BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1845|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1845
Author: Dahle (R)
Amended: 8/2/16 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE: 9-0, 6/14/16
AYES: Pavley, Stone, Allen, Hertzberg, Hueso, Jackson,
Monning, Vidak, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 4/21/16 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Protected species: take: rough sculpin
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill establishes conditions to authorize the take
of rough sculpin, a fully protected fish species, as part of the
replacement of a bridge in Shasta County.
Senate Floor Amendments of 8/2/16 avoid
chaptering out so that this bill and other bills dealing with
fully protected species that amend the same section of law would
be effective if any combination of them are signed by the
Governor. The other two bills are AB 2001 (Dahle) and AB 2488
(Dababneh).
ANALYSIS:
AB 1845
Page 2
Existing law:
1)Prohibits the taking or possession of species listed as fully
protected fish except as specified. The species that are
classified as fully protected fish include, but are not
limited to, the rough sculpin.
2)Authorizes Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) to authorize
the taking of a fully protected fish species whose
conservation and management is provided for in a Natural
Community Conservation Plan approved by DFW.
3)Authorizes DFW to authorize incidental take of the fully
protected unarmored threespine stickleback fish, and the fully
protected limestone salamander, under certain limited
circumstances, provided specified criteria and standards are
met for minimization, mitigation, non-jeopardy, and
conservation.
4)Provides for the listing of species as threatened or
endangered under federal and state endangered species acts.
The DFW may issue permits for incidental take of listed
species, if specified conditions are met, including
mitigation, minimization, and adaptive management
requirements.
This bill:
1)Authorizes the DFW to authorize the take of rough sculpin, a
fully protected fish, resulting from repair of Spring Creek
Bridge in Shasta County if the following specified conditions
are met:
a) Requirements of the California Endangered Species Act
are met, including that the take is incidental to an
AB 1845
Page 3
otherwise lawful activity, the impacts are minimized and
fully mitigated, adequate funding is provided for
monitoring, and the take permit will not jeopardize the
continued existence of the species.
b) Measures necessary to meet a conservation standard are
incorporated into the project.
c) A mitigation and adaptive management program will be
provided until the department determines that any impacts
resulting from the replacement of the Spring Creek Bridge
have been fully mitigated.
2)Provides that this authorization for take of rough sculpin
shall not be construed to exempt the project from any other
law.
3)States legislative findings and declarations regarding the
Spring Creek Bridge at Fall River, its importance in providing
access to ranches, residences and United States Forest Service
lands, and the need of the County of Shasta for take
authorization regarding rough sculpin in order to maintain
that access.
4)Makes other technical conforming changes.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified8/1/16)
Prather Ranch
Shasta County Board of Supervisors
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/1/16)
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Page 4
Sierra Club California
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to background information
provided by the author, the Spring Creek Bridge is deteriorating
and in need of repair. Shasta County initiated a project to
replace the bridge in 2008. The bridge is a 150 foot long,
multi-span, wood structure constructed in 1950. It is load
limited to three tons. The wood structure, constantly exposed to
water, is in a constant state of decay requiring significant and
ongoing maintenance. Caltrans bridge inspection records indicate
that out of 200 bridges in Shasta County, this bridge is in the
worst condition. The bridge provides access to ranches,
including nine residences, and U.S. Forest Service lands. If the
bridge is closed, residents would be required to take a 10-mile
detour to Fall River Mills on narrow roads that would be
impassable in winter. In 2009, an environmental study revealed
the presence of rough sculpin in the Fall River, which is
protected under California law as a fully protected fish
species. The rough sculpin, Cottus asperrimus, is the smallest
member of the fish family Cottidae, at approximately 3-4 inches
in length. The species occurs only in Shasta County in the Pit
River, in the Burney Falls area, including Hat Creek, Fall River
and its tributaries, in the upper reaches of Lake Britton near
Hat Creek, and in Crystal Lake.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: Sierra Club California's
opposition letter pre-dates the amendments. It requested that
the bill specify that the environmental impacts of the project
are mitigated, that a biologist be on site during construction,
and that a monitoring and adaptive management program be
developed. All of these, except the biologist on site, have been
incorporated into the bill.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 4/21/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, 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, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto,
Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper,
AB 1845
Page 5
Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim,
Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis,
Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte,
O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Quirk, Rodriguez, Salas,
Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
NO VOTE RECORDED: Ridley-Thomas
Prepared by:William Craven / N.R. & W. / (916) 651-4116
8/3/16 18:54:24
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