Amended in Senate June 21, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 7, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 29, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1958


Introduced by Assembly Member Wood

February 12, 2016


An act to amend Sections 4584 and 4621 of the Public Resources Code, relating to forestry.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1958, as amended, Wood. Forestry: timberlands: restoration and conservation forest management activities.

The Z’berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973 prohibits a person from conducting timber operations, as defined, unless a timber harvesting plan prepared by a registered professional forester has been submitted to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The act authorizes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection to exempt from some or all of those provisions of the act a person engaging in specified forest management activities.

This bill would also, until 7 years after the effective date of regulations adopted by the board implementing the provisions of the bill, authorize the board to exempt a person cutting or removing trees in specified areas, including through commercial harvest, to restore and conserve California black or Oregon white oak woodlands and associated grasslands, as specified.begin insert The bill would require the department to evaluate the effects of this authorization and make recommendations based on that evaluation to the Legislature.end insert

Existing law also requires a person who owns timberlands that are to be devoted to uses other than the growing of timber to file an application for conversion with the board and requires the board to establish a system of graduated timberland conversion permit fees.

This bill would define “growing of timber,” for these purposes, to include restoration and conservation forest management activities, which may include the removal of commercial species, if necessary to achieve specific forest health and ecological goals, that are not conducted in conjunction with the cutting or removal of trees or other forest products during the conversion of timberlands to other uses.

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.  

Section 4584 of the Public Resources Code is
2amended to read:

3

4584.  

Upon determining that the exemption is consistent with
4the purposes of this chapter, the board may exempt from this
5chapter, or portions of this chapter, a person engaged in forest
6management whose activities are limited to any of the following:

7(a) The cutting or removal of trees for the purpose of
8constructing or maintaining a right-of-way for utility lines.

9(b) The planting, growing, nurturing, shaping, shearing, removal,
10or harvest of immature trees for Christmas trees or other ornamental
11purposes or minor forest products, including fuelwood.

12(c) The cutting or removal of dead, dying, or diseased trees of
13any size.

14(d) Site preparation.

15(e) Maintenance of drainage facilities and soil stabilization
16treatments.

17(f) Timber operations on land managed by the Department of
18Parks and Recreation.

19(g) (1) The one-time conversion of less than three acres to a
20nontimber use. A person, whether acting as an individual, as a
21member of a partnership, or as an officer or employee of a
22corporation or other legal entity, shall not obtain more than one
23exemption pursuant to this subdivision in a five-year period. If a
24partnership has as a member, or if a corporation or other legal
25entity has as an officer or employee, a person who has received
P3    1this exemption within the past five years, whether as an individual,
2as a member of a partnership, or as an officer or employee of a
3corporation or other legal entity, then that partnership, corporation,
4or other legal entity is not eligible for this exemption. “Person,”
5for purposes of this subdivision, means an individual, partnership,
6corporation, or other legal entity.

7(2) (A) Notwithstanding Section 4554.5, the board shall adopt
8regulations that do all of the following:

9(i) Identify the required documentation of a bona fide intent to
10complete the conversion that an applicant will need to submit in
11order to be eligible for the exemption in paragraph (1).

12(ii) Authorize the department to inspect the sites approved in
13conversion applications that have been approved on or after January
141, 2002, in order to determine that the conversion was completed
15within the two-year period described in subparagraph (B) of
16paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 1104.1 of Title 14 of
17the California Code of Regulations.

18(iii) Require the exemption pursuant to this subdivision to expire
19if there is a change in timberland ownership. The person who
20originally submitted an application for an exemption pursuant to
21this subdivision shall notify the department of a change in
22timberland ownership on or before five calendar days after a change
23in ownership.

24(iv) The board may adopt regulations allowing a waiver of the
25five-year limitation described in paragraph (1) upon finding that
26the imposition of the five-year limitation would impose an undue
27hardship on the applicant for the exemption. The board may adopt
28a process for an appeal of a denial of a waiver.

29(B) The application form for the exemption pursuant to
30paragraph (1) shall prominently advise the public that a violation
31of the conversion exemption, including a conversion applied for
32in the name of someone other than the person or entity
33implementing the conversion in bona fide good faith, is a violation
34of this chapter and penalties may accrue up to ten thousand dollars
35($10,000) for each violation pursuant to Article 8 (commencing
36with Section 4601).

