BILL NUMBER: AB 2939 CHAPTERED 09/29/00 CHAPTER 890 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 29, 2000 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 28, 2000 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 28, 2000 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 25, 2000 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 22, 2000 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 8, 2000 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 16, 2000 INTRODUCED BY Committee on Natural Resources (Wayne (Chair), Aanestad (Vice Chair), Dickerson, Jackson, Keeley, Lowenthal, Machado, Migden, Oller, Robert Pacheco, and Steinberg) MARCH 28, 2000 An act to amend Sections 39510, 39512.5, 39513, 39515, 39604, 39671, 39807, 40162, 40450, 40452, 40454, 40500.1, 40503, 40515, 40521, 40709.7, 40717.5, 41261, 41500, 41500.5, 41600, 41865, 42301.5, 42301.9, 42314, 42314.5, and 42405.1 of, to repeal and add Section 39016.5 of, and to repeal Sections 40416, 40484, 40524, 40962, 41212, 41242, 41263, 41507, 41518, 41519, 41520, 41704.5, 41900, and 41981 of, the Health and Safety Code, relating to air resources. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2939, Committee on Natural Resources. Air resources. Existing law contains a comprehensive plan to protect and enhance the ambient air quality of the state. This bill would make technical changes to those provisions, including correcting erroneous cross-references and deleting obsolete provisions. This bill would incorporate additional changes in Section 41865 of the Health and Safety Code proposed by AB 2889 to become operative only if both bills are enacted, as specified, and become operative on or before January 1, 2001, and this bill is enacted last. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 39016.5 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 2. Section 39016.5 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read: 39016.5. "Bureau" means the Bureau of Automotive Repair in the Department of Consumer Affairs. SEC. 3. Section 39510 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 39510. (a) The State Air Resources Board is continued in existence in the California Environmental Protection Agency. The state board shall consist of 11 members. (b) The members shall be appointed by the Governor, with the consent of the Senate, on the basis of their demonstrated interest and proven ability in the field of air pollution control and their understanding of the needs of the general public in connection with air pollution problems. Six members shall have the following qualifications: (1) One member shall have training and experience in automotive engineering or closely related fields. (2) One member shall have training and experience in chemistry, meteorology, or related scientific fields, including agriculture or law. (3) One member shall be a physician and surgeon or an authority on health effects of air pollution. (4) Two members shall be public members. (5) One member shall have the qualifications specified in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) or shall have experience in the field of air pollution control. (c) Five members shall be board members from districts who shall reflect the qualitative requirements of subdivision (b) to the extent practicable. Of these five members, one shall be a board member from the south coast district, one shall be a board member from the bay district, one shall be a board member from the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District or, if the unified district is abolished, from the San Joaquin Valley Air Quality Management District if created pursuant to Section 5 of Chapter 915 of the Statutes of 1994, one shall be a board member from the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District, and one shall be a board member of any other district. (d) Any vacancy shall be filled by the Governor within 30 days of the date on which it occurs. If the Governor fails to make an appointment for any vacancy within the 30-day period, the Senate Committee on Rules may make the appointment to fill the vacancy in accordance with this section. (e) While serving on the state board, all members shall exercise their independent judgment as officers of the state on behalf of the interests of the entire state in furthering the purposes of this division. No member of the state board shall be precluded from voting or otherwise acting upon any matter solely because that member has voted or acted upon the matter in his or her capacity as a member of a district board, except that no member of the state board who is also a member of a district board shall participate in any action regarding his or her district taken by the state board pursuant to Sections 41503 to 41505, inclusive. (f) Notwithstanding subdivision (e) of Section 1 of Chapter 1201 of the Statutes of 1991, this section shall become operative on January 1, 1994. SEC. 4. Section 39512.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 39512.5. (a) With respect to the members appointed pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 39510, those members shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties to the extent that reimbursement for expenses is not otherwise provided or payable by another public agency or agencies. Each elected public official member of the state board shall receive one hundred dollars ($100) for each day, or portion thereof, but not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000) in any month, attending meetings of the state board or committees thereof, or upon authorization of the state board while on official business of the state board. (b) Reimbursements made pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be made as follows: (1) A member appointed from a district that is specifically named in subdivision (c) of Section 39510 shall be reimbursed by the district from which the person qualified for membership. (2) The member appointed as a board member of a district that is not specifically named in subdivision (c) of Section 39510 shall be reimbursed by the state board. SEC. 5. Section 39513 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 39513. The state board shall hold regular meetings at least twice a month. Special meetings may be called by the chair or upon the request of a majority of the members. Each member of the state board shall receive reimbursement for actual necessary traveling expenses incurred in the performance of official duties. Time spent in these board meetings shall count toward the sixty hours per month work requirement specified in Section 11564 of the Government Code. SEC. 6. Section 39515 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 39515. (a) The state board shall appoint an executive officer who shall serve at the pleasure of the state board and, except as provided in subdivision (d), may delegate any duty to the executive officer that the state board deems appropriate. (b) The intention of the Legislature is hereby declared to be that the executive officer shall perform and discharge, under the direction and control of the state board, the powers, duties, purposes, functions, and jurisdiction vested in the state board and delegated to the executive officer by the state board. (c) The state board shall, upon the receipt of a petition from any affected member of the public, affected district, or designated air quality planning agency, hold a public hearing to review any action taken by the executive officer pursuant to Section 41650, 41651, or 41652. (d) Any action taken by the executive officer pursuant to Section 40469 or Sections 41503 to 41505, inclusive, shall be subject to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. SEC. 7. Section 39604 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 39604. (a) The state board shall submit to the Governor and the Legislature, not later than January 1, 1985, and every two years thereafter, a biennial report on air quality conditions and trends statewide and on the status and effectiveness of state and local air quality programs. (b) The report shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (1) A review of air quality trends in each air basin over the most recent five-calendar-year period for which a complete data record is available. (2) A statement of the number of violations of air quality standards that occurred in each air basin over the most recent two calendar years for which a complete data record is available, and a comparison of the number of violations to those in prior years. (3) A listing of any changes in state ambient air quality standards adopted by the board over the previous two calendar years. (4) A summary of the