BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1958|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1958
Author: Wood (D)
Amended: 8/4/16 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE: 6-2, 6/28/16
AYES: Pavley, Allen, Hertzberg, Hueso, Jackson, Monning
NOES: Stone, Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/11/16
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza, Nielsen
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 5/31/16 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Forestry: timberlands: restoration and
conservation forest management activities
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill creates an exemption for the restoration of
oak woodlands that would allow landowners to remove conifer
trees that are crowding out oaks provided various restrictions
are met and have the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
(CAL FIRE) report on the effectiveness of the many exemptions in
the Forest Practices Act and its implementing regulations.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
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Page 2
1)Prohibits timber operations unless a timber harvest plan (THP)
has been prepared by a registered professional forester and
approved by the California Department of Forestry (CDF).
2)Considers a THP the functional equivalent of an environmental
impact report under the California Environmental Quality Act.
3)Requires a THP to contain a description of the location of the
planned harvest, the harvest method, measures to avoid
excessive erosion, timeframe of operations, and other
information required by forest practice rules adopted by the
Board of Forestry (Board).
4)Requires any person who owns timberlands that are to be
devoted to uses other than the growing of timber to file a
timberland conversion permit with the Board. Prohibits the
Board from approving a timberland conversion permit unless the
Board makes written findings.
5)Exempts many timber removal activities from the regulatory
requirements of THPs, including Christmas tree farms,
right-of-ways for utility lines, conversions of less than
three acres, fire prevention, defensible space, and dead,
dying, and diseased trees. Exemptions are often ministerial,
requiring no multi-agency review, but are subject to
inspection by CDF.
This bill:
1)Proposes to exempt the removal of trees from the normal
requirements of a THP in order to restore and conserve
California's black or Oregon white oak woodlands and
associated grasslands under certain conditions.
2)Adds additional provisions that the notice of exemption be
prepared by a registered professional forester and that it
contain specified mapping and information about the site. No
trees larger than 26 inches in diameter at stump height may be
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removed, and only conifers within 300 feet of a California
black or Oregon white oak that are a minimum four inches in
diameter at breast height may be removed. There are other
conditions that the registered professional must comply with
as well.
3)Requires a report from CAL FIRE on the trends in the use of,
compliance with, and effectiveness of all the exemptions and
emergency notice provisions and any recommendations to improve
the use of those exemptions.
Background
As indicated by the University of California, Agriculture and
Natural Resources, Cooperative Extension office in Eureka, there
are clear patterns of conifer encroachment in white oak and
black oak systems across the North Coast region. Even young
conifers are larger than many older oak trees, and the dominance
of trees like Douglas firs can occur in as little as 50 years.
Oaks woodlands have conservation values that are worthy of
preservation as biological hotspots, and as fire- and
drought-resistant woodlands.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
One-time costs of $132,000 (Timber Regulation and Forest
Restoration Fund) to CalFIRE for equipment purchases.
Ongoing costs of $433,000 annually (Timber Regulation and
Forest Restoration Fund) to CalFIRE for staffing necessary to
implement the exemption.
Minor costs to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife
and the regional water quality control boards to review
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required report and provide comments.
SUPPORT: (Verified 8/12/16)
Pacific Birds Habitat Joint Venture
Pacific Forest Trust
Rural County Representatives of California
The Nature Conservancy
Trust for Public Land
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/12/16)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author, oak woodlands
are the most biodiverse terrestrial ecosystems in California and
are disappearing at a rapid rate. In some parts of the state, a
significant issue is the encroachment of conifers in oak
woodlands. Conifers grow rapidly and quickly provide excessive
shade that kills oaks, some of which have survived for hundreds
of years. Historically, low intensity, but frequent fires
prevented this phenomenon, but under our current fire regime the
firs are successfully choking out the oaks.
AB 1958, the author states, clarifies that restoring oak
woodlands through the removal of conifers does not require a THP
from landowners who want to restore their oak woodlands.
Pacific Birds, a habitat joint venture of public agencies and
nonprofits, points out that habitat losses in oak woodlands
exceed 90 percent in some areas and several oak-dependent bird
species have been extirpated from significant portions of the
region because of conifers becoming increasingly dominant in
many oak woodlands. This group states that this bill enables
private landowners who are interested in oak woodland
restoration to face fewer hurdles in accomplishing that goal.
This view is shared by the Rural County Representatives of
California.
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ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 5/31/16
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,
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, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,
Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting,
Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
Prepared by:William Craven / N.R. & W. / (916) 651-4116
8/15/16 20:06:38
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