BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2488
Page 1
(Without Reference to File)
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
2488 (Dababneh)
As Amended August 19, 2016
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |79-0 |(May 5, 2016) |SENATE: |39-0 |(August 24, |
| | | | | |2016) |
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Original Committee Reference: W., P., & W.
SUMMARY: Permits the Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) to
authorize the take of unarmored threespine stickleback, a fully
protected fish species, attributable to maintenance of the
Metropolitan Water District (MWD) of Southern California's
Foothill Feeder water supply facility.
The Senate amendments:
1)Add additional legislative findings and declarations that MWD
consult with the DFW and the United States Fish and Wildlife
AB 2488
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Service when applying for a permit under this bill, regarding
feasible mitigation and conservation measures that may be
adopted, and that the measures be consistent with state and
federal wildlife agency recovery plans adopted for the
long-term conservation of the unarmored threespine stickleback
in the Santa Clara River watershed.
2)Clarify that the incidental take authorized under this bill
may cover take attributable to repair, including emergency
repair.
3)Add several additional conditions that must be met for the
take authorization to be issued, including that the
authorization provide for measures to satisfy a conservation
standard, that MWD consult with the DFW on feasible measures
to avoid and minimize take, and that the permit include
conditions to cover biological and scientific considerations,
including handling and relocation of stranded fish,
dewatering, and streamflows.
4)Require that the permit conditions be in compliance with the
mitigation measures and a release plan set forth in a
specified environmental impact report (EIR). Allow for the
permit conditions to be amended as required by the adaptive
management plan or the final EIR.
5)Clarify that this bill does not exempt the project from any
other law.
6)Require that MWD report to the DFW within six months after
every dewatering of the Foothill Feeder, as specified, and
that the report be made available to the public.
7)Add technical language to avoid chaptering out problems with
AB 1845 (Dahle) and AB 2001 (Mathis), in the event that these
bills also pass and amend the same code sections.
AB 2488
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EXISTING LAW:
1)Prohibits the taking or possession of a species listed as a
fully protected fish except as specified. The species that
are classified as fully protected fish include but are not
limited to the unarmored threespine stickleback.
2)Permits the 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 the DFW.
3)Permits the DFW to authorize incidental take of the fully
protected unarmored threespine stickleback, 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, monitoring and non-jeopardy requirements.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible if any state
costs.
COMMENTS: This bill authorizes the DFW to issue an incidental
take permit for activities related to routine maintenance and
repair, including dewatering and emergency repair, of the
Foothill Feeder pipeline in Southern California, in order to
authorize MWD to capture and relocate unarmored threespine
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stickleback, a fully protected fish species, if certain
specified conditions are met. In order to protect southern
California water supplies, the periodic dewatering, inspection,
maintenance, modification, and repair of the Foothill Feeder is
necessary, and to complete these actions an incidental take
permit for unarmored threespine stickleback is required. The
conditions that would be required for the permit include
feasible measures to avoid and minimize the take, mitigation and
conservation, and development of an adaptive management plan.
The Senate amendments add additional conditions that must be met
for the take authorization to be issued, including biological
and scientific considerations and criteria for handling and
relocation of the fish into suitable habitat, and also added a
reporting requirement. The amendments also require the
conditions in the permit to be consistent with mitigation
measures specified in an EIR prepared for the project, and make
other clarifying changes.
Analysis Prepared by:
Diane Colborn / W., P., & W. / (916) 319-2096
FN:
0004770