BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2754
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 2754 (John A. Perez)
As Amended July 15, 2010
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |49-27|(June 2, 2010) |SENATE: |25-11|(August 23, |
| | | | | |2010) |
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Original Committee Reference: L. GOV.
SUMMARY : Makes various changes to the Governor's Office of
Planning and Research's (OPR) powers and duties and establishes
a unit related specifically to planning and the state
clearinghouse within OPR.
The Senate amendments :
1)Prohibit the attainment of civil service status pursuant to
this measure prior to June 1, 2011, but would require the
Department of Personnel Administration to begin preparation to
convey civil service status pursuant to the authorization as
of the operative date of the bill.
2)Require OPR to serve as the state's liaison with the United
States Department of Defense in order to facilitate
coordination regarding issues that are of significant interest
to the department and requires OPR to perform specified duties
in this capacity.
3)Require OPR, no later than August 31, 2011, to prepare,
develop, and transmit to the Secretary of the Natural
Resources Agency recommended proposed changes or amendments to
the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) guidelines
implementing this electronic submission requirement.
EXISTING LAW :
1)States that OPR is the comprehensive state planning agency.
2)Requires OPR, as the comprehensive state planning agency, to
do the following:
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a) Develop long-term planning goals;
b) Assist in the preparation of short-range functional
plans developed by state agencies and departments;
c) Review plans and programs to determine conflicts or
conformance with state's land use planning goals;
d) Coordinate development of policies and criteria to
ensure that federal grants expended by the state further
statewide environmental goals;
e) Coordinate development of environmental monitoring
systems;
f) Coordinate development of criteria and procedures for
the orderly evaluation of the impact of public and private
actions on the environmental quality of the state;
g) Coordinate technical assistance provided by state
departments and agencies to regional and local governments
to assure that plans are consistent with statewide
environmental goals;
h) Develop long-range policies to assist the state and
local agencies in meeting the problems presented by the
growth and development of urban areas and defining the
complementary role of the state and other local entities;
i) Encourage the formation of and provide planning
assistance to, regional planning agencies;
j) Assist local government in land use planning; and,
aa) Prepare the General Plan Guidelines for the preparation
of and content of mandatory elements of city and county
general plans.
3)Requires, under CEQA, certain agencies to submit to the State
Clearinghouse specified documents relating to environmental
impact reports in an electronic format and imposes specific
duties on OPR and the Secretary of the Natural Resources
Agency in creating guidelines for the submission of those
documents.
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AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Required OPR to review, by January 1, 2012, and annually
thereafter, the functional plans of each state department and
agency to ensure consistency with the state planning
priorities.
2)Required OPR, if the functional plans are determined to be
inconsistent with the state planning priorities, to make
recommendations to the appropriate department or agency and
the Legislature on what changes need to be made in order to
make the plans consistent.
3)Required OPR to report back to the Governor and the
Legislature by January 1, 2012, and every two years
thereafter, on the status of its effort to evaluate and make
recommendations on state programs and policies.
4)Deleted provisions requiring OPR to develop a statewide
environmental monitoring system.
5)Established a timeline of January 1, 2012, and every five
years after, on OPR's existing duty to develop long-range
policies to assist the state and local agencies in meeting the
problems presented by the growth and development of urban
areas.
6)Required OPR to assist the Air Resources Board in providing
technical assistance to local governments in developing their
Sustainable Communities Strategies or Alternative Planning
Strategies that are required under existing law.
7)Required OPR to work with the Strategic Growth Council
(Council) to assist state and local entities in the planning
of sustainable communities and meeting the goals of the
California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, including
providing technical assistance to local governments eligible
for the Sustainable Communities Planning Grant and Incentives
Program.
8)Established the Planning and State Clearinghouse Unit (Unit)
in OPR.
9)Required that there be a Director of the Unit to oversee all
work of the Unit.
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10)Authorized the Director of OPR to employ and fix the
compensation, as non-exempt employees, of the Director of the
Unit and other officers and employees as he or she deems
necessary for the effective conduct of the work for the Unit.
11)Provided that the Unit is responsible for implementing all
planning and state clearinghouse functions that OPR is
required to perform.
12)Provided that the Council is to be administered by OPR.
13)Required that any remaining money in the Council's
administrative fund, that has not been appropriated as of
January 1, 2011, be transferred to OPR.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, this bill would increase annual costs by $230,000 and
require three new staff positions. The bill would also shift
approximately $300,000 in remaining funds to OPR for the
administration of the Council.
COMMENTS : Since 1970, the Legislature has found that it is
necessary to have one agency at the state level, which is
responsible for developing state land use policies, coordinating
planning of all state agencies, and assisting and monitoring
local and regional planning. The Legislature recognizes that
OPR, in the Office of the Governor, as the most appropriate
state agency to carry out this statewide land use planning
function.
As part of its duties as the long range-state planning office,
OPR is required, in conjunction with the Planning Advisory and
Assistance Council, to evaluate state level plans and programs,
and identify any conflicts or omissions. Once the plans and
programs are evaluated, OPR is required to make recommendations
to the Governor and the Legislature on ways to resolve
conflicts, advance statewide environmental goals, and ensure
that all state policies and programs conform to adopted land use
planning efforts.
State government is made up of many departments and agencies
that for the most part operate very independently of each other,
working to further their individual missions. In order to take
a more holistic approach to evaluating the long term goals of
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the state and each agency, the Legislature has asked OPR to
evaluate the long range plans of each department and agency to
ensure that these plans are consistent with one another and that
each plan is consistent with the statewide environmental goals
that have been adopted. As the state moves forward to protect
the environment, build infrastructure, plan for the future, and
protect the health and safety of its citizens, each effort needs
to be in concert with each other and not in conflict.
This bill is consistent with the Legislature's continued goal of
having a statewide planning effort.
This measure requires OPR to report back to the Governor and the
Legislature by January 1, 2012, and every two years thereafter,
on the status of its effort to evaluate and make recommendations
on the state programs and policies. The bill also establishes
timelines for OPR to review functional plans of departments and
agencies and report back on any changes that may be necessary in
order for a plan to be consistent with the state planning
priorities.
This bill focuses the efforts of OPR's role as the state's
comprehensive planning agency even further by ensuring that
there is one specific unit within OPR to deal exclusively with
all planning and state clearinghouse related activities. By
making these positions non-exempt the bill ensures that the
technical expertise required to implement all of the planning
functions is consistent throughout different administrations.
Moreover, the bill places the Council under the umbrella of OPR
since the legislative directive for the Council is directly in
step with the work that OPR already is doing.
Support arguments: The Legislature and the Governor are
constantly evaluating the future needs of the state in many
arenas. It would be very advantageous for them to know what
changes need to be made in order to more successfully implement
the long term goals of the state or correct any conflicts that
may exist that prohibit the state from furthering its goals.
Opposition arguments: The Governor for the past two budget
cycles has suggested eliminating OPR. One could argue that this
might not be the time to give OPR additional duties.
Analysis Prepared by : Katie Kolitsos / L. GOV. / (916)
319-3958
AB 2754
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FN: 0006698