results of research projects concluded during the previous two years, the status of current research projects, and the conduct of the research program pursuant to Section 39703. (5) A summary of any actions taken by the state board to assume the powers of districts under Section 39808. (6) A summary of the effects of any significant federal actions over the previous two years that have affected state air quality or air quality programs. (7) A summary of the status of the state implementation plan for achieving and maintaining ambient air quality standards. (8) A summary of the state board's actions in the previous two calendar years to control toxic air pollutants pursuant to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 39650). (9) A summary of actions of the state board in controlling emissions from motor vehicles during the previous two-year period. (10) A summary of significant actions taken by districts to control emissions from nonvehicular sources during the previous two-year period. This summary shall not include a district by district analysis for each district in the state, but shall include an overall analysis. (11) A list of recommendations for legislation or administrative actions to resolve specific air quality problems in the state. SEC. 8. Section 39671 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 39671. The terms of the members of the Scientific Review Panel on Toxic Air Contaminants appointed pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 39670 shall be staggered so that the terms of three members expire each year. SEC. 9. Section 39807 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 39807. The subvention otherwise due a district may be reduced by the state board up to an amount equal to the funds that are granted to the district by the federal government. In so reducing a subvention, the state board shall take into account all of the following factors: (a) The purpose for which the federal funds were granted. (b) The needs of the district in relationship to the needs of other districts. (c) Any special and worthy programs conducted by the district not required by the plan or program approved by the state board pursuant to Section 41500. (d) The severity of air pollution within the district. (e) Any other factors that the state board reasonably determines should be considered. SEC. 10. Section 40162 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40162. Funding of the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District, or, if the unified district ceases to exist, of the valley district if created pursuant to Section 5 of Chapter 915 of the Statutes of 1994, may be provided by, but is not limited to, grants, subventions, permit fees, penalties, and vehicle license fees. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no funding contribution shall be required from the counties or cities included in the unified district or valley district. SEC. 11. Section 40416 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 12. Section 40450 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40450. Except as provided in Section 40449 regarding the adoption of stricter orders, rules, and regulations than those of the south coast district board, the board of supervisors of any county included, in whole or in part, within the south coast district shall have no authority, with respect to the control of air pollution in that part of the county included within the south coast district. SEC. 13. Section 40452 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40452. The south coast district shall submit an annual report to the state board and the Legislature summarizing its regulatory activities for the preceding calendar year. The report shall include all of the following: (a) A summary of each major rule and rule amendment adopted by the south coast district board. The summary shall include emission reductions to be accomplished by each rule or regulation; the cost per ton of emission reduction to be achieved from each rule or regulation; other alternatives that were considered through the environmental assessment process; the cost per ton of comparable emission reductions that could have been achieved from each alternative; a statement of the reason why a given alternative was chosen; the conclusions and recommendations of the district's socioeconomic analysis, including any evaluations of employment impacts; and the source of funding for the rule or regulation. For the purposes of this subdivision, a major rule or rule amendment is one that is intended to significantly affect air quality or that imposes emission limitations. (b) The number of permits to operate or to construct, by type of industry, that are issued and denied, and the number of permits to operate that are not renewed. (c) Data on emission offset transactions and applications, by pollutant, during the previous fiscal year, including an accounting of the number of applications for permits for new or modified sources that were denied because of the unavailability of emission offsets. (d) The district's forecast of budget and staff increases proposed for the following fiscal year, and projected for the next two fiscal years. Budget and staff increases shall be related to existing programs and rules, and to new programs or rules to be adopted during the following years. The budget forecast shall provide a workload justification for proposed budget and staff changes and shall identify any cost savings to be achieved by program or staff changes. The budget forecast shall include increases in permit fees and other fees proposed for the following fiscal year and projected for the next two fiscal years. (e) An identification of the source of all revenues collected that are used, or proposed to be used, to finance activities related to either stationary or nonstationary sources. (f) A response to audit recommendations pursuant to Section 40453. The response shall include proposed statutory changes needed to implement the recommendations. (g) The results of the clean fuels program as specified in Section 40448.5. This element of the report shall be submitted biennially. SEC. 14. Section 40454 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40454. (a) Notwithstanding Section 40716 or 40717, or subdivision (c) of Section 40717.5, the south coast district shall not adopt or enforce any rule or regulation that would require any employer to submit a trip reduction plan. (b) The south coast district may require employers with 100 or more employees at a single worksite to provide ride-matching information and transit information to employees at that worksite. SEC. 15. Section 40484 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 16. Section 40500.1 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40500.1. (a) Except as required to comply with the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7401 et seq.), fees assessed on stationary sources in the south coast district pursuant to Sections 40500 and 40510 shall not exceed, for any fiscal year, the actual costs of district programs pursuant to this article for the immediately preceding fiscal year with an adjustment not greater than the change in the California Consumer Price Index, for the preceding calendar year, from January 1 of the prior year to January 1 of the current year, as determined by the Department of Industrial Relations. (b) Unless specifically authorized by statute, the total amount of all of the fees collected by the south coast district from stationary sources of emissions in the 1995-96 fiscal year, and in each subsequent fiscal year, shall not exceed the level of expenditure in the 1993-94 fiscal year, except that the total fee amount may be adjusted annually by not more than the percentage increase in the California Consumer Price Index, as specified in subdivision (a). (c) Any new state or federal mandate that is applicable to the south coast district on and after January 1, 1994, shall not be subject to this section. SEC. 17. Section 40503 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40503. (a) The south coast district hearing board, in determining whether the petitioner has presented evidence sufficient to make the findings specified in subdivision (a) of Section 42352, shall consider, in addition to any other relevant factors, both of the following: (1) In determining whether conditions exist that are beyond the reasonable control of the petitioner, the hearing board shall consider whether the petitioner took actions to comply or seek a variance, that were timely and reasonable under the circumstances. In so doing, the hearing board shall consider actions taken by the petitioner since the adoption of the rule