BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2761
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 19, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES
Wesley Chesbro, Chair
AB 2761 (Committee on Natural Resources) - As Introduced:
February 23, 2010
SUBJECT : Department of Conservation.
SUMMARY : Clarifies that the State Geologist may enter into
certain technical geologic contracts with school districts,
among other entities; deletes the requirement that the Attorney
General must be the legal advisor for the Division of Oil, Gas
and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR).
EXISTING LAW :
1)Creates the State Mining and Geology Board (Board) and
authorizes the Board to nominate, and the Director of the
Department to appoint a State Geologist, who is required to
advise the Director regarding technical, scientific, and
engineering issues, including the scientific quality of the
division's products and activities.
2)Creates the California Geological Survey (CGS) as the primary
state agency responsible for geologic hazard review and
investigation, including investigation of seismological,
geological, and strong motion aspects of earthquakes and other
geologic hazards.
3)Requires the Attorney General (AG) to be the legal advisor for
the DOGGR in the Department and to perform necessary legal
services.
THIS BILL :
1)Clarifies that the State Geologist may enter into grant or
cooperative agreements and contracts with governmental,
including school districts, and nongovernmental entities to
provide technical, analytic, and research services related to
geologic hazards directly to those entities.
2)Deletes the requirement that the AG must be the legal advisor
for DOGGR.
AB 2761
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FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)CGS contracting fix : The CGS routinely contracts with state
and federal governmental entities for a variety of geological
services. However, because of a technical drafting error, the
current mechanism that allows CGS to contract with some
governmental organizations must be clarified to provide the
flexibility needed to accommodate a variety of governmental
needs related to the study and assessment of geologic and
seismic hazards. Of particular concern are contracts with
school districts for geologic hazard assessment. Although the
department has implied authority for such contracts, the
absence of express statutory language may invite unwarranted
challenges and subject CGS to unnecessary costs.
Since 1990, the Department of General Services (DGS), Division
of the State Architect (DSA) has contracted with CGS to
provide the required independent, technical reviews of
geologic hazard reports and proposed mitigations for school
construction plans. DSA has historically secured CGS'
assistance for these reviews through interagency agreements,
and has provided direct reimbursement to CGS. Funding for CGS
review has traditionally been provided from the fees paid by
school districts directly to DSA for the entire review of
district construction plans.
Due to a recent policy change made by DSA regarding the review
of school construction plans, CGS must work directly with, and
seek funding from school districts for reviews of geologic
hazard reports and proposed mitigations associated with
proposed school construction projects. This requires the
execution of individual contracts with school districts for
each such review.
2)DOGGR and legal services : Most agencies, with the exception
of the DOGGR, rely on the AG for litigation services only.
However, existing law, a relic of 1939, requires the AG to
perform all legal services for DOGGR, including review of
permits, proposed regulations, environmental impact reports,
and communications associated with public records requests;
advising DOGGR management on policy or regulatory changes; and
coordinating response to subpoenas, among other things. These
services are more appropriate for the Department's in-house
AB 2761
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counsel to perform. By deleting section 3102 of the Public
Resources Code, DOGGR would be represented by the AG in
litigation matters pursuant to section 11040 et seq. of the
Government Code.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Dan Chia / NAT. RES. / (916) 319-2092