BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1833
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 4, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Jim Frazier, Chair
AB 1833
(Linder) - As Amended March 16, 2016
SUBJECT: Transportation projects: environmental mitigation
SUMMARY: Creates an advanced mitigation program within the
California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to accelerate
project delivery. Specifically, this bill:
1)Creates an Advanced Mitigation Program within Caltrans to
streamline the environmental process and accelerate project
delivery.
2)Requires Caltrans to establish, no later than February 1,
2017, an interagency transportation advanced mitigation
steering committee (Interagency Committee) consisting of
Caltrans and appropriate state and federal agencies.
3)Defines "advanced mitigation" as mitigation implemented
before, and in anticipation of, environmental effects of
future transportation projects.
4)Authorizes Caltrans to utilize a variety of mitigation
instruments including mitigation banks, in lieu fee programs,
AB 1833
Page 2
and conservation easements.
5)Authorizes Caltrans to use advanced mitigation credits to
fulfill mitigation requirements of any eligible State
Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) or State Highway
Operation and Protection Program (SHOPP) project.
6)Requires Caltrans to track all implemented advanced mitigation
for use as credits for environmental mitigation of
state-sponsored projects.
7)Requires the Interagency Committee to advise Caltrans on
opportunities to carry out advanced mitigation projects; to
develop streamlining opportunities with regard to alignment of
state and federal regulations and procedures related to
mitigation requirements and implementation; and to provide
input on crediting, using, and tracking advanced mitigation
investments.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Gives Caltrans authority and control over state highways.
2)Requires state and local agencies, pursuant to the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), to identify significant
environmental impacts of projects and to avoid or mitigate
those impacts, if feasible.
3)Requires, pursuant to CEQA, that lead agencies prepare a
negative declaration, mitigated negative declaration, or
environmental impact report with regard to project impacts.
AB 1833
Page 3
4)Pursuant to CEQA, the National Environmental Policy Act, and
numerous other state and federal laws, requires mitigation for
unavoidable impacts to certain resources as a result of a
project construction.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS: State and federal environmental laws have long
required mitigation as a means of compensating for adverse
impacts. While it is widely acknowledged that ecological
impacts should be first avoided or minimized and then restored
at the location where the impact occurs, many times unavoidable
losses occur and can only be addressed by replacing (mitigating)
the impacted habitat. For large infrastructure development
entities, like Caltrans, whose activities can result in a broad
range of impacts from small, temporary disturbances associated
with maintenance activities to large multi-acre impacts
associated with building bridges or highway alignments,
developing multiple small mitigation sites can be costly, time
consuming, and result in fragmented habitats.
To address these issues, both state and regional entities have
utilized advanced mitigation as a way to provide high quality
replacement habitat, achieve economies of scale in its
development, and reduce project delivered delays. For the most
part, Caltrans has greater experience developing smaller-scale
advanced mitigation sites in comparison to regionally-led
efforts where large-scale mitigation, some exceeding 500 acres,
is more the norm.
AB 1833
Page 4
One of the reasons Caltrans more frequently performs
smaller-scale advanced mitigation is that it must rely, almost
exclusively, on funds from individual project budgets. Since
project funds are not available far enough in advance, it is not
possible for them to complete the costly and time consuming
steps needed to complete advanced mitigation before the project
goes to construction and mitigation credits are needed.
Regionally-based advanced mitigation efforts, on the other hand,
are distinguished by their large scale, both in term of land
area and financial commitment. Advanced mitigation efforts
undertaken by regional entities in California are typically
funded by local developer fees, bonds, grants and, sometime,
sales taxes. They also result in the protection of large land
areas, sometimes up to 500 acres. Additionally, it can take
regional entities decades to complete the mitigation site and
make it ready for use as project mitigation. Also, costs to
complete advanced mitigation can range from tens of millions to
billions of dollars.
Committee concerns: By introducing AB 1833, the author seeks to
provide Caltrans with the tools it needs to develop an advanced
mitigation program so that greater project environmental
streamlining can be achieved. While this is laudable, it can be
argued that Caltrans already possesses and exercises much of the
authority this bill provides. It could also be argued, however,
that by setting a deadline in statute, AB 1833 provides Caltrans
with incentive to move forward with advanced mitigation efforts.
Unfortunately, what this bill does not provide is the
AB 1833
Page 5
desperately needed funding mechanism to ensure that Caltrans can
successfully create advance mitigation.
Double referral: This bill will be referred to the Assembly
Natural Resources Committee should it pass out of this
committee.
Related legislation: SB 901 (Bates) is identical to this bill
with the exception that SB 901 requires that Caltrans set aside
at least $30 million annually for the program from the STIP and
SHOPP and that the CTC allocate those funds consistent with the
Advanced Mitigation Program. AB 901 is awaiting a hearing in
the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
None on file
Opposition
AB 1833
Page 6
California League of Conservation Voters
Sierra Club California
Analysis Prepared by:Victoria Alvarez / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093