from which the variance is sought. (2) In determining whether requiring compliance would result in either an arbitrary or unreasonable taking of property or the practical closing and elimination of a lawful business, the hearing board shall consider whether an unreasonable burden would be imposed upon the petitioner if immediate compliance is required. (b) (1) As used in this subdivision, "small business" means a business that is independently owned and operated and meets all of the following criteria: (A) The number of employees is 10 or less. (B) The total gross annual receipts are five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or less. (C) Emits not more than four tons per year of any nonattainment air contaminant or its precursor. (2) If the petitioner is a small business, the hearing board shall consider the factors specified in subdivision (a) in the following manner: (A) In determining whether the petitioner took timely actions to comply or seek a variance, the hearing board shall make specific inquiries into the reasons for any claimed ignorance of the requirement from which a variance is sought. (B) In determining whether the petitioner took reasonable actions to comply, the hearing board shall make specific inquiries into the petitioner's financial and other capabilities to comply. (C) In determining whether the burden of requiring immediate compliance would be unreasonable, the hearing board shall make specific inquiries into, and shall balance, the impact to the petitioner's business and the benefit to the environment that would result if the petitioner is required to immediately comply. (c) Where the petitioner is a governmental agency, public district, or any other governmental or public entity, in determining whether an unreasonable burden would be imposed, the hearing board shall consider any effects of requiring immediate compliance on the availability of essential public services. SEC. 18. Section 40515 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40515. (a) Any public utility owned by a municipal corporation within the south coast district shall provide public notice, pursuant to subdivision (b), before submitting to the board of the south coast district any application for a permit to construct or operate any facility, machine, or contrivance that would be used for water treatment and would emit toxic air contaminants. (b) A public utility specified in subdivision (a) shall mail, post, deliver, or use any other practical method to notify all residents and persons who own property within 330 feet of the property containing the proposed facility, machine, or contrivance. The notice shall include a description of the proposed facility, machine, or contrivance and an explanation of the right to petition the south coast district board to hold a hearing pursuant to Section 40509. SEC. 19. Section 40521 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40521. (a) For each fiscal year, the percentage increase in the county apportionments by the south coast district board may not exceed the percentage increase in the California Consumer Price Index as specified in Section 2212 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, or the percentage increase in the total county property tax revenues for the counties included, in whole or in part, within the south coast district, whichever is greater. (b) The limitations specified in subdivision (a) shall not apply to increases in apportionments resulting from the termination of federal or state allocations to the south coast district, if the south coast district board votes to continue the programs financed with those funds. SEC. 20. Section 40524 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 21. Section 40709.7 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40709.7. (a) For the purposes of this section, "military base" means a military base that is designated for closure or downward realignment pursuant to the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1988 (P.L. 100-526) or the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (10 U.S.C. Sec. 2687 et seq.). (b) For the purposes of this section, "base reuse authority" means the authority recognized pursuant to Section 65050 of the Government Code. (c) An appropriate entity of the federal government may apply to the district for emission reduction credits that result from reduced emissions from a military base by June 1, 1995, or within 180 days of the reduction in emissions, whichever occurs later, if the federal government is eligible under district regulations to file and receive emission reduction credits on December 31, 1994. (d) Not later than July 1, 1995, or six months from the date that the base closure or realignment decision becomes final, whichever occurs last, the district shall request and attempt to obtain all records maintained by a military base that are necessary to quantify emission reductions, including, but not limited to, records on the operation of any equipment that emits air contaminants, provided that the district either waives the payment of direct costs to obtain the records or enters into an agreement with the appropriate entity of the federal government or the base reuse authority for the payment of the direct costs to obtain the records. The district shall maintain these records. (e) (1) A base reuse authority may apply to a district, under the emission reductions banking system established pursuant to Section 40709, for any reductions in emissions related to the termination or reduction of operations at the military base under its jurisdiction. (2) The district shall quantify and bank the emission reductions for a closing or realigning military base within 180 days of a request by a base reuse authority and payment of any applicable fees, if one of the following events has occurred: (A) The federal government agrees in writing to allow the base reuse authority to apply for and receive the emission reduction credits. (B) The time period for the federal government to apply for emission reduction credits pursuant to subdivision (c) has expired and the federal government has not applied for the credits. (C) The base reuse authority has, pursuant to other legal means, obtained the authority to acquire the emission reduction credits. (f) The district shall permanently retire the emission reduction credits obtained pursuant to this section by 5 percent to improve air quality. (g) The baseline for quantifying emission reductions shall be the date that the base closure or realignment decision becomes final. The two-year period ending on the date that the base closure or realignment decision was made shall be used to determine average emissions from the military base unless this two-year period is not representative of normal operations, in which case an alternative, consecutive, two-year period that is within the five years prior to the baseline date may be used, as determined by the district. (h) After registration, certification, or other approval of the emission reductions by a district air pollution control officer pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 40709 and this section, the base reuse authority shall be deemed the owner of the emissions source for purposes of the issuance of a certificate pursuant to Section 40710. Upon receipt of the certificate, or other approval, the base reuse authority may use, sell, or otherwise dispose of the emission reduction credits as determined by the base reuse authority, provided that the credits may only be used for base reuse within the jurisdiction of the district. SEC. 22. Section 40717.