BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 778|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 778
Author: Wiggins (D)
Amended: 4/2/09
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE : 9-1, 4/28/09
AYES: Pavley, Cogdill, Benoit, Huff, Kehoe, Leno,
Simitian, Wiggins, Wolk
NOES: Hollingsworth
NO VOTE RECORDED: Padilla
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Commercial fishing: salmon stamp
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill increases to $350 the price of a
commercial salmon fishing permit.
ANALYSIS : Existing law, until January 1, 2012, prohibits
specified persons from taking salmon for commercial
purposes unless the person has a commercial fishing salmon
stamp affixed to his/her commercial fishing license.
Existing law requires the Department of Fish and Game (DFG)
to issue a commercial fishing salmon stamp, upon
application for the stamp and payment of a base fee of $85.
That base fee is required to be adjusted during specified
commercial salmon season. However, existing law prohibits
the total fees, as adjusted, from exceeding $260.
CONTINUED
SB 778
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This bill increases to $350 the price of a commercial
salmon fishing permit.
It contains findings and declarations concerning the
importance of salmon in California, the economic activity
that the industry represents, and calls attention to the
various circumstances that have resulted in an extension
through 2009 of the total ban on commercial salmon fishing
in California that originated in 2008. The Pacific Fishery
Management Council formalized the 2009 ban in April. It is
well-known that many of the current salmon species that
remain in California are facing an extinction crisis. The
ban is because of the extremely low number of returning
Central Valley Fall Chinook salmon into the Sacramento
River system. The Governor has issued an emergency
declaration.
The bill also contains a statement of legislative intent
that requests an accounting of salmon stamp revenues from
the Department of Fish and Game.
Background
Many hunting and fishing groups have helped to bolster the
revenues of the DFG by supporting the sale of additional
"stamps" for specific game and fish species that are sold
in conjunction with individual hunting and fishing licenses
or commercial fishing licenses. There are specific stamps
for several species of fish and game mammals.
Revenues from the sales of these stamps are generally
intended to benefit the specific species for which the
stamp was sold. The revenues from many of these
species-specific stamps go into separate accounts at the
DFG.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/11/09)
Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Association
SB 778
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the Pacific Coast
Federation of Fishermen's Associations (Associations), the
salmon stamp program has supported a highly successful
broodstock program for Sacramento winter-run salmon that
were near extinction in the 1990's. The funds have also
been useful in leveraging other state, federal, and private
funds for salmon restoration. The Associations is very
interested in an accounting of the funds by the department.
It also supports the shift away from a sliding scale since
salmon landings in the past few years have been erratic at
best, due to closed salmon seasons or seasons with very low
catch. The bill establishes a flat rate for the salmon
stamp to ease accounting problems with the department.
CTW:do 5/11/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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