The Great Redwood Trail Agency.

Removed the sunset provision in Section 93027 that would have repealed the staffing requirement on January 1, 2027, making the agency's obligation to hire or contract for professional staff permanent rather than temporary.

Removed operative date language ('shall become operative on March 1, 2022') from Sections 93004, 93011, 93021, 93024, and 105088, cleaning up provisions that had already taken effect.

Removed Section 93027(b), which required the agency to report to the Legislature by March 1, 2023 on its status and recommendations for a potential governing structure including board composition and professional staff.

Added a requirement in Section 93028(e) that the executive director submit a work program to the State Coastal Conservancy consisting of a breakdown of expenses allocated to each funding source appropriated for distribution to the agency.

Expanded Section 93028(e) to require that directed expenditures not only be pursuant to the adopted budget but also comply with any applicable codes, rules, regulations, guidelines, and fund source requirements with which the State Coastal Conservancy is required to comply.

Removed the final section stating it is the intent of the Legislature to enact future legislation relating to the Great Redwood Trail Agency.

Changed the fiscal committee designation from 'no' to 'yes' and the state-mandated local program designation from 'no' to 'yes' in the legislative digest, indicating the bill now triggers fiscal analysis and potential state reimbursement obligations for local agencies.

Restructured Section 93024 from numbered paragraphs (1) through (19) to lettered subdivisions (a) through (u), a formatting change with no substantive policy impact.

The bill text was reformatted from an official chaptered document layout (with page numbers, authentication header, and printed formatting) to a web page layout with navigation menus, search functionality, and site links. No changes were made to the substantive legislative language.

Header changed from Senate Bill signature format to official chaptered law format with 'STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGAL MATERIAL' and Chapter 424 designation.

Approval date filled in as October 6, 2025, and filed with Secretary of State on the same date.

Page headers changed from 'SB 727' to 'Ch. 424' and page numbers renumbered throughout.

Removed Section 93028(e), which had established a detailed process for distributing Legislature-appropriated funds from the State Coastal Conservancy to the Great Redwood Trail Agency. The removed provision required: (1) funds to be distributed to the agency for expenditure as directed by the agency; (2) verification by the conservancy that expenditures comply with both the agency's adopted budget and any applicable codes, rules, regulations, guidelines, and fund source requirements binding on the conservancy; (3) the executive director to submit a work program to the conservancy breaking down expenses by funding source; and (4) any payment by the conservancy to a creditor of the agency to be verified as due under an adopted budget and submitted work program. The agency retains general authority to receive funds from the conservancy or other state agencies under Section 93024(m), but the specific distribution and verification process was eliminated.

New Section 93004.5 explicitly declares the Great Redwood Trail Agency is a subdivision of the state, clarifying its legal status and implications for liability and authority.

New Section 93023 exempts the agency from county and city building and zoning ordinances, except for projects on properties not owned or directly controlled by the agency.

New Section 93024.5 exempts third-party use of agency real property (campgrounds, parking, food service, storage, educational or cultural uses) from state surplus property disposition laws, deeming such uses as 'agency use' regardless of whether they are commercial.

Public Utilities Code Section 105088 is amended to allow the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District to partner or contract with trail agencies including the Great Redwood Trail Agency, and designates the planned pathway from Larkspur to the northern terminus of the Golden Gate Bridge as 'the Great Redwood Trail' (distinct from the 'Southern Segment').

The city representative on the board must now be selected through a process adopted by board resolution, rather than simply being 'selected by the cities served by the rail line.'

Section 93021 now provides that railroad tracks and ties remaining in place within a railbanked right-of-way are not deemed 'waste' under hazardous waste law (Health and Safety Code Section 25124), as long as the right-of-way remains railbanked or under federal Surface Transportation Board jurisdiction.

New Section 93029 prescribes formal competitive bidding procedures for public works contracts exceeding a threshold set in Public Contract Code Section 22032(b), including requirements for advertising, bonds, and lowest responsible bidder selection. Exemptions exist for environmental preservation, maintenance work, and emergency work.

New Section 93028 requires the board to adopt an annual budget by June 30, mandates regular audits and GAAP-compliant accounting, and establishes that funds appropriated by the Legislature to the State Coastal Conservancy for the agency must be distributed directly to the agency upon verification that expenditures match the adopted budget.

The agency is now explicitly authorized to receive funds from the State Coastal Conservancy or any other state agency as appropriated by the Legislature (new subdivision (m) of Section 93024).

Section 93025 is amended to clarify that despite the agency being a state subdivision, the state is not liable for any contracts, debts, or obligations of the agency or its predecessor.

New authority allows the agency to contract with state or local law enforcement agencies within its service area to enforce its adopted rules, regulations, and ordinances.

Section 93027 adds a deadline for the agency to hire or contract for professional staff by July 1, 2022, and requires a report to the Legislature on agency status and potential governing structure by March 1, 2023. The section sunsets on January 1, 2027.