BILL NUMBER: SB 21 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JANUARY 25, 2010
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 25, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Senator Simitian
DECEMBER 1, 2008
An act to add Section 5523 to the Fish and Game Code, relating to
fishing.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 21, as amended, Simitian. Fishing gear.
(1) Existing
Existing law grants to the Fish and Game Commission
powers relating to the protection and propagation of fish and game.
Existing law establishes the Department of Fish and Game in the
Resources Agency, and generally charges the department with the
administration and enforcement of the Fish and Game Code. The
department administers a commercial fishing licensing program and
carries out various other functions relating to fishing.
Existing law establishes the Ocean Protection Council and requires
the council, among other things, to coordinate activities of state
agencies, that are related to the protection and conservation of
coastal waters and ocean ecosystems, and to establish policies to
coordinate the collection and sharing of scientific data related to
coastal and ocean resources between agencies.
This bill would require the department, in collaboration
with the council, by January 1, 2011, to recommend to the commission
sustainable funding sources for a program for the prevention of the
loss of fishing gear and for the recovery of derelict fishing gear,
as defined. The department would be required, by January 1,
2011 2012 , to include on all fishing
licenses and in all appropriate official brochures a
any toll-free telephone number
numbers available for the purpose of reporting derelict
fishing gear and the address any available
addresses for an Internet Web site
sites that maintains
maintain a reporting system for derelict fishing gear.
The bill, on and after July 1, 2012, would require a person who
loses commercial fishing gear, and certain commercial passenger
fishing vessels, to report, in the manner prescribed by the
department, in collaboration with the council, the location at which
the fishing gear was lost, the name and fishing identification number
of the person owning the fishing gear and of the person fishing with
the gear if different than the owner, and the type of lost fishing
gear within 48 hours of losing the fishing gear and returning to
port. By July 1, 2012, the council would be required to identify and,
if funding is available, establish and maintain, or support, a
database of known derelict fishing gear. The council would be
required by January 1, 2013, and annually thereafter, to take certain
action to achieve specified targets for the removal and disposal of
derelict fishing gear. On and after July 1, 2012, all traps and trawl
nets deployed in the waters of the state would be required to be
tagged or coded, in the manner prescribed by the department, in
collaboration with the council, with specified information to aid in
the identification of the source of any derelict fishing gear. The
bill would provide that, if the department does not have sufficient
personnel to carry out any of these provisions, the department would
be authorized to contract with appropriate parties for those services
if funds are available for that purpose.
Because, under existing law, a violation of these provisions would
be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes no .
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Ocean-based sources are a significant source of plastic marine
debris, including lost and abandoned "derelict" fishing gear that
can be dangerous to wildlife, boaters, and divers.
(b) Fishing gear such as commercial and recreational nets, lines,
traps, pots, and other fishing equipment that is lost or abandoned
may continue to catch marine organisms long after the gear is lost
and may threaten sensitive marine habitats and ecosystems.
(c) "Ghost fishing," where marine animals are trapped in lost or
abandoned nets or traps, is a leading cause of marine mammal deaths
each year.
(d) Lost or abandoned nets and gear have been found to drift
thousands of miles trapping and killing fish, turtles, seabirds, and
other marine life.
(e) Marine debris such as derelict fishing gear has adversely
impacted at least 267 species worldwide through ingestion and
entanglement.
(f) Fishing nets and fishing gear are often made from synthetic
materials that either take a long time to degrade or may never
degrade.
(g) Lost fishing gear poses a hazard and economic burden for
boaters and fishing operations and is a safety hazard for surfers,
swimmers, and divers.
(h) The California Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project has
developed a strategy to address derelict fishing gear by working
cooperatively with fishermen and local leaders for the recovery of
gear and the prevention of further gear losses. Through a pilot
program for gear removal, the recovery project retrieved nearly 10
tons of gear from around the Channel Islands in May 2006.
SEC. 2. Section 5523 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to read:
5523. (a) For purposes of this section, the following terms have
the following meanings:
(1) "Commercial fishing gear" means fishing gear used by a
commercial fisherman who has a valid, unrevoked commercial fishing
license issued pursuant to Section 7850.
(2) "Commercial passenger fishing vessel" means a boat from which
persons are allowed to sport fish pursuant to a commercial fishing
license.
(3) "Council" means the Ocean Protection Council established
pursuant to Section 35600 of the Public Resources Code.
(4)
(1) "Derelict fishing gear" means lost or abandoned
fishing nets, fishing lines, and other commercial and recreational
fishing equipment, and does not include lost or abandoned vessels.
(5)
(2) "Fishing gear" means fishing nets, fishing lines,
and other commercial and recreational fishing equipment.
(b) The department may apply for, and accept, funds from local,
state, federal, and private sources to establish and implement a
fishing gear loss prevention and derelict fishing gear recovery
program, or to facilitate and support an existing program.
(c) The department, in collaboration with the council, on or
before January 1, 2011, shall recommend to the commission sustainable
funding sources for a fishing gear loss prevention and derelict
fishing gear recovery program. The recommended funding sources may
include, but are not limited to, the adoption of fees, and the
imposition of penalties on persons having significant and chronic
gear loss and those failing to report lost gear pursuant to
subdivision (e), to assist in defraying the cost of the program.
(d)
(b) The department, on or before January 1,
2011 2012 , shall include the following
information on all fishing licenses and in all appropriate official
brochures:
(1) A Any toll-free
telephone number numbers available for
the purpose of reporting derelict fishing gear.
(2) The address for an Any available
addresses for Internet Web site sites
that maintains maintain a
reporting system for derelict fishing gear.
(e) On and after July 1, 2012, a person who loses commercial
fishing gear, and a commercial passenger fishing vessel operator on
which vessel five or more passengers have lost fishing gear at the
same location, within the waters of the state and offshore shall
report, in the manner that the department, in collaboration with the
council, shall prescribe, the location at which the fishing gear was
lost, including latitude and longitude, the name and fishing
identification number of the person owning the fishing gear and of
the person fishing with the gear if different than the owner, and the
type of lost fishing gear within 48 hours of losing the fishing gear
and returning to port.
(f) On or before July 1, 2012, the council shall identify and, if
funding is available, establish and maintain, or support, a database
of known derelict fishing gear, including the location and type of
derelict fishing gear. The council shall identify on an Internet Web
site areas in which large amounts of derelict fishing gear have been
abandoned.
(g) On or before January 1, 2013, and annually thereafter, the
council shall in accordance with Section 35615 of the Public
Resources Code, prioritize the derelict fishing gear that has been
reported and identified for removal and disposal, to achieve the
target reductions for derelict fishing gear removal and disposal
established by the council.
(h) On and after July 1, 2012, all traps and trawl nets deployed
in waters of the state shall be tagged or coded in the manner that
the department, in collaboration with the council, shall prescribe
with the owner's fishing identification number to aid in the
identification of the source of derelict fishing gear.
(i) If the department does not have sufficient personnel available
to carry out any of the provisions of this section, the department
may contract with appropriate parties for those services if funds are
available for that purpose.
SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this
act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local
agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a
new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or
changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of
Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a
crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the
California Constitution.