BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2442
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 2442 (Gordon)
As Amended May 1, 2014
Majority vote
ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY 5-2
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|Ayes:|Alejo, Bloom, Ting, | | |
| |Gomez, Lowenthal | | |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Dahle, Donnelly | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Provides the State Water Resources Control Board
(State Water Board) and Regional Water Quality Control Boards
(Regional Water Boards) with explicit protection from civil
liability related to water quality cleanup actions.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides the State Water Board and Regional Water Boards with
explicit protection from civil liability related to
investigating and cleaning up water pollution.
2)Provides that the protection from liability for the State and
Regional Water Boards would apply to any authorized person in
connection with any water contamination investigation,
cleanup, abatement, or other remedial work.
3)Excludes from liability protection actions that were performed
in a grossly negligent manner.
4)Provides that the limitation on State and Regional Water
Boards liability apply to a cause of action in a civil
complaint filed after January 1, 2015.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Allows the State and Regional Water Boards to investigate
actual or suspected waste discharges that threaten water
quality. Provides that if no viable responsible party or
discharger is identified for a polluted site, the State or
Regional Water Boards may contract for the cleanup.
AB 2442
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2)Provides limited liability immunity for the Department of
Toxic Substances Control to enter upon any lands for the
purpose of taking removal or remedial action.
3)Provides limited liability immunity for a public agency and
its employees or agents for injury or property damage caused
by actions taken by a public safety employee while responding
to a hazardous substance release believed to be an imminent
peril to public health or safety.
4)Provides that a public entity is not liable for an injury,
whether such injury arises out of an act or omission of the
public entity, or a public employee, or any other person.
Provides that the liability of a public entity, as specified,
is subject to any immunity of the public entity provided by
statute and is subject to any defenses that would be available
to the public entity if it were a private person.
FISCAL EFFECT : None. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS :
Need for the bill: According to the State Water Board, the
sponsor of this legislation, "Currently, the Water Boards often
are reluctant to fully exercise their authority to investigate
and/or clean up water pollution problems that may threaten
public health and the environment due to liability concerns.
"Under current law, the Water Boards can perform, or contract
for, the investigation, cleanup, abatement, or remedial work
that is required to address waste discharges that have polluted,
or threaten to pollute, waters of the State? However, the Water
Boards often are reluctant to exert their authority to
investigate and/or clean up water pollution problems that may
threaten public health or the environment due to liability
concerns including: 1) potential liability claims that the
Water Boards' actions at a site makes them a responsible party
and that their limited actions at a site do not fully protect
all affected persons, 2) claims for reimbursement of incidental
property damage, or 3) potential trespass actions that may arise
due to the Water Boards' investigations or cleanups. Thus, even
AB 2442
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when the Water Boards are faced with a severe pollution problem
and there is no apparent financially viable responsible party,
the Water Boards are likely to decline to act due to liability
concerns."
Liability of clean-up actions: This legislative proposal would
provide the State and Regional Water Boards with explicit
protection from civil liability related to investigating and
cleaning up water pollution. This would remove a barrier in
current law that deters the Water Boards from taking actions to
investigate, prevent, or clean up pollution. The proposal would
clarify that the liability protection applies to actions by the
Water Boards to investigate and clean up any discharges that
threaten water quality.
Prior Legislation: AB 440 (Gatto), Chapter 588, Statutes of
2013, provides liability protections for local agencies that
clean up brownfield sites in blighted areas, similar to the
liability protection that is being proposed for the State and
Regional Water Boards.
Analysis Prepared by : Bob Fredenburg / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965
FN: 0003278