Bill Text: CA SB209 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Surface mining: financial assurances: reclamation plans.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2016-04-18 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 8, Statutes of 2016. [SB209 Detail]

Download: California-2015-SB209-Introduced.html

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BILL NUMBER: SB 209	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Senator Pavley

                        FEBRUARY 11, 2015

   An act to amend Section 2774 of the Public Resources Code,
relating to surface mining.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 209, as introduced, Pavley. Surface mining: inspections:
training.
   The Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975 requires the owner
or operator of a mining operation to forward annually to the director
and the lead agency a report that provides, among other things,
proof of annual inspection by the lead agency. The act requires a
lead agency to inspect a surface mining operation within 6 months of
receiving th operation's report and to conduct an inspection no less
than once every calendar year. The act authorizes a lead agency to
authorize an inspection to be conducted by a state licensed
geologist, state licensed civil engineer, state licensed landscape
architect, or state licensed forester, as specified.
   This bill would require the Department of Conservation, no later
than January 1, 2018, and on an ongoing basis thereafter, to offer
continuing educational opportunities for lead agency employees to
become certified, as appropriate, by the department to inspect
surface mining operations. The bill would prohibit a lead agency that
operates a surface mining operation from having an inspection
performed by a lead agency employee, as specified, unless that
employee has become certified as a surface mining operation inspector
within the previous 2 years.
   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.  Section 2774 of the Public Resources Code is amended to
read:
   2774.  (a) Every lead agency shall adopt ordinances in accordance
with state policy that establish procedures for the review and
approval of reclamation plans and financial assurances and the
issuance of a permit to conduct surface mining operations, except
that any lead agency without an active surface mining operation in
its jurisdiction may defer adopting an implementing ordinance until
the filing of a permit application. The ordinances shall establish
procedures requiring at least one public hearing and shall be
periodically reviewed by the lead agency and revised, as necessary,
to ensure that the ordinances continue to be in accordance with state
policy.
   (b)  (1)    The lead agency shall conduct an
inspection of a surface mining operation within six months of receipt
by the lead agency of the surface mining operation's report
submitted pursuant to Section 2207, solely to determine whether the
surface mining operation is in compliance with this chapter. In no
event shall a lead agency inspect a surface mining operation less
than once in any calendar year. The lead agency may cause an
inspection to be conducted by a state licensed geologist, state
licensed civil engineer, state licensed landscape architect, or state
licensed forester, who is experienced in land reclamation and who
has not been employed by a surface mining operation within the
jurisdiction of the lead agency in any capacity during the previous
12 months.  If a lead agency operates a surface mining operation,
the inspector shall not have been an employee of the lead agency in
any   capacity during the previous 12 months unless,
beginning January 1, 2018, the lead agency employee has become
certified as a surface mining operation inspector within the previous
two years pursuant to paragraph (2).  All inspections shall be
conducted using a form developed by the department and approved by
the board that shall include the professional licensing and
disciplinary information of the person who conducted the inspection.
The operator shall be solely responsible for the reasonable cost of
the inspection. The lead agency shall notify the director within 30
days of the date of completion of the inspection that the inspection
has been conducted. The notice shall contain a statement regarding
the surface mining operation's compliance with this chapter, shall
include a copy of the completed inspection form, and shall specify
which aspects of the surface mining operations, if any, are
inconsistent with this chapter. If the surface mining operation has a
review of its reclamation plan, financial assurances, or an interim
management plan pending under subdivision (b), (c), (d), or (h) of
Section 2770, or an appeal pending before the board or lead agency
governing body under subdivision (e) or (h) of Section 2770, the
notice shall so indicate. The lead agency shall forward to the
operator a copy of the notice, a copy of the completed inspection
form, and any supporting documentation, including, but not limited
to, any inspection report prepared by the geologist, civil engineer,
landscape architect, or forester, who conducted the inspection. 
   (2) No later than January 1, 2018, and on an ongoing basis
thereafter, the department shall offer continuing educational
opportunities for lead agency employees to become certified, as
appropriate, by the department to inspect surface mining operations.

   (c) Before approving a surface mining operation's reclamation
plan, financial assurances, including existing financial assurances
reviewed by the lead agency pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section
2770, or any amendments, the lead agency shall submit the plan,
assurances, or amendments to the director for review. All
documentation for that submission shall be submitted to the director
at one time. When the lead agency submits a reclamation plan or plan
amendments to the director for review, the lead agency shall also
submit to the director, for use in reviewing the reclamation plan or
plan amendments, information from any related document prepared,
adopted, or certified pursuant to  Division  
the California Environmental Quality Act (Division  13
(commencing with Section  21000),   21000)),
 and shall submit any other pertinent information. The lead
agency shall certify to the director that the reclamation plan is in
compliance with the applicable requirements of this chapter and
Article 1 (commencing with Section 3500) of Chapter 8 of Division 2
of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations and the lead agency'
s mining ordinance in effect at the time that the reclamation plan is
submitted to the director for review.
   (d) (1) The director shall have 30 days from the date of receipt
of a reclamation plan or plan amendments submitted pursuant to
subdivision (c), and 45 days from the date of receipt of financial
assurances submitted pursuant to subdivision (c), to prepare written
comments, if the director so chooses. The lead agency shall evaluate
written comments received from the director relating to the
reclamation plan, plan amendments, or financial assurances within a
reasonable amount of time.
   (2) The lead agency shall prepare a written response to the
director's comments describing the disposition of the major issues
raised by the director's comments, and submit the lead agency's
proposed response to the director at least 30 days prior to approval
of the reclamation plan, plan amendment, or financial assurance. The
lead agency's response to the director's comments shall describe
whether the lead agency proposes to adopt the director's comments to
the reclamation plan, plan amendment, or financial assurance. If the
lead agency does not propose to adopt the director's comments, the
lead agency shall specify, in detail, why the lead agency proposes
not to adopt the comments. Copies of any written comments received
and responses prepared by the lead agency shall be forwarded to the
operator. The lead agency shall also give the director at least 30
days' notice of the time, place, and date of the hearing before the
lead agency at which time the reclamation plan, plan amendment, or
financial assurance is scheduled to be approved by the lead agency.
If no hearing is required by this chapter, or by the local ordinance,
or other state law, then the lead agency shall provide 30 days'
notice to the director that it intends to approve the reclamation
plan, plan amendment, or financial assurance. The lead agency shall
send to the director its final response to the director's comments
within 30 days following its approval of the reclamation plan, plan
amendment, or financial assurance during which period the department
retains all powers, duties, and authorities of this chapter.
   (3) To the extent that there is a conflict between the comments of
a trustee agency or a responsible agency that are based on the
agency's statutory or regulatory authority and the comments of other
commenting agencies which are received by the lead agency pursuant to
 Division   the California Environmental
Quality Act (Di   vision  13 (commencing with Section
 21000)   21000))  regarding a reclamation
plan or plan amendments, the lead agency shall consider only the
comments of the trustee agency or responsible agency.
   (e) A lead agency shall notify the director of the filing of an
application for a permit to conduct surface mining operations within
30 days of an application being filed with the lead agency. By July
1, 1991, each lead agency shall submit to the director for every
active or idle mining operation within its jurisdiction, a copy of
the mining permit required pursuant to Section 2774, and any
conditions or amendments to those permits. By July 1 of each
subsequent year, the lead agency shall submit to the director for
each active or idle mining operation a copy of any permit or
reclamation plan amendments, as applicable, or a statement that there
have been no changes during the previous year. Failure to file with
the director the information required under this section shall be
cause for action under Section 2774.4.