BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE
Senator Patricia Wiggins, Chair
BILL NO: AB 444 HEARING: 7/1/09
AUTHOR: Caballero FISCAL: Yes
VERSION: 6/23/09 CONSULTANT: Detwiler
MITIGATION OF LAND USE DECISIONS
Background and Existing Law
When cities and counties approve land use projects, they
can require builders to set aside resource land or
easements to mitigate the conversion of other property to
development. Sometimes public agencies impose mitigation
conditions to offset the effects of other agencies' public
works projects. Rather than own and manage the mitigation
land or the easements themselves, public agencies can turn
over the property interests to nonprofit organizations that
meet statutory criteria (AB 2746, Blakeslee, 2006; AB 1246,
Blakeslee, 2007).
In addition to requiring project sponsors to set aside
resource lands for mitigation purposes, sometimes public
agencies also require applicants to set aside money to pay
for managing the land or easements. A 2006 Legislative
Counsel opinion explained that the 2006 Blakeslee bill
allows the State Department of Fish and Game to authorize a
nonprofit organization to hold and manage funds for the
operation and management of the resource lands or
easements. Land trusts want explicit statutory authority
for this practice.
Proposed Law
Assembly Bill 444 allows funds that have been set aside for
the long-term management of lands or easements that have
been conveyed to a nonprofit organization to be conveyed to
that nonprofit organization. The public agency must
determine that the nonprofit organization meets four
criteria involving managerial capacity, investment
capacity, accounting practices, and investment policies.
AB 444 requires the nonprofit organization to manage those
funds to further the managing and stewarding of that land
or easement. The public agency can require the nonprofit
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organization to provide annual financial reports. If the
public agency determines that there is a concern over the
funds' management, the bill allows the public agency to
review accounting documents or require an audit report.
The funds held by the nonprofit organization revert to the
public agency if the nonprofit organization stops
operating, dissolves, becomes bankrupt or insolvent, or
fails to perform. AB 444 allows public agencies to adopt
guidelines for its financial reviews.
The bill also allows a state or local public agency to
provide funds to a nonprofit organization to acquire land
or easements that satisfy the agency's obligation to
mitigate the effects of development.
Comment
Dollars and duties . Just as public agencies can turn over
mitigation property and easements to nonprofit
organizations, they should be able to turn over the funds
that are needed to manage those property interests. AB 444
extends the Legislative Counsel's view that the State
Department of Fish and Game has this authority and
explicitly allows any state or local agency to send
endowment dollars to help pay for their mitigation duties.
Unlike AB 2916 (Wolk, 2006) and SB 1011 (Hollingsworth,
2007), both of which died on the Senate Appropriations
Committee's suspense file, AB 444 applies broadly to all
state and local agencies and is clearly permissive.
Assembly Actions
Assembly Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee:13-0
Assembly Local Government Committee: 7-0
Assembly Appropriations Committee:17-0
Assembly Floor: 79-0
Support and Opposition (6/25/09)
Support : California Council of Land Trusts, American Land
Conservancy, Amigos de los Rios, Bay Area Open Space
Council, Big Sur Land Trust, Bolsa Chica Land Trust,
California Coastal Coalition, California League of
Conservation Voters, California Outdoor Heritage Alliance,
California Rangeland Trust, California State Parks
Foundation, Catalina Island Conservancy, Central Valley
AB 444 -- 6/23/09 -- Page 3
Land Trust Council, Eastern Sierra Land Trust, Feather
River Land Trust, Green California, League of California
Cities, Lake County Land Trust, Land Conservancy of San
Luis Obispo County, Land Trust of Napa County, Land Trust
for Santa Barbara County, Land Trust of Santa Cruz County,
Lassen Land and Trails Trust, Marin Agricultural Land
Trust, McCollum Associates, Mendocino Land Trust, Mountains
Meadows Conservancy, Muir Heritage Land Trust, Peninsula
Open Space Trust, Placer Land Trust, Planning and
Conservation League, Preserve Calaveras, Sacramento Valley
Conservancy, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, San
Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust, Sanctuary
Forest, San Diego River Park Foundation, Save Mount Diablo,
Sempervirens Fund, Sequoia Riverlands Trust, Shasta Land
Trust, Sierra-Cascade Land Trust Council, Sierra Foothill
Conservancy, Solano Land Trust, Sonoma Land Trust,
Transportation Agency for Monterey County, The Trust for
Public Land, Tri-Valley Conservancy, Truckee Donner Land
Trust, Westervelt Ecological Services.
Opposition : Unknown.