BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 2616 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 18, 2016 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES Das Williams, Chair AB 2616 (Burke) - As Introduced April 12, 2016 SUBJECT: California Coastal Commission: membership: environmental justice SUMMARY: Increases the Coastal Commission (Commission) membership by three members who are required to work directly with communities in the state that are most burdened by, and vulnerable to, high levels of pollution and issues of environmental justice. Allows the Commission to address affordable housing and environmental justice concerns. EXISTING LAW: 1)Pursuant to the Coastal Act, a) Establishes the Commission in the Natural Resources Agency and requires the Commission to consist of 15 members (3 non-voting and 12 voting). b) Requires the membership of the Commission include six members of the public at large and six from local governments representatives from six coastal regions. c) Provides that the Governor, the Speaker of the Assembly, and Senate Rules Committee each appoint four of the AB 2616 Page 2 members. d) Requires the Governor, the Senate Committee on Rules, and the Speaker of the Assembly to make good faith efforts to assure that their appointments, as a whole, reflect, to the greatest extent feasible, the economic, social, and geographic diversity of the state. e) Requires a person planning to perform or undertake any development in the coastal zone to obtain a coastal development permit (CDP) from the Commission or local government enforcing a Local Coastal Program (LCP). f) Defines "development" to mean, among other things, the placement or erection of any solid material or structure on land or in water. "Structure" includes, but is not limited to, any building, road, pipe, flume, conduit, siphon, aqueduct, telephone line, and electrical power transmission and distribution line. g) Defines the "coastal zone" as the land and water area of the State of California from the Oregon border to the border of the Republic of Mexico, extending seaward to the state's outer limit of jurisdiction, including all offshore islands, and extending inland generally 1,000 yards from the mean high tide line of the sea. In significant coastal estuarine, habitat, and recreational areas, the coastal zone extends inland to the first major ridgeline paralleling the sea or five miles from the mean high tide line of the sea, whichever is less. In developed urban areas, the zone generally extends inland less than 1,000 yards. The coastal zone does not include the area of jurisdiction of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, nor any area contiguous thereto, including any river, stream, tributary, creek, or flood control or drainage channel flowing into such area. h) Requires lower cost visitor and recreational facilities to be protected, encouraged, and, where feasible, provided. AB 2616 Page 3 Declares a preference for developments providing public recreational opportunities. i) Prohibits LCP's from being required to include housing polies and programs. 2)Defines "environmental justice" to mean the fair treatment of people of all races, cultures, and incomes with respect to the development, adoption, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. THIS BILL: 1)Requires that housing opportunities for persons of low and moderate income to be protected, encouraged, and, where feasible, provided. 2)Adds three members to the Commission who are required to work directly with communities in the state that are most burdened by, and vulnerable to, high levels of pollution and issues of environmental justice. Specifies that the Governor, the Speaker of the Assembly, and Senate Rules Committee will each appoint one of these new members. 3)Eliminates prohibition on requiring housing polies and programs in LCPs. 4)Allows the Commission to consider environmental justice when acting on a CDP. FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown COMMENTS: AB 2616 Page 4 1)Author's statement: When the Coastal Act was originally passed it included broad policy language requiring the provision of affordable housing in the coastal zone for persons of low and moderate income. From 1976 to 1981 under this authority the Commission developed guidelines which stated, "Meaningful access to the coast requires housing opportunities as well as other forms of coastal access? If the coast is not to exclude the less affluent members of society and become an exclusive enclave of the wealthy, affordable housing must be protected, encouraged, and, where feasible, provided." As a result, between 1976 and 1981 the Commission approved approximately 5,000 affordable units with about two-thirds of them located in Southern California. In the years after the Coastal Act was adopted there were multiple attempts to undermine the Commission's authority over affordable housing. Unfortunately, in 1981, Senate Bill 626 (Ch. 1007, Statutes of 1981) by Senator Henry Mello repealed the Commission's statutory authority to protect and provide affordable housing for persons of low and moderate income in the coastal zone. As a result of the repeal, only about 1,000 affordable units were built, instead of the 5,000 that were initially approved by the Commission. This bill restores that authority that the Commission initially was able to use. AB 2616 Page 5 The additional three Commissioners that represent diverse racial and ethnic populations and low-income communities will help ensure that the California Coastal Commission effectively addresses the needs and perspectives of all of California's diverse residents. The bill will also give the Commission the authority to be an effective voice for these communities by allowing the consideration of environmental justice issues in a decision before the Commission. 2)Coastal Commission. The Commission was established by voter initiative in 1972 (Proposition 20) and later made permanent by the Legislature through adoption of the California Coastal Act of 1976. In partnership with coastal cities and counties, the Commission plans and regulates the use of land and water in the coastal zone. Development activities, which are broadly defined by the Coastal Act to include construction of buildings, divisions of land, and activities that change the intensity of use of land or public access to coastal waters, generally require a CDP from either the Commission or the local government with a certified LCP. The Commission is an independent, quasi-judicial state agency. The Commission's mission statement is: AB 2616 Page 6 The Commission is committed to protecting and enhancing California's coast and ocean for present and future generations. It does so through careful planning and regulation of environmentally-sustainable development, rigorous use of science, strong public participation, education, and effective intergovernmental coordination. 3)Environmental justice. According to the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, approximately 8 million Californians (21%) live in zip codes that are considered "highly impacted" by environmental, public health, and socioeconomic stressors. Nearly half of all Californians live within six miles of a facility that is a significant greenhouse gas emitter (46%), and they are disproportionately people of color (62%). Throughout California, people of color face a 50% higher risk of cancer from ambient concentrations of air pollutants listed under the Clean Air Act. These impacts are felt by all Californians. The Air Resources Board (ARB) estimates that air pollution exposure accounts for 19,000 premature deaths, 280,000 cases of asthma, and 1.9 million lost work days every year. 4)This bill. This bill contains several provisions to empower the Commission to protect affordable housing and consider environmental justice impacts when acting on CDPs and LCPs. These changes are consistent with the Commission's other requirements to improve public access and protect low cost visitor serving facilities on the coast. This bill also adds three members to the Commission who are required to work AB 2616 Page 7 directly with communities in the state that are most burdened by, and vulnerable to, high levels of pollution and issues of environmental justice. Each appointing authority would have one of these appointments. Currently, the Commission voting members are evenly divided between local governments and public at large members. This bill would upset that balance by adding three additional at large members who have expertise with issues of environmental justice. Shifting the balance may reduce representation from regions of the coast. Each appointing authority already has four appointments. The Governor, Speaker, and Senate Rules Committee could use their existing appointment authority to appoint members with expertise on issues of environmental justice. As the bill moves forward, the author may wish to consider exploring other options to improve the Commission's awareness of environmental justice issues. 5)Prior Legislation. AB 1288 (Atkins), Chapter 586, Statutes of 2015, requires the Senate Rules Committee and the Speaker of the Assembly to each appoint one member to the ARB. This bill requires appointees to work directly with communities in the state that are most significantly burdened by, and vulnerable to, high levels of pollution, including communities with diverse racial and ethnic populations and low-income populations. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support Amigos de los Rios AB 2616 Page 8 Audubon California Azul California Coastal Protection Network California League of Conservation Voters Courage Campaign Day One Sierra Club California The Nature Conservancy Trust for Public Land Opposition None on file Analysis Prepared by:Michael Jarred / NAT. RES. / (916) 319-2092