Amended in Assembly July 3, 2013

Amended in Assembly June 12, 2013

Amended in Senate April 10, 2013

Senate Bill No. 599

Introduced by Senator Evans

February 22, 2013

An act to amend Sections 535 begin delete , 535.5, and 541.5 end delete begin insert and 535.5 end insert of, and to add Sections 530.5 begin delete and 541.7 end delete begin insert , 541.7, and 541.8 end insert to, the Public Resources Code, relating to state parks.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 599, as amended, Evans. State parks.

Existing law establishes the State Park and Recreation Commission within the Department of Parks and Recreation, and sets forth the commission’s duties, including, among others, to evaluate and assess the department’s deferred maintenance obligations, and to report annually to the Governor on recreational facilities, programs, and activities of the state park system.

This bill would require the commission to also evaluate and assess the department’s proposed capital outlay and infrastructure expenditures, and would require the commission’s annual report to identify any budgetary requests of the commission for consideration by the begin delete Department of Finance and the Legislature end delete begin insert end insert begin insert Director of the Department of Parks and Recreation end insert , as specified. The bill would authorize the commission to conduct public meetings or hearings on all matters within the jurisdiction of the department, and would require the commission to meet at least quarterly and to achieve geographic balance in the locations at which meetings are held. The bill, if the department proposes to close a state park on or after the 2014-15 fiscal year, would require the department to first provide notice to the commission 6 months in advance, and would also require the Department of Finance to establish a separate line item in the annual Budget Act for any annual appropriations to the commission proposed by the Governor or appropriated by the Legislature. The bill would make various findings and declarations of the Legislature relating to the Department of Parks and begin delete Recreations end delete begin insert Recreation end insert .

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.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(a) The Department of Parks and Recreation has experienced
difficult years with decreased funding, the threatened closure of
dozens of important state parks, and fiscal mismanagement that
resulted in at least four separate audits or investigations.

(b) In its initial response to these circumstances, in 2012, the
Legislature directed the department to establish a revenue
generation program with dedicated funding, expanded opportunities
for contracts and other arrangements with nonprofits to help keep
parks open, added legislative ex officio members to the State Park
and Recreation Commission, and directed the commission to
review the deferred maintenance backlog at the department.

(c) In addition, among other provisions, in 2012, the Legislature
authorized the sale of specialized state park license plates, required
a prioritized plan to increase revenues and collect user fees, and
prohibited the closure of any parks for a specified period.

(d) Because of the important public functions provided by the
department and the importance of continued public oversight of
the department, including, but not limited to, the implementation
of the various budget and statutory provisions enacted in 2012,
the Legislature has determined to enact this measure.

SEC. 2.  

Section 530.5 is added to the Public Resources Code,
to read:

530.5.  

The commission shall meet at least quarterly and shall
achieve geographic balance in the locations at which meetings are
held. The commission may arrange for its meetings to be broadcast
or streamed live on the Internet through a contract with a provider.
The commission may also conduct meetings through
videoconferencing to achieve financial savings.

SEC. 3.  

Section 535 of the Public Resources Code is amended
to read:

535.  

(a) The commission shall report annually to the Governor,
through the director, on existing and operating recreational
facilities, programs begin insert , end insert and activities of the state park system, and
the needs of the state and the local subdivisions of the state for
recreational facilities, programs, and activities, and shall make
recommendations for programs and activities to meet future needs
of the state for parks and recreation.

(b) The annual report shall identify any budgetary requests of
the commission for consideration by the begin delete Department of Finance
and the Legislature end delete begin insert director end insert , including, notwithstanding the
provisions of Section 534.5, recommendations for staff that may
be hired.

SEC. 4.  

Section 535.5 of the Public Resources Code is amended
to read:

535.5.  

(a) The commission shall evaluate and assess the
department’s deferred maintenance obligations and proposed
capital outlay and infrastructure expenditures. After public notice
and at a public hearing, following a presentation by the relevant
district superintendent, the commission may consider the nature
and extent, and establish the relative priority, of prospective
deferred maintenance projects of the department.

(b) The commission may provide advice to the Governor, the
Legislature, and the department on policies, projects, and other
matters pertaining to parks, recreation, and public access affecting
the state park system.

(c) The commission may conduct an annual workshop or series
of workshops to review the department’s annual operating budget
and proposed capital improvement projects.

(d) The commission may make recommendations to improve
visitor services and visitor satisfaction in parks, assess the progress
and challenges with regard to the protection of natural, cultural,
and historical resources within the state park system, and enhance
revenue opportunities across the state park system.

(e) The commission may assist in promoting the state park
system and parks and recreational facilities and programs.

(f) The commission may conduct public meetings or hearings
on all matters within the jurisdiction of the department, including,
but not limited to, revenue generation, public-private partnerships,
and concession agreements.

(g) The sum of one hundred twenty begin delete thousands end delete begin insert thousand end insert dollars
($120,000) annually in the 2012-13 and 2013-14 fiscal years is
hereby appropriated from the State Parks and Recreation Fund to
the commission for the purpose of funding those activities
authorized under this section.

begin delete

SEC. 5.  

Section 541.5 of the Public Resources Code is amended
to read:

541.5.  

(a) The department shall not close, or propose to close,
a state park in the 2012-13 or 2013-14 fiscal year. The commission
and the department shall recommend all necessary steps to establish
a sustainable funding strategy for the department to the Legislature
on or before January 1, 2015.

(b) There is hereby appropriated twenty million five hundred
thousand dollars ($20,500,000) to the department from the State
Parks and Recreation Fund, which shall be available for
encumbrance for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 fiscal years, to be
expended as follows:

(1) Ten million dollars ($10,000,000) shall be available to
provide for matching funds pursuant to subdivision (c).

(2) Ten million dollars ($10,000,000) shall be available for the
department to direct funds to parks that remain at risk of closure
or that will keep parks open during the 2012-13 and 2013-14 fiscal
years. Priority may be given to parks subject to a donor or operating
agreement or other contractual arrangement with the department.

(3) Up to five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) shall be
available for the department to pay for ongoing audits and
investigations as directed by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee,
the office of the Attorney General, the Department of Finance, or
other state agency.

(c) The department shall match on a dollar-for-dollar basis all
financial contributions contributed by a donor pursuant to an
agreement for the 2012-13 fiscal year for which the department
received funds as of July 31, 2013, and for agreements entered
into in the 2013-14 fiscal year. These matching funds shall be
used exclusively in the park unit subject to those agreements.

(d) The department shall notify the Joint Legislative Budget
Committee in writing not less than 30 days before the expenditure
of funds under this section of the funding that shall be expended,
the manner of the expenditure, and the recipient of the expenditure.

(e) If the department proposes to close a state park on or after
the 2014-15 fiscal year, the department shall not do so unless it
first provides notice to the commission six months in advance in
order to provide the commission an opportunity to provide input
and to propose one or more alternatives to closure.

end delete

begin delete SEC. 6. end delete
begin insert SEC. 5. end insert   

Section 541.7 is added to the Public Resources Code,
to read:

541.7.  

The Department of Finance shall establish a separate
line item in the annual Budget Act for any annual appropriations
to the commission proposed by the Governor or appropriated by
the Legislature.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 6. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 541.8 is added to the end insert begin insert Public Resources Code end insert begin insert ,
to read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 541.8. end insert   

If the department proposes to close a state park on or
after the 2014-15 fiscal year, the department shall not do so unless
it first provides notice to the commission six months in advance
in order to provide the commission an opportunity to provide input
and to propose one or more alternatives to closure.

end insert