37(h) An easement granted by a right-of-way construction
38agreement administered by the federal government if timber sales
39and operations within or affecting the area are reviewed and
P4    1conducted pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of
21969 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 4321 et seq.).

3(i) (1) The cutting or removal of trees in compliance with
4Sections 4290 and 4291 that eliminates the vertical continuity of
5vegetative fuels and the horizontal continuity of tree crowns for
6the purpose of reducing flammable materials and maintaining a
7fuel break for a distance of not more than 150 feet on each side
8from an approved and legally permitted structure that complies
9with the California Building Standards Code, when that cutting or
10removal is conducted in compliance with this subdivision. For
11purposes of this subdivision, an “approved and legally permitted
12structure” includes only structures that are designed for human
13occupancy and garages, barns, stables, and structures used to
14enclose fuel tanks.

15(2) (A) The cutting or removal of trees pursuant to this
16subdivision is limited to cutting or removal that will result in a
17reduction in the rate of fire spread, fire duration and intensity, fuel
18ignitability, or ignition of the tree crowns and shall be in
19accordance with any regulations adopted by the board pursuant to
20this section.

21(B) Trees shall not be cut or removed pursuant to this
22subdivision by the clearcutting regeneration method, by the seed
23tree removal step of the seed tree regeneration method, or by the
24shelterwood removal step of the shelterwood regeneration method.

25(3) (A) Surface fuels, including logging slash and debris, low
26brush, and deadwood, that could promote the spread of wildfire
27shall be chipped, burned, or otherwise removed from all areas of
28timber operations within 45 days from the date of commencement
29of timber operations pursuant to this subdivision.

30(B) (i) All surface fuels that are not chipped, burned, or
31otherwise removed from all areas of timber operations within 45
32days from the date of commencement of timber operations may
33be determined to be a nuisance and subject to abatement by the
34department or the city or county having jurisdiction.

35(ii) The costs incurred by the department, city, or county, as the
36case may be, to abate the nuisance upon a parcel of land subject
37to the timber operations, including, but not limited to, investigation,
38boundary determination, measurement, and other related costs,
39may be recovered by special assessment and lien against the parcel
40of land by the department, city, or county. The assessment may
P5    1be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary
2ad valorem taxes, and shall be subject to the same penalties and
3the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as is provided
4for ad valorem taxes.

5(4) All timber operations conducted pursuant to this subdivision
6shall conform to applicable city or county general plans, city or
7county implementing ordinances, and city or county zoning
8ordinances. This paragraph does not authorize the cutting, removal,
9or sale of timber or other solid wood forest products within an area
10where timber harvesting is prohibited or otherwise restricted
11pursuant to the rules or regulations adopted by the board.

12(5) (A) The board shall adopt regulations, initially as emergency
13regulations in accordance with subparagraph (B), that the board
14considers necessary to implement and to obtain compliance with
15this subdivision.

16(B) The emergency regulations adopted pursuant to
17subparagraph (A) shall be adopted in accordance with the
18Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with
19Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
20Code). The adoption of emergency regulations shall be deemed to
21be an emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of
22the public peace, health, and safety, or general welfare.

23(6) (A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the board may exempt
24from this chapter, or portions of this chapter, a person engaged in
25forest management whose activities are limited to the cutting or
26removal of trees on the person’s property in compliance with
27Sections 4290 and 4291 that eliminates the vertical continuity of
28vegetative fuels and the horizontal continuity of tree crowns for
29the purpose of reducing flammable materials and maintaining a
30fuel break for a distance of not more than 300 feet on each side
31from an approved and legally permitted habitable structure, when
32that cutting or removal is conducted in compliance with this
33subdivision and all of the following conditions are met:

34(i) The notice of exemption is prepared, signed, and submitted
35by a registered professional forester to the department.

36(ii) For the areas between 150 and 300 feet from the habitable
37structure, the operations meet all of the following provisions:

38(I) The residual stocking standards are consistent with Sections
39913.2, 933.2, and 953.2 of Title 14 of the California Code of
40Regulations, as appropriate.

P6    1(II) Activities within this area will increase the quadratic mean
2diameter of the stand.

3(III) The residual stand consists primarily of healthy and
4vigorous dominant and codominant trees from the preharvest stand,
5well distributed though the harvested area.

