BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 2648 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 18, 2016 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES Das Williams, Chair AB 2648 (Jones) - As Amended March 18, 2016 SUBJECT: California Coastal Commission: delegation of authority SUMMARY: Authorizes a coastal county to petition a superior court to obtain a writ of mandate requiring the Coastal Commission's (Commission) regulatory authority to be delegated to the county. Specifies that the county would become the exclusive authority for the enforcement of state and federal coastal laws if the writ of mandate is granted. Allows an aggrieved person to file an appeal of any appealable action on a coastal development permit (CDP) directly to a superior court in lieu of filing an appeal with the Commission. EXISTING LAW, pursuant to the Coastal Act: 1)Requires a person planning to perform or undertake any development in the coastal zone to obtain a coastal development permit from the Commission or local government enforcing a Local Coastal Program (LCP). 2)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 AB 2648 Page 2 to, any building, road, pipe, flume, conduit, siphon, aqueduct, telephone line, and electrical power transmission and distribution line. 3)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. 4)Requires local governments within the coastal zone to prepare a LCP. Authorizes any local government to request the commission to prepare a LCP for the local government. Requires a LCP to contain a public access component to assure that maximum public access to the coast and public recreation areas is provided. Requires Commission approval of a local government's LCP or any amendments to that LCP. 5)Provides the right of judicial review to any aggrieved person for any decision or action of the Commission. 6)Provides the right of judicial review to any person, including an applicant for a CDP or the Commission, aggrieved by the decision or action of a local government that is implementing a LCP if the decision or action is not appealable to the Commission. AB 2648 Page 3 7)Authorizes the Commission to intervene in any such proceeding upon showing the matter involves a question of the conformity of a proposed development with a LCP or the validity of a local government action taken to implement a LCP. Allows any local government to request that the Commission intervene. 8)Specifies that any appealable action on a CDP or claim of exemption for any development by a local government is appealable to the Commission by an applicant, any aggrieved person, or any two members of the Commission. Allows the Commission to approve, modify, or deny such proposed development, and if no action is taken within the specified time limit, the decision of the local government is final, unless the time limit is waived by the applicant. FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown COMMENTS: 1)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, and is composed of 12 voting members, appointed equally (4 each) by the Governor, the Senate Rules AB 2648 Page 4 Committee, and the Speaker of the Assembly. Six of the voting commissioners are locally elected officials and six are appointed from the public at large. Three ex officio (non-voting) members represent the Natural Resources Agency, the California State Transportation Agency, and the State Lands Commission. According to the Commission's mission statement: 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. 2)This bill. This bill would allow local governments to end their relationship with the Commission subject to approval by a superior court. This bill would allow any aggrieved person to bypass the Commission and go directly to judicial review. This would eliminate the Commission's oversight of development on the coast. The Commission was created because of concern about over-development on the Coast. Attempts to restrict public access and develop in fragile coastal ecosystems still exist today. The Commission plays a vital role as AB 2648 Page 5 the safeguard of California's coast. This bill would jeopardize that safeguard and undermine California's commitment to coastal protection. 3)Related legislation. AB 2171 (Jones, 2016) authorizes any aggrieved person to file an appeal of any appealable action on a CDP or claim for exemption to a superior court instead of the Commission. This bill limits who may file an appeal to individuals living within 1000 feet of an impacted county. This bill failed passage in this Committee on April 4, 2016. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support None on file Opposition Amigos de los Rios Audubon California Azul AB 2648 Page 6 Black Surfers Collective California Coastal Protection Network California League of Conservation Voters Committee for Green Foothills Courage Campaign Endangered Habitats League Environment California Friends of Harbor, Beaches & Parks Greenspace - Cambria Land Trust Humboldt Baykeeper Los Angeles Waterkeeper Natural Resources Defense Council Northcoast Environmental Center Orange County Coastkeeper Save Our Shores Sierra Club California Smith River Alliance Surfrider Foundation The City Project The Otter Project The Wildlands Conservancy Turtle Island Restoration Network Wildcoast 5 individuals Analysis Prepared by:Michael Jarred / NAT. RES. / (916) 319-2092 AB 2648 Page 7