Amended in Senate March 9, 2016

Senate BillNo. 900


Introduced by Senator Jackson

(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Williams)

January 21, 2016


An act to amend Section 6217 of, and to add Section 6212 to, the Public Resources Code, relating to state lands.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 900, as amended, Jackson. State lands: coastal hazard removal and remediation program.

(1) Existing law establishes the State Lands Commission in the Natural Resources Agency and prescribes the functions and duties of the commission. Under existing law, the commission has jurisdiction over various state lands, including coastal lands.

This billbegin delete would require,end deletebegin insert would,end insert upon appropriation of moneys by the Legislature,begin insert requireend insert the commissionbegin delete toend deletebegin insert to, within 2 years,end insert administer a coastal hazard removal and remediation program, as specified. The bill would authorize the commission to seek and accept on behalf of the state any gift, bequest, devise, or donation whenever the gift and the terms and conditions thereof will aid in actions undertaken to administer that program. The bill would authorize the commission to seek to abandon, in cooperation with the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources, legacy oil and gasbegin delete wellsend deletebegin insert wells, as defined,end insert that present a hazard to the public health and safety and the environment. The bill would require the commission to annually report to the Legislature the activities and accomplishments of the program.

(2) Existing law, with specified exceptions, generally requires the State Lands Commission, on and after July 1, 2006, to deposit all revenue, money, and remittances, derived from mineral extraction leases on state tide and submerged lands, including tideland oil revenue, into the General Fund, to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature for specified purposes. Existing law establishes the Land Bank Fund, a continuously appropriated fund, from which the commission may expend moneys for management and improvement of real property held by the commission, as trustee, to provide open space, habitat for plants and animals, and public access.

This bill would require that, for the 2017-18 fiscal year, out of those funds deposited into the General Fund by the commission, the sum of $2,000,000 be transferred to the Land Bank Fund and be available, upon appropriation in the annual Budget Act, for the purpose of implementing the coastal hazardbegin insert removalend insert and remediation program. The bill would require that, commencing with the 2018-19 fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, an amount sufficient to bring the unencumbered balance of the Land Bank Fund available for the purpose of implementing the program to $2,000,000 be transferred to that fund and be available, upon an appropriation in the annual Budget Act, for the purpose of implementing the program.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:

3(a) Scattered along the California coastline are the remnants of
4many old,begin delete manmadeend deletebegin insert human-madeend insert structures including abandoned
5oil and gas wells, groins, jetties, piers, pilings, and seawalls.

6(b) These remnants,begin delete which areend delete often covered and uncovered by
7tides, are the legacy of the rapid commercial development along
8the coastline that began just before the turn of the 20th century.

9(c) Most legacybegin insert oil and gasend insert wells were abandoned in the early
101900s when there was little or no oversight of the abandonment
11begin delete activities, so the level of demolitionend delete and removal, if any, varied
12from well to well. Some legacybegin insert oil and gasend insert wells, therefore, may
13seep oil into the surf zone impacting swimmers, surfers, and other
14recreational users, and causing environmental degradation.

15(d) The State Lands Commission has primary jurisdiction over
16sovereign landsbegin insert along the California coastlineend insert that are held in trust
P3    1for statewide public purposes, including, commerce, navigation,
2fishing, recreation, and open space and habitat preservation.

3(e) The State Lands Commission has long recognized the serious
4andbegin delete ongoingend deletebegin insert perennialend insert health concerns and safety hazardsbegin delete posed
5byend delete
begin insert thatend insert coastal hazards and legacybegin delete wells.end deletebegin insert oil and gas wells pose.end insert

6(f) There is a critical need for adequate funding tobegin delete conduct an
7in-depthend delete
inventorybegin delete ofend delete coastal hazards, including legacy oil and gas
8wells and related infrastructure, along the California begin delete coastline. An
9assessment of the entitlement of lands and the engineering
10requirements and related funding needs for removal of coastal
11hazards is necessary to begin considering how to remove coastal
12hazards and remediate legacy wells.end delete
begin insert coastline in order to begin
13determining how to remove coastal hazards and to identify and
14remediate leaking legacy oil and gas wells.end insert

15(g) begin deleteProvided end deletebegin insertWith end insertadequate funding, the State Lands
16Commission can inventory coastal hazards, legacybegin insert oil and gasend insert
17 wells and other oil and gas related hazards along the California
18coastline, including determiningbegin delete specificend delete GPS locations, assessing
19entitlement requirements, preparing preliminary engineering
20requirements and removal cost estimates for each hazard, and
21removing and remediating hazards that are a significant risk to
22public health and safety and the environment. Adequate funding
23will also enable the State Lands Commission to survey and monitor
24oil seepage in state waters under its jurisdiction and on tidelands,
25and to request studies to determine oil seepage locations, rates,
26environmental impacts, and mitigation measures.

