BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 367
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Date of Hearing: April 14, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS, AND WILDLIFE
Marc Levine, Chair
AB 367
(Dodd) - As Introduced February 17, 2015
SUBJECT: Clear Lake
SUMMARY: Appropriates $2.4 million from the Fish and Game
Preservation Fund (FGPF) to Lake County for projects related to
Clear Lake. Specifically, this bill:
1)States legislative findings and declarations regarding Clear
Lake, its natural resource values which include fish, birds,
and other wildlife, and problems at the lake such as toxic
algal blooms, mercury pollution, and the listing of Clear Lake
as an impaired water body.
2)States legislative intent to assist Lake County in restoring
Clear Lake to protect fish and wildlife and preserve
recreational and economic opportunities.
3)Appropriates $2.4 million from the FGPF to Lake County for the
purposes of restoring Clear Lake wetlands, maintaining Clear
Lake water quality, and preventing and controlling the spread
of invasive species in or to Clear Lake.
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EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the FGPF, a state special fund, to support the
work of the Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) in
administering and enforcing the Fish and Game Code. Revenue
sources to the FGPF include fishing and hunting license, tag,
permit, and stamp fees, fines and penalties, and other
miscellaneous revenues, including state property rental and
investment income. The FGPF includes both non-dedicated and
dedicated accounts. Dedicated accounts may be used only for
the specific purposes for which the accounts were created.
FGPF expenditures are subject to appropriation by the
Legislature.
2)Requires, unless otherwise provided, all money collected under
the Fish and Game Code and any other law relating to the
protection and preservation of birds, mammals, fish, reptiles,
or amphibia to be paid into the State Treasury to the credit
of the FGPF.
3)States legislative intent that nongame fish and wildlife
programs and free fishing licenses shall not be funded from
the FGPF, and that sport hunting and sport fishing programs
are to be funded from license revenues, federal
reimbursements, federal funds, and other funds appropriated by
the Legislature for this purpose. Provides that programs which
benefit commercial fishing programs are to be funded solely
from revenue generated from commercial uses.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriates $2.4 million from the FGPF.
COMMENTS:
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1)Purpose: The author has introduced this bill to provide state
funding to Lake County to restore Clear Lake wetlands,
maintain water quality in Clear Lake, and prevent the spread
of invasive species. The author notes that in 1973 the State
of California conveyed the submerged lands in Clear Lake in
trust to Lake County in furtherance of navigation, commerce
and fisheries, and to provide for government management of the
lake. The state reserved certain rights including the right
to use without charge any transportation, landing, or
betterments on the lake, and mineral rights, including
geothermal resources. The legislation granting title of the
bed of Clear Lake to Lake County included language requiring
that the lake be used for purposes for which there is a
general statewide interest, including, among other things,
protection of wildlife habitats and fish resources, public
access and recreation, and prevention of pollution of the
lake. The author asserts that given these state interests,
the state has an obligation to help the county maintain the
lake and eradicate its problems so that the state's general
interest in the lake is sustained.
Clear Lake is the largest naturally created freshwater surface
lake located entirely in California, with 68 miles of surface
area. (Lake Tahoe is larger, but is located partially in
Nevada. The Salton Sea is also larger but was created by a
man-caused faulty levee break and today is saltier than the
ocean.) Clear lake supports large populations of sport fish,
including bass, crappie, bluegill carp, and catfish. The lake
also provides habitat for numerous bird and mammal species,
including ducks, pelicans, grebes, egrets, osprey, and bald
eagles. Deer, bear, mountain lion, and bobcat are among the
mammal species found in the basin. The native Clear Lake
Hitch fish is endemic to the Clear Lake watershed and is
classified as a species of special concern. The author also
indicates that Clear Lake is a source of drinking water for
disadvantaged communities.
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The author notes that Clear Lake is beset by numerous problems
that threaten fish and wildlife, reduce the quality of
drinking water sourced from the lake, and diminish lake
recreational opportunities important to the county's local
economy. The problems include, but are not limited to, excess
phosphorus which contributes to impairment of water quality,
toxic algal blooms, invasive species, and contamination by
heavy metals such as mercury. The author also notes that
Clear Lake has lost 79% of its historic wetlands, which
contributes to toxic algal blooms and nutrient loads,
resulting in the State Water Resources Control Board (Water
Board) listing Clear Lake as impaired. The Water Board has
issued Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for Clear Lake for
both mercury and nutrients.
