BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 549| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- THIRD READING Bill No: AB 549 Author: Levine (D), et al. Amended: 8/31/15 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE: 9-0, 6/23/15 AYES: Pavley, Stone, Allen, Hertzberg, Hueso, Jackson, Monning, Vidak, Wolk SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 6-1, 8/27/15 AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza NOES: Nielsen ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/4/15 (Consent) - See last page for vote SUBJECT: State park system SOURCE: Author DIGEST: This bill makes numerous changes to the operations of state parks in regards to contracts, agreements, and donations based largely on the reform recommendations of the Parks Forward Commission. ANALYSIS: Existing law: AB 549 Page 2 1)Vests the California Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) with control of the state park system and responsibility for administering, protecting, developing, and interpreting state parks for the use and enjoyment of the public. DPR is also responsible for protecting the state park system from damage and preserving the peace. 2)Establishes a revenue generation program at DPR that allows the department to collect fees and rents at state parks, and to sell additional annual and regional passes. 3)Adds, since 2013, legislative ex officio members to the California State Parks and Recreation Commission. 4)Creates a citizen review panel, the Parks Forward Commission, whose final report was released earlier this year. 5)Requires the Director of Finance to approve all gifts, bequests, etc., in any amount that are given to DPR, except for a certain historic artifacts that are valued at less than $15,000. 6)Authorizes DPR pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 5009.1 to enter into agreements to accept funds from any person, corporation, or business entity for the maintenance or operation on a nonprofit basis, of a state park unit. 7)Authorizes DPR to enter into concession contracts with private businesses subject to the specified conditions. This bill: 1)Contains findings and declarations regarding the purpose of, and recommendations from the Parks Forward Commission. 2)Contains a statement of legislative intent that the California Coastal Commission, the State Coastal Conservancy and DPR develop a proposal using existing and possibly future revenues to identify and implement opportunities to expand the availability of affordable cabins or other similar accommodations in state, local, and regional parks. AB 549 Page 3 3)Allows DPR to acquire and install camping cabins, parking facilities for recreational vehicles, and any associated access and public safety facilities with state parks provided the operation is consistent with the classification of that park unit and with a general plan of that unit if one is in effect. Further, the department may enter into agreements with qualified nonprofits to acquire, install, and operate these cabins, parking facilities for recreational vehicles, and any associated access and public safety features provided such agreements comply with the terms of Section 5080.42. That section is the main provision in the Public Resources Code authorizing DPR to enter into operating agreements with nonprofits. 4)Expands the department's authority to accept various gifts and interests in real property to include buildings, facilities, and other improvements to be used in connection with the park system. Establishes a $100,000 cap for conditional gifts or bequests gifts that the department can accept without approval from the Director of Finance. Conditional gifts or bequests are those that require the gift to be used at a certain park or for specified purposes. DPR must annually report such gifts to the Director of Finance. 5)Expands the authority of DPR to accept funds for the operations of state parks units. The new authority allows DPR to enter into agreements for the restoration, repair, development, improvement, or enhancement of state park units and deletes the requirement that such funds be contributed on a nonprofit basis. It also deletes the requirement that such funds must be prioritized to prevent park closures or to reduce hours of service to the public. This provision also allows DPR to provide free access to and use of park facilities to entities that have entered into agreements pursuant to this section. 6)Proposes a change to concession contracts that are entered into between the department and private firms that provide specified services at state parks. The change allows DPR to request an annual financial statement prepared or audited by a certified public accountant. Additionally, a technical change regarding the public bid process for concession contracts is proposed. AB 549 Page 4 7)Raises the cap on concession contracts that are not subject to various contract requirements from $500,000 to $1,000,000 in total sales or investment value. 8)Contains other technical and clarifying changes from Legislative Counsel. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.:YesLocal: No According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, this bill will have unknown ongoing staffing costs, potentially minor to the low hundreds of thousands of dollars from a special fund, the State Parks and Recreation Fund (SPRF), to review additional agreements and contracts. Unknown revenue increases into SPRF for additional donations and benefits of agreements with DPR. Unknown SPRF losses for free and reduced costs access and use of state park units, which may be offset by the benefits of agreements. SUPPORT: (Verified8/28/15) California Council of Land Trusts California State Parks Foundation State Park Partners Coalition OPPOSITION: (Verified8/28/15) None received ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author, AB 549 will facilitate implementation of the Parks Forward Commission recommendations to improve and strengthen the management of California's state park system, enhance the tools available to DPR to facilitate partnerships agreements, generate increased revenue, and promote public access to state parks. Among other things, this bill enhances opportunities for DPR to develop mutually beneficial partnerships with nonprofit organizations, accept philanthropic contributions to support parks, and AB 549 Page 5 increase affordable overnight accommodation options in state parks. It also updates and makes more efficient the process for approval of concession agreements. ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/4/15 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, 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, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins NO VOTE RECORDED: Campos, Dahle Prepared by:William Craven / N.R. & W. / (916) 651-4116 8/31/15 16:32:26 **** END ****