27

SEC. 2.  

Section 6212 is added to the Public Resources Code,
28to read:

29

6212.  

(a) Upon appropriation of moneys by the Legislature
30for the purposes of this section, the commissionbegin delete shallend deletebegin insert shall, within
31two years,end insert
administer a coastal hazard removal and remediation
32program to do all of the following:

begin delete

33(1) Remove coastal hazards from lands under its jurisdiction.

end delete
begin delete

34(2)

end delete

35begin insert(1)end insert Conduct an in-depth inventory ofbegin delete theend delete legacy oil and gas
36wells and other coastal hazards along the California coastline.

begin delete

37(3)

end delete

38begin insert(2)end insert Survey and monitor oil seepage in state waters and tidelands
39under its jurisdiction and request studies to determinebegin insert and addressend insert
P4    1 oil seepage locations, rates, environmental impacts, and possible
2mitigation measures.

begin insert

3(3) Begin removal of coastal hazards from lands under its
4jurisdiction.

end insert

5(b) Notwithstanding Section 11005 of the Government Code
6and any other law requiring approval by a state officer of gifts,
7bequests, devises, or donations, the commission may seek and
8accept on behalf of the state any gift, bequest, devise, or donation
9whenever the gift and the terms and conditions thereof will aid in
10actions undertaken pursuant to subdivision (a).

11(c) In cooperation with the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal
12Resources, the commission may seek to abandon legacy oil and
13gas wells that present a hazard to the public health and safety and
14the environment.

15(d) The commission shall annually report to the Legislature the
16activities and accomplishments of the program. The commission
17may include this information in the annual report it submits
18pursuant to Section 8618.

19(e) For purposes of this section the following definitions apply:

20(1) “Coastal hazards,” include, but are not limited to,begin delete manmadeend delete
21begin insert legacy oil and gas wells and human-madeend insert structures, including
22piers, jetties, groins, seawalls, and facilities associated with past
23oil extractionbegin insert and other commercialend insert operations, that pose a hazard
24to the public health and safety. Coastal hazards may include wood
25or steel piles or piling, sheet metal pilings, H piles and H beams,
26well casings, well caissons, railroad irons, cables, angle bars, pipes,
27pipelines, rip rap, and wood beams and structures.

28(2) “Legacy oil and gas wells” arebegin delete oil and gas wells that were
29drilled in the surf zone or just offshore before the enactment of the
30State Tidelands Act of 1921.end delete
begin insert wells drilled near shore, before
31current abandonment standards, where there is little or no
32information on the well’s abandonment procedure and there is no
33viable company with the responsibility to reabandon the well
34should it start leaking or pose a threat to the environment or the
35public health and safety.end insert

36

SEC. 3.  

Section 6217 of the Public Resources Code is amended
37to read:

38

6217.  

With the exception of revenue derived from state school
39lands and from sources described in Sections 6217.6, 6301.5,
406301.6, 6855, and Sections 8551 to 8558, inclusive, and Section
P5    16404 (insofar as the proceeds are from property that has been
2distributed or escheated to the state in connection with unclaimed
3estates of deceased persons), the commission shall deposit all
4revenue, money, and remittances received by the commission
5under this division, and under Chapter 138 of the Statutes of 1964,
6First Extraordinary Session, in the General Fund. Out of those
7funds deposited in the General Fund, sufficient moneys shall be
8made available each fiscal year for the following purposes:

9(a) Payment of refunds, authorized by the commission, out of
10appropriations made for that purpose.

11(b) Payment of expenditures of the commission as provided in
12the annual Budget Act.

13(c) Payments to cities and counties of the amounts specified in
14Section 6817 for the purposes specified in that section, out of
15appropriations made for that purpose.

16(d) Payments to cities and counties of the amounts agreed to
17pursuant to Section 6875, out of appropriations made for that
18purpose.

19(e) (1) For the 2017-18 fiscal year, the sum of two million
20dollars ($2,000,000) shall be transferred to the Land Bank Fund
21and, notwithstanding Section 8610, shall be available, upon
22appropriation in the annual Budget Act, for the purpose of
23implementing the commission’s coastal hazardbegin insert removalend insert and
24remediation program provided in Section 6212.

25(2) Commencing with the 2018-19 fiscal year, and each fiscal
26year thereafter, an amount sufficient to bring the unencumbered
27balance of the Land Bank Fund available for the purpose of
28implementing the commission’s coastal hazardbegin insert removalend insert and
29remediation program provided in Section 6212 to two million
30begin insert dollarsend insert ($2,000,000) shall be transferred to the Land Bank Fund
31and, notwithstanding Section 8610, shall be available, upon
32appropriation in the annual Budget Act, for the purpose of
33implementing the commission’s coastal hazardbegin insert removalend insert and
34remediation program provided in Section 6212.



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