LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 833, as amended, Committee on Natural Resources and Water.
Natural resources: mining: conservation lands: Native American
historical sites: tidelands and submerged lands.
(1) Existing law requires that a person who owns, leases,
controls, operates, or maintains an occupied dwelling or occupied
structure in, upon, or adjoining a mountainous area, forest-covered
land, brush-covered land, grass-covered land, or land that is covered
with flammable material that is within a very high fire hazard
severity zone, as designated by a local agency, shall maintain a
defensible space of no greater than 100 feet from each side of the
structure.
Existing law requires that a person who owns, leases, controls,
operates, or maintains a building or structure in, upon, or adjoining
a mountainous area, forest-covered land, brush-covered land,
grass-covered land, or land that is covered with flammable material,
within a state responsibility area, maintain a defensible space of no
greater than 100 feet from each side of the structure. A violation
of these provisions is a crime.
This bill would instead require the person described above to
maintain a defensible space of 100 feet from each side and from the
front and rear of the structure. The bill would also revise the
definition of "fuel" for the purposes of fuels management. Because
the bill would change the definition of a crime, it would impose a
state-mandated local program.
(2) The Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975 prohibits a
person from conducting surface mining operations without obtaining a
permit from the lead agency for those operations, and submitting and
receiving approval for a reclamation plan and financial assurances
from the lead agency. Existing law requires a lead agency, upon
approval of a reclamation plan or an amendment to a reclamation plan,
to record a "Notice of Reclamation Plan Approval" with the county
recorder.
This bill would require that notice to include the name of the
owner of record of the mine operation, the name of the lead agency,
and the acknowledged signature of the lead agency representative.
(3) Under existing law, for a charitable contribution claimed by a
seller on certain conservation lands acquired using state funds, the
seller is required to attach to his or her personal income tax
return a copy of an appraisal of the charitable contribution, as
described.
This bill would, instead, require the seller to attach to his or
her income tax return a copy of the appraisal of the charitable
contribution relied on by the acquisition agency.
(4) Existing law establishes the Native American Heritage
Commission. Existing law requires the commission, once it receives
notification of Native American human remains from a county coroner,
to notify the most likely descendants, and the descendants, with
permission of the landowner, may inspect the site and recommend
appropriate dignified disposition of the human remains and grave
goods. Existing law requires, when the commission is unable to
identify descendants, the descendants fail to make a recommendation,
or other specified circumstances occur, that the landowner reinter
the human remains, and perform at least one of 3 activities to
protect the site, including record a document with the county in
which the property is located.
This bill would require that the document be titled "Notice of
Reinterment of Native American Remains" and include a legal
description of the property, the name of the owner of the property,
and the owner's acknowledged signature.
(5) The California Coastal Act of 1976 provides for the
certification of port master plans by the California Coastal
Commission. The act requires amendments to a port master plan to be
submitted to the commission for approval and provides for a special
procedure for the designation and approval of amendments to a port
master plan that are de minimis.
This bill would revise the procedure for setting a public hearing
or returning the proposed amendment if 3 members of the commission
object to the executive director's determination that the proposed
amendment is de minimis.
(6) The Treasure Island Public Trust Exchange Act authorizes the
State Lands Commission to approve an exchange of public trust lands
within the Treasure Island Development Authority property, whereby
certain trust lands on Treasure Island that meet specified criteria
and are not useful for public trust purposes are freed from the
public trust and may be conveyed into private ownership, and certain
other lands on Yerba Buena Island that are not public trust lands and
that are useful for public trust purposes are made subject to the
public trust. Among other requirements for approval, the commission
is required to find that sufficient building height limitations are
in place to ensure that views from public areas at Yerba Buena Island
are not obstructed.
This bill would instead require a finding that sufficient building
height limitations are in place to ensure that development on Yerba
Buena Island will not significantly obstruct certain views, as of
January 1, 2010, from the proposed trust lands on the eastern and
western hilltop public park areas on Yerba Buena Island.
The bill would also revise the diagram of lands that is part of
the act.
(7) Existing law grants to the City and County of San Francisco
the right, title, and interest of the State of California in and to
certain tidelands and submerged lands in trust for certain purposes.
Under existing law, the Burton Act and the Burton Act transfer
agreement, the interest of the state in and to the Harbor of San
Francisco was transferred in trust to the City and County of San
Francisco. The State Lands Commission has jurisdiction over tidelands
and submerged lands of the state.
Existing law authorizes the City and County of San Francisco to
lease, sell, or otherwise transfer all or any portion of certain
tidelands and submerged lands constituting "paper streets" in the
City and County of San Francisco to any person, as defined, free of
the public trust and of any additional restrictions on use or
transfer created by the Burton Act or Burton Act transfer agreement
upon a finding and declaration of specified conditions by the State
Lands Commission.
This bill would revise certain descriptions of those paper
streets.
Existing law declares, until January 1, 2094, that certain parcels
of real property denominated as the designated seawall lots, subject
to certain specified conditions, are free from the use requirements
of the public trust, the Burton Act trust, and the Burton Act
transfer agreement. The San Francisco Port Commission is authorized
to lease all or a portion of the designated seawall lots provided
that specified conditions are met.
This bill would revise those provisions to include a map of those
designated seawall lots.
(8) 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.