6(IV) Postharvest slash treatment and stand conditions will lead
7to more moderate fire behavior in the professional judgment of
8the registered professional forester who submits the notice of
9exemption.

10(V) Any additional guidance for slash treatment and postharvest
11stand conditions and any other issues deemed necessary that are
12consistent with this section, as established by the board.

13(B) For purposes of this paragraph, “habitable structure” means
14a building that contains one or more dwelling units or that can be
15occupied for residential use. Buildings occupied for residential
16use include single family homes, multidwelling structures, mobile
17and manufactured homes, and condominiums. For purposes of this
18paragraph “habitable structure” does not include commercial,
19industrial, or incidental buildings such as detached garages, barns,
20outdoor sanitation facilities, and sheds.

21(C) The department shall evaluate the effects of this paragraph
22and shall report its recommendations, before the paragraph becomes
23inoperative, to the Legislature based on that evaluation. The report
24shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the
25Government Code.

26(D) The board shall adopt regulations to implement this
27paragraph no later than January 1, 2016.

28(E) This paragraph shall become inoperative three years after
29the effective date of regulations adopted by the board pursuant to
30subparagraph (D) but no later than January 1, 2019.

31(j) (1) The harvesting of trees, limited to those trees that
32eliminate the vertical continuity of vegetative fuels and the
33horizontal continuity of tree crowns, for the purpose of reducing
34the rate of fire spread, duration and intensity, fuel ignitability, or
35ignition of tree crowns.

36(2) The board may authorize an exemption pursuant to paragraph
37(1) only if the tree harvesting will decrease fuel continuity and
38increase the quadratic mean diameter of the stand, and the tree
39harvesting area will not exceed 300 acres.

P7    1(3) Except as provided in paragraph (11), the notice of
2exemption, which shall be known as the Forest Fire Prevention
3Exemption, may be authorized only if all of the conditions specified
4in paragraphs (4) to (10), inclusive, are met.

5(4) A registered professional forester shall prepare the notice
6of exemption and submit it to the director, and include a map of
7the area of timber operations that complies with the requirements
8of paragraphs (1), (3), (4), and (7) to (12), inclusive, of subdivision
9(x) of Section 1034 of Title 14 of the California Code of
10Regulations.

11(5) (A) The registered professional forester who submits the
12notice of exemption shall include a description of the preharvest
13stand structure and a statement of the postharvest stand stocking
14levels.

15(B) The level of residual stocking shall be consistent with
16maximum sustained production of high-quality timber products.
17The residual stand shall consist primarily of healthy and vigorous
18dominant and codominant trees from the preharvest stand. Stocking
19shall not be reduced below the standards required by any of the
20following provisions that apply to the exemption at issue:

21(i) Clauses 1 to 4, inclusive, of subparagraph (A) of paragraph
22(1) of subdivision (a) of Section 913.3 of Title 14 of the California
23Code of Regulations.

24(ii) Clauses 1 to 4, inclusive, of subparagraph (A) of paragraph
25(1) of subdivision (a) of Section 933.3 of Title 14 of the California
26Code of Regulations.

27(iii) Clauses 1 to 4, inclusive, of subparagraph (A) of paragraph
28(1) of subdivision (a) of Section 953.3 of Title 14 of the California
29Code of Regulations.

30(C) If the preharvest dominant and codominant crown canopy
31is occupied by trees less than 14 inches in diameter at breast height,
32a minimum of 100 trees over four inches in diameter at breast
33height shall be retained per acre for Site I, II, and III lands, and a
34minimum of 75 trees over four inches in diameter at breast height
35shall be retained per acre for Site IV and V lands.

36(6) (A) The registered professional forester who submits the
37notice shall include selection criteria for the trees to be harvested
38or the trees to be retained. In the development of fuel reduction
39prescriptions, the registered professional forester should consider
40retaining habitat elements, where feasible, including, but not
P8    1limited to, ground level cover necessary for the long-term
2management of local wildlife populations.

3(B) All trees that are harvested or all trees that are retained shall
4be marked or sample markedbegin delete byend deletebegin insert by,end insert or under the supervisionbegin delete ofend delete
5begin insert of,end insert a registered professional forester before felling operations begin.
6The board shall adopt regulations for sample marking for this
7section in Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations. Sample
8marking shall be limited to homogenous forest stand conditions
9typical of plantations.

