District successfully
implemented the Shoreside Power Project, which will dramatically cut
pollutants from vessel emissions particle matter (PM) by 92 percent,
nitrous oxide emissions by 98 percent, and greenhouse gas emissions
(carbon dioxide) by 55 percent, over the life of the project.
Further, the project will benefit shippers, truckers, terminal
operators, dock workers, and regional and national transportation
systems by extending the useful life of existing wharfs for up to 30
years.
(d) In Spring, 2012, the Oxnard Harbor District commissioned a
series of white papers as part of its commitment to providing the
maximum possible economic and social benefits to the people and
communities served by the Port of Hueneme. This commitment includes a
responsibility to address the environmental impacts of port
operations. The white papers are meant to help the port build an
environmental management program, and address all of the following
focus areas:
(1) Community engagement.
(2) Water quality.
(3) Marine resources.
(4) Air quality.
(5) Soil and sediment.
(6) Sustainability.
(e) The white papers that are described in subdivision (d)
document important accomplishments already achieved by the Oxnard
Harbor District, including all of the following:
(1) Active participation in community events and activities.
(2) Receipt of a $4.5 million shoreside power grant for air
quality improvements.
(3) Implementation of phase 1 of a stormwater improvement plan.
(4) Partnering with the United States Navy and the United States
Corps of Engineers (USACE) to construct the Confined Aquatic Disposal
Cell.
(5) Active monitoring of water quality to mitigate impacts to
marine life.
(6) Replacement of conventional diesel-fueled maintenance vehicles
with low-emission propane-fueled trucks.
(f) Operations and activities at the Port of Hueneme contribute
meaningfully, qualitatively, and quantitatively to the economic
health and vitality of southern California and the rest of the state.
It has been estimated that approximately 10,226 jobs statewide are
either directly or indirectly related to activities at the Port of
Hueneme, and the regional agricultural, automobile, and oil and gas
industries in this state rely on the workers employed in these jobs
and the port's daily operations.
(g) The Oxnard Harbor District does not levy, or expend any funds
generated by, local taxes, as most of its operations are funded
directly through fees and other revenue the port generates from its
users or tenants, and from occasional state and federal grants.
SEC. 2. Section 6087 is added to the Harbors and Navigation Code,
to read:
6087. (a) (1) Notwithstanding the borrowing limit set forth in
Section 6084, the Oxnard Harbor District may borrow money by issuance
of promissory notes, or execute conditional sales contracts to
purchase personal property, in an amount or of a value not exceeding
in the aggregate at any one time the sum of ten million dollars
($10,000,000), for the purposes of acquiring land for and
constructing or operating any work, project, or facility authorized
by subdivision (d) of Section 6012 or Section 6075 or for the making
of improvements or the purchase of equipment or for the maintenance
thereof.
(2) All moneys borrowed pursuant to this section shall not be
borrowed for a term exceeding five years, and the indebtednesses
shall not incur a rate of interest in excess of 12 percent per annum.
The indebtedness shall be authorized by a resolution of the board of
commissioners adopted by a two-thirds vote of the members of the
board.
(3) As a condition precedent to the borrowing of any money or the
execution of any conditional sales contract, as provided in this
section, in excess of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), the
board shall first by a two-thirds vote approve by resolution and have
on file a report on the engineering and economic feasibility
relating to the project contemplated for the expenditure of the
borrowed money or conditional sales contract. The feasibility report
shall be prepared and signed by an engineer or engineers licensed and
registered under the laws of the State of California.
(4) The district shall budget, levy, and collect taxes and pay for
all indebtedness without limitation by any other provision of this
part.
(b) Subdivision (a) does not apply to any money borrowed from any
agency or department of the United States government or of the State
of California.
SEC. 3. The Legislature finds and declares that a special law is
necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable within the
meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution
because of the unique circumstances applicable only to the Oxnard
Harbor District.