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 40717.5. (a) Any district that proposes to adopt or amend a rule or regulation pursuant to Section 40716 or 40717, which imposes any requirement on an indirect source to reduce vehicle trips or vehicle miles traveled, including, but not limited to, any rule or regulation affecting ridesharing or alternative transportation mode strategies, shall, prior to the adoption or amendment of the rule or regulation, do all of the following: (1) Ensure, to the extent feasible, and based upon the best available information, assumptions, and methodologies that are reviewed and adopted at a public hearing, that the proposed rule or regulation would require an indirect source to reduce vehicular emissions only to the extent that the district determines that the source contributes to air pollution by generating vehicle trips that would not otherwise occur. In complying with this paragraph, a district shall make reasonable and feasible efforts to assign responsibility for existing and new vehicle trips in a manner that equitably distributes responsibility among indirect sources. (2) Ensure that, to the extent feasible, the proposed rule or regulation does not require an indirect source to reduce vehicular trips that are required to be reduced by other rules or regulations adopted for the same purpose. (3) Take into account the feasibility of implementing the proposed rule or regulation. (4) Pursuant to Section 40922, consider the cost effectiveness of the proposed rule or regulation. (5) Determine that the proposed rule or regulation would not place any requirement on public agencies or on indirect sources that would duplicate any requirement placed upon those public agencies or indirect sources as a result of another rule or regulation adopted pursuant to Section 40716 or 40717. (b) A district may delegate to any city or county the responsibility to implement a rule or regulation that is subject to subdivision (a). However, if an indirect source subject to the rule or regulation has sites located both within and outside of the jurisdiction of a city or county to which that responsibility has been delegated, the indirect source may elect to be subject to the implementation of that rule or regulation only by the district. Notwithstanding Section 40454, an indirect source that elects to be regulated only by a district pursuant to this subdivision may also elect to include sites under district regulation that would not otherwise be subject to district regulation, and, in that event, shall not be subject to the implementation by a city or county of any requirement contained in that rule or regulation. (c) (1) Nothing in this section constitutes an infringement on the existing authority of counties and cities to plan, control, or condition land use, or on the ability of a city, county, or other public agency to impose trip reduction measures pursuant to a voter-mandated growth management program. (2) Nothing in this section provides or transfers new authority over land use to a district. SEC. 23. Section 40962 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 24. Section 41212 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 25. Section 41242 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 26. Section 41261 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 41261. The air pollution control officer (APCO) and designated deputies of the Mojave Desert District shall serve at the pleasure of the Mojave Desert district board, and shall receive the compensation that is determined by the Mojave Desert district board. SEC. 27. Section 41263 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 28. Section 41500 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 41500. To coordinate air pollution control activities throughout the state, and to ensure that the entire state is, or will be, in compliance with the standards adopted pursuant to Section 39606, the state board shall do all of the following: (a) Review the district attainment plans submitted pursuant to Section 40911, and the revised plans submitted pursuant to Section 40925, to determine whether the plans will achieve and maintain the state's ambient air quality standards by the earliest practicable date. (b) Review the rules and regulations and programs submitted by the districts pursuant to Section 40704 to determine whether they are sufficiently effective to achieve and maintain the state ambient air quality standards. (c) Review the enforcement practices of the districts and local agencies delegated authority by districts pursuant to Section 40717 to determine whether reasonable action is being taken to enforce their programs, rules, and regulations. SEC. 29. Section 41500.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 41500.5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any plan required by this division shall be subject to Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 53098) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code. SEC. 30. Section 41507 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 31. Section 41518 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 32. Section 41519 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 33. Section 41520 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 34. Section 41600 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 41600. (a) The districts shall provide for, and shall periodically revise as appropriate, the growth allowances necessary to accommodate the net air quality impact, if any, of cogeneration technology projects and resource recovery projects permitted pursuant to Section 42314, so that state and federal ambient air quality standards may be achieved and maintained or that reasonable further progress be made toward attainment. (b) If appropriate, the districts shall submit to the state board, for inclusion in the next state implementation plan revisions, the necessary control measures for the growth allowances for federally approved nonattainment pollutants and precursors required by subdivision (a). (c) Any district that lacks a federally approved demonstration of attainment with the national ambient air quality standard for ozone or nitrogen dioxide is not required to provide a growth allowance for any pollutant under this section until two years after the district makes both demonstrations. Federal approval shall be determined, based on regulations adopted by the Environmental Protection Agency, after public notice and opportunity for comment. After a district demonstrates attainment, the district may establish a growth allowance by allocating an air quality increment within the ambient air quality standard or through adoption of further control measures. SEC. 35. Section 41704.5 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 36. Section 41865 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 41865. (a) This section shall be known, and may be cited, as the Connelly-Areias-Chandler Rice Straw Burning Reduction Act of 1991. (b) As used in this section: (1) "Sacramento Valley Air Basin" means the area designated by the state board pursuant to Section 39606. (2) "Air pollution control council" means the Sacramento Valley Basinwide Air Pollution Control Council authorized pursuant to Section 40900. (3) "Conditional rice straw burning permit" means a permit to burn granted pursuant to subdivisions (f) and (h). (4) "Allowable acres to be burned" means the number of acres that may be burned pursuant to subdivision (c). (5) "Department" means the Department of Food and Agriculture. (6) "Maximum fall burn acres" means the maximum amount of rice acreage that may be burned from September 1 to December 31, inclusive, of each year. (7) "Maximum spring burn acres" means the maximum amount of rice acreage that may be burned from January 1 to May 31 of the following year, inclusive. (c) Notwithstanding Section 41850, rice straw burning in counties in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin shall be phased down, as follows: (1) From 1998 to 2000, the maximum spring and fall burn acres shall be the following number of acres planted prior to September 1 of each year: Maximum Fall Burn Maximum Spring Burn Year Acres Acres 1998 90,000 110,000 1999 90,000 110,000 2000 90,000 110,000 (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), any of the 90,000 acres allocated in the fall that are not burned may be added to the maximum spring burn acres, provided that the maximum spring burn acres does not exceed 160,000 acres. (3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the maximum acres burned between January 1, 1998, and August 31, 1998, shall be limited so that the total acres burned between September 1, 1997, and August 31, 1998, do not exceed 38 percent of the total acres planted prior to September 1, 1997. (4) In 2001 and thereafter, the maximum annual burn acres shall be the number of acres prescribed in subdivision (i), subject to subdivisions (f) and (h). (d) The number of allowable acres to be burned each day shall be determined by the state board and the air pollution control officers in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin and equitably allocated among rice growers in accordance with the annual agricultural burning plan adopted by the air pollution control council and approved by the state board. (e) On or before September 1, 2000, the state board, in consultation with the department and the air pollution control council, shall adopt regulations consistent with the criteria provided in subdivisions (f) and (h). On or before September 1, 1996, an advisory group shall be established by the state board and the department to assist in the adoption of those regulations. (f) Commencing September 1, 2001, the county air pollution control officers