BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AJR 26|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AJR 26
Author: Chesbro (D), et al
Amended: 1/25/10 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE : 5-2, 6/9/10
AYES: Pavley, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Simitian, Wolk
NOES: Cogdill, Huff
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hollingsworth, Padilla
SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE : 4-2, 6/14/10
AYES: Simitian, Corbett, Hancock, Lowenthal
NOES: Runner, Strickland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Pavley
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 41-19, 1/25/10 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Climate change
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This resolution requests the Congress of the
United States to establish a comprehensive framework,
including dedicated funding, for adapting our nations
wildlife, habitats, coasts, watersheds, rivers, and other
natural resources and ecosystems to the impacts of climate
change.
ANALYSIS :
CONTINUED
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Existing law
1. Requires the Air Resource Board (ARB) to adopt a
statewide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions limit
equivalent to 1990 levels by 2020 and adopt regulations
to achieve maximum technologically feasible and
cost-effective GHG emission reductions.
2. Requires the preparation of a Climate Action Team Report
(CAT Report). Each agency listed in the CAT Report must
annually prepare a list of measures implemented and
proposed to be implemented to meet the GHG reduction
target established by the CAT Report.
This resolution makes the following Legislative findings:
1. On June 26, 2009, the United States House of
Representatives passed the American Clean Energy and
Security Act of 2009 (H.R. 2454) that includes a
comprehensive natural resource adaptation program and
allocates dedicated funds to states that adopt a natural
resource adaption plan to address the impacts of climate
change on natural resources within the state's
jurisdiction.
2. Climate change presents the most pressing threat to
California's natural resources in the 21st century.
3. California's natural resources provide for and protect
the health of our human populations by providing
necessary food and water, flood and erosion barriers,
disease control, atmospheric carbon removal and storage,
and many useful products from our oceans, forests,
grasslands, and agricultural landscapes.
4. California's economy is linked to the health and
vitality of our natural resources, which support the
state's valuable agricultural, outdoor recreation,
tourism, and other industries.
5. Recognizing the need to quickly and significantly
address climate change, the California Legislature
passed, and the Governor signed, the Global Warming
Solutions Act of 2006, this requires robust GHG emission
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reductions.
6. Despite the success of efforts to reduce GHG emissions,
previous and current emissions have created unavoidable
climate change impacts that threaten our natural
resources, human communities, and economy.
7. California is experiencing these climate change impacts,
including documented temperature increases, earlier snow
melt, increased wildfire occurrence, sea level rise,
rainfall changes, severe weather, and migration of plant
and animal species.
8. Projected future climate change impacts to California's
natural resources and human health over the next century
are dramatic and include increased climate-related human
mortality, destruction of manmade infrastructure, high
intensity wildfires, increased flooding, increased
drought, reduced snowpack, decreased water supply and
quality, altered timing of essential ecosystem
functions, food supply disruption, increased sea level
rise, and increased extinction of fish, wildlife, and
plants.
9. Climate change impact adaptation planning and program
implementation is essential to guard against these
catastrophic natural, human, and economic impacts.
10.California recognizes the need for cost-effective,
comprehensive action to guard against climate change
impacts to our state's natural resources, human
population, and economy and, in coordination with
efforts targeting GHG mitigation policies, is developing
a statewide climate adaptation strategy to help the
state prepare for these climate change impacts.
11.Natural resources climate change adaptation projects,
including invasive species removal, wetlands
restoration, riparian and other habitat restoration,
removal of unused logging roads, and wildfire
protection, are labor intensive and will create new
jobs.
12.A comprehensive federal framework and dedicated funding
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for climate change adaptation is of special interest to
the state because of the particular threats climate
change poses to California's natural resources, people,
and economy.
