Amended in Assembly April 7, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 2781


Introduced by Assembly Member Eduardo Garcia

February 19, 2016


An act to amend Section 71118 of, and to add Section 71119 to, the Public Resources Code, relating to environmental justice.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2781, as amended, Eduardo Garcia. Supplemental environmental projects.

Existing law requires each board, department, and office within the California Environmental Protection Agency that has enforcement authority to establish a policy on supplemental environmental projects that benefits disadvantaged communitiesbegin insert andend insert that includes, among other things, allowing the amount of a supplemental environmental project to be up to 50% of the enforcement action.

This bill would require the policy to also include a requirement thatbegin delete an additionalend delete 10% of an enforcement actionbegin delete toend deletebegin insert monetary penaltyend insert be deposited in the Supplemental Environmental Projectsbegin delete andend deletebegin insert in theend insert Disadvantaged Communitiesbegin delete Fund.end deletebegin insert Fund, which would be created by the bill.end insert The bill would require the moneys in the fund, upon appropriation, to be used to implement environmental projects in disadvantaged communities, as specified.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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SECTION 1.  

Section 71118 of the Public Resources Code is
2amended to read:

3

71118.  

(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms
4have the following meanings:

5(1) “Agency” means the California Environmental Protection
6Agency.

7(2) “Disadvantaged community” means a community identified
8pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code.

9(3) “Supplemental environmental project” means an
10environmentally beneficial project that a person subject to an
11enforcement action voluntarily agrees to undertake in settlement
12of the action and to offset a portion of a civil penalty.

13(b) Each board, department, and office within the agency that
14has enforcement authority shall establish a policy on supplemental
15environmental projects that benefits disadvantaged communities.
16The policy shall include, but need not be limited to, all of the
17following:

18(1) A public process to solicit potential supplemental
19environmental projects from disadvantaged communities.

20(2) Allowing the amount of a supplemental environmental
21project to be up to 50 percent of the enforcement action brought
22under the jurisdiction of a board, department, or office within the
23agency and requiringbegin delete an additionalend delete 10 percent of the enforcement
24actionbegin insert monetary penaltyend insert be deposited in the Supplemental
25Environmental Projectsbegin delete andend deletebegin insert in theend insert Disadvantaged Communities
26Fund, created pursuant to Section 71119.

27(3) An annual list ofbegin insert potentialend insert supplemental environmental
28projects that may be selected to settle a portion of an enforcement
29action under the jurisdiction of a board, department, or office within
30the agency.

31(4) A consideration of the relationship between the location of
32the violation and the location of the proposed supplemental
33environmental project.

34(c) The Secretary for Environmental Protection shall consolidate
35the projects compiled pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (b)
36into one list and post that list on the agency’s Internet Web site.

37

SEC. 2.  

Section 71119 is added to the Public Resources Code,
38to read:

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71119.  

The Supplemental Environmental Projectsbegin delete andend deletebegin insert in theend insert
2 Disadvantaged Communities Fund is hereby created. All moneys
3deposited in the fund shall be available, upon appropriation by the
4Legislature, to implement environmental projects in disadvantaged
5communities, as identified pursuant to Sectionbegin delete 39711.end deletebegin insert 39711 of
6the Health and Safety Code.end insert
Priority shall be given to projects on
7the list compiled pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 71118.



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