BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1579
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Date of Hearing: March 29, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS, AND WILDLIFE
Marc Levine, Chair
AB 1579
(Travis Allen) - As Introduced January 5, 2016
SUBJECT: Parks and monuments: operating leases or agreements
SUMMARY: Extends from 20 days to 30 days the time period the
Legislature has to review a proposed state park lease agreement
before it can be approved by the State Public Works Board.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Extends from 20 days to 30 days the time period the
Legislature has to review a proposed state park operating
lease, agreement or amendment before it can be approved by the
State Public Works Board;
2)Makes other technical corrections to update this code section.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Authorizes the Department of Parks & Recreation (DPR) to enter
into an operating or lease agreement with another public
agency for the care, maintenance, administration, and control,
of lands for the purpose of the state park system.
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2)Prohibits an operating lease or agreement between DPR and
another public agency from being entered into or amended
unless one of the following occurs:
a) The Legislature reviews the lease, agreement or
amendment as part of the annual budget process, or
b) Following enactment of the annual Budget Act, the
State Public Works Board does all of the following:
i. Determines that the proposed lease or
agreement could not have been presented to the
Legislature for review during the annual budget
process, and it would be adverse to the public
interest to defer the review until the next budget
process; and
ii. Reviews and approves the lease or
agreement not sooner than 20 days after the board
provides written notification to the Chairperson of
the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and Senate
and Assembly fiscal committees.
c) Requires that any such action taken by the State
Public Works Board is reported to the Legislature in the
next Governor's Budget.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS: This bill extends from 20 days to 30 days the time
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period the Legislature has to review a proposed state park lease
agreement before it can be approved by the State Public Works
Board.
1)Author's Statement: The author indicates he has introduced
this bill to provide more time for public review of lease
agreements for state parks. The current law allows a limited
amount of time for review before the state enters into a
contract for management and operation of a park, which may be
for decades and millions of dollars. The author notes that
other similar state procedures typically allow for 30 days of
public comment and review.
2)Background: The current law requires that operating
agreements and lease agreements between DPR and other public
agencies and entities be approved by the Legislature as part
of the annual budget process. The statute provides an
alternative process for approval of a lease agreement by the
State Public Works Board, when proposed agreements are
proposed after the budget has been enacted and the State
Public Works Board determines that it is not in the interest
of the public to wait for the agreement to be approved the
following year. In that case, the State Public Works Board
must provide the Legislature with 20 day notice before
approving the proposed agreement. This bill would extend the
legislative notice requirement to 30 days. This bill also
makes technical changes to update this code section to reflect
the Legislature's current standing committees.
3)Prior and Related Legislation: This bill is substantially
similar to the introduced version of AB 232 (Allen) of 2015,
which passed this committee on consent. That bill was later
gutted and amended to address an unrelated issue regarding
hospital seismic safety which was authored by Assemblymember
Obernolte.
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AB 2549 (Assembly Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee), a
committee bill introduced this year by this committee would
also amend the same code section as this bill. AB 2549 would
similarly increase the legislative notice requirement from 20
to 30 days, but would also streamline the process by having
the proposed lease agreements go through the Joint Legislative
Budget Committee rather than through the state budget process
or State Public Works Board. If both bills move forward, the
conflict between the two bills will need to be resolved at
some point in the legislative process, and to avoid chaptering
out problems.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
None on file.
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Diane Colborn / W., P., & W. / (916)
319-2096
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