BILL NUMBER: AB 2605 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 20, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 6, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 18, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Nazarian
FEBRUARY 19, 2016
An act to amend Sections 65460.5 and 65923.8 of, to amend and
renumber Section 12019.5 of, to add Article 4.5 (commencing with
Section 12097) to Chapter 1.6 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 to,
and to repeal Section 66033 of, the Government Code, to amend Section
25199.7 of, and to repeal Section 25199.4 of, the Health and Safety
Code, and to amend Section 25616 of the Public Resources Code,
relating to state government.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2605, as amended, Nazarian. State government: Office of Permit
Assistance.
Previously existing law established the Office of Permit
Assistance within the Trade and Commerce Agency to, among other
things, provide information to developers relating to the permit
approval process. Under existing law, a state agency which is the
lead agency for a development project is required to inform the
applicant for a permit that the Office of Permit Assistance has been
created for this purpose.
This bill would instead require a state agency that is a lead
agency for a development project to inform the applicant for a permit
that the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development has
been created for this purpose. The bill would also delete various
obsolete provisions relating to the Office of Permit Assistance.
Existing law establishes procedures for a land use decision by a
local agency concerning a specified hazardous waste facility project,
as defined. Existing law requires the Office of Permit Assistance to
take specified actions with regard to land use decisions regarding a
proposed hazardous waste facility project.
This bill would transfer these duties to the Department of Toxic
Substances Control.
Existing law requires the Director of the Governor's Office of
Business and Economic Development to ensure that the office's
Internet Web site contains information to assist an individual with
the licensing, permitting, and registration requirements necessary to
start a business, including fee requirements and fee schedules of
state agencies.
This bill would establish the California Permit
Assistance Program within the Governor's Office of Business and
Economic Development under the authority of the director.
Development. The bill would require the program
to, among other things, provide direct permitting
and regulatory compliance assistance to businesses and provide
mediation and 3rd-party neutral facilitation to resolve conflicts
between applicants and permitting and regulatory entities.
The bill would require the program to manage and regularly update
the tools provided on the office's Internet Web site. The bill would
require the office to report annually on the activities and outcomes
of the program.
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. Article 4.5 (commencing with Section 12097) is added to
Chapter 1.6 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code, to read:
Article 4.5. California Permit Assistance
12097. (a) The California Permit Assistance
Program is hereby created within the Governor's Office of Business
and Economic Development under the authority of the
director. Development.
(b) The program shall do all of the following:
(1) Provide direct permitting and regulatory
compliance assistance to businesses.
(2) Assist businesses in accessing information and resources
related to permitting and regulatory compliance.
(3) Provide mediation and third-party neutral facilitation to
resolve conflicts between applicants and permitting and
regulatory entities.
(4) Work with federal, state, regional, and local permitting and
regulatory entities to exchange best practices and implement
improvements to modernize permitting processes.
(5) Manage and regularly update the office's Internet Web site
pursuant to Section 12097.1.
(c) In implementing the program, the director
The program shall work cooperatively with local, regional,
federal, and other state public agencies and private sector business
and economic development organizations.
(d) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5, the Governor's Office of
Business and Economic Development shall report to the Governor and
the Legislature annually on the activities and outcomes of the
program.
SEC. 2. Section 12019.5 of the Government Code is amended and
renumbered to read:
12097.1. (a) The director shall ensure that the office's Internet
Web site contains information on the licensing, permitting, and
registration requirements of state agencies, and shall include, but
not be limited to, information that does all of the following:
(1) Assists individuals with identifying the type of applications,
forms, or other similar documents an applicant may need.
(2) Provides a direct link to a digital copy of all state
licensing, permitting, and registration applications, forms, or other
similar documents where made available for download.
(3) Instructs individuals on how and where to submit applications,
forms, or other similar documents.
(b) The director shall ensure that the office's Internet Web site
contains information on the fee requirements and fee schedules of
state agencies, and shall include, but not be limited to, information
that does all of the following:
(1) Assists individuals with identifying the types of fees and
their due dates.
