BILL ANALYSIS �
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 108
Author: Rubio (D)
Amended: 9/2/11
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. AND WATER COMMITTEE : 9-0, 4/26/11
AYES: Pavley, La Malfa, Cannella, Evans, Fuller, Kehoe,
Padilla, Simitian, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 8-0, 5/16/11
AYES: Kehoe, Alquist, Emmerson, Lieu, Pavley, Price,
Runner, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters
SENATE FLOOR : 39-0, 5/23/11 (Consent)
AYES: Alquist, Anderson, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Calderon,
Cannella, Corbett, Correa, De Le�n, DeSaulnier, Dutton,
Emmerson, Evans, Fuller, Gaines, Hancock, Hernandez,
Huff, Kehoe, La Malfa, Leno, Lieu, Liu, Lowenthal,
Negrete McLeod, Padilla, Pavley, Price, Rubio, Runner,
Simitian, Steinberg, Strickland, Vargas, Walters, Wolk,
Wright, Wyland, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Harman
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 77-0, 9/7/11 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Surface mining: idle mines
SOURCE : California Construction and Industrial
Materials Association
CONTINUED
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DIGEST : This bill amends the definition of an idle mine
by taking a snapshot of a five-year period, rather than the
life of the mine, to determine if production has been
curtailed to the point where the interim management plan
(IMP) requirements should apply; allows a mining operation
that became idle and that failed to get an approved IMP and
was thus considered abandoned prior to January 1, 2013 to
be returned to idle status if an IMP is approved by July 1,
2013 and various requirements, as specified, are met.
Assembly Amendments (1) authorize the Office of Mine
Reclamation to enter any mine site for which a mine
operator has requested a correction of mine status in order
to conduct an inspection, (2) require the mine operator to
be responsible for the reasonable cost of this inspection,
(3) authorize a mine operator who has failed to properly
report mineral production or status prior to January 1,
2012, to correct the report in the 2012 annual report if
the report is submitted on or before July 1, 2013, (4)
authorize a mine to return to idle status after being
considered abandoned if an interim management plan is
approved by July 1, 2013, and (5) clarify that
modifications to production data on an annual report will
be supported with evidence, that a mine operator complying
with compliance orders issued by the state or lead agency
is in compliance and eligible to adjust their mine status,
and make it clear a mine operator seeking relief under this
measure does so without prejudice.
ANALYSIS : Existing law, under the Surface Mining and
Reclamation Act (SMARA) of 1975:
1. Prohibits a person from conducting a surface mining
operation unless, among other things, a reclamation plan
has been submitted to and approved by the lead agency
for the operation.
2. Requires an operator, within 90 days of a surface mining
operation becoming idle, to submit to the lead agency
for review and approval, an IMP.
3. Defines "idle" to mean a curtailment for a period of one
year or more of surface mining operations by more than
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90 percent of the operation's previous maximum annual
mineral production, with the intent to resume those
surface mining operations at a future date.
4. Requires a surface mining operation that remains idle
for over one year after becoming idle, without obtaining
approval of an IMP, in certain circumstances, to be
considered abandoned and requires the operator to
commence and complete reclamation in accordance with the
approved reclamation plan.
5. Authorizes an IMP to remain in effect for a period not
to exceed five years, after which, the lead agency is
authorized to take certain actions, including renewing
the IMP for another period not to exceed five years, if
the lead agency finds that the surface mining operator
has complied fully with the IMP.
This bill:
1. Defines idle mines as those at which operations are
curtailed for a period of one year or more by more than
90 percent of the maximum annual mineral production
within any of the last five years during which an IMP
has not been approved and where there is an intent to
resume surface mining operations at a future date.
2. Allows a mine operator who has failed to properly report
a mine's mineral production or mine status on its annual
report to the director of the Department of Conservation
(CDC) to attach corrected annual reports to the 2012
annual report so long as the corrected annual reports
are submitted on or before July 1, 2013 and if the lead
agency and the director of CDC confirms in writing all
of the following:
A. The operator has provided written notification to
the lead agency that it intends to continue surface
mining operations;
B. The operator has an existing, valid permit or a
vested right to conduct surface mining operations;
C. The operator's reclamation plan has been approved
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and is in compliance with SMARA and the mining
operation is in compliance with the approved
reclamation plan or applicable compliance order
issued pursuant to SMARA, has an approved financial
assurance in place that the lead agency determines is
adequate for reclamation pursuant to the approved
reclamation plan, and the mining operation has been
inspected by the lead agency. The Office of Mine
Reclamation may enter a mine site to conduct an
inspection;
D. The operator has demonstrated that there are
commercially useful mineral reserves remaining at the
surface mining operation;
E. Unpaid fees for the years during which the
operation's status was not properly reported have
been paid to CDC; and
F. The operator provides evidence to support any
modified production reported on corrected annual
reports.