The author further notes that as a rural county, Lake County
lacks the resources to effectively address all of the problems
at Clear Lake on its own. Since Clear Lake is a valuable
state resource, as well as a local resource, the author
asserts that appropriation of state funds is needed and
appropriate to help Lake County resolve the Lake's problems.
2)Water Management at Clear Lake: Clear Lake is within the
Upper Cache Creek Watershed which drains to the Sacramento
River. The water storage capacity of the lake is 1.1 to 1.4
million acre feet. The Lake County Board of Supervisors is
responsible for land use planning management of the bed of
Clear Lake, municipal storm water, implementation of the two
Clear Lake TMDLs for mercury and nutrients, recreational
planning and maintenance, and oversight of numerous water
supply and wastewater districts. The Lake County Watershed
Protection District coordinates activities between agencies
within Lake County, and has also worked with the Yolo County
Flood Control and Water Conservation District to address Clear
Lake issues and identify projects of mutual benefit, with a
focus on the Cache Creek watershed which includes Clear Lake.
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The sole outlet for Clear Lake is Cache Creek. Yolo County
acquired riparian rights to Cache Creek's water in 1855. The
Cache Creek Dam at Clear Lake was constructed by the Yolo
County Water and Power Company in 1914. Today the Yolo County
Flood Control and Water Conservation District owns and
operates the dam, which is located 5 miles downstream from the
creek's outlet at Clear Lake. The dam is operated according
to court decrees which regulate how much water can be stored
in Clear Lake during non-flood and flood conditions. Yolo
County Flood Control and Water Conservation District stores up
to 150,000 acre feet of water per year in Clear Lake for
agricultural water uses in Yolo County. Yolo County Flood
Control and Water Conservation District also owns the
hydroelectric plant at the dam which has a hydroelectric
generating capacity of 1.750 kilowatts. Management of the lake
level is designed to avoid flooding, provide water to Yolo
County and local municipal water companies, and to maintain
water for recreational use. Raw water is also pumped and
exported from Clear Lake to supplement treated effluent
supplies delivered to the Geysers geothermal facility.
3)Westside Integrated Regional Water Management Plan: Clear
Lake is located in the hydrologic region covered by the
Westside Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (Westside
IRWMP). The Westside IRWMP was released in June of 2013 and
preliminarily approved by the Department of Water Resources in
May of 2014. Lake County is a participant in the Westside
IRWMP, which includes the Lake County Watershed Protection
District (as the County's lead agency for the IRWMP), the Napa
County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, the
Colusa County Regional Conservation District, the Solano
County Water Agency, and the Yolo County Water Resource
Association. The major lakes and reservoirs in the region
covered by the Westside IRWMP include Clear Lake, Indian
Valley Reservoir, and Lake Berryessa. Focal points of the
Westside IRWMP include improving habitat and ecosystem health,
controlling invasive species, and addressing water quality
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concerns.
The Westside IRWMP history indicates that in 2005 Lake County
began the process of developing an IRWMP at the county level,
but before a county-based plan was completed, the State
indicated it prefers that the IRWMPs include larger,
watershed-based regions. Lake County therefore chose to
participate in the Westside IRWMP instead of proceeding with
its own local plan, and the portions of Lake County located in
the Cache Creek and Putah Creek watersheds are addressed in
the Westside IRWMP. The Lake County Watershed Protection
District is governed by the Lake County Board of Supervisors
and is the lead agency for the county's participation in the
Westside IRWMP.
Significant concerns and priority objectives identified in the
Westside IRWMP include nutrients in Clear Lake, restoration of
Clear Lake Hitch, an endemic species of special concern,
management of invasive species, providing safe and reliable
water supplies, and mercury impairment. Toxic alga caused by
cyanobacteria is also identified as an emerging contaminant of
concern. Clear Lake is one of several primary water supply
sources in the region identified in the Westside IRWMP, which
emphasizes the importance of conjunctive water management to
the region. The Westside IRWMP also notes that many of the
Upper Cache Creek watershed communities meet the definition of
a disadvantaged community.
