BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2169
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Date of Hearing: April 17, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND CONSUMER
PROTECTION
Mary Hayashi, Chair
AB 2169 (Chesbro) - As Introduced: February 23, 2012
SUBJECT : Property Acquisition Law: State Public Works Board.
SUMMARY : Exempts land acquisitions made pursuant to the
California Forest Legacy Program (FLP) Act from current law
requiring that all real property be acquired for state agencies
by the State Public Works Board (PWB).
EXISTING LAW
1)Establishes the FLP to conserve private forests lands and
authorizes the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
(CalFire) to acquire conservation easements of eligible
properties according to specified criteria.
2)Allows CalFire to acquire conservation easements by entering
into a contract with the Wildlife Conservation Board (WCB) to
administer the purchase of conservation easements.
3)Establishes the Property Acquisition Law and vest the PWB with
the authority to administer the law.
4)Requires, under the Property Acquisition Law, that all land
and other real property to be acquired by or for any state
agency be acquired by the PWB, as specified. The following
agencies are exempt from this requirement: the Department of
Transportation; the Department of Water Resources; the State
Reclamation Board; the Department of Fish and Game; the
Wildlife Conservation Board; the Public Employees' Retirement
System; the State Teachers' Retirement System; the Department
of Housing and Community Development; the State Lands
Commission, except for property to be acquired for the State
Lands Commission pursuant to an appropriation from the General
Fund; and, the State Coastal Conservancy with respect to
acceptance of offers to dedicate specified public accessways.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
AB 2169
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Purpose of this bill . According to the author, "Up until last
year, the Property Acquisition Law was not applied to the FLP.
However, last year, while the Baxter Ranch Conservation Easement
project was pending before the WCB, a question was raised as to
whether the FLP was exempted from the Property Acquisition Law
because CalFire - not the WCB - was acquiring the easement.
"(Property Acquisition Law) does not expressly exclude CalFire
or the FLP from the PWB's process?It wasn't the intent of the
enabling statute to create a process where a FLP conservation
easement had to go through both the WCB and the PWB.
"According to CalFire, the Baxter Ranch project cost an extra
$18,000 because it went through the PWB process in addition to
the WCB process. This additional process seems duplicative and
unnecessary. Given the extra costs, the original intent of the
FLP, the prior practice of exempting the FLP from the Property
Acquisition Law, and that there wasn't a significant benefit to
having the Baxter Ranch project go through the PWB, (this bill
will) expressly exempt the FLP from the Property Acquisition
Law."
Background .
The purpose of the FLP is to protect environmentally important
forestland threatened with conversion to non-forest uses, such
as subdivision for residential or commercial development. The
program is designed mainly to help small landowners maintain
their lands in the face of development pressures while
continuing to manage their lands for timber.
The program is entirely voluntary. Landowners who wish to
participate may sell or transfer particular rights, such as the
right to develop the property or to allow public access, while
retaining ownership of the property and the right to use it in
any way consistent with the terms of the easement. The agency
or organization holding the easement is responsible for managing
the rights it acquires and for monitoring compliance by the
landowner. Forest management activities, including timber
harvesting, hunting, fishing and hiking are encouraged provided
they are consistent with the program's purpose.
CalFire administers the FLP, which includes complimentary
federal and state programs and funding.
AB 2169
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Statutes governing the FLP allow CalFire to acquire conservation
easements by entering into a contract with the WCB to administer
the purchase of conservation easements. California's Property
Acquisition Law designates the PWB as the agency responsible for
acquiring all land or other real property for all state
agencies, with exceptions for several agencies that include the
WCB but not CalFire. This lack of specificity raised concerns
when the Baxter Ranch project was pending before the WCB, which
eventually sent the project through the PWB process as well,
costing an additional $18,000.
The Baxter Ranch conservation easement is comprised of 4,036
acres in Sonoma County near Lake Sonoma Recreation Area. The
easement allows for sustainable commercial timber harvesting,
grazing and hunting, but restricts future development,
subdivision and conversion to other uses such as vineyards.
The easement also includes 38 acres of old growth redwood, which
will be off-limits to commercial harvest.
According to the author, the FLP process previously did not
require projects to go through both the PWB and the WCB, and the
enacting legislation intended for FLP projects to be exempt from
the PWB process. The author notes that the WCB has unique
expertise relative to forestry-related projects, and that
administration through the WCB results in program savings "by
reducing the level of unique administrative overhead needed for
forestlands."
This bill provides clarification to the original intent of the
FLP by specifying that the Property Acquisition Law does not
apply to any land acquisition made pursuant to the FLP.
Previous legislation .
SB 1832 (Chesbro) Chapter 790, Statutes of 2000, creates the
California Forest Legacy Program, which allows the acquisition
of conservation easements from willing landowners in order to
conserve, or prevent the development of, private forest lands,
and creates the California Forest Legacy Fund to implement the
program.
Double-referred . This bill is double-referred to Assembly
Natural Resources Committee.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file.
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Angela Mapp / B.,P. & C.P. / (916)
319-3301