3. Allows a mine operation that became idle that failed to
prepare and have approved an IMP and was thus considered
abandoned by law prior to January 1, 2013, to return to
idle status, without prejudice, at the request of the
operator if an IMP is approved by July 1, 2013 and upon
lead agency verification of compliance with #2 above.
4. Requires the mine operator to be responsible for the
reasonable costs of an inspection conducted by the
Office of Mine Reclamation pursuant to #2C above.
Background
SMARA requires that a mine operator prepare a reclamation
plan that is approved by the lead agency, which is usually
a local government. When an operator decides to idle a
surface mining operation, SMARA requires the operator to
prepare an IMP for approval by the lead agency. Idle mines
are defined as those at which operations are curtailed for
a period of one year or more by more than 90 percent of the
previous maximum annual mineral production and where there
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is an intent to resume surface mining operations at a
future date. If there is no intent to resume mining, a
mine is considered either active (and presumably going
through the reclamation process) or abandoned.
When a mine is idled, SMARA requires an IMP to be submitted
to the lead agency for review and approval within 90 days.
The lead agency has 60 days to review and approve the IMP,
although there are provisions in the law for these
deadlines to be extended upon mutual agreement. Because
the IMP is considered an amendment to a reclamation plan,
it is also subject to review by the CDC. A lead agency
must respond in writing to any comments from the CDC.
Typically, the IMP addresses public health and safety
issues that must be addressed until operations are resumed
and often include runoff, drainage, erosion control, and
temporary fencing.
SMARA also provides for an appeals process if the lead
agency denies approval of the IMP. IMPs may remain in
effect for a period not to exceed five years. At that
point, the lead agency may renew the IMP for another five
year period if the operator is in compliance with SMARA.
If that does not happen, the operator must begin mining or
reclamation. If the plan is not filed, the mine is
considered abandoned and the operator is responsible for
beginning the reclamation process. In most circumstances,
mines that have been idle for more than one year and have
not obtained an IMP shall be considered abandoned and the
operator must begin reclamation.
The IMP is considered an amendment to the applicable
reclamation plan and is not subject to the California
Environmental Quality Act.
Idle mines must maintain approved financial assurances for
reclamation and like active mines, must file an annual
report with the CDC along with appropriate reporting fees,
and are subject to annual inspections.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, unknown
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one-time costs, potentially exceeding $200,000 to the CDC
during 2011-12 and 2012-13 to inspect mines for which the
owners seek to change the mine's status from abandoned to
idle.
SUPPORT : (Verified 9/8/11)
California Construction and Industrial Materials
Association (source)
California Cement Manufacturers Environmental Coalition
CalPortland
CEMEX
County of Siskiyou - Board of Supervisors
Frank B. Marks Son, Inc.
Granite Construction
National Cement
Regional Council of Rural Counties
SEPE Consulting
Specialty Minerals Inc.
Vulcan Materials Company
Werner Corporation
West Coast Aggregates, Inc.
OPPOSITION : (Verified 9/8/11)
Department of Conservation
Department of Finance
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author's office and sponsor,
the California Construction and Industrial Materials
Association (CalCIMA) state that this bill is needed
because the current definition of "idle" is unnecessarily
narrow and not suitable for mines facing ebbs or spikes in
demand caused by large public works projects or,
alternatively, depressed construction activities. The
author's office and CalCIMA point out that a year or two of
high demand followed by a drop-off in demand could trigger
a requirement for an IMP as would a depressed economy that
causes a longer-term decrease in demand.
The author's office and sponsor also state that the
determination of "idle" when made by a lead agency could
result in the immediate initiation of reclamation without
the operator being aware of that determination. They are
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also concerned that existing law is ambiguous regarding how
many IMP renewals may be granted by a lead agency.
Several mining companies are in support of this bill and
they all assert that current law inadvertently penalizes
operators who experience decreased construction activity.
They strongly support provisions in SMARA that would
provide expanded opportunities to file IMPs.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : The Department of Finance is
opposed to this bill because (1) "this bill results in
additional costs on the Surface Mining and Reclamation
Account for monitoring work by Conservation, which is not
reflected in the 2011 Budget Act," and (2) "this bill does
not require a mining operator to update the reclamation
plan or provide proof of adequate financial assurance if it
changes its status from abandoned to idle or active."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 77-0, 9/7/11
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson,
Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Beth
Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Grove, Hagman,
Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger Hern�ndez, Hill,
Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Lara, Logue,
Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell,
Monning, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan,
Perea, V. Manuel P�rez, Portantino, Silva, Skinner,
Smyth, Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao, Wagner,
Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Furutani, Gorell, Hueso
CTW:kc 9/8/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****
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