BILL NUMBER: AB 2739 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 15, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 28, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 27, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 8, 2010
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Blakeslee
FEBRUARY 19, 2010
An act to amend Section 8670.50 of, and to add Section
8670.15 to , the Government Code, relating to oil spills
, and making an appropriation therefor .
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2739, as amended, Blakeslee. Oil spill prevention and response.
The Lempert-Keene-Seastrand Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act
generally requires the administrator for oil spill response, acting
at the direction of the Governor, to implement activities relating to
oil spill response, including emergency drills and preparedness, and
oil spill containment and cleanup, and to represent the state in any
coordinated response efforts with the federal government. The
act imposes a uniform oil spill response fee on specified owners of
petroleum products, operators of a pipeline, operators of a refinery,
and marine terminal operators, and that fee is deposited into the
Oil Spill Response Trust Fund. The money in the fund is continuously
appropriated for specified purposes.
This bill would require the administrator, in consultation with
the appropriate federal agencies, including, but not limited
to, the United States Coast Guard and the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to prepare a sunken
vessel imminent threat assessment and strategic response plan that
identifies any sunken vessel off the California coast that meets
certain criteria and outlines a strategic plan regarding the threat
of a release of oil from the vessel. The bill requires the
administrator to report his or her findings to the Legislature by
June 1, 2011 National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration and the United States Coast Guard, to conduct an
assessment of the S.S. Montebello wreck, as defined, to determine the
likelihood of an oil release from the vessel. The bill would require
the administrator to request the appropriate federal agency to
reimburse the state for the assessment costs, upon determining that
an imminent threat of an oil release exists. If the administrator
determines that a threat of an oil release exists, but the threat is
not imminent, the bill would require the administrator to identify
the recommended course of action to monitor the vessel. The bill
would additionally require the money from the fund to be expended to
carry out this assessment, thereby making an appropriation .
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no yes
. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 8670.15 is added to the
Government Code , to read:
8670.15. (a) (1) In consultation with the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration and the United States Coast Guard, the
administrator shall conduct an assessment of the S.S. Montebello
wreck to determine the likelihood of an oil release from the vessel,
including whether there is an imminent threat of an oil release.
(2) For purposes of this section, "S.S. Montebello wreck" means
the oil tanker that was sunk off the coast of California on December
23, 1941, by a Japanese submarine during World War II, located 900
feet below the water's surface approximately six miles off the coast
of Cambria, California, at 35*35'N, 121*16'W.
(b) If the administrator determines pursuant to subdivision (a)
that an imminent threat of an oil release exists, the administrator
shall request the appropriate federal agency to reimburse the state
for the costs of the assessment made pursuant to this section.
(c) If the administrator determines pursuant to subdivision (a)
that the threat of an oil release exists, but the threat is not
imminent, the administrator shall identify the recommended course of
action to monitor the vessel, noting preferred and alternative
methods of monitoring and the corresponding cost estimates for those
methods.
SEC. 2. Section 8670.50 of the
Government Code is amended to read:
8670.50. (a) Money from the fund may only be expended to cover
the costs incurred by the state and local governments and agencies
for any of the following:
(1) Responding promptly to, containing, and cleaning up the
discharge, if those efforts are any of the following:
(A) Undertaken pursuant to the state and local oil spill
contingency plans established under this chapter, and the marine
response element of the California oil spill contingency plan
established under Article 3.5 (commencing with Section 8574.1) of
Chapter 7.
(B) Undertaken consistent with the standardized emergency
management system established pursuant to Section 8607.
(C) Undertaken at the direction of the administrator.
(2) Meeting the requirements of Section 8670.61.5, relating to
wildlife rehabilitation.
(3) Making the payments authorized by subdivision (k) of Section
8670.48.
(4) Conducting the assessment required by Section 8670.15 in an
amount not to exceed four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000). To the
extent possible, the administrator shall seek to partner with the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United States
Coast Guard on funding the assessment required by Section 8670.15.
(b) In the event of an oil spill, the administrator shall make
whatever expenditures are necessary and appropriate from the fund to
cover the costs described in subdivision (a), subject to the lien
established pursuant to Section 8670.53.2.
SECTION 1. Section 8670.15 is added to the
Government Code, to read:
8670.15. (a) In consultation with the appropriate federal
agencies, including, but not limited to, the United States Coast
Guard and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the
administrator shall prepare a sunken vessel imminent threat
assessment and strategic response plan that does both of the
following:
(1) Identifies any sunken vessel off the coast of California that
meets all of the following criteria:
(A) The vessel is within eight miles of the California coast.
(B) The vessel is within 20 miles of a national marine sanctuary.
(C) There is no party responsible for the vessel.
(D) At the time the vessel sank, it contained more than one
million gallons of oil.
(E) A release of oil from the vessel is likely to pose a threat to
California waters and shorelines, archaeological sites, wildlife,
and the habitat on which the wildlife depends.
(F) The vessel has not yet been classified as posing an imminent
threat.
(2) Outlines a strategic plan to do the following:
(A) Identify studies that should be performed to determine whether
there exists an imminent threat of a release of oil from the vessel,
noting preferred and alternative methods of study with corresponding
cost estimates.
(B) In the event that it is determined that an imminent threat
exists, notify the California Emergency Management Agency pursuant to
Section 8670.25.5 if the vessel is located in state waters or notify
the appropriate federal agency if the vessel is located in federal
waters.
(C) In the event that it is determined that a threat exists, but
the threat is not imminent, identify the recommended course of action
to monitor the vessel, noting preferred and alternative methods of
monitoring with corresponding cost estimates.
(b) By June 1, 2011, the administrator shall report his or her
findings to the Legislature.
(c) (1) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under
subdivision (b) is inoperative on June 1, 2015, pursuant to Section
10231.5.
(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be
submitted in compliance with Section 9795.