BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �





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          |                                                                 |
          |         SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER         |
          |                   Senator Fran Pavley, Chair                    |
          |                    2013-2014 Regular Session                    |
          |                                                                 |
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          BILL NO: SB 1305                   HEARING DATE: April 8, 2014  
          AUTHOR: Evans                      URGENCY: No  
          VERSION: February 21, 2014         CONSULTANT: Bill Craven  
          DUAL REFERRAL: Budget and Fiscal ReviewFISCAL: Yes  
          SUBJECT: State Park and Recreation Commission: budget  
          organization code.  
          
          BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW
          The Public Resources Code establishes the California State Parks  
          and Recreation Commission (CSPRC). . It is an entity charged  
          with oversight and policy direction to the California Department  
          of Parks and Recreation (DPR). It has specific statutory duties  
          and, partly as a reaction to financial mismanagement in recent  
          years, the Legislature has enhanced the role of the Commission  
          by adding ex officio members from the Legislature as well as  
          assigning the CSPRC additional duties. One of the most  
          significant new duties is to review the deferred maintenance  
          backlog at state parks, often said to hover around $1 billion,  
          although that number is under review. 

          Currently, the budget for the Commission is included in the  
          budget of the department. DPR typically offers one staff person  
          to provide administrative assistance to the CSPRC as well as  
          payment for the CSPRC meetings. 

          PROPOSED LAW
          This bill would direct the Department of Finance to establish a  
          separate budget item for the CSPRC. 

          ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT
          According to the author, while the expenses of the commission  
          are comparatively low, this bill would publicly display those  
          expenses. The benefit of a public display of those expenses to  
          both the Legislature and the public is that, for the first time,  
          everyone would know the budget of the commission. The  
          Legislature and the administration could consider the adequacy  
          of that funding, and the Legislature and the administration  
          could consider appropriate increases or, less likely, decreases  
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          in the CSPRC budget. 

          ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION
          None received

          COMMENTS 
          While the Committee may consider it appropriate to establish a  
          separate line item for the  CSPRC, one possible consequence is  
          that the Commission could be asked by the administration and the  
          relevant budget subcommittees of each house to participate in  
          the annual budget processes. This could help highlight the work  
          of the CSPRC.  


          SUPPORT
          None Received
          OPPOSITION
          None Received
          




























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