The California Endangered Species Act requires the Fish and Game Commission to establish a list of endangered species and a list of threatened species and to add or remove species from either list if it finds, upon the receipt of sufficient scientific information, as specified, that the action is warranted. The act prohibits the taking of an endangered or threatened species, except under certain circumstances. The violation of the act is a crime. This bill would prohibit the imposition of a civil, administrative, or criminal penalty for a violation of the take prohibition if the defendant used necessary and reasonable force to protect themselves, a member of their family, or any other individual from immediate bodily harm from a species listed pursuant to the act. The bill would require a person who committed a take, or an attempted take, of a species listed pursuant to the act under these circumstances to notify the Department of Fish and Wildlife within 24 hours after the take. Because a violation of this requirement would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if the lead agency finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. Existing law establishes the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation. Existing law requires the division to be the lead agency for all geothermal exploratory projects for purposes of CEQA, except as provided. Existing law defines "geothermal exploratory project," for purposes of CEQA, in part as a project composed of not more than 6 wells and associated drilling and testing equipment whose chief and original purpose is to evaluate the presence and characteristics of geothermal resources. Existing law requires wells included within a geothermal exploratory project to be located at least 12 mile from geothermal development wells that are capable of producing geothermal resources in commercial quantities. This bill would expressly include as part of a geothermal exploratory project, among other things, equipment and activities necessary to establish interconnectivity between wells and reservoirs. The bill would specify that the above-described12–mile limit is measured from all points along the wellhead location and well course.
Existing law prohibits a person from selling or offering for sale a product, as defined, that is labeled with the term "compostable" or "home compostable" unless, among others, the product meets a specified ASTM standard specification, has OK compost HOME certification, and meets a standard adopted by the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery. Existing law requires the department to review revisions to the ASTM standard specification, as provided. Existing law authorizes the department to adopt a standard different from an ASTM standard if adopted or developed by a standard-setting organization recognized by the department, the standard adds qualifications to an ASTM standard specification, and the standard is more stringent than an ASTM standard specification, as provided. Existing law exempts a fiber product that is demonstrated to not incorporate any plastics or polymers from complying with any of these ASTM standards. This bill would instead prohibit a person from selling or offering for sale a product that is labeled with the term "compostable" or "home compostable" unless the product has OK compost HOME certification or meets a standard adopted by the department. The bill would repeal the requirement for the department to review revisions to the ASTM standard specification. The bill would instead authorize the department to adopt an existing standard different from an ASTM standard specification if the standard is adopted or developed by a standard-setting organization recognized by the department. This bill would exempt a fiber product that is demonstrated to not incorporate any plastics or polymers from requirements for labeling compostable products, as specified, unless the department adopts a standard for compostable fiber products. This bill, on and after June 30, 2027, would prohibit a person from selling or offering for sale a product in this state that is labeled with the term "compostable" or "home compostable" that is made wholly or partially of plastic, as defined. This bill would exempt from prohibition a food service establishment's use of plastic single-use food service ware that is accepted by a recycling collector that services the jurisdiction in which the food service establishment operates, as specified. The bill would provide that this exemption does not preempt a local requirement for food service establishments to use compostable or reusable service ware or otherwise limit the authority of a local government to regulate service ware outside of the exemption, as specified. Existing law requires a compostable bag that meets an ASTM standard specification described above to comply with certain labeling requirements. This bill would repeal those labeling requirements.
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) , in consultation with the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) , the Independent System Operator, and the State Air Resources Board, on or before December 31, 2023, to submit to the Legislature an assessment of the firm zero-carbon resources that support a clean, reliable, and resilient electrical grid in the state and will achieve the policy of the state that eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources supply 100% of all retail sales of electricity to the state's end-use customers and 100% of electricity procured to serve all state agencies by December 31, 2045, as specified. This bill would require the Energy Commission, working with the PUC, to prepare and submit to the Legislature, on or before January 1, 2028, a statewide assessment of the role and necessity of firm zero-carbon resources in meeting the state's clean energy and reliability objectives, potential technologies and strategies for integrating firm zero-carbon resources into the state's energy mix, recommendations on procurement, policy, and planning actions to deploy and support firm zero-carbon resources, and current and projected renewable and firm zero-carbon generation capacity, reliability requirements under varying system conditions, and the cost and emission implications of firm zero-carbon resources.
Under existing law, the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, the State Water Resources Control Board and the California regional water quality control boards are the principal state agencies with authority over matters relating to water quality. The act requires the state board to formulate and adopt state policies for water quality control and requires the regional boards to adopt regional water quality control plans in compliance with the state policies. Under the act, the state board and the regional boards prescribe waste discharge requirements for the discharge of waste that could affect the quality of the waters of the state. This bill would require the State Water Resources Control Board to require the regional boards to update the Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program in order to reduce nitrogen waste discharges from commercial irrigated agricultural areas, as provided. The bill would require the regional boards to adopt revised orders with waste discharge requirements on or before January 1, 2028, that are sufficient to meet certain reductions in nitrogen waste discharges. The bill would require the state board to, on or before July 1, 2027, publish both a list of standardized crop names and categories, and a statewide methodology for calculating, and field-level reporting of, nitrogen balances for croplands, including nitrogen fertilizer applications and nitrogen discharges, that account for available soil nitrogen, to be used by the regional boards and incorporated into the revised orders. The bill would require the state board, on or before January 1, 2031, and in coordination with the regional boards, to submit a report to the relevant policy committees of the Legislature on progress achieved in implementing these requirements, including data on the extent of progress made toward reducing nitrogen waste discharges, as provided.
The Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act prohibits any person or public agency from importing into the state, exporting out of the state, or taking, possessing, purchasing, or selling within the state, a western Joshua tree or any part or product of the tree, except as specified. The act authorizes the Department of Fish and Wildlife to permit the taking of a western Joshua tree if specified conditions are met, including, but not limited to, that the permittee mitigates all impacts to, and taking of, the western Joshua tree through measures that are roughly proportional in extent to the impact of the authorized taking of the western Joshua tree. The act authorizes, in lieu of completing the mitigation measures, a permittee to elect to satisfy the mitigation obligation by paying fees pursuant to a specified fee schedule, as provided. Existing law authorizes the department to include permit conditions that require the permittee to relocate one or more of the western Joshua trees, as specified. Existing law requires the department to adopt guidelines and relocation protocols, based on the best available science, to relocate western Joshua trees successfully. This bill would authorize the department to authorize, by permit, and without payment of fees or other mitigation, the relocation of up to 10 individual western Joshua trees from a parcel, as provided. The bill would require a person seeking a relocation permit to submit a permit application to the department and meet certain conditions including, among other conditions, that the tree identified in the application would be relocated within 2.5 kilometers of its original location and that the relocation be consistent with the guidelines and relocation protocols adopted by the department. The bill would require the department to maintain a list of relocation permits issued pursuant to this authority and sufficient information regarding each relocation to be able to assess the success or failure of the relocation and the factors contributing to that success or failure.
The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2027, and before January 1, 2032, allow a credit against those taxes equal to 50% of the cost of a backup electricity generator or solar battery, as specified, by a qualified taxpayer, as defined, for use in a residence or commercial property. The bill would limit the credit to $5,000 per residence or commercial property in the case of the purchase of a backup electricity generator, and to $7,500 in the case of a solar battery. The bill would only apply these provisions in taxable years for which an appropriation is made in the Budget Act or another statute for the purposes of administering the credits. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill would include additional information required for any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Conservancy. Existing law requires the conservancy to act as a primary state agency to implement ecosystem restoration in the Delta and to support efforts that advance environmental protection and the economic well-being of Delta residents. Existing law specifies the composition of the governing board of the conservancy, including 11 voting members, and requires liaison advisers to serve in an advisory, nonvoting capacity. Existing law requires the conservancy to prepare and adopt a strategic plan to achieve the goals of the conservancy and requires the strategic plan to be consistent with certain plans. Existing law authorizes the conservancy to engage in partnerships with nonprofit organizations, local public agencies, and landowners, and authorizes the conservancy to provide grants and loans to state agencies, local public agencies, and nonprofit organizations to further the goals of the conservancy. Existing law establishes the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Conservancy Fund in the State Treasury. Existing law makes moneys in the fund available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of these provisions. This bill would expand the area covered by the conservancy to include the Valley and Lake, as defined. The bill would rename the conservancy the Valley, Lake, and Delta Conservancy and make conforming changes. The bill would rename the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Conservancy Fund the Delta Conservancy Fund and create the Valley and Lake Conservancy Fund in the State Treasury, moneys in which would be available upon appropriation by the Legislature for purposes of the conservancy in the Valley and Lake. The bill would add to the governing board one additional voting member who is appointed by the Lake County Board of Supervisors and one who is a tribal representative appointed by the Governor, subject to confirmation by the Senate. By imposing additional requirements on the Lake County Board of Supervisors, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would add one additional liaison adviser who is a designee of the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and one who is a designee of the California Central Valley Flood Control Association. The bill would also authorize the conservancy to engage in partnerships with, and to award grants and loans to, tribal organizations. The bill would establish the Valley and Lake Program, under the administration of the conservancy, to support efforts that advance the environmental protection and the economic well-being of Valley and Lake residents. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
(1) Existing law establishes the California Conservation Corps in the Natural Resources Agency. Existing law requires the Governor to appoint the director of the corps to act as the administrative officer of the corps and assigns specified responsibilities to the director. Existing law makes various findings and declarations relating to the corps. This bill would revise those findings and declarations relating to the corps, as provided. The bill would eliminate the director's authority to establish a training program for members of county or city conservation corps, as provided. The bill would also repeal a redundant statute. Existing law requires young adults participating in the corps program to generally be engaged in projects that do a list of specified things, including assisting in fire prevention and suppression. Existing law requires those projects to provide opportunities to the public for their education or other specified purposes. This bill would instead require those projects to assist in wildfire prevention and suppression, and would include forest resiliency, among other projects, to that list, as specified. This bill would require the projects to also provide those opportunities to California Native American tribes and corpsmembers. Existing law authorizes the corps to enter into a contract with an individual or a collective of community conservation