BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER
Senator Fran Pavley, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 204 Hearing Date: March 24,
2015
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|Author: |Pavley | | |
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|Version: |March 19, 2015 Amended |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|William Craven |
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Subject: State parks.
BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW
1. The California Department of Parks and Recreation
(department) is vested with control of the state park system and
responsibility for administering, protecting, developing, and
interpreting state parks for the use and enjoyment of the
public. The department is also responsible for protecting the
state park system from damage and preserving the peace.
2. Recent statutory changes that reacted to fiscal improprieties
at the department established several reforms by which the
department was empowered to improve its own fiscal health: the
department's authority to collect fees, rents, and other returns
for the use of state parks was expanded; it was authorized to
sell additional annual and regional passes and to enter a wider
array of concession contracts. Those statutory changes also
established a revenue generation program, added ex-officio
legislative members to the California State Parks and Recreation
Commission, and directed the establishment of a citizen review
panel, the Parks Forward Commission, whose final report was
released earlier this year. These recent changes were a part of
what has developed into a concerted, year-by-year approach to
reforms at the department by the Legislature.
The key recommendations of the Parks Forward Commission were: 1)
to create a "transformation team" within the department to
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improve internal procedures including technologies to assist
with budgeting, planning, and project implementation; 2) to
improve relationships with nonprofit and other partners; 3) to
create an outside support entity to help the department with
marketing, financial, and other aspects of the department's work
where an outside entity with greater business experience would
be useful; 4) to improve cultural and resource protection
programs; 5) to expand access to parks including to those from
park-poor and other disadvantaged communities.
3. The department is also authorized, under specified
conditions, to enter into agreements with co-operating
associations (often "friends" groups at a particular state
park), operating agreements (through which a third party
operates a state park), and concession agreements (by which a
private firm provides certain services to the public).
4. Existing law also requires that a general plan be developed
for park units and that such plans are subject to the California
Environmental Quality Act.
5. In addition to the Parks Forward report, reform concepts have
come from within the Department, from nonprofit and other
partners, from the members of the California State Parks and
Recreation Commission, and the public.
PROPOSED LAW
This bill includes several provisions that have been offered by
various parks stakeholders including the Parks Forward
Commission, non-profit and other partners, and from discussions
held among members of the California State Parks and Recreation
Commission. Its provisions would:
1. Require a report on energy costs and ten top priority
energy-related infrastructure needs at the department that could
be eligible for cap and trade dollars.
2. Expand the services that nonprofit cooperating associations
can provide when concessionaires are not able to provide those
materials and services.
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3. Authorize the department to enter into agreements with
youth-serving non-profits both for educational as well as
restoration purposes.
4. Expand long-term operating agreements at parks on a limited
basis at parks which are at risk for closure.
5. Permit, on a trial basis, a development plan at a park unit
to go through a separate CEQA process than included with the
CEQA analysis of a general plan for a park unit.
6. Authorize the department to solicit private funds to
establish endowments for parks with long-term operating
agreements and to fund the agreements with the youth-serving
non-profit organizations.
7. Require that volunteers of the parks cooperating associations
get the same complimentary passes as volunteers of the
department.
8. Add findings and declaration regarding the importance of
state parks and are similar to those used by the National Park
Service that would be administered by the director.
9. Add a finding that the department not compete with existing
concessionaire agreements with new agreements that would offer
comparable food and beverage services.
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT
According to the author, there is a certain relief that the past
several years of problems at the Department of Parks and
Recreation are becoming eclipsed by a refreshing focus on the
latest reforms that need to be made to improve and renew the
department for the benefit of the public and the visitors to
state parks. The recommendations of the Parks Forward
Commission, the establishment of a Transformation Team at the
department, active discussions about reforms by the Parks and
Recreation Commission, and recommendations by key stakeholders
are all converging to make a strong case for the sorts of
changes that are needed at the department. The leadership of the
department and the administration has sent a strong signal of
support for these reform efforts.
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This bill, although a work in progress, will gradually be
expanded after careful discussions with the administration and
other stakeholders to become a very focused approach that offers
constructive solutions to the Department of Parks.