Background
In December 2009, pursuant to a November 2008 Executive
Order (S-13-08), the Natural Resources Agency finalized its
CAS, which summarizes anticipated climate change impacts
and recommends near and long-term strategies to increase
the resilience and adaptive capacity of the state to
respond to these impacts. The CAS defines climate change
adaptation as "Adjustments in natural or human systems in
response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their
effects, which minimizes harm or takes advantage of
beneficial opportunities." Given budget constraints, the
CAS only commits to implement the near-term strategies by
December 2010 using existing resources.
Examples of more significant near-term strategies include
the development of sea-level rise adaptation plans or
guidance by 12 resource departments and Caltrans, creation
of a 23-member Climate Adaptation Advisory Panel, and
preparation of a Climate Vulnerability Assessment.
Moreover, the CAS recommends that Local Coastal Plans be
provisionally amended by 2011 to account for climate change
impacts, including sea-level rise; state agencies should
consider project alternatives that avoid significant new
development in areas that cannot be adequately protected
from flooding or erosion due to climate change.
Comments
The American Clean Energy and Security Act (Waxman-Markey),
approved by the House of Representatives in June 2009,
creates a comprehensive National Climate Change Adaptation
Program, which creates a multitude of federal sub-programs
to support both state-level and international adaptation
planning and action. The Program includes research,
governance, assessment, planning, and funding elements.
Five adapation programs-domestic, wildlife and natural
resources, public health, federal agency, and international
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efforts-would be funded by revenues generated by
auctioning a percentage of emission allowances, starting in
2012 and continuing through 2050. The percentage of
allowance proceeds dedicated to adapation would ramp up
over time, escaltating to 12 percent between 2027-2050.
State funding allocations, contingent upon an approved
adapation plan, would be determined by population and per
capita income formula. Of the funding dedicated to states,
84.4 percent is allocated to state wildlife agencies and
15.6 percent to state coastal agencies.
S. 1733, the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act
(Kerry-Boxer), pending in the U.S. Senate, contains
adaptation provisions similar to the Waxman-Markey bill.
In addition, it includes provisions governing drinking
water adaptation, flood control and prevention, wildfire,
and coastal/Great Lakes adaptation. Funding similarly
relies on auction revenues though the bill dedicates 38.5
percent of revenues to states; of this amount, 32.5 percent
will go to state wildlife agencies, six percent to state
coastal agencies.
FISCAL EFFECT : Fiscal Com.: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/9/10)
Audubon California
BEAR League
Bolsa Chica Land Trust
California League of Conservation Voters
California Native Plant Society
California Council of Land Trusts
Defenders of Wildlife
Endangered Habitats League
Friends, Artists, and Neighbors of Elkhorn Slough
Natural Resources Defense Council
The Nature Conservancy
Ocean Conservancy
Pacific Forest Trust
Planning and Conservation League
Save the Bay
Save the Redwoods League
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
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this resolution "attempts to address the lack of funding
for climate change adaptation. California does not have a
dedicated funding source for necessary planning and actions
that will protect the state from unavoidable climate change
impacts. This resolution also attempts to support federal
climate change programs that include comprehensive
adaptation planning and implementation as an essential
element of those programs."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Ammiano, Arambula, Beall, Block, Blumenfield,
Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Chesbro, Coto, De La Torre,
De Leon, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Galgiani,
Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jones, Lieu,
Mendoza, Monning, Nava, John A. Perez, V. Manuel Perez,
Portantino, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Solorio, Swanson,
Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Yamada, Bass
NOES: Anderson, Bill Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Conway,
Cook, DeVore, Emmerson, Fuller, Gilmore, Hagman, Knight,
Logue, Miller, Niello, Nielsen, Silva, Smyth, Tran,
Villines
NO VOTE RECORDED: Adams, Blakeslee, Caballero, Charles
Calderon, Carter, Davis, Fletcher, Furutani, Gaines,
Garrick, Hall, Harkey, Jeffries, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma,
Nestande, Skinner, Audra Strickland
CTW:do 6/15/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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