10(7) (A) The registered professional forester submitting the
11notice, upon submission of the notice, shall provide a confidential
12archaeology letter that includes all the information required by
13any of the following provisions that apply to the exemption at
14issue:

15(i) Paragraphs (2) and (7) to (11), inclusive, of subdivision (c)
16of Section 929.1 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations,
17and include site records if required pursuant to subdivision (g) of
18that section or pursuant to Section 929.5 of Title 14 of the
19California Code of Regulations.

20(ii) Paragraphs (2) and (7) to (11), inclusive, of subdivision (c)
21of Section 949.1 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations,
22and include site records if required pursuant to subdivision (g) of
23that section or pursuant to Section 949.5 of Title 14 of the
24California Code of Regulations.

25(iii) Paragraphs (2) and (7) to (11), inclusive, of subdivision (c)
26of Section 969.1 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations,
27and include site records if required pursuant to subdivision (g) of
28that section or pursuant to Section 969.5 of Title 14 of the
29California Code of Regulations.

30(B) The director shall submit a complete copy of the confidential
31archaeological letter and two copies of all required archaeological
32or historical site records to the appropriate Information Center of
33the California Historical Resource Information System within 30
34days from the date of notice submittal to the director. Before
35submitting the notice to the director, the registered professional
36forester shall send a copy of the notice to Native Americans, as
37defined in Section 895.1 of Title 14 of the California Code of
38Regulations.

39(8) Only trees less than 18 inches in stump diameter, measured
40at eight inches above ground level, may be removed. However,
P9    1within 500 feet of a legally permitted structure, or in an area
2prioritized as a shaded fuel break in a community wildfire
3protection plan approved by a public fire agency, if the goal of
4fuel reduction cannot be achieved by removing trees less than 18
5inches in stump diameter, trees less than 24 inches in stump
6diameter may be removed if that removal complies with this section
7and is necessary to achieve the goal of fuel reduction. A fuel
8reduction effort shall not violate the canopy closure regulations
9adopted by the board on June 10, 2004, and as those regulations
10may be amended.

11(9) (A) This subparagraph applies to areas within 500 feet of
12a legally permitted structure and in areas prioritized as a shaded
13fuel break in a community wildfire protection plan approved by a
14public fire agency. The board shall adopt regulations for the
15treatment of surface and ladder fuels in the harvest area, including
16logging slash and debris, low brush, small trees, and deadwood,
17that could promote the spread of wildfire. The regulations adopted
18by the board shall be consistent with the standards in the board’s
19“General Guidelines for Creating Defensible Space” described in
20Section 1299.03 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations.
21Postharvest standards shall include vertical spacing between fuels,
22horizontal spacing between fuels, maximum depth of dead ground
23surface fuels, and treatment of standing dead fuels, as follows:

24(i) Ladder and surface fuels shall be spaced to achieve a vertical
25clearance distance of eight feet or three times the height of the
26postharvest fuels, whichever is the greater distance, measured from
27the base of the live crown of the postharvest dominant and
28codominant trees to the top of the surface fuels.

29(ii) Horizontal spacing shall achieve a minimum separation of
30two to six times the height of the postharvest fuels, increasing
31spacing with increasing slope, measured from the outside branch
32edges of the fuels.

33(iii) Dead surface fuel depth shall be less than nine inches.

34(iv) Standing dead or dying trees and brush generally shall be
35removed. That material, along with live vegetation associated with
36the dead vegetation, may be retained for wildlife habitat when
37isolated from other vegetation.

38(B) This subparagraph applies to all areas not described in
39subparagraph (A).

P10   1(i) The postharvest stand shall not contain more than 200 trees
2over three inches in diameter per acre.

3(ii) Vertical spacing shall be achieved by treating dead fuels to
4a minimum clearance distance of eight feet measured from the
5base of the live crown of the postharvest dominant and codominant
6trees to the top of the dead surface fuels.

7(iii) All logging slash created by the timber operations shall be
8treated to achieve a maximum postharvest depth of nine inches
9above the ground.

10(C) The standards required by subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall
11be achieved on approximately 80 percent of the treated area. The
12treatment shall include chipping, removing, or other methods
13necessary to achieve the standards. Ladder and surface fuel
14treatments, for any portion of the exemption area where timber
15operations have occurred, shall be done within 120 days from the
16start of timber operations on that portion of the exemption area or
17by April 1 of the year following surface fuel creation on that
18portion of the exemption area if the surface fuels are burned.