in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin may grant conditional rice straw burning permits once the county agricultural commissioner has determined that the applicant has met the conditions specified in subdivision (h). The county agricultural commissioner shall be responsible for all field inspections associated with the issuance of conditional rice straw burning permits. A conditional rice straw burning permit shall be valid for only one burn, per field, per year. (g) The county agricultural commissioner may charge the applicant a fee not to exceed the costs incurred by the county agricultural commissioner in making the determination specified in subdivision (f). This subdivision shall be operative only until January 1, 2009. (h) If the terms and conditions for issuing conditional rice straw burning permits specified in paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, are met, a conditional rice straw burning permit may be issued unless the state board and the department have jointly determined, based upon an annual review process, that there are other economically and technically feasible alternative means of eliminating the disease that are not substantially more costly to the applicant. The terms and conditions for issuing the conditional rice straw burning permits are: (1) The fields to be burned are specifically described. (2) The applicant has not violated any provision of this section within the previous three years. (3) During the growing season, the county agricultural commissioner has independently determined the significant presence of a pathogen in an amount sufficient to constitute a rice disease such as stem rot. (4) The county agricultural commissioner makes a finding that the existence of the pathogen as identified in paragraph (3) will likely cause a significant, quantifiable reduction in yield in the field to be burned during the current or next growing season. The findings of the county agricultural commissioner shall be based on recommendations adopted by the advisory group established pursuant to subdivision (e). (i) (1) The maximum annual number of acres burned in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) shall be the lesser of: (A) The total of 25 percent of each individual applicant's planted acres that year. (B) A total of 125,000 acres planted in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin. (2) Each grower shall be eligible to burn up to 25 percent of the grower's planted acres, as determined by the air pollution control officers in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin and subject to the maximum annual number of acres burned set forth in paragraph (1), if the grower has met the criteria for a conditional rice straw burning permit. (3) The air pollution control council shall annually determine which is the lesser of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1), and shall determine the maximum percentage applicable to all growers subject to the conditions set forth in subdivisions (f) and (h). (4) A grower who owns or operates 400 acres or less who has met the criteria for the issuance of a conditional rice straw burning permit may burn his or her entire acreage once every four years, provided that the limit prescribed in paragraph (1) is not exceeded. (5) Nothing in this subdivision shall permit an applicant to transfer, sell, or trade any permission to burn granted pursuant to this subdivision to another applicant or individual. (j) The state board and the department shall jointly determine if the allowable acres to be burned, as provided in subdivisions (c), (f), and (h), may be exceeded due to extraordinary circumstances, such as an act of God, that have an impact over a continuing duration and make alternatives other than burning unusable. (k) "Administrative burning" means burning of vegetative materials along roads, in ditches, and on levees adjacent to or within a rice field, or the burning of vegetative materials on rice research facilities authorized by the county agricultural commissioner, not to exceed 2,000 acres. Administrative burning conducted in accordance with Section 41852 is not subject to this section. (l) (1) On or before September 1, 1992, the state board and the department shall jointly establish an advisory committee composed of 10 members to assist with the identification and implementation of alternatives to rice straw burning. Members of the committee shall be from the Sacramento Valley Air Basin, and the committee shall consist of two rice growers, two representatives from the environmental community, two health officials, two county supervisors or their designees, one member from the air pollution control council, and one member from the business community with expertise in market or product development. The committee shall meet at least annually. General Fund moneys shall not be used to support the committee. (2) The committee shall develop a list of priority goals for the development of alternative uses of rice straw for the purpose of developing feasible and cost-effective alternatives to rice straw burning. These goals shall include, but not be limited to, research on alternatives, economic incentives to encourage alternative uses, and new product development. (m) On or before September 1, 1998, the state board, in consultation with the department, the advisory committee, and the Department of Commerce, shall develop an implementation plan and a schedule to achieve diversion of not less than 50 percent of rice straw produced toward off-field uses by 2000. Off-field uses may include, but are not limited to, the production of energy and fuels, construction materials, pulp and paper, and livestock feed. (n) On or before September 1, 1999, the state board and the department shall jointly report to the Legislature on the progress of the phasedown of, and the identification and implementation of alternatives to, rice straw burning. This report shall include an economic and environmental assessment, the status of feasible and cost-effective alternatives to rice straw burning, recommendations from the advisory committee on the development of alternatives to rice straw burning, the status of the implementation plan and the schedule required by subdivision (m), progress toward achieving the 50 percent diversion goal, any recommended changes to this section, and other issues related to this section. The report shall be updated biennially and transmitted to the Legislature not later than September 1 of each odd-numbered year. The state board may adjust the district burn permit fees specified in subdivision (s) to pay for the preparation of the report and its updates. The districts shall collect and remit the adjustment to the state board, which shall deposit the fees in the Motor Vehicle Account in the State Transportation Fund. It shall be the goal of the state board and the department that the cost of the report and its updates shall not exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000). (o) The state board and the California Department of Food and Agriculture shall jointly collect and analyze all available data relevant to the air quality and public health impacts and, to the extent feasible, the economic impacts, that may be associated with the burning of rice straw pursuant to the schedule provided in subparagraph (1) of subdivision (c). On or before July 1, 2001, the state board shall submit a report to the Legislature presenting its findings regarding the air quality, public health, and economic impacts associated with the burning of rice straw pursuant to the schedule provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c). (p) The Legislature hereby finds and declares as follows: (1) Because of the requirements imposed by this section, rice straw that was previously burned may present, as solid waste, a new disposal problem. (2) The state should assist local governments and growers in diverting rice straw from landfills by researching and developing diversion options. (q) It is the intent of the Legislature that all feasible alternatives to rice straw burning and options for diverting rice straw from landfills be encouraged. (r) This subdivision confirms that reductions in emissions from rice straw burning qualify for air quality offsets, in accordance with paragraphs (1) and (2). (1) These credits shall meet the requirements specified in state law and district rules and regulations, and shall comply with applicable district banking rules established pursuant to Sections 40709 to 40713, inclusive. Districts are urged to establish banking systems in accordance with Sections 40709 to 40713, inclusive. The state board may adopt regulations to implement this subdivision, including, but