BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 486|
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CONSENT
Bill No: AB 486
Author: Chesbro (D)
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORG. COMMITTEE : 9-0, 6/9/09
AYES: Wright, Harman, Benoit, Calderon, Denham, Negrete
McLeod, Padilla, Wiggins, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Florez, Oropeza, Wyland, Vacancy
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-0, 4/23/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Local government: emergencies
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill modifies an existing provision of law
relative to the declaration of a local emergency and
subsequent review by the local governing body for the need
to continue the local emergency. Specifically, this bill
(1) eliminates the distinction between a local governing
body that meets weekly and nonweekly; and (2) requires the
governing body to review the continuing need for a local
emergency at least once every 30 days (instead of the
current 14 to 21 days) until the local emergency is
terminated.
ANALYSIS : Existing law (Government Code Section 8630)
requires a governing body of a city, county, or city and
county that declared a local emergency to review the need
CONTINUED
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for continuing the local emergency at its regularly
scheduled meeting, but at least every 21 days, or, if the
governing body meets weekly, to review the need for
continuing the local emergency at least every 14 days,
until the local emergency is terminated.
Current law prescribes that a local governing body must
review the need for a local emergency no more than 21 days
after the previous review at regularly scheduled meetings.
If the governing body meets weekly, current law provides
that it must review the need for continuing the local
emergency at least every 14 days, until the local emergency
has terminated.
This bill eliminates the distinction between a governing
body that meets weekly and nonweekly and extends the time
period in which the governing body must review the need for
continuing the local emergency to at least once every 30
days until the governing body terminates the local
emergency.
Prior/Related Legislation
AB 441 (Knight), Chapter 110, Statutes of 1995 . Required
the governing body of a city, county, or city and county
that declared a local emergency to review the need for
continuing the local emergency at its regularly scheduled
meetings until the local emergency is terminated provided
that such review does not take place more than 21 days
after the previous review.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/9/09)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees, AFL-CIO
California Association of Nonprofits
California Central Valley Flood Control Association
California State Association of Counties
Counties of Humboldt, San Bernardino and Santa Barbara
Regional Council of Rural Counties
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The Humboldt County Board of
Supervisors recently declared a state of emergency due to
the structural instability of the Martins Ferry Bridge on
State Highway 299 in Humboldt County which serves as a
vital corridor for the Counties of Humboldt, Shasta and
Trinity and as the primary access to the Yurok Indian
Reservation. According to the author's office, the Yurok
Reservation has effectively been cut in half, impacting
school attendance. Using other roads now requires a trip
of 100 miles and repair or replacement of the bridge is
estimated to cost $12 million to $19 million. Current law
requires the county's emergency declaration to be renewed
every 14 days to make the local jurisdiction eligible for
emergency funding assistance. The author's office points
out that for a long-term need such as this, renewing the
emergency declaration every 14 days is impractical.
The Counties of Santa Barbara and San Bernardino have also
expressed similar concerns with existing law. For example,
the County of San Bernardino indicates that it has had an
ongoing local emergency since September 24, 2002 to address
a bark beetle infestation on public and private lands
located in the San Bernardino and Angeles National Forests.
The Board of Supervisors has had to review and continue
the local emergency declaration on either 14-day or 21-day
intervals as required by law in order to continue the
existence of the emergency.
The author's office emphasizes that this bill will provide
local governments the flexibility to continue these
emergencies as needed on a monthly basis - without causing
any significant consequences at the state level - thus,
easing the administrative and financial burden on local
governments.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield,
Brownley, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter, Chesbro,
Conway, Cook, Coto, De La Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Duvall,
Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani,
Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Hall,
Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries,
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Jones, Knight, Krekorian, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal,
Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen,
John A. Perez, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Price,
Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio,
Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Tran, Yamada, Bass
NO VOTE RECORDED: Buchanan, Davis, Emmerson, Fletcher,
Harkey, Nava, Torres, Torrico, Villines
RJG:cm 6/10/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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