Amended in Senate July 9, 2015

Amended in Senate June 16, 2015

Amended in Assembly May 5, 2015

Amended in Assembly April 20, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1482


Introduced by Assembly Member Gordon

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Bloom, Rendon, and Mark Stone)

February 27, 2015


An act to amend Section 75125 of, and to add Part 3.7 (commencing with Section 71150) to Division 34 of, the Public Resources Code, relating to climate change.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1482, as amended, Gordon. Climate adaptation.

Existing law establishes the Natural Resources Agency, comprised of departments, boards, conservancies, and commissions responsible for the restoration, protection, and management of the state’s natural and cultural resources.

Existing law establishes the Strategic Growth Council in state government and assigns to the council certain duties, including providing, funding, and distributing data and information to local governments and regional agencies that will assist in the development and planning of sustainable communities.

This bill would require the agency, by July 1, 2017, and every 3 years thereafter, to update the state’s climate adaptation strategy, as provided. The bill would require the agency, in coordination with the council, to address the impacts of climate change and climate adaptation by reviewing and coordinating existing grants and programs to maximize specified objectives, including, among others, establishing policy, guidelines, and guidance at the state level to inform planning decisions and ensuring that state investments consider climate change impacts, as well as promote the use of natural systems and natural infrastructure, whenever feasible, when developing physical infrastructure to address adaptation. The bill would require the Office of Planning and Research, by July 1, 2019, to update the state’s Five-Year Infrastructure Plan to take current and future climate impacts into account in all infrastructure projects.

This bill also would expand the duties of the council to include aiding the Natural Resources Agency in overseeing and coordinating state agency actions to adapt to climate change andbegin insert inend insert identifying and pursuing opportunities for state agencies to collaborate with federal or local agencies in their climate adaptation efforts.

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

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

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:

3(a) California’s climate is changing, posing an escalated threat
4to public health, the environment, the economy, and public and
5private property in the state. The increasing frequency of extreme
6weather events, including floods and heat waves, fires, rising sea
7levels, and changes in hydrology, including diminishing snowpacks
8and more frequent droughts, among other climate change impacts,
9will touch every part of residents’ lives in the next century and
10beyond. Planning appropriately for these impacts will help us be
11better prepared for the future.

12(b) The impacts of climate change, including longer droughts,
13extended floods, prolonged fire seasons with larger and more
14intense fires, heat waves, and sea level rise, are already creating
15challenges for public health and safety and causing destructive
16property damage.

17(c) Climate change poses a threat not just to the lives and health
18of residents but also to the state’s economy and to the financial
19health of our state and local governments.

P3    1(d) According to the Natural Resources Agency’s report,
2“Safeguarding California: Reducing Climate Risk,” state-of-the-art
3modeling shows that a single extreme winter storm in California
4could cost on the order of $725,000,000,000, including total direct
5property losses of nearly $400,000,000,000 and devastating impacts
6to residents, the economy, and natural resources.

7(e) Adapting to climate change, in addition to reducing the
8impacts of climate change on California’s natural resources and
9infrastructure, is essential to protecting the state’s environment
10and economy over time and will require coordination across all
11state departments and agencies.

12(f) Given the potential impacts and the long-term nature of
13effective planning, California needs to take action now.

14

SEC. 2.  

Part 3.7 (commencing with Section 71150) is added
15to Division 34 of the Public Resources Code, to read:

16 

17PART 3.7.  Climate Change and Climate
18Adaptation

19

 

20

71150.  

For purposes of this part, the following terms have the
21following meanings:

22(a) “Agency” means the Natural Resources Agency.

23(b) “Council” means the Strategic Growth Council.

24

71152.  

It is the intent of the Legislature to prioritize the state’s
25response to the impacts resulting from climate change by ensuring
26all state departments and agencies prepare for and are ready to
27respond to the impacts of climate change, such as extreme weather
28events, the urban heat island effect, habitat loss, wildfire, sea-level
29rise, and drought. It also is the intent of the Legislature that the
30agency consider developing policies to address the impacts of
31climate change and climate adaptation with a focus on people,
32places, and water and that actions taken to address climate
33adaptation should be consistent with the Safeguarding California
34 Plan.

35

71153.  

(a) By July 1, 2017, and every three years thereafter,
36the agency shall update the state’s climate adaptation strategy, the
37Safeguarding California Plan. As part of the update, the agency
38shallbegin delete doend deletebegin insert coordinate with other state agencies to identify a lead
39agency or group of agencies to lead adaptation efforts in each
P4    1sector. The updates to the Safeguarding California Plan shall
2includeend insert
all of the following:

3(1) begin deleteIdentify vulnerabilities end deletebegin insertVulnerabilities end insertto climate change by
4begin delete sectorend deletebegin insert sector, as identified by the lead agency or group of agencies,end insert
5 and regions, including, at a minimum, the following sectors:

6(A) Water.

7(B) Energy.

8(C) Transportation.

9(D) Public health.

10(E) Agriculture.

11(F) Emergency services.

12(G) Forestry.

13(H) Biodiversity and habitat.

14(I) Ocean and coastal resources.

15(2) begin deleteIdentify priority end deletebegin insertPriority end insertactions needed to reduce risks in
16thosebegin delete sectors.end deletebegin insert sectors, as identified by the lead agency or group
17of agencies.end insert

begin delete

18(3) Identify a lead agency or group of agencies to lead adaptation
19efforts in each sector and ensure the provisions of Safeguarding
20California Plan are implemented.

end delete
begin delete

21(4) Report

end delete

22begin insert (b)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertThe agency shall reportend insert to the Legislature, pursuant to
23Section 9795 of the Government Code, on actions taken to
24implement the Safeguarding California Plan.

begin delete

25(b)

end delete

26begin insert(c)end insert By July 1, 2019, the Office of Planning and Research shall
27update the state’s Five-Year Infrastructure Plan to take current and
28future climate change impacts into account in all infrastructure
29projects.

