BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  SB 1390
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   August 6, 2014

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                  Mike Gatto, Chair

                    SB 1390 (Correa) - As Amended:  July 2, 2014 

          Policy Committee:                             Natural  
          ResourcesVote:6-2

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill establishes the Santa Ana River Conservancy Program  
          within the State Coastal Conservancy (SCC) to address the  
          resource and recreational goals of the Santa Ana River corridor.  
          This bill requires the SCC to prepare a Santa Ana River Parkway  
          and Open Space Plan as specified.

           FISCAL EFFECT

           1)One-time costs of up to $100,000 (Proposition 84) to the SCC  
            to develop the open space plan.

          2)Ongoing cost pressures in the millions of dollars to existing  
            and future, special fund, bond and GF for projects developed  
            and implemented under the program.  

           COMMENTS  

           1)Purpose.   According to the author, the Santa Ana River is an  
            extraordinary natural resource of statewide significance.  The  
            watershed has been subject to intense development and is in  
            need of restoration, conservation and enhancement.   This bill  
            will help develop open space and recreational opportunities,  
            restore and preserve wildlife habitat and natural resources,  
            and enhance resource conservation efforts.

           2)Background.   There are currently 10 state conservancies,  
            including the SCC, which generally have the mission to enhance  
            and restore important natural resources and provide for public  
            recreational opportunities.  These 10 conservancies are  
            governed by individual boards consisting of state, local and  








                                                                  SB 1390
                                                                  Page  2

            public members and are located within the Natural Resources  
            Agency.  

            The SCC 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.


            In addition to the 10 state conservancies, there is one  
            conservancy program, the San Francisco Bay Area Conservancy  
            Program, located within the SCC and governed by its Board.   
            This bill adds an additional conservancy program within the  
            SCC.

           3)The Santa Ana River.   The Santa Ana River has largely been  
            channelized and diverted, however, the upper headwaters of the  
            river in the San Bernardino Mountains retain a free flowing  
            character.  The Santa Ana flows westerly through more than 20  
            miles of public lands managed by the United States Forest  
            Service.  Beyond the mountains and National Forest boundary,  
            the river flows between levees and concrete channels through  
            the southern California urban landscape to the Pacific Ocean.

            This bill defines the Santa Ana River region as those lands  
            located within one-half mile on either side of the Santa Ana  
            River, or any tributaries, from its headwaters near the San  
            Gorginio Wilderness Area to the Pacific Ocean at the Santa Ana  
            River Mouth Beach in Huntington Beach and adjacent lands and  
            watersheds.



           Analysis Prepared by  :    Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081