not limited to, consideration of the seasonal and intermittent nature of rice straw burning emissions. In developing the regulations, the state board shall consult with all concerned parties. However, emission reduction credits that would otherwise accrue from reductions in emissions from rice straw burning shall not be affected or negated by the phasedown of burning, as specified in subdivision (c). (2) Reductions in emissions achieved in compliance with subdivision (c) that are banked or used as credits shall not be credited for purposes of attainment planning and progress towards the attainment of any state or national ambient air quality standard as required by state and federal law. (s) (1) Any person who negligently or intentionally violates any provision of this article is guilty of a misdemeanor and is subject to a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), imprisonment in the county jail for not more than nine months, or by both that fine and imprisonment. This subdivision applies only to agricultural burning in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin. (2) Any person who negligently or intentionally violates any provision in this article is liable for a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000). This subdivision applies only to agricultural burning in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin. (t) Districts in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin shall impose fees on growers to cover the cost of implementing this section pursuant to Section 42311. (u) To the extent that resources are available, the state board and the agencies with jurisdiction over air quality within the Sacramento Valley Air Basin shall do both of the following: (1) Improve responses to citizen complaints, and, to the extent feasible, immediately investigate and analyze smoke complaints from the public to identify factors that contribute to complaints and to develop better smoke control measures to be included in the agricultural burning plan, keep a record of all complaints, coordinate among other agencies on citizens' complaints, and investigate the source of the pollution causing the complaint. (2) Respond more quickly to requests for update from county air pollution control officers to help maximize burning days when meteorological conditions are best suited for smoke dispersion. SEC. 36.5. Section 41865 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 41865. (a) This section shall be known, and may be cited, as the Connelly-Areias-Chandler Rice Straw Burning Reduction Act of 1991. (b) As used in this section: (1) "Sacramento Valley Air Basin" means the area designated by the state board pursuant to Section 39606. (2) "Air pollution control council" means the Sacramento Valley Basinwide Air Pollution Control Council authorized pursuant to Section 40900. (3) "Conditional rice straw burning permit" means a permit to burn granted pursuant to subdivisions (f) and (h). (4) "Allowable acres to be burned" means the number of acres that may be burned pursuant to subdivision (c). (5) "Department" means the Department of Food and Agriculture. (6) "Maximum fall burn acres" means the maximum amount of rice acreage that may be burned from September 1 to December 31, inclusive, of each year. (7) "Maximum spring burn acres" means the maximum amount of rice acreage that may be burned from January 1 to May 31 of the following year, inclusive. (c) Notwithstanding Section 41850, rice straw burning in counties in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin shall be phased down, as follows: (1) From 1998 to 2000, the maximum spring and fall burn acres shall be the following number of acres planted prior to September 1 of each year: Maximum Fall Burn Maximum Spring Burn Year Acres Acres 1998 90,000 110,000 1999 90,000 110,000 2000 90,000 110,000 (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), any of the 90,000 acres allocated in the fall that are not burned may be added to the maximum spring burn acres, provided that the maximum spring burn acres does not exceed 160,000 acres. (3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the maximum acres burned between January 1, 1998, and August 31, 1998, shall be limited so that the total acres burned between September 1, 1997, and August 31, 1998, do not exceed 38 percent of the total acres planted prior to September 1, 1997. (4) In 2001 and thereafter, the maximum annual burn acres shall be the number of acres prescribed in subdivision (i), subject to subdivisions (f) and (h). (d) The number of allowable acres to be burned each day shall be determined by the state board and the air pollution control officers in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin and equitably allocated among rice growers in accordance with the annual agricultural burning plan adopted by the air pollution control council and approved by the state board. (e) On or before September 1, 2000, the state board, in consultation with the department and the air pollution control council, shall adopt regulations consistent with the criteria provided in subdivisions (f) and (h). On or before September 1, 1996, an advisory group shall be established by the state board and the department to assist in the adoption of those regulations. (f) Commencing September 1, 2001, the county air pollution control officers in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin may grant conditional rice straw burning permits once the county agricultural commissioner has determined that the applicant has met the conditions specified in subdivision (h). The county agricultural commissioner shall be responsible for all field inspections associated with the issuance of conditional rice straw burning permits. A conditional rice straw burning permit shall be valid for only one burn, per field, per year. (g) The county agricultural commissioner may charge the applicant a fee not to exceed the costs incurred by the county agricultural commissioner in making the determination specified in subdivision (f). This subdivision shall be operative only until January 1, 2009. (h) If the terms and conditions for issuing conditional rice straw burning permits specified in paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, are met, a conditional rice straw burning permit may be issued unless the state board and the department have jointly determined, based upon an annual review process, that there are other economically and technically feasible alternative means of eliminating the disease that are not substantially more costly to the applicant. The terms and conditions for issuing the conditional rice straw burning permits are: (1) The fields to be burned are specifically described. (2) The applicant has not violated any provision of this section within the previous three years. (3) During the growing season, the county agricultural commissioner has independently determined the significant presence of a pathogen in an amount sufficient to constitute a rice disease such as stem rot. (4) The county agricultural commissioner makes a finding that the existence of the pathogen as identified in paragraph (3) will likely cause a significant, quantifiable reduction in yield in the field to be burned during the current or next growing season. The findings of the county agricultural commissioner shall be based on recommendations adopted by the advisory group established pursuant to subdivision (e). (i) (1) The maximum annual number of acres burned in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) shall be the lesser of: (A) The total of 25 percent of each individual applicant's planted acres that year. (B) A total of 125,000 acres planted in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin. (2) Each grower shall be eligible to burn up to 25 percent of the grower's planted acres, as determined by the air pollution control officers in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin and subject to the maximum annual number of acres burned set forth in paragraph (1), if the grower has met the criteria for a conditional rice straw burning permit. (3) The air pollution control council shall annually determine which is the lesser of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1), and shall determine the maximum percentage applicable to all growers subject to the conditions set forth in subdivisions (f) and (h). (4) A grower who owns or operates 400 acres or less who has met the criteria for the issuance of a conditional rice straw burning permit may burn his or her entire acreage once every four years, provided that the limit prescribed in paragraph (1) is not exceeded. (5) Nothing in this subdivision shall permit an applicant to transfer, sell, or