BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1251
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
1251 (Gomez)
As Amended April 14, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+--------------------|
|Water |10-4 |Levine, Dodd, |Bigelow, Beth |
| | |Cristina Garcia, |Gaines, Harper, |
| | |Gomez, Gray, Lopez, |Mathis |
| | |Medina, Rendon, | |
| | |Ridley-Thomas, | |
| | |Williams | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+--------------------|
|Local |9-0 |Maienschein, | |
|Government | |Gonzalez, Alejo, | |
| | |Chiu, Cooley, | |
| | |Gordon, Holden, | |
| | |Linder, Waldron | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |12-4 |Gomez, Bonta, |Bigelow, Gallagher, |
| | |Calderon, Daly, |Jones, Wagner |
| | |Eggman, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Gordon, | |
| | |Holden, Quirk, | |
| | |Rendon, Weber, Wood | |
AB 1251
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| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Enacts the Greenway Development and Sustainment Act.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Authorizes a tax-exempt nonprofit organization whose primary
purpose is the development of a greenway to acquire and hold
conservation easements.
2)Defines a greenway for purposes of this section as, among other
characteristics, a pedestrian and bicycle, non-motorized,
vehicle transportation and recreational travel corridor with
specified requirements.
3)Adds greenways, as defined in this bill, to the definition of
"open-space" land which can be included in the open space
element of a county or city general plan. Identifies the uses
of greenways, as a type of open-space land, to include both
preservation of natural resources and outdoor recreation.
4)States legislative findings and declarations regarding the
suitability of the area along the Los Angeles River and its
tributaries for development of a greenway, the benefits that a
greenway that focuses on public private partnerships aimed at
establishing a continuous pedestrian bikeway along the River
would provide for job creation, economic development, and
community revitalization, and the availability of funding
sources for these purposes.
EXISTING LAW:
AB 1251
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1)Authorizes a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that
has as its primary purpose the preservation, protection, or
enhancement of land it its natural, scenic, historical,
agricultural, forested, or open-space condition or use, to
acquire and hold conservation easements.
2)Defines "open space land" for local land use planning purposes.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, state cost pressures, potentially in the hundreds of
thousands to millions of dollars (Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund
and other special funds) to fund greenways and transportation
corridors.
COMMENTS: The author's stated purpose in introducing this bill is
to promote greenway development in California. This bill
clarifies that a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization whose primary
purpose is to develop a greenway, is authorized to acquire and
hold conservation easements. This bill also defines a greenway
for these purposes. In addition, this bill adds greenways to the
types of open space lands that may be included in the open space
element of a county or city general plan.
The author notes that greenways improve the quality of life in
communities by providing connectivity between communities, and
important recreational, open space, wildlife, flood management,
water quality, air quality, transportation, emergency response,
and urban waterfront revitalization opportunities.
This bill is focused on promotion of greenways generally
throughout the state. As an example of a proposed greenway, there
has been significant interest in the potential for development of
a Los Angeles River Greenway through public-private partnerships
AB 1251
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aimed at establishing a continuous pedestrian/bikeway along the
Los Angeles River and its key tributaries. Supporters of the
proposed project highlight the potential for job creation,
economic development, and community revitalization that could be
fostered by investing in a non-motorized commuter and recreational
transit route following the 51 mile Los Angeles River corridor,
and connecting existing communities to a network of parks and
multi-use trails. For a more detailed discussion and background
on the history of the Los Angeles River, and recent efforts to
restore the river and revitalize surrounding communities, see the
Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee analysis of AB 1922
(Gomez) of 2014.
This bill is substantially similar to AB 1922 (Gomez) of 2014
which was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee, and AB 735
(Gomez) of 2014, which proposed to create a Greenway Initiative,
including development of a greenway along the Los Angeles River.
AB 735 was held in Assembly Appropriations Committee.
Analysis Prepared by:
Diane Colborn / W., P., & W. / (916) 319-2096 FN:
0000594