BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 820
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Date of Hearing: June 14, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
Luis Alejo, Chair
SB
820 (Hertzberg) - As Amended April 12, 2016
PROPOSED CONSENT
SENATE VOTE: 38-0
SUBJECT: Hazardous materials: California Land Reuse and
Revitalization Act of 2004
SUMMARY: Extends the sunset on the California Land Reuse and
Revitalization Act (Act). Specifically, this bill:
1) Extends, from January 1, 2017, to January 1, 2027, the
sunset on the Act.
2) Extends, from January 1, 2017, to January 1, 2027, the
sunset on the qualification for immunity under the Act.
EXISTING LAW:
1) Establishes the Act to cleanup and reuse hazardous
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material contaminated sites in a manner protective of
public health and safety and the environment, and to
encourage the development and redevelopment of unused or
underused properties in urban areas. (Health & Safety Code
(H&S) § 25395.61, et seq.)
2) Sunsets the Act on January 1, 2017. (H&S § 25395.109)
3) Provides immunity from response costs or other relief
associated with the release or threatened release of a
hazardous material at a site for a bona fide ground tenant.
(H&S § 25395.104)
4) Authorizes a person who, before January 1, 2017,
qualifies for immunity to continue to have that immunity on
and after January 1, 2017, if the person continues to be in
compliance with the requirements of the Act. (H&S §
25395.110)
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, the impact of this bill is unknown, but would likely
result in $50,000 in special funds for the Department of Toxic
Substance Control (DTSC) oversight of clean-up projects and
minor costs for the State Water Resources Control Board. These
costs could be reimbursed through a fee-for-service agreement.
COMMENTS:
Need for the bill: According to the author, "[s]ince buyers of
brownfield sites may be liable for contamination they had no
role in, these hazardous sites can sit dormant for years and
decades. This not only contributes to urban blight, but poses
several environmental and health risks for surrounding
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communities. By extending [the Act], SB 820 preserves a great
tool for transforming polluted properties to become productive
uses of space adding economic value to blighted communities
while reducing environmental and health risks."
Brownfield cleanup: Brownfields remain a continuing problem in
California and nationwide. Those properties represent
abandoned, idled, or under-used sites formerly utilized for
industrial or commercial purposes, resulting in perceived or
actual contamination that deters redevelopment of the site. As
cleanup costs can be expensive, especially when uncovering
unexpected hazardous materials during the cleaning of the site,
many of the sites remain vacant for many years.
According to DTSC, there are an estimated 90,000 properties
throughout the state that remain vacant or underutilized due to
real or perceived environmental contamination.
According to the Center for Creative Land Recycling, there are
approximately 2,355 hazardous properties throughout the State
that could benefit from the extension provided in this bill.
California recognizes that cleaning up brownfield properties
frees previously unavailable land for productive reuse, while
taking development pressures off undeveloped open land, thereby
improving and protecting the environment. Brownfields are
properties that are contaminated, or thought to be contaminated,
and are underutilized due to perceived remediation costs and
liability concerns. Timely investigations and cleanups of
brownfield sites promotes economic development and reinvestment
in California through post-cleanup development and sustainable
reuse.
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California Land Reuse and Revitalization Act of 2004 (Act): The
intent of the Act was stated as follows "The underutilization of
brownfield sites in the state results in environmental, social,
and economic detriments to the state and its citizens. The
estimated 120,000 brownfield sites in California represent an
opportunity for the development of housing, parks and mixed use
developments."
The Act provides liability protections to bona fide purchasers,
innocent landowners and contiguous property owners, which are
intended to promote the cleanup and redevelopment of blighted
contaminated properties. The Act establishes a process for
eligible property owners to obtain the statutory immunities,
conduct a site assessment, and implement a response action, if
necessary, to ensure that the property is ready for reuse.
The sunset date for the enacting legislation, AB 389 (Montanez,
Chapter 705, Statutes of 2004), was 2010. In 2010, SB 143
(Cedillo, Chapter 167, Statutes of 2009) extended the sunset to
January 1, 2017.
Immunity: SB 143 authorized a prospective purchaser who is in
contract to acquire a site and who qualifies as a bona fide
purchaser to enter into an agreement, which provides the
qualified bona fide prospective purchaser with immunity upon
site acquisition.
Traditionally, federal and state law provided that both current
and previous owners of a property are potentially liable for the
cost of cleanup of hazardous materials released on the property.
In 2002, federal law was modified to grant conditional immunity
to innocent and prospective purchasers and to innocent
contiguous property owners for previously occurring
contamination for which the innocent or prospective purchaser
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had no responsibility. In 2004, California enacted the Act,
providing qualified immunity to innocent landowners, bona fide
purchasers, and contiguous property owners who did not cause or
contribute to a release of contaminants.
To take advantage of the provided immunity, qualifying
individuals must enter into an agreement with an oversight
agency that would require the individual to undertake various
tasks relating to cleanup of the hazardous materials on the
property.
Without a legislative sunset extension, the program will expire
on January 1, 2017.
Arguments in support: According to the Civil Justice Association
of California, "In order to be eligible for liability
protection, the purchaser or landowner must agree to a site
assessment and, if necessary, prepare and submit a response
plan. The [Act] provides immunity from liability to purchasers
or landowners for costs or damages associated with contamination
characterized in the site assessment or response plan."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Bay Area Council
Brown & Winters
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California Association for Local Economic Development
California Building Industry Association
California Business Properties Association
California Council for Environmental & Economic Balance
California Infill Builders
California Main Street Alliance
Center for Creative Land Recycling
City of Carson
City of Chula Vista
City of Redding
Civil Justice Association of California
League of California Cities
Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust
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Pacoima Beautiful
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Paige Brokaw / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965