The Westside IRWMP indicates that while water resource managers
and stakeholders agree erosion control, riparian and wetland
restoration upstream of Clear Lake will have the greatest
beneficial impact on Clear Lake water quality, challenges
remain to prioritize specific actions.
4)State Activities at Clear Lake: The state has recognized the
natural resource values at Clear Lake through a number of past
actions. The DFW indicates it has identified two areas
surrounding Clear Lake as important wetland resources. These
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areas have been incorporated into a Conceptual Area Protection
Plan which allows DFW, through the Wildlife Conservation Board
(WCB), to purchase lands or easements within the boundaries of
the Plan area. Examples of past actions include a 1999 grant
of $395,000 from the WCB to the Lake County Land Trust to
acquire 97 acres of land on the northwest shore of Clear Lake
to protect wetland, riparian and upland habitats. The state
has also accepted donations of conservation easements from the
Lake County Watershed Protection District protecting over 100
acres of historic wetland habitat near the town of Nice. The
WCB is currently considering a potential grant to the Lake
County Land Trust to acquire another 74 acres of waterfront
property that represents the last remaining unprotected
wetland on Clear Lake, known as the Big Valley Wetlands
Conceptual Area Protection Plan. This acquisition would
provide habitat linkages and corridors to a nearby wetland
reserve that is already under conservation easements. The DFW
also conducts monitoring for aquatic invasive species and
conducts an annual two day watercraft screening and inspection
training for Lake County staff and marine bait shop staff.
Native fish assemblages in Clear Lake have also been
identified as an important resource in DFW's 2015 update to
the State Wildlife Action Plan.
5)Lake County Healthy Lake Tax: Lake County has attempted to
raise local revenues to fund projects this bill would fund.
The Lake County "Healthy Lake Tax", a local sales tax measure,
was on the June 3, 2014 election ballot for voters in Lake
County, California, but was defeated. Measure L would have
authorized the county to impose an additional sales tax of 0.5
percent for 10 years to fund the eradication of weeds, algae
and invasive mussels from Clear Lake, the restoration of
wetlands in the county, and the improvement of water quality.
A 2/3rds supermajority vote was required for the approval of
Measure L, which failed on a vote of 65.2 % support, to 34.8%
opposed. This was the county's third attempt to pass such a
measure.
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6)Condition of the Fish and Game Preservation Fund: While the
fiscal issues will be explored in more depth in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee, the use of the FGPF as proposed in
this bill is of interest to this committee because many of the
policy objectives reviewed by this committee are funded
through the FGPF. The DFW indicates that it relies on the
FGPF statewide to fund DFW's responsibilities under the Fish
and Game Code, including but not limited to, wildlife and
fisheries management, resource assessments, habitat
restoration, conservation planning, environmental review,
permitting, water resource management, enforcement, public
education, and response to spills. According to the
Department of Finance, while the Governor's budget shows a $17
million reserve in the non-dedicated portion of the FGPF, DFW
is currently operating at a structural deficit, with
expenditures exceeding revenues, such that it is anticipated
DFW's current expenditures will exhaust the reserve before the
end of this year.
7)Other potential sources of state funding for Clear Lake
Projects:
The Water Bond (Proposition 1, approved by the voters in
November 2014) contains several categories of funding for
which Lake County and/or the region through the Westside
IRWMP, may be eligible to apply through competitive grant
processes. A key principle which the Legislature followed in
developing the Water Bond was to prohibit earmarks for
specific projects and instead allocate funds for categories or
types of projects which entities could then apply for on a
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competitive basis. It should be noted that accessing bond
funds can be a practical challenge for lower income
communities, in part because applicants are often required to
expend funds upfront for a project, and then get reimbursed
for expenditures with the grant funds. Keeping these
constraints in mind, potential alternative funding sources
include:
a) Section 79737 of the bond makes available $285 million for
watershed restoration projects statewide. Eligible projects
include, but are not necessarily limited to, projects to
restore or enhance riparian and aquatic habitat, improve
ecological function, provide fish passage, improve local
watershed management, and remove sediment. DFW administers
these funds and the draft solicitation guidelines for these
grants are currently available on DFW's website.
