BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     SB 209


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          SENATE THIRD READING


          SB  
          209 (Pavley)


          As Amended  March 17, 2016


          Majority vote


          SENATE VOTE:  25-13


           -------------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Committee       |Votes|Ayes                   |Noes                 |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------|
          |Natural         |7-1  |Williams, Cristina     |Harper               |
          |Resources       |     |Garcia, Hadley,        |                     |
          |                |     |McCarty, Rendon,       |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |                |     |Mark Stone, Wood       |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------|
          |Appropriations  |12-4 |Gomez, Bloom, Bonta,   |Bigelow, Chang,      |
          |                |     |Calderon, Nazarian,    |Gallagher, Jones     |
          |                |     |Eggman,                |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |
          |                |     | Eduardo Garcia,       |                     |
          |                |     |Holden, Quirk, Rendon, |                     |
          |                |     |Weber, Wood            |                     |
          |                |     |                       |                     |








                                                                     SB 209


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          SUMMARY:  Revises the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975  
          (SMARA), renames the Office of Mine Reclamation to instead be  
          the Division of Mine Reclamation, and creates the Supervisor of  
          Mine Reclamation to direct the Division.  Specifically, this  
          bill:


          1)Increases the maximum reporting fee for any single mining  
            operation from $4,000 to $10,000 annually over a three-year  
            period.  Increases the total allowable revenue generated by  
            the reporting fees from $3.5 million to $8 million annually.


          2)Requires lead agencies that own or operate a borrow pit to  
            include an interim management plan in their reclamation plan.   
            Authorizes the interim management, which will cover the borrow  
            pit when it is idle plan, to remain in effect until  
            reclamation is complete instead of the current five-year  
            limit. 


          3)Allows lead agencies to conduct inspections once every two  
            years for their borrow pits, rather than once per year.


          4)Allows lead agency employees, with specified qualifications,  
            to inspect lead agency owned or operated surface mining  
            operations.


          5)Exempts a borrow pit surface mining operation, owned or  
            operated by the lead agency solely for use by the lead agency  
            from certain requirements that apply to idle mines.










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          6)Requires that this bill will only become operative if both  
            this bill and AB 1142 (Gray) of the current legislative  
            session, are enacted. 


          EXISTING LAW:   


          1)Creates SMARA, which prohibits a person from conducting  
            surface mining operations unless the lead agency for the  
            operation issues a surface mining permit and approves a  
            reclamation plan and financial assurances for reclamation.   
            Depending on the circumstances, a lead agency can be a city,  
            county, the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development  
            Commission, or the Board.  Reclamation plans and financial  
            assurances must be submitted to the Director for review.


          2)Requires the Board to impose an annual reporting fee for each  
            active or idle mining operation.  Specifies that the maximum  
            fee for any single mining operation may not exceed $4,000  
            annually and may not be less than $100 annually, as adjusted  
            for the cost of living, for the purpose of carrying out SMARA.


          3)Provides a mechanism by which the Board can strip a local  
            agency of its lead agency status for failure to implement  
            state law, the Board then serves as the lead agency.


          4)Requires lead agencies to require financial assurances of each  
            surface mining operation to ensure reclamation is performed in  
            accordance with the surface mining operation's approved  
            reclamation plan.


          5)Requires the financial assurance to remain in effect for the  
            duration of the surface mining operation and until the  
            reclamation is complete.  Requires the amount of financial  








                                                                     SB 209


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            assurance to be adjusted annually to account for new lands  
            disturbed by surface mining operations, inflation, and  
            reclamation of lands accomplished in accordance with the  
            approved reclamation plan.


          6)Requires lead agencies to conduct annual mine inspections to  
            determine compliance with SMARA. 


          FISCAL EFFECT:  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee, the administrative fee increase authorized in the  
          bill will result in an estimated increase in revenue between  
          $3.6 million and $6.2 million (special fund).  The actual  
          revenue increase will depend upon how the Board calculates fees  
          for different operations.  The statute requires that Board set  
          fees on an equitable basis reflecting the size and type of  
          operation.


          COMMENTS:  There are over a thousand active mines in California  
          that remove aggregate for building material, metals, and  
          minerals.  California is the only state in the United States  
          where surface mine reclamation is not regulated by the state.   
          Local governments including cities and counties are the lead  
          agencies for most mines.  However, DOC and the Board oversee  
          their permitting, inspection, and enforcement actions.  Mining  
          operators are required under SMARA to develop and implement  
          reclamation plans, which will return the mine to a condition  
          where it can be used for another purpose after the mining  
          operation is complete.  Annual reports and inspections are  
          supposed to ensure that mining operators are making progress  
          toward reclamation.  However, there are instances when the mine  
          operator cannot be located or is unable to complete the mine  
          reclamation.  Financial assurances are required to make sure  
          there will be resources available to reclaim the mine.  The  
          state and lead agencies have an interest in properly reclaimed  
          mines, because a surface mine is a large hole in the ground and  
          can have many dangerous features.  If the mine is reclaimed, the  








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          land can be returned to another use.  If it is not, the state or  
          the lead agency could be responsible for protecting the public  
          from the dangers of the mine, cleaning up the mine, and  
          reclaiming the mine.


          In the Governor's signing statement for SB 447 (Lara), Chapter  
          417, Statutes of 2013, he called for a top-to-bottom review of  
          SMARA.  Multiple stakeholder group meetings have been held to  
          discuss the administration's concerns with SMARA.  Issues that  
          are under discussion include:


          1)Meaningful reclamation of disturbed mine lands;
          2)Adequate financial assurance; 


          3)Financial assurances are not released until reclamation is  
            complete;


          4)Financial assurance can be used for reclamation if the mine  
            owner does not reclaim their mine; 


          5)Quality inspections of mines occur annually;


          6)When inspectors find non-compliance enforcement is clear,  
            timely, and meaningful;


          7)The Board has tools to improve local SMARA implementation;


          8)Reporting fees and penalties are paid by operators and that  
            fees cover the cost of the program; and,










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          9)Inappropriate exemptions from SMARA are stopped.


          The goal of these talks is to amend SMARA to meet its intent.   
          This bill and AB 1142 are the product of the Governor's  
          stakeholder process.




          Analysis Prepared by:                                             
                          Michael Jarred / NAT. RES. / (916) 319-2092  FN:  
          0002664