30

71154.  

To address the impacts of climate change and climate
31adaptation, the agency, in coordination with the council, shall
32review and coordinate existing grants and programs to maximize
33the following objectives:

34(a) Educating the public about the consequences of climate
35change, such as sea-level rise, extreme weather events, the urban
36heat island effect, habitat loss, wildfire, and drought.

37(b) Ensuring there is a continued repository for scientific data
38on climate change and climate adaptation in the state in order to
39facilitate educated state and local policy decisions and to help
P5    1identify primary risks from climate change to residents, property,
2communities, and natural systems across the state.

3(c) Establishing policy, guidelines, and guidance at the state
4level, throughbegin insert theend insert implementation of the Safeguarding California
5Plan, to inform planning decisions and ensure that state investments
6consider climate change impacts, as well as promote the use of
7natural systems and natural infrastructure, whenever feasible, when
8developing physical infrastructure to address adaptation.

9(d) Encouraging regional collaborative planning efforts to
10address regional climate change impacts and adaptation strategies.

11(e) Promoting a water supply, delivery, and capture system that
12is coordinated and can withstand a multiyear drought scenario.
13Establishing both drought preparation programs, which will help
14create sustainable water systems in the future, and immediate
15drought response programs, which will reduce water demand or
16increase supply within one to five years of any declared drought.

17(f) Building resilient communities by developing urban greening
18projects that reduce air pollution and heat reflection in urban areas
19and create livable, sustainable communities in urban cores to
20promote infill development and reduce vehicle miles traveled.

21(g) Protecting and enhancing habitat, species strongholds, and
22wildlife corridors that are critical to the preservation of species
23that are at risk from the consequences of climate change.

24

71156.  

For the purposes of implementing the objectives of this
25part, the agency, to the extent feasible and in coordination with
26the council, shall identify and coordinate opportunities among its
27departments in expending moneys from all of the following:

28(a) The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, created pursuant to
29Section 16428.8 of the Government Code.

30(b) The Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement
31Act of 2014, approved by the voters as Proposition 1 at the
32November 4, 2014, statewide general election.

33(c) Other state funds.

34

71158.  

The agency shall assess and coordinate across all state
35departments and agencies to identify opportunities that increase
36the ability for state and local infrastructure, people, and habitat
37and wildlife to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

38

SEC. 3.  

Section 75125 of the Public Resources Code is
39amended to read:

40

75125.  

The council shall do all of the following:

P6    1(a) Identify and review activities and funding programs of
2member state agencies that may be coordinated to improve air and
3water quality, improve natural resource protection, increase the
4availability of affordable housing, improve transportation, meet
5the goals of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006
6(Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the Health
7and Safety Code), encourage sustainable land use planning, and
8revitalize urban and community centers in a sustainable manner.
9At a minimum, the council shall review and comment on the
10five-year infrastructure plan developed pursuant to Article 2
11(commencing with Section 13100) of Chapter 2 of Part 3 of
12Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code and the State
13Environmental Goals and Policy Report developed pursuant to
14Section 65041 of the Government Code.

15(b) Recommend policies and investment strategies and priorities
16to the Governor, the Legislature, and to appropriate state agencies
17to encourage the development of sustainable communities, such
18as those communities that promote equity, strengthen the economy,
19protect the environment, and promote public health and safety,
20consistent with subdivisions (a) and (c) of Section 75065.

21(c) Provide, fund, and distribute data and information to local
22governments and regional agencies that will assist in developing
23and planning sustainable communities.

24(d) Manage and award grants and loans to support the planning
25and development of sustainable communities, pursuant to Sections
2675127, 75128, and 75129. To implement this subdivision, the
27council may do all of the following:

28(1) Develop guidelines for awarding financial assistance,
29including criteria for eligibility and additional consideration.

30(2) Develop criteria for determining the amount of financial
31assistance to be awarded. The council shall award a revolving loan
32to an applicant for a planning project, unless the council determines
33that the applicant lacks the fiscal capacity to carry out the project
34without a grant. The council may establish criteria that would allow
35the applicant to illustrate an ongoing commitment of financial
36resources to ensure the completion of the proposed plan or project.

37(3) Provide for payments of interest on loans made pursuant to
38this article. The rate of interest shall not exceed the rate earned by
39the Pooled Money Investment Board.

P7    1(4) Provide for the time period for repaying a loan made
2pursuant to this article.

3(5) Provide for the recovery of funds from an applicant that fails
4to complete the project for which financial assistance was awarded.
5The council shall direct the Controller to recover funds by any
6available means.

7(6) Provide technical assistance for application preparation.

8(7) Designate a state agency or department to administer
9technical and financial assistance programs for the disbursing of
10grants and loans to support the planning and development of
11sustainable communities, pursuant to Sections 75127, 75128, and
1275129.

13(e) Provide an annual report to the Legislature that shall include,
14but need not be limited to, all of the following:

15(1) A list of applicants for financial assistance.

16(2) Identification of which applications were approved.

17(3) The amounts awarded for each approved application.

18(4) The remaining balance of available funds.

19(5) A report on the proposed or ongoing management of each
20funded project.

21(6) Any additional minimum requirements and priorities for a
22project or plan proposed in a grant or loan application developed
23and adopted by the council pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section
2475126.

25(f) Aid the Natural Resources Agency in overseeing and
26coordinating state agency actions to adapt to climate change.

27(g) Aid the Natural Resources Agency in identifying and
28pursuing opportunities for state agencies to collaborate with federal
29or local agencies in their climate adaptation efforts.



O

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