BILL NUMBER: AB 242 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 21
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE MARCH 29, 1996
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR MARCH 29, 1996
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY MARCH 20, 1996
PASSED THE SENATE MARCH 7, 1996
AMENDED IN SENATE FEBRUARY 29, 1996
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 28, 1995
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 6, 1995
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 23, 1995
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Sher
FEBRUARY 2, 1995
An act to amend Sections 41787.1 and 42512 of the Public Resources
Code, relating to solid waste.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 242, Sher. Nonyard wood waste diversion: report.
(1) Existing law, the California Integrated Waste Management Act
of 1989, requires the California Integrated Waste Management Board,
in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, to submit, on or
before March 31, 1993, and annually thereafter, as part of a
specified annual report, a report to the Legislature on nonyard wood
waste diversion.
This bill would delete an obsolete reference in those provisions.
(2) The act authorizes cities and counties to form regional
agencies, including rural regional agencies, to meet specified
requirements of the act. The act makes each city or county that is a
member agency of a regional agency liable for any civil penalties
that may be imposed by the board pursuant to specified provisions of
the act, and authorizes the regional agency to apportion any civil
penalties between or among the cities or counties that are member
agencies of the regional agency if the total amount of civil
penalties that may be imposed against the regional agency is
equivalent to that amount which is the sum of the penalties that may
be imposed against each city or county that is a member agency of the
regional agency.
This bill would require, notwithstanding those provisions, that
any such penalty imposed on a rural regional agency be imposed only
on a member rural city or county that is in violation of the act as a
city or county irrespective of its membership in the rural regional
agency. The bill would authorize the California Integrated Waste
Management Board to consider specified factors in determining whether
to impose those penalties.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 41787.1 of the Public Resources Code is amended
to read:
41787.1. (a) Rural cities and rural counties may join to form
rural regional agencies pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with
Section 40970) of Chapter 1.
(b) A rural regional agency, and not the rural cities or rural
counties which are member jurisdictions of the rural regional agency,
may be responsible for compliance with Article 1 (commencing with
Section 41780) of Chapter 6 if specified in the agreement pursuant to
which the rural regional agency is formed.
(c) (1) The board may reduce the diversion requirements of Section
41780 for a rural regional agency, if the rural regional agency
demonstrates, and the board concurs, based on substantial evidence in
the record, that achievement of the diversion requirements is not
feasible because adverse market or economic conditions beyond the
control of the rural regional agency prevent it from meeting the
requirements of Section 41780.
(2) Before a rural regional agency may be granted a reduction in
diversion requirements pursuant to paragraph (1), it shall
demonstrate that, at a minimum, it has established all of the
following regionwide programs:
(A) A source reduction and recycling program or programs designed
to handle the predominant classes and types of solid waste generated
within the rural regional agency.
(B) A regional diversion and procurement program or programs.
(C) A regional public information and education program or
programs.
(d) (1) Notwithstanding Section 40974, any civil penalty imposed
on a rural regional agency by the board pursuant to Section 41813 or
41850 shall be imposed only on a member rural city or county that is
in violation of this division as a city or county irrespective of its
membership in the rural regional agency. If a rural regional agency
elects to apportion penalties pursuant to this subdivision, the
member jurisdiction to that rural regional agency shall, as a
condition of the agreement establishing the rural regional agency, be
required to account on an individual jurisdictional basis for their
compliance with the diversion requirements of Section 41780, as
prescribed by Section 41780.2.
(2) In determining whether to impose a penalty on a member of a
rural regional agency pursuant to this subdivision, the board may
consider all of the following:
(A) The relevant circumstances that resulted in the agency's
failure to achieve the diversion requirements of paragraphs (1) and
(2) of subdivision (a) of Section 41780, and whether the member
contributed to the circumstances that resulted in the failure to
achieve the diversion requirements.
(B) Whether the agency's joint powers agreement specifies that all
liability for fines and penalties rests with the member, with no
liability assigned to the agency.
(C) Whether the imposition of penalties on members and not on the
agency would provide for flexibility that would allow the agency to
resolve the problem that is preventing the members from meeting the
diversion requirements.
(D) Limiting penalties to a maximum of ten thousand dollars
($10,000) per day if a member's failure does not cause other members
or the agency to fail to implement programs in the agency's source
reduction and recycling element.
SEC. 2. Section 42512 of the Public Resources Code is amended to
read:
42512. On or before March 31 of each year, as part of the report
required to be submitted pursuant to Section 40507, the board, in
consultation with the State Air Resources Board, shall report on
nonyard wood waste diversion which takes place pursuant to this
article. The report shall include a quantification of the amount of
nonyard wood waste being diverted from permitted disposal facilities
and shall assess the environmental and economic implications of
promoting or discouraging nonyard wood waste diversion from those
facilities. The report may make recommendations for further actions
to be taken to effect nonyard wood waste diversion to the extent that
those recommendations are consistent with the hierarchy set forth in
Section 40051.