SB 1434, as amended, Wolk. Funding of fish and wildlife programs: State Duck Stamp Account advisory committee.
(1) Existing federal law imposes a sales tax on the sale of bows and arrows, ammunition, and certain firearms. Existing federal law, the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, makes certain revenues collected from those taxes available to the states by requiring the Secretary of the Interior to apportion an amount available to each state according to a specified formula. The federal act authorizes a state, through its fish and wildlife department, to submit programs or projects for wildlife restoration and hunter safety education to the Secretary of the Interior for funding of up to 75% of the cost of those programs or projects from the amount apportioned to the state.
Existing law establishes the Department of Fish and Wildlife in the Natural Resources Agency, administered by the Director of Fish and Wildlife. Existing law requires the department, with approval of the Fish and Game Commission, to perform acts as may be necessary to the conduct and establishment of cooperative wildlife-restoration projects, in compliance with the federal act and regulations adopted pursuant to the federal act. Under existing law, the Legislature has made findings that the costs of hunting programs shall be provided out of hunting revenues, reimbursements, and federal funds received for hunting programs, and from other funds appropriated by the Legislature for this purpose. The Legislature has also made findings that these revenues, reimbursements, and federal funds shall not be used to support commercial fishing programs, free hunting and fishing license programs, or nongame fish and wildlife programs.
This bill would require the expenditure of all federal grant moneys made available to the state under the federal act to be consistent with thatbegin insert
federalend insert act. The bill would requirebegin delete that the moneys expended under the actend deletebegin insert the department, in applying for these federal grant moneys, to give priority to projects thatend insert fulfill one or more specified purposes. The bill would require the department to post a brief description of projectsbegin insert or programsend insert funded by moneys received from the federal act on its Internet Web site. The bill would require the department to consult with specified hunting advisory committees regardingbegin delete aend deletebegin insert allend insert relevantbegin delete projectend deletebegin insert
projectsend insert funded by the federal act.
(2) Under existing law, funds derived from state duck hunting validations, state duck stamps, and certain related items are required to be deposited in the State Duck Stamp Account in the Fish and Game Preservation Fund. Existing law provides that moneys in the account are to be used, among other things, for projects or endowments approved by the Fish and Game Commission for the purpose of protecting, preserving, restoring, enhancing, and developing migratory waterfowl breeding and wintering habitat, evaluating habitat projects, and conducting waterfowl resource assessments and otherbegin delete waterfowl relatedend deletebegin insert waterfowl-relatedend insert research.
This bill would require an advisory committee, as determined by the department, to review and provide comments to the department on all proposed projects funded by the State Duck Stamp Account to help ensure that specified requirements pertaining to the State Duck Stamp Account have been met.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 711.1 is added to the Fish and Game
2Code, to read:
(a) The expenditure of all federal grant moneys made
2available to the state pursuant to the Federal Aid in Wildlife
3Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. Sec. 669 et seq.) shall be consistent
4with that act.
5(b) The expenditure of the moneys described in subdivision (a)
6shall fulfill one or more of the following purposes:
7(b) In applying for federal grant moneys available pursuant to
8the Federal Aid in Wildlife
Restoration Act, the department shall
9give priority to projects that fulfill one or more of the following
10purposes:
11(1) Management of the department’s wildlife areas or other
12lands open to the public for hunting and other public priority uses
13listed in paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of Section 1745.
14(2) Conservation of, or scientific research concerning,begin delete wildlife.end delete
15begin insert wildlife or wildlife habitat.end insert
16(3) Support of the department’s hunting-related programs,
17including hunter education, public access, and target shooting.
18(c) The department shall post a brief description of projects or
19programs funded by moneys received pursuant to the Federal Aid
20in Wildlife Restoration Act on its Internet Web site. The description
21shall include information about the budget of each project or
22program.
23(d) The department shall consult with any of the advisory
24committees established pursuant to Sections 3684, 3702.1, and
253953 regardingbegin delete a projectend deletebegin insert all projectsend insert funded by the Federal Aid in
26Wildlife Restoration Act thatbegin delete isend deletebegin insert
areend insert relevant to the committee or
27committees.
Section 3702.1 is added to the Fish and Game Code,
29to read:
An advisory committee, as determined by the
31department, that includes interested nonprofit organizations that
32have goals and objectives directly related to the management and
33conservation of waterfowl species and primarily represent the
34interests of persons licensed pursuant to Section 3031 shall review
35and provide comments to the department on all proposed projects
36funded from the State Duck Stamp Account to help ensure that
37the requirements of Sections 3702, 3703, and 3704 have been met.
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