(2) Provides direct links to the fee requirements and fee
schedules for all state agencies, where made available for download.
(3) Instructs individuals on how and where to submit payments.
(c) The office shall ensure that the Internet Web site is
user-friendly and provides accurate, updated information.
(d) (1) Each state agency that has licensing, permitting, or
registration authority shall provide direct links to information
about its licensing, permitting, and registration requirements and
fee schedule to the office.
(2) A state agency shall not use the Internet Web site established
under this section as the exclusive source of information for the
public to access licensing requirements and fees for that agency.
(e) The office may impose a reasonable fee, not to exceed the
actual cost to provide the service, as a condition of accessing
information on the Internet Web site established under subdivisions
(a) and (b).
SEC. 3. Section 65460.5 of the Government Code is amended to read:
65460.5. A city or county establishing a district and preparing a
plan pursuant to this article shall be eligible for available
transportation funding.
SEC. 4. Section 65923.8 of the Government Code is amended to read:
65923.8. Any state agency which is the lead agency for a
development project shall inform the applicant for a permit that the
Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development has been
created to assist, and provide information to, developers relating to
the permit approval process.
SEC. 5. Section 66033 of the Government Code is repealed.
SEC. 6. Section 25199.4 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed.
SEC. 7. Section 25199.7 of the Health and Safety Code is amended
to read:
25199.7. (a) At least 90 days before filing an application for a
land use decision for a specified hazardous waste facility project
with a local agency, the proponent shall file a notice of intent to
make the application with the Department of Toxic Substances Control
and with the applicable city or county. The notice of intent shall
specify the location to which the notice of intent is applicable and
shall contain a complete description of the nature, function, and
scope of the project. The Department of Toxic Substances Control
shall immediately notify affected state agencies of the notice of
intent. The local agency shall publish a notice in a newspaper of
general circulation in the area affected by the proposed project,
shall post notices in the location where the proposed project is
located, and shall notify, by a direct mailing, the owners of
contiguous property, as shown in the latest equalized assessment
roll. A notice of intent filed with a local agency shall be
accompanied by a fee which shall be set by the local agency in an
amount equal to the local agency's cost of processing the notice of
intent and carrying out the notification requirements of this
subdivision. A notice of intent is not transferable to a location
other than the location specified in the notice and shall remain in
effect for one year from the date it is filed with a local agency or
until it is withdrawn by the proponent, whichever is earlier.
(b) A notice of intent is not effective and a proponent may not
file an application for a land use decision for a specified hazardous
waste facility project with a local agency unless the proponent has
first complied with subdivision (a).
(c) Within 90 days after a notice of intent is filed with the
Department of Toxic Substances Control pursuant to subdivision (a),
the department shall convene a public meeting in the affected city or
county to inform the public on the nature, function, and scope of
the proposed specified hazardous waste facility project and the
procedures that are required for approving applications for the
project.
(d) The legislative body of the affected local agency shall
appoint a seven member local assessment committee to advise it in
considering an application for a land use decision for a specified
hazardous waste facility project. The members of the local assessment
committee may be appointed at any time after the notice of intent is
filed with the local agency but shall be appointed not later than 30
days after the application for the land use decision is accepted as
complete by the local agency. The local agency shall charge the
project proponent a fee to cover the local agency's costs of
establishing and convening the local assessment committee. The fee
shall accompany the application for a land use decision.
(1) The membership of the committee shall be broadly constituted
to reflect the makeup of the community, and shall include three
representatives of the community at large, two representatives of
environmental or public interest groups, and two representatives of
affected businesses and industries. Members of local assessment
committees selected pursuant to this subdivision shall have no direct
financial interest, as defined in Section 87103 of the Government
Code, in the proposed specified hazardous waste facility project.
(2) The local assessment committee shall, as its primary function,
advise the appointing legislative body of the affected local agency
of the terms and conditions under which the proposed hazardous waste
facility project may be acceptable to the community. To carry out
this function, the local assessment committee shall do all of the
following:
(A) Enter into a dialogue with the proponent for the proposed
hazardous waste facility project to reach an understanding with the
proponent on both of the following:
(i) The measures that should be taken by the proponent in
connection with the operation of the proposed hazardous waste
facility project to protect the public health, safety, and welfare,
and the environment of the city or county.
