BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                        SB 165|
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                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  SB 165
          Author:   Monning (D)
          Amended:  4/14/15  
          Vote:     21  

           SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE:  7-0, 4/7/15
           AYES:  Hancock, Anderson, Leno, Liu, McGuire, Monning, Stone

          SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE:  Senate Rule 28.8
           
           SUBJECT:   Production or cultivation of a controlled substance:  
                      civil penalties


          SOURCE:    Author


          DIGEST:  This bill adds additional crimes or violations to an  
          existing Fish and Game Code statute which authorizes civil fines  
          for certain natural resource-related violations in connection  
          with the production or cultivation of a controlled substance.


          ANALYSIS:   Existing law generally authorizes civil penalties  
          for certain natural resource-related law violations which are  
          committed in connection with the production or cultivation of a  
          controlled substance either while trespassing on other public or  
          private land, or committed on land that the person owns, leases,  
          or otherwise uses or occupies with the consent of the landowner.  
           (Fish and Game Code § 12025)  These provisions describe a  
          process for issuing and serving complaints, conducting hearings,  
          and obtaining a review of a final order.  (Id.)









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                                                                    Page  2



          This bill adds several additional, similar violations, involving  
          criminal dumping of waste or hazardous substances; criminal  
          destruction of vegetation; unlawful timber operations; and  
          unlawfully taking or possessing any animal, as specified to  
          these provisions.  


           NOTE:  See the Senate Public Safety Committee analysis for a  
                 full discussion of this bill.

          FISCAL EFFECT:   Appropriation:    No          Fiscal  
          Com.:YesLocal:   No


          SUPPORT:   (Verified4/27/15)


          California College and University Police Chiefs Association
          California District Attorneys Association
          California Police Chiefs Association
          California Fish and Game Wardens Association
          California Peace Officers' Association
          Rural County Representatives of California 


          OPPOSITION:   (Verified4/27/15)


          None received


          ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT:     


          The author states in part:


               While the current fine structure for these marijuana  
               grow operations provides some new options in  
               environmental enforcement, it is limited in its reach.  
                Currently, District Attorneys or DFW [Department of  
               Fish and Wildlife] can only assess a civil fine in  
               instances where a grower has substantially diverted a  







                                                                     SB 165  
                                                                    Page  3


               stream or has polluted it with petroleum or other  
               deleterious substances.  SB 165 will expand the number  
               and type of environmental crimes for which a civil  
               fine may be levied against a person who cultivates a  
               controlled substance.  Civil fines will be able to be  
               brought against growers that engage in: habitat  
               destruction through land conversion and timber  
               operations without the proper permits or a Timber  
               Harvest Plan; the unlawful take or possession of  
               wildlife; the illegal dumping of trash and hazardous  
               materials; waste disposal in a commercial scale; and  
               the removing plant life or vegetation without consent.


          Prepared by:Alison Anderson / PUB. S. / 
          4/28/15 15:31:12


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