Amended in Senate May 7, 2014

Amended in Senate April 21, 2014

Amended in Senate April 10, 2014

Senate Bill No. 1217

Introduced by Senator Leno

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(Coauthors: Senators Jackson and Pavley)

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February 20, 2014

An act to add Section 12805.4 to the Government Code, relating to climate change.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1217, as amended, Leno. Climate change: preparedness.

Existing law establishes the Natural Resources Agency and requires the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to develop a strategic vision for the Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Fish and Game Commission that includes reforms necessary to take on the challenges of the 21st century, including, among other things, climate change and adaptation. Existing law establishes the Strategic Growth Council and requires the council to, among other things, identify and review activities and funding programs of its member state agencies that may be coordinated to, among other things, meet the goals of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006.

This bill would require the agency, in consultation with other appropriate state agencies and departments, on or before January 1, 2017, and every 5 years thereafter, to prepare a climate risk assessment and strategy evaluation of the state’s vulnerability and risk for climate change impacts begin insert , including a description of any mitigation measures or climate change resiliency methods end insert . The bill would require the council, on or before January 1, 2018, and every 5 years thereafter, in consultation with the agency, the California Environmental Protection Agency, and other appropriate state agencies and departments, to take specified actions with regard to reviewing the impacts of climate change and identifying capital outlay and public infrastructure projects. The bill would require the council to report its findings and provide a description of major projects relating to climate change to the appropriate state agencies, departments, commissions, and boards that make decisions related to capital funding. The bill would also require the council to report to the Legislature on those findings so that the Legislature may consider further action that may be necessary to address climate change in the state.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(a) California’s climate is changing, posing an escalated threat
to public health, the environment, and public and private property
in the state. The increasing frequency of extreme weather events,
rising sea levels, and changes in hydrology, including diminishing
snowpack, among other climate change impacts, will touch every
part of Californians’ lives in the next century, and planning
appropriately for these impacts will help us be better prepared for
the future.

(b) The impacts of climate change, including longer droughts,
extended floods, prolonged fire seasons with larger and more
intense fires, heat waves, and sea level rise are already creating
challenges for public health and causing destructive property
damage.

(c) Climate changes pose a threat not just to the lives and health
of the state’s residents, but to the financial health of our state and
local governments.

(d) According to the Natural Resources Agency’s draft report,
entitled “Safeguarding California: Reducing Climate Risk,”
state-of-the-art modeling shows that a single extreme weather
event in California could cost approximately $725 billion dollars,
with total direct property losses of nearly $400 billion dollars, the
effects of which could cause devastating impacts on the state’s
residents, economy, and natural resources.

(e) Reducing the impacts of climate change on California’s
natural and agricultural resources is essential to building the state’s
resiliency and ensuring its capacity to support its economy over
time.

(f) Given the potential impacts and long-term nature of effective
planning, California needs to consider and prepare for these climate
change impacts now.

(g) Without appropriate planning to make the state more resilient
to the identified impacts of climate change, in addition to
addressing the human and social costs of the effects of climate
change, California could face billions of dollars per year in direct
costs, and expose trillions of dollars of assets in the state to
collateral risk.

SEC. 2.  

Section 12805.4 is added to the Government Code, to
read:

12805.4.  

(a) On or before January 1, 2017, and every five
years thereafter, the Natural Resources Agency, in consultation
with other appropriate state agencies and departments, shall prepare
a climate risk assessment and strategy evaluating California’s
vulnerability and risk for climate change impacts, including, but
not limited to, sea level rise, drought and flooding, impacts on
wildlife habitats, increasing temperatures, increased occurrence
of extreme weather events, and increased wildland fire risk. begin insert The
risk assessment and strategy shall also describe any mitigation
measures or climate change resiliency methods, as may be
appropriate, to address identified vulnerabilities and risks. end insert

(b) (1) On or before January 1, 2018, and every five years
thereafter, the Strategic Growth Council shall, in consultation with
the Natural Resources Agency, the California Environmental
Protection Agency, and other appropriate state agencies and
departments, do all of the following:

(A) Review the impacts of climate change in the state with
regard to capital outlay and public infrastructure projects, including,
but not limited to, the impacts described in subdivision (a).

(B) Identify and prioritize climate resiliency projects of major
significance that would benefit essential public infrastructure and
that would provide near-term and longer-term climate change
resiliency to the state.

(C) Identify possible funding sources for the projects described
in subparagraph (B).

(2) (A) The Strategic Growth Council shall report its findings
and provide a description of major projects identified in paragraph
(1) to the appropriate state agencies, departments, commissions,
and boards that make decisions related to capital funding.

(B) (i) The Strategic Growth Council shall also report to the
Legislature on its findings regarding climate change under
paragraph (1) so that the Legislature may consider further action
that may be necessary to address climate change in the state.

(ii) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this
subparagraph shall comply with Section 9795 of the Government
Code.