(ii) The special benefits and remuneration the facility proponent
will provide the city or county as compensation for the local costs
associated with the operation of the facility.
(B) Represent generally, in meetings with the project proponent,
the interests of the residents of the city or county and the
interests of adjacent communities.
(C) Receive and expend any technical assistance grants made
available pursuant to subdivision (g).
(D) Adopt rules and procedures which are necessary to perform its
duties.
(E) Advise the legislative body of the city or county of the
terms, provisions, and conditions for project approval which have
been agreed upon by the committee and the proponent, and of any
additional information which the committee deems appropriate. The
legislative body of the city or county may use this advice for its
independent consideration of the project.
(3) The legislative body of the affected jurisdiction shall
provide staff resources to assist the local assessment committee in
performing its duties.
(4) A local assessment committee established pursuant to this
subdivision shall cease to exist after final administrative action by
state and local agencies has been taken on the permit applications
for the project for which the committee was convened.
(e) A local agency shall notify the Department of Toxic Substances
Control within 10 days after an application for a land use decision
for a specified hazardous waste facility project is accepted as
complete by the local agency and, within 60 days after receiving this
notice, the Department of Toxic Substances Control shall convene a
meeting of the lead and responsible agencies for the project, the
proponent, the local assessment committee, and the interested public,
for the purpose of determining the issues which concern the agencies
that are required to approve the project and the issues which
concern the public. The meeting shall take place in the jurisdiction
where the application has been filed.
(f) Following the meeting required by subdivision (e), the
proponent and the local assessment committee appointed pursuant to
subdivision (d) shall meet and confer on the specified hazardous
waste facility project proposal for the purpose of establishing the
terms and conditions under which the project will be acceptable to
the community.
(g) (1) If the local assessment committee finds that it requires
assistance and independent advice to adequately review a proposed
hazardous waste facility project, it may request technical assistance
grants from the local agency to enable the committee to hire a
consultant. The committee may use technical assistance grant funds
made available to it to hire a consultant to do either, or both, of
the following:
(A) Assist the committee in reviewing and evaluating the
application for the project, the environmental documents prepared for
the project pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act
(Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources
Code) and any other documents, materials, and information that are
required by a public agency in connection with the application for a
land use decision or a permit.
(B) Advise the local assessment committee in its meetings and
discussions with the facility proponent to seek agreement on the
terms and conditions under which the project will be acceptable to
the community.
(2) The local agency shall require the proponent of the proposed
hazardous waste facility project to pay a fee equal to the amount of
any technical assistance grant provided the local assessment
committee under paragraph (1). The funds received as a result of the
imposition of the fee shall be used to make technical assistance
grants exclusively for the purposes described in paragraph (1).
(3) The local agency shall deposit any fee imposed pursuant to
paragraph (2) in an account created in the city or county treasury,
maintain records of all expenditures from the account, and return any
unused funds and accrued interest to the project proponent upon
completion of the review of the proposed hazardous waste facility
project.
(h) This section applies only to a specified hazardous waste
facility project.
SEC. 8. Section 25616 of the Public Resources Code is amended to
read:
25616. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage local
agencies to expeditiously review permit applications to site energy
projects, and to encourage energy project developers to consider all
cost-effective and environmentally superior alternatives that achieve
their project objectives.
(b) Subject to the availability of funds appropriated therefor,
the commission shall provide technical assistance and grants-in-aid
to assist local agencies to do either or both of the following:
(1) Site energy production or transmission projects which are not
otherwise subject to the provisions of Chapter 6 (commencing with
Section 25500).
(2) Integrate into their planning processes, and incorporate into
their general plans, methods to achieve cost-effective energy
efficiency.
(c) The commission shall provide assistance at the request of
local agencies.
(d) As used in this section, an energy project is any project
designed to produce, convert, or transmit energy as one of its
primary functions.