BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 820
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Date of Hearing: June 29, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
SB 820
(Hertzberg) - As Amended April 12, 2016
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|Policy |Environmental Safety and Toxic |Vote:|7 - 0 |
|Committee: |Materials | | |
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|-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------|
| |Judiciary | |10 - 0 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill extends the sunset date for the California Land Reuse
and Revitalization Act of 2004 (CLRRA) to January 1, 2027, and
makes corresponding changes to provide continued immunity after
the repeal of CLRRA.
FISCAL EFFECT:
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1)Unknown costs, likely in the $50,000 range, for the Department
of Toxic Substance Control (DTSC) to provide oversight for
clean-up (Toxic Substances Control Account).
2)Minor costs, absorbable costs for the State Water Resources
Control Board (SWRCB)
DTSC and SWRCB costs are reimbursable through a fee-for-service
agreement. According to DTSC, CLRRA sites represent a small
fraction of their brownfield cleanup sites. DTSC currently
oversees 24 active CLRRA sites and has 16 completed sites.
Statewide DTSC typically has more than 1000 active cleanup
projects, and currently has 280 active Voluntary Cleanup Program
sites. Approximately 50 staff positions are assigned to these
programs.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. According to the author, because buyers of
brownfield sites may be liable for contamination for which
they did not cause, these hazardous sites can sit dormant for
decades. This not only contributes to urban blight, but poses
several environmental and health risks for surrounding
communities. By extending CLRRA, this bill extends a tool for
transforming polluted properties into productive uses of space
that add economic value to blighted communities while reducing
environmental and health risks.
2)Background. CLRRA provides innocent landowners, buyers, or
contiguous property owners with immunity from liability for
damages due to hazardous materials if; a) they assess and
clean up the property; b) they enter into an oversight
agreement with DTSC and/or SWRCB; and c) the clean-up of the
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property meets or exceeds existing standards. This program
will sunset in January 2017, although the immunity from
liability from agreeemnts entered into before January 2017
will continue.
Brownfields are typically abandoned, idled, or underutilized
sites, formerly used for industrial or commercial purposes,
where perceived or actual contamination deters redevelopment.
The costs associated with brownfield site clean-up can be
prohibitively expensive for parties who purchase these
properties, particularly when unexpected hazardous materials
are encountered during site remediation. Consequently, many
of these sites remain vacant for years.
The USEPA estimates that there are approximately 90,000
brownfields in California. The large number of brownfield
sites and the unavailability of sufficient public resources to
remediate these sites prevent California's brownfields from
being restored to productive use without significant
participation by the private sector.
3)Prior Legislation. SB 143 (Cedillo, Chapter 167, Statutes of
2009) extended the sunset date for CLRRA from January 1, 2010
to January 1, 2017, and made corresponding changes to provide
continued immunity after the repeal of CLRRA.
Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
SB 820
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