BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER Senator Fran Pavley, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Bill No: AB 446 Hearing Date: July 14, 2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Author: |Ridley-Thomas | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Version: |February 23, 2015 Introduced | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Consultant:|Katharine Moore | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: Baldwin Hills Conservancy. BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW In 2000, the Baldwin Hills Conservancy Act (act) established the Baldwin Hills Conservancy (conservancy) in the Natural Resources Agency (agency). The act provides that the conservancy, among other things, may acquire and manage public lands within the Baldwin Hills area and provide recreational, open space, wildlife habitation restoration and protection, and lands for educational uses within the area. Additionally, the act allows the conservancy to fix and collect fees, as specified, for certain activities, provides the conservancy with the right of first refusal to acquire lands suitable for park and open space within its territory, to recruit and coordinate volunteers, and authorizes the conservancy to accept private or public lands offered for recreational trails. The conservancy's territory is located in the heavily urbanized Baldwin Hills area of the Los Angeles Basin. The territory includes parts of the Cities of Los Angeles and Culver City, unincorporated portions of Los Angeles County, the Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area and some adjacent lands. Lands under its jurisdiction are about 2 square miles, although the conservancy does not own or control all of these lands. There is considerable on-going oil development and production within the conservancy's territory. The conservancy is the smallest of the AB 446 (Ridley-Thomas) Page 2 of ? state's conservancies. Existing law provides that the act will remain in effect until January 1, 2018. The act was created with an initial sunset date of January 1, 2008, and was extended once to its current date (via an environment budget trailer bill (SB 85, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, c. 178, Statutes of 2007)). PROPOSED LAW This bill would eliminate the sunset date for the act and extend the operation of the act (and the conservancy) indefinitely. ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT According to the author, "removing the sunset date would allow the [conservancy] to continue its mission in parity with the other eight out of ten conservancies that do not have a sunset date impacting their ability to develop ongoing multiyear projects." "Without the conservancy, the area will continue to face many of the challenges that led to the conservancy's creation. [?] The communities in and around the Baldwin Hills are quantifiably park poor, with only one acre per thousand residents; the region falls far below the National Recreation and Parks Association standard of six acres per thousand residents." "Neighborhoods populated by minorities and recent immigrants are especially short of park space. [?] Because of the disproportionate burden of chronic disease that affects minority communities it is essential that urban open space is promoted and protected. [?] With the lack of urban open space and public parks accessible to minority communities, the protection of Baldwin Hills is the centerpiece of a legacy for park equity in urban Los Angeles." Additionally, the author notes that there are dedicated bond funds for the conservancy and the obstacles to pursuing multi-year projects supported by bond funds given the conservancy's current sunset date. The Nature Conservancy "supports AB 446 in light of the biodiversity value of Baldwin Hills and the importance of continued acquisition and restoration efforts by the Baldwin Hills Conservancy." AB 446 (Ridley-Thomas) Page 3 of ? ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION None received. COMMENTS Most state conservancies do not have sunset dates . Only two of the ten conservancies located in the agency have sunset dates: the Baldwin Hills and San Diego River Conservancies. (AB 392 (Atkins) is currently seeking to remove the sunset date for the San Diego River Conservancy.) While many of the state's conservancies were created without sunset dates, it is not without precedent to eliminate the sunset date for a state conservancy: the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy was created with a sunset date that was extended 3 times prior to its eventual repeal. Proposition 1 and the conservancy . There is $10 million in Proposition 1 funds, approved by the voters in November 2014, to be spent on "multibenefit water quality, water supply, watershed protection and restoration projects." Recent audit results . In 2008 the Department of Finance audited the conservancy. The audit found deficiencies with the conservancy's pre-awarding processes, monitoring and oversight of projects. The conservancy responded to the audit and agreed to take several corrective actions to address the deficiencies found. Recent related legislation AB 392 (Atkins, 2015) would remove the sunset date for the San Diego River Conservancy. (passed this Committee 9 - 0, currently on the Senate Appropriations Committee Suspense file) SUPPORT Ballona Creek Renaissance City of Beverly Hills Cherrywood/Leimert Block Club Community Health Councils, Inc. Council for Watershed Health City of Culver City Empowerment Congress West Area Neighborhood Development Council Ladera Heights Civic Association Los Angeles Audobon Society Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors AB 446 (Ridley-Thomas) Page 4 of ? Mujeres de la Tierra Natural Resources Defense Council The Nature Conservancy City of Santa Monica Sara Amir, Chair, Baldwin Hills Conservancy Board Social Justice Learning Institute OPPOSITION None Received -- END --