trade any permission to burn granted pursuant to this subdivision to another applicant or individual. (j) The state board and the department shall jointly determine if the allowable acres to be burned, as provided in subdivisions (c), (f), and (h), may be exceeded due to extraordinary circumstances, such as an act of God, that have an impact over a continuing duration and make alternatives other than burning unusable. (k) "Administrative burning" means burning of vegetative materials along roads, in ditches, and on levees adjacent to or within a rice field, or the burning of vegetative materials on rice research facilities authorized by the county agricultural commissioner, not to exceed 2,000 acres. Administrative burning conducted in accordance with Section 41852 is not subject to this section. (l) (1) On or before September 1, 1992, the state board and the department shall jointly establish an advisory committee composed of 10 members to assist with the identification and implementation of alternatives to rice straw burning. Members of the committee shall be from the Sacramento Valley Air Basin, and the committee shall consist of two rice growers, two representatives from the environmental community, two health officials, two county supervisors or their designees, one member from the air pollution control council, and one member from the business community with expertise in market or product development. The committee shall meet at least annually. General Fund moneys shall not be used to support the committee. (2) The committee shall develop a list of priority goals for the development of alternative uses of rice straw for the purpose of developing feasible and cost-effective alternatives to rice straw burning. These goals shall include, but not be limited to, research on alternatives, economic incentives to encourage alternative uses, and new product development. (m) On or before September 1, 1998, the state board, in consultation with the department, the advisory committee, and the Trade and Commerce Agency, shall develop an implementation plan and a schedule to achieve diversion of not less than 50 percent of rice straw produced toward off-field uses by 2000. Off-field uses may include, but are not limited to, the production of energy and fuels, construction materials, pulp and paper, and livestock feed. (n) On or before September 1, 1999, the state board and the department shall jointly report to the Legislature on the progress of the phasedown of, and the identification and implementation of alternatives to, rice straw burning. This report shall include an economic and environmental assessment, the status of feasible and cost-effective alternatives to rice straw burning, recommendations from the advisory committee on the development of alternatives to rice straw burning, the status of the implementation plan and the schedule required by subdivision (m), progress toward achieving the 50 percent diversion goal, any recommended changes to this section, and other issues related to this section. The report shall be updated biennially and transmitted to the Legislature not later than September 1 of each odd-numbered year. The state board may adjust the district burn permit fees specified in subdivision (s) to pay for the preparation of the report and its updates. The districts shall collect and remit the adjustment to the state board, which shall deposit the fees in the Motor Vehicle Account in the State Transportation Fund. It shall be the goal of the state board and the department that the cost of the report and its updates shall not exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000). (o) The state board and the Department of Food and Agriculture shall jointly collect and analyze all available data relevant to the air quality and public health impacts and, to the extent feasible, the economic impacts, that may be associated with the burning of rice straw pursuant to the schedule provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c). On or before July 1, 2001, the state board shall submit a report to the Legislature presenting its findings regarding the air quality, public health, and economic impacts associated with the burning of rice straw pursuant to the schedule provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c). (p) The Legislature hereby finds and declares as follows: (1) Because of the requirements imposed by this section, rice straw that was previously burned may present, as solid waste, a new disposal problem. (2) The state should assist local governments and growers in diverting rice straw from landfills by researching and developing diversion options. (q) It is the intent of the Legislature that all feasible alternatives to rice straw burning and options for diverting rice straw from landfills be encouraged. (r) This subdivision confirms that reductions in emissions from rice straw burning qualify for air quality offsets, in accordance with paragraphs (1) and (2). (1) These credits shall meet the requirements specified in state law and district rules and regulations, and shall comply with applicable district banking rules established pursuant to Sections 40709 to 40713, inclusive. Districts are urged to establish banking systems in accordance with Sections 40709 to 40713, inclusive. The state board may adopt regulations to implement this subdivision, including, but not limited to, consideration of the seasonal and intermittent nature of rice straw burning emissions. In developing the regulations, the state board shall consult with all concerned parties. However, emission reduction credits that would otherwise accrue from reductions in emissions from rice straw burning shall not be affected or negated by the phasedown of burning, as specified in subdivision (c). (2) Reductions in emissions achieved in compliance with subdivision (c) that are banked or used as credits shall not be credited for purposes of attainment planning and progress towards the attainment of any state or national ambient air quality standard as required by state and federal law. (s) (1) Any person who negligently or intentionally violates any provision of this article is guilty of a misdemeanor and is subject to a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), imprisonment in the county jail for not more than nine months, or by both that fine and imprisonment. This subdivision applies only to agricultural burning in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin. (2) Any person who negligently or intentionally violates any provision in this article is liable for a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000). This subdivision applies only to agricultural burning in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin. (t) Districts in the Sacramento Valley Air Basin shall impose fees on growers to cover the cost of implementing this section pursuant to Section 42311. (u) To the extent that resources are available, the state board and the agencies with jurisdiction over air quality within the Sacramento Valley Air Basin shall do both of the following: (1) Improve responses to citizen complaints, and, to the extent feasible, immediately investigate and analyze smoke complaints from the public to identify factors that contribute to complaints and to develop better smoke control measures to be included in the agricultural burning plan, keep a record of all complaints, coordinate among other agencies on citizens' complaints, and investigate the source of the pollution causing the complaint. (2) Respond more quickly to requests for update from county air pollution control officers to help maximize burning days when meteorological conditions are best suited for smoke dispersion. SEC. 37. Section 41900 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 38. Section 41981 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed. SEC. 39. Section 42301.