BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1
Author: Brown (D), et al.
Amended: 6/16/15 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNANCE & FIN. COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/10/15
AYES: Hertzberg, Nguyen, Beall, Hernandez, Lara, Moorlach,
Pavley
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 4/23/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Drought: local governments: fines
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill prohibits a city or county from imposing a
fine for a brown lawn or failure to water a lawn during a state
of emergency proclaimed by the Governor due to drought.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Grants the Governor, through the California Emergency Services
Act, the power to declare a state of emergency in cases of
extreme peril to life, property, or state resources. The Act
grants the Governor broad powers to deal with emergencies,
including suspending regulatory statutes, commandeering
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private property or personnel, and making expenditures from
available funds.
2)Delegates the police power to cities and counties to "make and
enforce within [their] limits all local, police, sanitary, and
other ordinances and regulations not in conflict with general
laws" (California Constitution, Article XI, Section 7).
Courts have interpreted the police power as including the
power to regulate the physical of appearance of the
environment within a community, including ordinances that
enforce aesthetic standards.
This bill:
1)Prohibits a city or county, during a period for which the
Governor has issued a proclamation of a state of emergency
under state law based on drought conditions, from imposing a
fine under any ordinance for a failure to water a lawn or for
having a brown lawn.
2)Directs that a violation of its provisions is not subject to
specified criminal penalties.
3)Contains legislative findings and declarations that the bill's
provisions:
a) Further the policy expressed in the California
Constitution requiring the state's water resources to be
put to beneficial use.
b) Apply to charter cities because the prohibition of fines
imposed for failing to water a lawn or having a brown lawn
during a period for which the Governor has issued a
proclamation of a state of emergency based on drought
conditions is a matter of statewide concern and not a
municipal affair, as that term is used in Section 5 of
Article XI of the California Constitution.
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Background
On January 17, 2014, pursuant to his powers under state law,
including the California Emergency Services Act, Governor Brown
issued a proclamation of a state of emergency due to drought
conditions. On April 1, 2015, Governor Brown issued an
executive order in accordance with the authority granted to him
by the Constitution and the Emergency Services Act. Among its
many provisions intended to improve government response to the
drought and promote water conservation, the Governor's executive
order:
1)Directs the State Water Resources Control Board to impose
restrictions to achieve a statewide 25% reduction in potable
urban water usage through February 28, 2016, which will
require water suppliers to California's cities and towns to
reduce usage as compared to the amount used in 2013.
2)Directs the Department of Water Resources to lead a statewide
initiative, in partnership with local agencies, to
collectively replace 50 million square feet of
lawns and ornamental turf with drought tolerant landscapes.
Some California residents who have stopped watering their lawns
or allowed their lawns to go brown reportedly are being
subjected to fines imposed pursuant to local ordinances that
specify certain aesthetic standards for front yards. In
response, advocates for water conservation want the Legislature
to prohibit local governments from imposing such fines during a
period of drought emergency declared by the Governor.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified6/16/15)
Apartment Association, California Southern Cities
Apartment Association of Orange County
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California Association of Realtors
California Building Industry Association
City of Encinitas
Coachella Valley Water District
Desert Water Agency
East Bay Municipal Utility District
East Bay Rental Housing Association
El Dorado Irrigation District
Municipal Water District of Orange County
Nor Cal Rental Property Association
North Valley Property Owners Association
San Diego County Apartment Association
Santa Clara County Water District
Sierra Club California
One individual
OPPOSITION: (Verified6/16/15)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 4/23/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Chang, Chau,
Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly,
Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina
Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,
Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden,
Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder,
Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina,
Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,
Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,
Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Campos, Salas
Prepared by:Brian Weinberger / GOV. & F. / (916) 651-4119
6/17/15 13:55:23
**** END ****
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