Amended in Assembly March 26, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1259

Introduced by Assembly Member Levine

February 27, 2015

An act to begin delete add Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 8305) to Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code, end delete begin insert amend Section 1745.2 of the Fish and Game Code, end insert relating to begin delete pesticides. end delete begin insert bees end insert begin insert . end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1259, as amended, Levine. begin delete Pesticides: neonicotinoids: planting on state-owned or state-managed lands: prohibition. end delete begin insert Bees: apiculture: state-owned lands. end insert

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Existing law requires the Department of Fish and Wildlife to consider permitting apiculture on department-managed wildlife areas. Existing law requires the department, when developing or amending its land management plans, to make certain determinations relating to the use of the department-managed wildlife areas for apiculture.

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This bill would instead require the department to consider authorizing apiculture on department-managed wildlife areas.

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The bill would authorize the department to authorize the temporary placement of bee hives on department-managed wildlife areas through simple agreements specifying appropriate conditions. The bill would provide that these agreements are not contracts or leases for purposes of competitive bidding provisions and other provisions relating to public contracts in the Public Contract Code and the Government Code.

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The bill would authorize the department to continue any authorization for apiculture on department-managed lands that it granted before January 1, 2015, without taking further action.

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Existing law generally regulates pesticide use, and requires the Director of Pesticide Regulation to endeavor to eliminate from use any pesticide that endangers the agricultural or nonagricultural environment. Existing law requires pesticides to be registered by the Department of Pesticide Regulation. Existing law requires that a pesticide be thoroughly evaluated prior to registration, provides for the continued evaluation of registered pesticides, and requires the department, by July 1, 2018, to issue a determination with respect to its reevaluation of neonicotinoids. Existing law requires the department, within 2 years after making this determination, to adopt any control measures necessary to protect pollinator health.

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This bill would prohibit plants or seeds that have been treated with a neonicotinoid pesticide from being planted on state-owned or state-managed lands, as described. This bill would also prohibit plants on state-owned or state-managed lands from being treated with a neonicotinoid pesticide.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares as follows:

(a) Bees and other pollinators are critical to agricultural
production and native ecosystems. Bees pollinate billions of dollars
of agricultural crops in the United States, including many of
California’s most important agricultural crops.

(b) Bees are at significant risk of harm due to a condition known
as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). In the United States alone,
more than 25 percent of the managed bee population has
disappeared since 1990 and the number of hives is at its lowest
number in 50 years. CCD and the loss of bees is a significant threat
to our state and national food supply and economic security.

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(c) While there is no single cause of CCD, a substantial and
growing body of evidence points to neonicotinoid pesticides as a
likely factor in bee colony collapse. Neonicotinoid pesticides are
absorbed into plant tissue, do not discriminate between target and
nontarget inspect species, and are harmful to bees, butterflies, and
other beneficial insects.

(d) The state has recognized the importance of protecting bees
by encouraging placement of bee hives on state lands such as
wildlife areas managed by the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

(e) Monarch butterflies, another important native pollinator, are
also severely threatened by loss of native milkweed upon which
they depend, loss of wintering habitat in California, pesticides,
and other factors. Monarch populations are in rapid decline.
According to the annual census taken at the monarch’s wintering
grounds in Mexico in 2013, the monarch population dropped by
59 percent compared to the prior year’s census, bringing the
monarch’s numbers to the smallest registered population in almost
two decades.

(f) Vegetation maintained on lands managed by the state, such
as along roadways and utility rights-of-way, could help provide
beneficial habitat for bees, monarch butterflies, and other
pollinators if properly managed.

(g) The state should exercise caution when exposing bees and
other pollinators to plants that may harm them, especially on state
lands that may be utilized by bees.

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(c) A viable and productive honeybee industry is dependent on
access to private and public lands to secure nectar and pollen
resources for nutritional foraging opportunities.

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(d) There is a need for a streamlined and efficient method to
provide access to public lands for California beekeepers to ensure
that they have adequate foraging grounds for their bees.

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(e) The Legislature’s intended purpose in enacting Section
1745.2 of the Fish and Game Code is to increase apiculture bee
foraging opportunities on state lands managed by the Department
of Fish and Wildlife, and not to affect existing apiary sites on
department-managed lands previously approved for apiculture
use.

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(f) Due to the unique regional and seasonal nature of apiculture,
the public interest will be best served by authorizing such uses on
department-managed lands without competitive bidding.

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begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

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begin insert Section 1745.2 of the end insert begin insert Fish and Game Code end insert begin insert is amended
to read: end insert

1745.2.  

(a) The department shall do both of the following:

(1) Consider begin delete permitting end delete begin insert authorizing end insert apiculture on
department-managed wildlife areas, where deemed appropriate by
the department.

(2) Determine, when developing or amending its land
management plans, the following:

(A) If the department-managed wildlife areas, or any portion
of the those areas, are suitable for apiculture and whether apiculture
is consistent with the management goals and objectives for those
areas on a temporary, seasonal, or long-term basis.

(B) If the administration of apiculture on department-managed
wildlife areas, where deemed appropriate by the department, is
meeting the management goals and objectives for those areas.

(C) The appropriate begin delete use or permit end delete fee to be assessed for
conducting apiculture on department-managed wildlife areas.

(b) The department, in implementing this section, may consult
with apiculture experts, including, but not limited to, the
Department of Food and Agriculture, the University of California,
other academic or professional experts, and interested stakeholders,
begin delete for permitting end delete begin insert when considering authorizing end insert apiculture on
department-managed wildlife areas consistent with the respective
management goals and objectives for those areas.

(c) Moneys collected for conducting apiculture on
department-managed wildlife areas pursuant to subparagraph (C)
of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) shall be deposited by the
department into the Wildlife Restoration Fund and, upon
appropriation by the Legislature, be used to support the
management, maintenance, restoration, and operation of
department-managed wildlife areas.

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(d) The department may authorize the temporary placement of
bee hives on department-managed wildlife areas through simple
agreements specifying appropriate conditions. These agreements
are not contracts or leases for purposes of competitive bidding
provisions and other provisions relating to public contracts in the
Public Contract Code and Government Code.

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(e) The department may continue any authorization for
apiculture on department-managed areas that it granted before
January 1, 2015 without taking further action.

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SEC. 2.  

Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 8305) is added
to Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to read:

 

Chapter  4.5. Planting on State-Owned or
State-Managed Lands

 

8305.  

For the purposes of this chapter:

(a) “State-owned or state-managed lands” include, but are not
limited to, roadside lands owned and maintained by the Department
of Transportation, wildlife areas managed by the Department of
Fish and Wildlife, parklands managed by the Department of Parks
and Recreation, and wildlife habitat lands owned or managed by
a state conservancy.

(b) “Treated” includes foliar and granular treatments, in addition
to seed coatings.

8306.  

(a) Plants or seeds that have been treated with a
neonicotinoid pesticide shall not be planted on state-owned or
state-managed lands.

(b) Plants on state-owned or state-managed lands shall not be
treated with a neonicotinoid pesticide.

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