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 42301.5. (a) Any article, machine, equipment, or contrivance that may emit into the ambient air any toxic air contaminant identified pursuant to Section 39662 shall comply with any regulation adopted by the state board or a district requiring a reduction in emissions of that contaminant or chemical from the article, machine, equipment, or contrivance consistent with a reasonable schedule of compliance, as determined by the state board or the district. (b) (1) Any article, machine, equipment, or contrivance that is located within a district that is designated by the state board as a nonattainment area for any national ambient air quality standard and for which an authority to construct is issued on or after January 1, 1988, shall comply with any district regulation that is adopted after December 31, 1982, and that requires a reduction in emissions of any air pollutant, including any precursor of an air pollutant, that interferes with the attainment of the standard, from that article, machine, equipment, or contrivance consistent with a reasonable schedule of compliance, as determined by the district. (2) In determining a schedule of compliance under this subdivision, the district shall consider the extent to which the proposed schedule will adversely affect the ability of the facility owner or operator to amortize the capital costs of pollution control equipment purchased within the preceding five years. SEC. 40. Section 42301.9 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 42301.9. For the purposes of Sections 42301.5 to 42301.8, inclusive: (a) "School" means any public or private school used for purposes of the education of more than 12 children in kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, but does not include any private school in which education is primarily conducted in private homes. (b) "Air contaminant" means any contaminant defined pursuant to Section 39013. (c) "Administering agency" means an agency designated pursuant to Section 25502. (d) "Handle" means handle as defined in Article 1 (commencing with Section 25500) of Chapter 6.95 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code. SEC. 41. Section 42314 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 42314. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of any district permit system, and except as provided in this section, no district shall require emissions offsets for any cogeneration technology project or resource recovery project that satisfies all of the following requirements: (1) The project satisfies one of the following size criteria: (A) The project produces 50 megawatts or less of electricity. In the case of a combined cycle project, the electrical capacity of the steam turbine may be excluded from the total electrical capacity of the project for purposes of this paragraph if no supplemental firing is used for the steam portion and the combustion turbine has a minimum efficiency of 25 percent. (B) The project processes municipal wastes and produces more than 50 megawatts, but less than 80 megawatts, of electricity. (2) The project will use the appropriate degree of pollution control technology (BACT or LAER) as defined and to the extent required by the district permit system. (3) Existing permits for any item of equipment to be replaced by the project, whether the equipment is owned by the applicant or a thermal beneficiary of the project, are surrendered to the district or modified to prohibit operation simultaneously with the project to the extent necessary to satisfy district offset requirements. The emissions reductions associated with the shutdown of existing equipment shall be credited to the project as emissions offsets in accordance with district rules. (4) The applicant has provided offsets to the extent they are reasonably available from facilities it owns or operates in the air basin and that mitigate the remaining impacts of the project. (5) For new projects that burn municipal waste, landfill gas, or digester gas, the applicant has, in the judgment of the district, made a good faith effort to secure all reasonably available emissions offsets to mitigate the remaining impact of the project, and has secured all reasonably available offsets. (b) This section applies to any project for which an application for an authority to construct is deemed complete by the district after January 1, 1986, only if the project's net emissions, combined with the net emissions from projects previously permitted under this section, are less than the amount provided for in the applicable growth allowance established by the district pursuant to Section 41600. If a district has not yet provided a growth allowance pursuant to Section 41600, the growth allowance is zero. For purposes of this subdivision, "net emissions" means the project's emissions, less any offsets provided by the applicant and less utility displacement credits granted pursuant to Section 41605. (c) This section does not relieve a project from satisfying all applicable requirements of Part C (Prevention of Significant Deterioration) of the Clean Air Act, as amended in 1977 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7401 et seq.), or any rules or regulations adopted pursuant to Part C. SEC. 42. Section 42314.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 42314.5. In considering a permit for a facility that utilizes agricultural waste products, forest waste products, or similar organic wastes as biomass fuel in a steam generator (boiler) to produce electrical energy, or to be used as a digester feedstock in a cogeneration facility, the district shall allow offset credits as provided in Sections 41600 and 41605.5. SEC. 43. Section 42405.1 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 42405.1. (a) Any person who provides information that materially contributes to the imposition of a civil penalty or criminal fine against any person for violating any provision of this part or any rule, regulation, or order of a district pertaining to mobile source emission regulations or limitations shall be paid a reward pursuant to regulations adopted by the district under subdivision (f). The reward shall not exceed 10 percent of the amount of the civil penalty or criminal fine collected by the district, district attorney, or city attorney. The district shall pay the reward to the person who provides information that results in the imposition of a civil penalty, and the city or the county shall pay the reward to the person who provides information that results in the imposition of a criminal fine. No reward paid pursuant to this subdivision shall exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000). (b) No informant shall be eligible for a reward for a violation known to the district, unless the information materially contributes to the imposition of criminal or civil penalties for a violation specified in this section. (c) If there is more than one informant for a single violation, the first notification received by the district shall be eligible for the reward. If the notifications are postmarked on the same day or telephoned notifications are received on the same day, the reward shall be divided equally among those informants. (d) Public officers and employees of the United States, the State of California, or districts, counties, and cities in California are not eligible for the reward pursuant to subdivision (a), unless reporting of those violations does not relate in any manner to their responsibilities as public officers or employees. (e) An informant who is an employee of a business and who provides information that the business violated this part is not eligible for a reward if the employee intentionally or negligently caused the violation or if the employee's primary and regular responsibilities included investigating the violation, unless the business knowingly caused the violation. (f) The district shall adopt regulations that establish procedures for a determination of the accuracy and validity of information provided and for the receipt and review of claims for payment of rewards. All decisions concerning the eligibility for a reward and the materiality of the provided information shall be made pursuant to these regulations. In each case brought under subdivision (a), the district, the office of the city attorney, or the district attorney, whichever office brings the action, shall determine whether the information materially contributed to the imposition of civil or criminal penalties for violating any provision of this part or any rule, regulation, or order of a district pertaining to emission regulations or limitations. (g) The district shall continuously publicize the availability of the rewards pursuant to this section for persons who provide information pursuant to this section. (h) Claims may be submitted only for those referrals made on or after January 1, 1989. SEC. 44. Section 36.5 of this bill incorporates amendments to Section 41865 of the Health and Safety Code proposed by both this bill and AB 2889. It shall only become operative if (1) both bills are enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2001, (2) each bill amends Section 41865 of the Health and Safety Code, and (3) this bill is enacted after AB 2889, in which case Section 41865 of the Health and Safety Code as amended by AB 2889, shall remain operative only until the operative date of this bill, at which time Section 36.5 of this bill shall become operative, and Section 36 of this bill shall not become operative.