Bill Text: CA SB704 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Coastal resources: California Coastal Act of 1976: industrial developments: oil and gas developments: refineries: petrochemical facilities: offshore wind.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-09-30 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 292, Statutes of 2023. [SB704 Detail]
Download: California-2023-SB704-Amended.html
Amended
IN
Senate
March 27, 2023 |
Introduced by Senator Min |
February 16, 2023 |
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
The California Coastal Act of 1976 establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the California Coastal Commission and provides for the planning and regulation of development in the coastal zone, as defined. The act requires the commission, if it determines that it has sufficient resources, to establish one or more scientific panels to review technical documents and reports, among other things. The act encourages the commission to use innovative techniques to increase effective communication between the commission and the scientific community, as provided.
This bill would require the commission, in implementing the above provisions relating to the establishment of scientific panels and the use of innovative techniques, where feasible and as applicable and appropriate, to use the scientific expertise and resources existing within state government.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program:Bill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 30006.5 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:30006.5.
The Legislature further finds and declares that sound and timely scientific recommendations are necessary for many coastal planning, conservation, and development decisions and that the commission should, in addition to developing its own expertise in significant applicable fields of science, interact with members of the scientific and academic communities in the social, physical, and natural sciences so that the commission may receive technical advice and recommendations with regard to its decisionmaking, especially with regard to issues such as coastal erosion and geology, agriculture, marine biodiversity, wetland restoration, sea level rise, offshore wind development, desalination plants, and the cumulative impact of coastal zone developments.SEC. 2.
Section 30260 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:30260.
(a) Coastal-dependent industrial facilities shall be encouraged to locate or expand within existing sites and shall be permitted reasonable long-term growth where consistent with this division.SEC. 3.
Section 30262 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:30262.
(a)(3)Environmentally safe and feasible subsea completions are used if drilling platforms or islands would substantially degrade coastal visual qualities, unless the use of those structures will result in substantially less environmental risks.
(4)Platforms or islands will not be sited where a substantial hazard to vessel traffic might result from the facility or related operations, as determined in consultation with the United States Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers.
(5)
(6)With respect to new facilities, all
(7)
(8)
(9)
SEC. 4.
Section 30263 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:30263.
(a) New or expanded refineries or petrochemical facilitiesSEC. 5.
Section 30701 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:30701.
The Legislature finds and declares that:SEC. 6.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.(a)The commission shall, if it determines that it has sufficient resources, establish one or more scientific panels to review technical documents and reports and to give advice and make recommendations to the commission before making decisions requiring scientific expertise and analysis not available to the commission through its staff resources. It is the intent of the Legislature that the commission base any such technical decisions on scientific expertise and advice. The panel or panels may be composed of, but not limited to, persons with expertise and training in marine biology,
fisheries, geology, coastal geomorphology, geographic information systems, water quality, hydrology, ocean and coastal engineering, economics, and social sciences.
(b)Members of a panel, while performing duties required by this division or by the commission, shall be entitled to the same rights and immunities granted public employees by Article 3 (commencing with Section 820) of Chapter 1 of Part 2 of Division 3.6 of Title 1 of the Government Code. Those rights and immunities shall attach to the member as of the date of appointment of the person to the panel.
(c)The commission is encouraged to seek funding from any appropriate public or private source, and may apply for and expend any grant or endowment funds, for the purposes of this section. Any funding made available to the commission for these purposes shall be reported to the fiscal committee of each house of the
Legislature at the time the commission’s budget is being formally reviewed.
(d)The commission is encouraged to use innovative techniques to increase effective communication between the commission and the scientific community, including the use of existing grant programs and volunteers, in order to improve and strengthen the technical basis of its planning and regulatory decisions.
(e)Where feasible in implementing this section and as applicable and appropriate, the commission shall use the scientific expertise and resources existing within state government.