b) Section 79740 of the Water Bond makes available $810
million in competitive grants and loans for projects that are
included in and implemented through an IRWMP. The Legislature,
through the Water Bond and the IRWMP program, has encouraged
communities to collaborate and focus on regional water
management. The Water Bond requires a 50% local match for
IRWMP projects, which can be waived or reduced for projects
that benefit disadvantaged communities. Clear Lake is located
in the Sacramento River hydrologic region, which was allocated
$37 million of the IRWMP monies in the Water Bond.
c) Section 79720 of the Water Bond makes $520 million
available for safe drinking water, including specifically for
mercury and nutrient remediation, the two contaminants that
have resulted in TMDLs for Clear Lake.
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d) Section 79730 of the Water Bond makes $200 million
available for enhancing instream flows. Projects to address
issues involving smaller streams and tributaries that flow
into Clear Lake may be eligible to apply for these funds which
are being administered by the WCB. The draft solicitation
guidelines for these funds are available on the WCB's website.
Half of these funds are targeted for urban streams, but the
other half is allocated statewide.
e) The Department of Parks and Recreation's Division of
Boating and Waterways administers a Quagga and Zebra mussel
Infestation Prevention Grant Program, for which the Lake
County Watershed Protection District submitted a funding
application on October 20, 2014 for $200,000 for outreach and
education, hiring and training of boat ramp monitors, and to
hire an invasive species coordinator. The County was recently
awarded a grant of $189,649 to implement this project.
f) Many counties have a county fish and wildlife propagation
fund composed of fines and penalties for wildlife violations,
which could be allocated for wildlife and habitat restoration
purposes.
8)Prior and related legislation: AB 1874 (Gonzalez) of 2013 did
not include an appropriation, but would have required IRWMP
funding appropriated by the Legislature to the Department of
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Water Resources for a region to be passed through directly to
that region if that region is eligible for, and has completed,
a streamlined application process and requests funding. The
money would not have gone directly to a county, but would have
allowed the participants in the IRWMP for that region to
determine what projects to fund rather than the state. AB
1874 was held on the Assembly Appropriations Committee
suspense file.
9)Suggested Amendment: Clear Lake faces significant natural
resource challenges of state interest, but questions remain as
to whether the FGPF, as proposed in this bill, is the most
appropriate source of funding. Staff recommends, if the
committee elects to approve this bill, that the reference to
the FGPF be deleted, with the expectation that the author will
work with the Assembly Appropriations Committee on identifying
appropriate sources or approaches to funding.
Amend SEC. 2, on page 2, lines 30-36 to read as follows:
The sum of two million four hundred thousand dollars
($2,400,000) is hereby appropriated from the ___________ Fish
and Game Preservation Fund to the County of Lake for the
purposes of restoring Clear Lake wetlands, maintaining the
water quality of Clear Lake, preventing the spread of invasive
species to Clear Lake, and controlling invasive species in
Clear Lake.
Support Arguments: The County of Lake in support of this bill
emphasizes that Clear Lake is California's largest natural
freshwater lake. They note that water quality problems in the
lake are impacting tourism, including specifically algal blooms
in the summer, and invasive species are a constant threat. The
county has tried three times to enact a half-cent sales tax
dedicated to lake programs, but those measures, while garnering
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over 60% of the vote, have failed to meet the 2/3rd vote
requirement for special purpose taxes. Additional background
materials provided by the county indicate that if this bill were
approved the county would propose to use the funds for long term
monitoring of water quality TMDLs in the Lake and for small
stream and wetland restoration in the Clear Lake Upper Cache
Creek watershed.
Opposition Arguments: None received.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
City of Lakeport
County of Lake
California Water Service
Elem Indian Colony
Featherbed Railroad Bed & Breakfast Resort
High Country Security
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Lake County Association of Realtors
Lake County Winery Association
Ruzicka Associates, Consulting Engineers
Save the Lake Committee
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Diane Colborn / W., P., & W. / (916)
319-2096