BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1541|
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CONSENT
Bill No: SB 1541
Author: La Malfa (R)
Amended: 4/9/12
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER COMM. : 9-0, 4/24/12
AYES: Pavley, La Malfa, Cannella, Evans, Fuller, Kehoe,
Padilla, Simitian, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Timber harvesting plans
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill eliminates the January 1, 2013 sunset
date of the Forest Fire Protection Exemption (FFPE),
intended to lower the cost of fuel treatment (the removal
of brush, dead trees and other debris that could fuel a
fire's spread) on private land, the FFPE allows the State
Board of Forestry and Fire Protection (Board) to exempt
small property owners from Timber Harvest Plan requirements
under limited circumstances: any trees harvested must be
under 18 inches in diameter, the professional forester
submitting the plan must consider habitat preservation and
the average size of tree on the property must increase
under any work. The FFPE does not apply to the Lake Tahoe
Basin and contains specific prohibitions on the cutting of
older trees.
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ANALYSIS : The Z'berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act (Act)
of 1973 prohibits a person from conducting timber
operations unless a timber harvesting plan prepared by a
registered professional forester has been submitted to the
Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). The
Act authorizes the Board to exempt from those provisions of
the Act a person engaged in specified forest management
activities, including, until January 1, 2013, the
harvesting of trees, limited to those trees that eliminate
the vertical continuity of vegetative fuels and the
horizontal continuity of tree crowns, for the purpose of
reducing the rate of fire spread, duration, and intensity,
fuel ignitability, or ignition of tree crowns if the tree
harvesting will decrease fuel continuity and increase the
quadratic mean diameter of the stand, and the tree
harvesting area will not exceed 300 acres.
This bill eliminates the January 1, 2013 sunset date of
FFPE, intended to lower the cost of fuel treatment (the
removal of brush, dead trees and other debris that could
fuel a fire's spread) on private land, the FFPE allows the
Board to exempt small property owners from Timber Harvest
Plan requirements under limited circumstances: any trees
harvested must be under 18 inches in diameter, the
professional forester submitting the plan must consider
habitat preservation and the average size of tree on the
property must increase under any work. The FFPE does not
apply to the Lake Tahoe Basin and contains specific
prohibitions on the cutting of older trees.
Background
Timber harvesting activities are regulated by the Act,
other state laws, and regulations of the Board. The
statutes and regulations are generally administered by CAL
FIRE.
Generally, timber harvest plans are required when
commercial species of trees are harvested for the purpose
of sale. Section 4584 of the Public Resources Code
contains numerous timber harvest plan exemptions, including
those for tree removal for public utility lines, the
removal of dead and dying trees, and a three-acre exemption
for all timberland landowners.
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Another existing exemption specifies the conditions under
which trees can be removed within 150 feet of most
structures for purposes of fire protection.
The purpose of this particular exemption is "to reduce the
rate of fire spread, duration and intensity." To initiate
activities using this exemption, a registered professional
forester would prepare the notice of exemption.
The exemption is limited to areas of less than 300 acres
and there is a provision that requires the harvesting
activity to increase the overall size of trees that remain
in the area. Additionally, existing law requires those who
propose to use this exemption to do all of the following:
submit a map of the area that meets certain criteria,
provide both a pre-harvest and post-harvest description of
the stocking levels (types and sizes of trees) that are
present, mark the trees to be harvested, and the
regulations that protect archaeological sites must be
followed.
Generally, only trees with a stump diameter of less than 18
inches may be removed. Trees, flammable materials on the
ground, and undergrowth that would allow a fire to climb
into the crowns of trees must be removed to achieve a
minimum clearance distance of eight feet. In addition,
other specified provisions of the Forest Practice Rules
apply to this partial exemption. Finally, CAL FIRE is
required to conduct an onsite inspection after timber
operations pursuant to this exemption are complete.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/8/12)
California Forestry Association
California Licensed Foresters Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author's office believes that
this partial exemption, carefully negotiated in 2004, has
proven effective and that the sunset provision should be
removed.
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In data provided by CAL FIRE to the author's office, this
partial exemption has been used on 8400 acres across the
state. Several northern California counties were the site
of these projects but it turns out that San Bernardino
County has had more acreage (2100 acres) treated than any
other county. The partial exemption was used most in
2008-10, and has experienced a sharp drop in use in 2012.
CTW:kc 5/9/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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