BILL NUMBER: AB 2465	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 28, 2014

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Chesbro

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2014

   An act  relating  to  taxation 
 add Section 4495 to the Public Resources Code, relating to
forestry  .



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2465, as amended, Chesbro.  Tax benefits. 
 Burning of lands: private burns   .  
   Existing law authorizes any person, firm, or corporation, or any
combination thereof, that owns or controls brush-covered land within
a state responsibility area to apply to the Department of Forestry
and Fire Protection for permission to burn the brush from the land.
Existing law requires the department to provide advisory service to
applicants for burn permits as to the precautions to be taken by the
applicant to prevent damage to the property of others by reason of
the prescribed burning, and to provide standby fire protection, as
available.  
   This bill would require the department, by July 1, 2015, in
consultation with the State Air Resources Board and local air
districts, to, among other things, develop a page on the department's
Internet Web site that provides certain information relating to
prescribed burns, including information on the regulations that
govern prescribed burns for forest fuel treatment.  
   Existing law imposes various taxes and allows specified credits,
deductions, exclusions, and exemptions in computing those taxes.
 
   This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation that would provide tax benefits to taxpayers for the
construction or installation of offsite water storage facilities, in
watersheds with salmon or anadromous trout species that are listed
under the state or federal endangered species acts, that eliminate or
significantly reduce the need for summer water diversion from a
stream. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . State-mandated local program: no.


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

   SECTION 1.    Section 4495 is added to the  
Public Resources Code   , to read:  
   4495.  To assist landowners in conducting prescribed burns for the
purpose of forest fuel treatment, the department, in consultation
with the State Air Resources Board and local air districts, shall, no
later than July 1, 2015, do all of the following:
   (a) Develop a page on the department's Internet Web site that
provides all of the following:
   (1) Information on the regulations governing prescribed burns for
forest fuel treatment.
   (2) Specific information about permissive burn days and no-burn
days.
   (3) The uniform prescribed burn template described in subdivision
(b).
   (4) Contact information for the offices at the department, State
Air Resources Board, and local air districts that can assist a person
who is interested in a prescribed burn for forest fuel treatment.
   (5) Any other information that the department determines is
appropriate regarding prescribed burns for forest fuel treatment.
   (b) Develop a uniform prescribed burn template. The template shall
provide assistance to a person, who is interested in conducting
forest fuel treatment through a prescribed burn, to do all of the
following:
   (1) Use best management practices to minimize impacts to the
environment and public health while maximizing the fire resiliency of
the treated forest.
   (2) Obtain the appropriate regulatory approval from the department
and local air districts.  
  SECTION 1.    It is the intent of the Legislature
to enact legislation that would provide tax benefits to taxpayers for
the construction or installation of offsite water storage
facilities, in watersheds with salmon or anadromous trout species
that are listed under the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16
U.S.C. Sec. 1531 et seq.) or the California Endangered Species Act
(Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 2050) of Division 3), that
eliminate or significantly reduce the need for summer water diversion
from a stream.