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AB-2645 Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund: forestry and fire prevention. (2017-2018)

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Date Published: 02/15/2018 09:00 PM
AB2645:v99#DOCUMENT


CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 2645

Introduced by Assembly Member Patterson

February 15, 2018

An act to amend Section 39719 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to greenhouse gases, and making an appropriation therefor.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2645, as introduced, Patterson. Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund: forestry and fire prevention.
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The act authorizes the state board to include use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state board as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation. Existing law continuously appropriates 35% of the annual proceeds of the fund for transit, affordable housing, and sustainable communities programs and 25% of the annual proceeds of the fund for certain components of a specified high-speed rail project.
Existing law, beginning with the 2017–18 fiscal year, suspended certain fire prevention fees.
This bill, beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year, would continuously appropriate $74,805,000 from the fund annually to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection for purposes of fire prevention activities that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This bill also, beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year, would continuously appropriate $450,000,000 from the fund annually to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection for state and local healthy forest and fire prevention programs and projects that improve forest health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, for vegetation management projects of local entities that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and maximize certain cobenefits, for the implementation of memorandums of understanding regarding federal lands for vegetation management that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and maximize certain cobenefits, and for resource management, to be allocated as specified.
Vote: 2/3   Appropriation: YES   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 39719 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:

39719.
 (a) The Legislature shall appropriate the annual proceeds of the fund for the purpose of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in this state in accordance with the requirements of Section 39712.
(b) To carry out a portion of the requirements of subdivision (a), annual proceeds are continuously appropriated for the following:
(1) Beginning in the 2015–16 fiscal year, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, 35 percent of annual proceeds of the fund are continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, for transit, affordable housing, and sustainable communities programs as following: follows:
(A) Ten percent of the annual proceeds of the fund is hereby continuously appropriated to the Transportation Agency for the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program created by Part 2 (commencing with Section 75220) of Division 44 of the Public Resources Code.
(B) Five percent of the annual proceeds of the fund is hereby continuously appropriated to the Low Carbon Transit Operations Program created by Part 3 (commencing with Section 75230) of Division 44 of the Public Resources Code. Funds shall be allocated by the Controller, according to requirements of the program, and pursuant to the distribution formula in subdivision (b) or (c) of Section 99312 of, and Sections 99313 and 99314 of, the Public Utilities Code.
(C) Twenty percent of the annual proceeds of the fund is hereby continuously appropriated to the Strategic Growth Council for the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program created by Part 1 (commencing with Section 75200) of Division 44 of the Public Resources Code. Of the amount appropriated in this subparagraph, no less than 10 percent of the annual proceeds, shall be expended for affordable housing, consistent with the provisions of that program.
(2) Beginning in the 2015–16 fiscal year, notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, 25 percent of the annual proceeds of the fund is hereby continuously appropriated to the High-Speed Rail Authority for the following components of the initial operating segment and Phase I Blended System as described in the 2012 business plan adopted pursuant to Section 185033 of the Public Utilities Code:
(A) Acquisition and construction costs of the project.
(B) Environmental review and design costs of the project.
(C) Other capital costs of the project.
(D) Repayment of any loans made to the authority to fund the project.
(c) In determining the amount of annual proceeds of the fund for purposes of the calculation in subdivision (b), the funds subject to Section 39719.1 shall not be included.
(d) Beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year and in each subsequent fiscal year thereafter, notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, the sum of seventy-four million eight hundred five thousand dollars ($74,805,000) is hereby continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, from the fund annually to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, consistent with subdivision (b) of Section 4213.05 of the Public Resources Code, for purposes of fire prevention activities that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
(e) Beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year and in each subsequent fiscal year thereafter, notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, the sum of four hundred fifty million dollars ($450,000,000) is hereby continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, from the fund annually to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection to be allocated as follows:
(1) At least two hundred million dollars ($200,000,000) annually for state and local healthy forest and fire prevention programs and projects that improve forest health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by uncontrolled wildfires, including, but not limited to, vegetation management, forest overgrowth reduction, biomass energy generation, and measures to ensure future wildfires are more consistent with historic regenerative fire regimes. The amount appropriated pursuant to this paragraph shall be subject to all of the following:
(A) Up to one hundred ninety-five million dollars ($195,000,000) annually shall be available for the following:
(i) Healthy forests in the state responsibility areas.
(ii) Local assistance grants that benefit habitable structures within the state responsibility areas, including public education, that are provided by counties and other local agencies, including special districts, with state responsibility areas within their jurisdictions.
(iii) Grants to Fire Safe Councils or certified local conservation corps for fire prevention projects and activities in the state responsibility areas.
(iv) Grants to qualified nonprofit organizations with a demonstrated ability to satisfactorily plan, implement, and complete a fire prevention project applicable to the state responsibility areas.
(v) Inspections by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and local fire departments for compliance with defensible space requirements around habitable structures in the state responsibility areas, as required by Section 4291 of the Public Resources Code, and in very high fire hazard severity zones, as required by Chapter 6.8 (commencing with Section 51175) of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 5 of the Government Code.
(vi) Public education to reduce fire risk in the state responsibility areas and fire severity and fire hazard mapping by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection in the state responsibility areas.
(vii) Other fire prevention projects in the state responsibility areas, as authorized by the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection.
(B) At least 10 percent shall be granted annually to cities, counties, cities and counties, special districts, or other political subdivisions of the state providing fire protection.
(C) At least five million dollars ($5,000,000) shall be made available annually to the California Conservation Corps for fire prevention projects and activities in the state responsibility areas.
(2) At least one hundred twenty-five million dollars ($125,000,000) annually for local entities, including, but not limited to, counties and Fire Safe Councils, for vegetation management projects that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and maximize the following cobenefits:
(A) Restoring watershed health and function.
(B) Supporting biodiversity and wildlife adaptation to climate change.
(C) Revitalizing and sustaining rural communities.
(D) Finding beneficial uses for material removed from the forest.
(E) Improving public safety as part of holistic forest management.
(3) At least seventy-five million dollars ($75,000,000) annually for the implementation of memorandums of understanding regarding federal lands for vegetation management that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and maximize the following cobenefits:
(A) Restoring watershed health and function.
(B) Supporting biodiversity and wildlife adaptation to climate change.
(C) Revitalizing and sustaining rural communities.
(D) Finding beneficial uses for material removed from forests.
(E) Improving public safety as part of holistic forest management.
(4) At least twenty million dollars ($20,000,000)annually for resource management, including, but not limited to, urban forestry programs.