corps for a project or program, as provided. This bill would authorize the corps to also enter into a contract with a conservation corps established by California Native American tribes for a project or program, as specified. Existing law requires the corps to report to specified committees of the Legislature by December 31 of each year the number of corpsmembers in the cohort who received an associate or bachelor's degree while serving in the corps or in the 12-month period following final separation from the corps and, among other things, to the extent feasible, the number of corpsmembers who enrolled in postsecondary education in the 12-month period following final separation from the corps. This bill would delete that requirement to report on the number of corpsmembers who received an associate or bachelor's degree. The bill would revise the requirement to report on the number of corpsmembers who enrolled in postsecondary education to have that data reported and disaggregated as the number enrolled at a California Community College, California State University, University of California, or private postsecondary educational institution. (2) The Public Employees' Retirement Law creates the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) , which is administered by the Board of Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System. PERS provides defined benefits to its members based on their final compensation, credited service, and age at retirement, subject to certain variations. Existing law establishes the Public Employees' Retirement Fund, which is a trust fund that is appropriated continuously for specified purposes, into which certain moneys are deposited, including employee contributions. Existing law authorizes a member of PERS to elect to receive service credit for certain public service outside the system, including time served as a volunteer in the Peace Corps or AmeriCorps, by making specified contributions to the system. This bill would also authorize a member to elect to receive service credit for service as a corpsmember or special corpsmember with the corps, subject to making the required contributions for that service. By increasing the amount of employee contributions to the Public Employees' Retirement Fund, the bill would make an appropriation. (3) Existing law regulates the wages, hours, and working conditions of employees with specified exceptions. Under existing law, these provisions apply to and include employees in any occupation, trade, or industry, except for any individual employed as an outside salesperson or any individual participating in a national service program carried out using assistance, as provided. This bill would additionally exempt corpsmembers from those provisions.
Existing law, the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act, prohibits a person or public agency from importing into the state, exporting out of the state, or taking, possessing, purchasing, or selling within the state, a western Joshua tree or any part or product of the tree, except as provided. Under existing law, the Department of Fish and Wildlife may authorize, by permit, the taking of a western Joshua tree if certain conditions are met, including, among other conditions, that the permittee mitigates all impacts to, and the taking of, the western Joshua tree. Existing law authorizes the department to enter into an agreement with a county or city to delegate to the county or city the ability to authorize the taking of a western Joshua tree associated with developing single-family residences, multifamily residences, accessory structures, and public works projects concurrent with its approval of the project if certain conditions are met. Existing law authorizes a person or public agency receiving a take authorization for a project to pay specified fees in lieu of satisfying the mitigation obligation on several bases, including if the project receives a permit issued by a county or city. Existing law requires the department to annually adjust those fees and, by December 31, 2026, and every 3 years thereafter, to adopt and subsequently amend specified regulations adjusting the fees. This bill would additionally authorize the department to enter into an agreement with a city to delegate to the city the ability to authorize the taking of a western Joshua tree associated with developing commercial and industrial projects. This bill would additionally authorize a person or public agency receiving a take authorization from the department to pay specified fees in lieu of satisfying the mitigation obligation for (1) the removal of no more than 10, or the trimming of, western Joshua trees by an owner-occupant of an existing single-family residence if the western Joshua trees are within 30 feet of the existing single-family residence or 15 feet of an existing accessory structure, or within the construction footprint, or 15 feet of the construction footprint, of a new accessory structure that is proposed to be constructed for the existing single-family residence or (2) the removal of no more than 40, or the trimming of, western Joshua trees by the proponent of a public works project if the western Joshua trees are within the construction footprint, or 15 feet of the construction footprint, of a public works project to repair, rehabilitate, replace, or maintain an existing structure. The bill would authorize a county or city operating under an agreement with the department to authorize, by permit, without mitigation and subject to a fee to cover the administrative costs of issuing the permit, a project described above in (1) or (2) . The bill would require a property owner or proponent of a public works project seeking a permit to submit a request to the county or city, as applicable, that includes specified information. The bill would require, within 60 days of receipt of a request for a permit, the county or city, as applicable, to either notify the property owner or proponent of the public works project that the county or city will issue the permit or to deny the request if it does not meet the above-described requirements. The bill would, until the department certifies a certain programmatic environmental impact report, as specified, or until January 1, 2032, whichever occurs first, exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act the issuance of a permit by the department, a county, or a city for a project described above in (1) . This bill would delay from December 31, 2026, to June 30, 2027, the date by which the department is required to adopt regulations adjusting the fees for the taking of a western Joshua tree paid in lieu of mitigation. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 1927.8 of the Fish and Game Code proposed by SB 1062 to be operative only if this bill and SB 1062 are enacted and this bill is enacted last. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
