BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1274|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1274
Author: Mark Stone (D)
Amended: 7/14/15 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE: 8-1, 6/23/15
AYES: Pavley, Stone, Allen, Hertzberg, Hueso, Jackson,
Monning, Wolk
NOES: Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-2, 6/1/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Public lands: geophysical surveys
SOURCE: California State Lands Commission
DIGEST: This bill authorizes the State Lands Commission
(commission) to issue permits for geophysical surveys on state
lands under its jurisdiction and promulgate regulations to do
so.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Establishes the commission's authority to manage approximately
4.5 million acres of land throughout the state including
tidelands, submerged lands, navigable lakes and navigable
rivers and its residual oversight authority over tide and
submerged lands legislatively granted to local municipalities
("granted" lands).
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2)Authorizes the commission to lease certain state lands under
its jurisdiction for the production of oil and gas.
3)Authorizes the commission to issue permits for geophysical
surveys on ungranted tide and submerged lands (Public
Resources Code (PRC) §6826).
This bill revises and updates the commission's statutory
authority over geophysical surveys of state lands under its
jurisdiction, including both granted and ungranted tidelands,
submerged lands and the beds of navigable waterways, in order to
ensure public safety and the protection of the environment.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Allows the commission to permit geophysical surveys on state
lands under its jurisdiction, as specified, to ensure public
safety and protect the environment.
2)Directs the commission to adopt regulations governing the
permitting of geophysical surveys.
3)Excludes surveys for dredging for navigation channels,
anchorages or berthing areas, as specified, from permitting
requirements.
4)Provides direction to the commission on promoting compliance
with permit requirements; including outreach, reporting
facilitation and specific enforcement.
5)Makes relevant and supporting legislative findings.
Background
At the time the authority to issue permits for geophysical
surveys were provided to the commission, the predominant use of
surveys was for oil and gas exploration. This may explain why
the authority is located in an article of the PRC concerning oil
and gas leasing (PRC §§6801 et seq.).
In the intervening decades, the use of marine geophysical survey
data has evolved. There are now numerous additional reasons to
conduct them. Geophysical survey data can be useful to efforts
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to protect and preserve the state's offshore and coastal
environment and resources. According to the commission, specific
examples include using surveys to obtain information on seafloor
topography, sea floor hazards and debris, offshore cultural
resources, near-shore sand erosion and deposition, sea floor
changes, underwater structures and essential fish habitat.
In 2013, the commission updated its low energy geophysical
permit program in order to establish consistent guidance,
limitation and permit conditions to prevent harm to the
environment. An environmental analysis was prepared and the
commission adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration pursuant to
California Environmental Quality Act for its program. The
Mitigated Negative Declaration identifies protective mitigation
measures to minimize impacts on marine life. According to the
commission, a 2014 assessment of the updated program found that
enforcement and permit compliance were concerns. Specifically,
unpermitted geophysical surveys had the potential to both lead
to unfair competitive advantages and unmitigated damage to
wildlife and the coastal environment.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified7/14/15)
California State Lands Commission (source)
OPPOSITION: (Verified7/14/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author, "AB 1274 will
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protect the marine environment and enhance regulatory compliance
when geophysical surveys are performed in the marine environment
or on inland waterways."
The commission, the sponsor of this bill, argues that AB 1274
"is a modest step in addressing the compliance concerns
identified in the recent program assessment. This bill will
modernize existing law to separate the geophysical permit
authority from an oil and gas statute, require implementing
regulations that will ensure transparency and public
participation, and expand permitting authority to include
legislatively granted public trust lands."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-2, 6/1/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang,
Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle,
Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Cristina Garcia,
Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Hadley, Harper,
Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim,
Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis,
Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, O'Donnell,
Olsen, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas,
Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner,
Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NOES: Gallagher, Grove
NO VOTE RECORDED: Eduardo Garcia, Obernolte, Patterson, Waldron
Prepared by:Katharine Moore / N.R. & W. / (916) 651-4116
7/15/15 17:56:18
**** END ****
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