The theme of much of the recent legislation has been to create
ways that the department can help itself financially without
sacrificing the important purposes for which these parks were
established. This bill will continue that approach but will
focus most immediately on ways to improve relationships with
nonprofits, cooperating associations ("friends" groups at state
parks) and other partners. This bill will also emphasize greater
agility at the department in obtaining funds from the private
philanthropic sector as well as positioning itself to take
advantage of non-general fund revenue such as potential cap and
trade auction revenues. It also recommends a change in how the
department approves general plans and development plans.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION
None received.
COMMENTS
1. The provision on identifying energy costs is intended by the
author to attempt to focus the department on another possible
revenue source for some of its unfilled maintenance needs that
could also be beneficial in terms of reducing greenhouse gas
emissions from state park units that may not have efficient or
carbon-friendly energy plants.
2. The provision expanding agreements to youth-serving
nonprofits is designed not only to offer educational experiences
to these groups but also to authorize the department to have
these groups undertake appropriate training and to conduct
restoration activities under the supervision of the department
at state parks. The bill would authorize these groups to have
some training and other costs underwritten by private
philanthropies or other funds as they become available. Such
activities would necessarily adhere to existing employment
protections of state employees.
3. Expanding the services that nonprofit cooperating
associations can provide when concessionaires are not able to
provide those materials and services directly addresses the call
to improve relationships with nonprofits. Currently,
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cooperating associations as well as concessionaires may provide
educational and interpretative materials. Concessionaires are
also able to provide whatever they contract for with the
department. Cooperating associations may be able to offer
non-educational and non-interpretive materials but only when a
concessionaire is not able to provide those materials or
services.This provision, which requires further development,
would clarify that cooperating associations may provide a fuller
range of goods and services to enhance the experience of
visitors. Funds generated pursuant to this provision would
remain in the park in which those funds were generated.
4. The provision to expand long-term operating agreements at
parks which are at risk for closure is intended to be a trial at
which some of the more advanced non-profits could propose
operating a park, raising necessary revenue, and thereby relieve
some financial pressures on the department. Currently variations
of this model at which revenues generated in these parks are
retained locally are used in the Santa Cruz county parks and at
the Presidio State Park in Santa Barbara. Conditions and terms
of such agreements are subject to negotiation and approval by
the department and this provision would sunset to provide for an
assessment of its effectiveness.
5. The proposal to change the review of general plans is
intended to offer a practical solution to the approval of state
park general plans that do not propose any developments that
would affect the environment. As the findings set forth, the
current process is not sustainable. Under this proposal, all
developments and all general plans that propose developments
would be subject to CEQA. What would not be subject to CEQA are
general plans that do not propose projects. The author needs to
establish the public participation framework for general plans
that do not propose development plans and the statutory
framework for these more "vision-statement" type general plans.
6. The proposal to authorize the department to solicit private
funds to establish endowments for parks with long-term operating
agreements and to fund the agreements with the youth-serving
non-profit organizations is intended to broaden possible funding
streams to the department. Endowments-specifically the
investment interest from endowments-have obvious appeal in those
situations in which they can be developed. However, the new
outside entity recommended by the Parks Forward Commission may
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be able to help with this, as may other donors and cooperating
associations with more access to capital. The proposal is also
to allow private donors to fund the agreements between the
department and youth-serving organizations. This too is a
proposal that may be expanded as the bill progresses. In any
event, authorizing the creation of these endowments and the
funding of these new youth nonprofits is a necessary first step.
7. Requiring that volunteers of the parks cooperating
associations receive the same complimentary passes as volunteers
of the department is a provision requested by volunteers for
co-operating associations who consider it a matter of fairness
and a way to enhance the volunteer experience.
8. The findings and declarations regarding the importance of
state parks that would be administered by the director and that
are similar to those used by the National Park Service are
intended to plug a somewhat unusual hole in California law in
that California does not have a general statement of policy
regarding state parks. The proposed language includes all of the
various sorts of parks in the state, as well as all of the
traditions that are protected by these parks. It speaks to the
strength of the entire state park system, not just individual
parks, and it encourages the director of the department to
conserve the scenery, natural and historic objects, and wild
life in such means as will leave them unimpaired for the
enjoyment of future generations.
9. The proposed finding that the department not compete with
existing concessionaire agreements with new agreements that
would offer comparable food and beverage services is a request
from the state concessionaire's organization.
SUGGESTED AMENDMENTS
AMENDMENT 1
At the appropriate time, Mr. Levine has asked to be listed
as a principal co-author.
SUPPORT
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
OPPOSITION
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None Received