BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                            Senator Kevin de León, Chair



          SB 1390 (Correa) - Santa Ana River Conservancy Program.
          
          Amended: April 29, 2014         Policy Vote: NR&W 9-0
          Urgency: No                     Mandate: No
          Hearing Date: May 12, 2014      Consultant: Marie Liu
          
          This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
          
          
          Bill Summary: SB 1390 would establish the Santa Ana River  
          Conservancy Program within the State Coastal Conservancy to  
          address the resource and recreational goals of the Santa Ana  
          River corridor.

          Fiscal Impact: 
              One-time costs of up to $100,000 from the Proposition 84  
              (General Fund) to the State Coastal Conservancy to develop a  
              Santa Ana River Parkway and Open Space Plan.
              Ongoing cost pressures in the millions of dollars to  
              existing and future bond and General Fund monies for  
              projects under the Santa Ana River Conservancy Program.

          Background: Existing law establishes a number of conservancies  
          that generally have the mission to enhance and restore important  
          habitat lands, provide for public restoration, educational  
          opportunities, and restore watersheds. All but one conservancy  
          have its own board of directors and staff. The exception, the  
          San Francisco Bay Conservancy, is housed within the State  
          Coastal Conservancy.

          The State Coastal Conservancy was created in 1976 to purchase,  
          protect, restore, and enhance coastal resources, and to provide  
          access to the shore. The conservancy's jurisdiction is mostly  
          the coastal zone, which extends from the Oregon to Mexico  
          borders and from the state's ocean border (3 miles seaward) to  
          an inland border that varies between 1,000 yards and five miles  
          from the mean high tide line.

          Proposed Law: This bill would create the Santa Ana River  
          Conservancy Program (program) within the Coastal Conservancy for  
          the purposes including providing recreational opportunities,  








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          open space, wildlife habitat and species restoration and  
          protection, wetland restoration and protection, protection of  
          the Sana Ana River, and agricultural land restoration and  
          protection. 

          Under the program, the Coastal Conservancy would be required to  
          prepare a Santa Ana River Parkway and Open Space Plan. The plan  
          would be required to identify underused existing public open  
          spaces and recommend ways to provide better public use of those  
          lands and to identify and prioritize additional low-impact  
          recreational and open-space needs.

          This bill would establish various powers and limitations for the  
          Coastal Conservancy in regards to the program.

          This bill would establish the Santa Ana River Conservancy  
          Program Account within the State Coastal Conservancy Fund. The  
          account may receive deposits from grants and donations received  
          for this program.

          This bill would require the Coastal Conservancy to report  
          annually on the progress in the program beginning in 2016.

          Related Legislation: SB 1048 (Sher) Chapter 896, Statutes of  
          1997 - created the San Francisco Bay Area Conservancy Program  
          within the Coastal Conservancy.

          AB 496 (Correa, 2003) - proposed the creation of the Santa Ana  
          River Conservancy (Held on the Senate Appropriations suspense  
          file).

          Staff Comments: According to the Coastal Conservancy,  
          substantial amounts of the planning that would be required to  
          prepare a Santa Ana River Parkway and Open Space Plan has  
          already been completed as part of the Coastal Conservancy's  
          existing authorities and responsibilities. However, additional  
          planning would be needed to make a comprehensive plan. The  
          Coastal Conservancy estimates one-time costs of up to $100,000.

          Staff notes that by creating an additional program within the  
          Coastal Conservancy, this bill puts costs pressures on the  
          Coastal Conservancy's existing and future funds, which are  
          largely from bonds. However, this cost pressure is somewhat  
          mitigated because some priorities projects of this program are  








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          likely to be priorities of the Coastal Conservancy under their  
          existing mission even if this program was not created. Staff  
          notes that Proposition 84 allocated $45 million to the Santa Ana  
          River Parkway. These monies are managed by the Coastal  
          Conservancy. Approximately $32.7 million remains.