19(10) Timber operations shall comply with the requirements of
20paragraphs (1) to (10), inclusive, of subdivision (b) of Section
211038 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations. Timber
22operations in the Lake Tahoe region shall comply instead with the
23requirements of paragraphs (1) to (16), inclusive, of subdivision
24(f) of Section 1038 of Title 14 of the California Code of
25Regulations.

26(11) A notice of exemption, which shall be known as the Forest
27Fire Prevention Pilot Project Exemption, may be authorized if all
28of the following conditions are met:

29(A) The conditions specified in paragraphs (2), (4), (6), (7), and
30(10) are met.

31(B) Only trees less than 24 inches in stump diameter, measured
32at eight inches above ground level, may be removed. A fuel
33reduction effort shall not violate the canopy closure regulations
34adopted by the board on June 10, 2004, and as those regulations
35may be amended.

36(C) (i) The registered professional forester who submits the
37notice of exemption shall include a description of the preharvest
38stand structure and a statement of the postharvest stand stocking
39levels.

P11   1(ii) The level of residual stocking shall be consistent with
2maximum sustained production of high-quality timber products.
3The residual stand shall consist primarily of healthy and vigorous
4dominant and codominant trees from the preharvest stand. Where
5present prior to operations, the overstory canopy closure for trees
6greater than 12 inches in diameter at breast height shall not be
7reduced below 50 percent. Stocking shall be met with the largest
8trees available prior to harvest and shall not be reduced below the
9standards required by any of the following provisions that apply
10to the exemption at issue:

11(I) Clauses 1 to 4, inclusive, of subparagraph (A) of paragraph
12(1) of subdivision (a) of Section 913.3 of Title 14 of the California
13Code of Regulations.

14(II) Clauses 1 to 4, inclusive, of subparagraph (A) of paragraph
15 (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 933.3 of Title 14 of the California
16Code of Regulations.

17(III) Clauses 1 to 4, inclusive, of subparagraph (A) of paragraph
18(1) of subdivision (a) of Section 953.3 of Title 14 of the California
19Code of Regulations.

20(iii) If the preharvest dominant and codominant crown canopy
21is occupied by trees less than 14 inches in diameter at breast height,
22a minimum of 100 trees over four inches in diameter at breast
23height shall be retained per acre for Site I, II, and III lands, and a
24minimum of 75 trees over four inches in diameter at breast height
25shall be retained per acre for Site IV and V lands. The retained
26trees shall be the largest trees available prior to harvest.

27(D) The activities conducted pursuant to this paragraph occur
28in the Sierra Nevada Region as defined in subdivision (f) of Section
2933302, in Modoc, Siskiyou, or Trinity Counties, or in any
30combination of these areas.

31(E) All activities conducted pursuant to this paragraph occur
32within the most recent version of the department’s Fire Hazard
33Severity Zone Map in the moderate, high, and very high fire threat
34zones.

35(F) The department shall maintain records regarding the use of
36the exemption granted in this paragraph in order to evaluate the
37impact of the exemption on fuel reduction and natural resources
38in areas where the exemption has been used.

P12   1(G) This paragraph shall become inoperative three years after
2the effective date of regulations adopted by the board implementing
3this paragraph.

4(12) After the timber operations are complete, the department
5shall conduct an onsite inspection to determine compliance with
6this subdivision and whether appropriate enforcement action should
7be initiated.

8(k) The cutting or removal of trees, including through
9commercial harvest, to restore and conserve California black or
10Oregon white oak woodlands and associated grasslands, if all of
11the following requirements are met:

12(1) A registered professional forester shall prepare the notice
13of exemption and submit it to the director. The notice shall include
14all of the following:

15(A) A map of the area of timber operations that complies with
16the requirements of paragraphs (1), (3), (4), and (7) to (11),
17inclusive, of subdivision (x) of Section 1034 of Title 14 of the
18California Code of Regulations.

19(B) A certification signed by the registered professional forester
20thatbegin insert a minimum of 35 square feet of basal area per acre of
21California black or Oregon white oak, or both, occupy the
22proposed treatment area at the time the notice is prepared andend insert
the
23timber operation is designed to restore and conserve California
24black and Oregon white oak woodlands and associated grasslands.

25(C) A description of the preharvest stand structure and a
26statement of the postharvest stand stocking levels.

27(2) No tree begin delete 75 years of age or olderend delete begin insert larger than 26 inches in
28diameter at stump heightend insert
shall be harvested for commercial
29purposes, which includes use for saw logs, posts and poles, fuel
30wood, biomass, or other forest products.

begin insert

31
(3) Only conifers within 300 feet of a California black or Oregon
32white oak that are at minimum four inches in diameter at breast
33height may be harvested.

end insert
begin insert

34
(4) The total area exempted pursuant to this subdivision shall
35not exceed 300 acres per property per five-year period.

end insert
begin delete

36(3)

end delete

37begin insert(5)end insert Conifer shall be reduced to less than 25 percent of the
38combined hardwood and conifer postharvest stand stocking levels.

begin delete

39(4)

end delete

P13   1begin insert(6)end insert No more than 20 percentbegin insert of the total basal areaend insert of
2preexisting oak stock shall be cut or removed duringbegin delete harvest.end delete
3
begin insert harvest and a minimum of 35 square feet of basal area per acre
4of California black or Oregon white oak, or both, shall be
5maintained postharvest.end insert

begin delete

6(5)

end delete

7begin insert(7)end insert The registered professional forester submitting the notice,
8upon submission of the notice, shall provide a confidential
9archaeology letter that includes all the information required by
10paragraphs (2) and (7) to (11), inclusive, of subdivision (c) of
11Section 929.1 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations,
12and site records if required pursuant to subdivision (g) of that
13section or pursuant to Section 929.5 of Title 14 of the California
14Code of Regulations.

begin delete

15(6)

end delete

16begin insert(8)end insert All slash created by the timber operations shall be treated
17to achieve a maximum postharvest depth of 18 inches above the
18ground within 24 months of the date of the director receiving the
19notice. Slash shall be configured so as to minimize the risk of fire
20mortality to the remaining oak trees.

begin delete

21(7)

end delete

22begin insert(9)end insert Timber operations shall comply with the requirements of
23paragraphs (1) to (10), inclusive, of subdivision (b) of Section
241038 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations.

begin delete

25(8)

end delete

26begin insert(10)end insert On or before January 1, 2018, the board shall adopt
27regulations to implement this subdivision.

begin delete

28(9)

end delete

29begin insert(11)end insert This subdivision shall not apply to the Southern Subdistrict
30of the Coast Forest District, as defined in Section 895.1 of Title
3114 of the California Code of Regulations, or the Southern Forest
32District, as defined in Section 909 of Title 14 of the California
33Code of Regulations.

begin insert

34
(12) Within six years after the effective date of the regulations
35adopted by the board pursuant to paragraph (10), the department
36shall evaluate the effects of this subdivision and make
37recommendations based on that evaluation to the Legislature in
38a report submitted pursuant to Section 9795 of the Government
39Code.

end insert
begin delete

40(10)

end delete

P14   1begin insert(13)end insert This subdivision shall become inoperative seven years after
2the effective date of the regulations adopted by the board pursuant
3to paragraphbegin delete (8).end deletebegin insert (10).end insert

4

SEC. 2.  

Section 4621 of the Public Resources Code is amended
5to read:

6

4621.  

(a) A person who owns timberlands that are to be
7devoted to uses other than the growing of timber shall file an
8application for conversion with the board. The board shall, by
9regulation, prescribe the procedures for, and the form and content
10of, the application. An application for a timberland conversion
11permit shall be accompanied by an application fee, payable to the
12department, in an amount determined by the board pursuant to
13subdivision (b).

14(b) The board shall establish, by regulation, a system of
15graduated timberland conversion permit fees to finance the cost
16of administering this article.

17(c) For purposes of this section, “growing of timber” shall
18include restoration and conservation forest management activities,
19which may include the removal of commercial species, if necessary
20to achieve specific forest health and ecological goals, including
21the restoration and conservation of oak woodlands, grasslands,
22wet meadows, and other ecologically important or unique habitats,
23that are not conducted in conjunction with the cutting or removal
24of trees or other forest products during the conversion of
25timberlands for other uses, including, but not limited to, residential
26or commercial developments, production of other agricultural
27crops, recreational developments, ski developments, water
28development projects, and transportation projects.



O

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