Harbors and ports: inland pilots.

Existing law provides for the regulation and licensing of pilots and inland pilots for the Bays of Monterey, San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun by the Board of Pilot Commissioners (board) . Under existing law, any person who does not hold a license as a pilot or as an inland pilot and who pilots any vessel into or out of any harbor or port of the Bays of Monterey, San Francisco, San Pablo, or Suisun, or who acts as a pilot for ship movements or special operations upon the waters of any of those bays is guilty of a misdemeanor. Existing law requires the board to adopt a continuing education program for pilots and inland pilots funded from fees from the surcharge for each movement of a vessel using pilot services. Existing law requires the board to adopt training standards and a training program for pilot trainees. This bill would delete all references to inland pilots from these provisions. Existing law requires the executive director of the board to assign a commission investigator, if suspected equipment safety standard violations are reported to the board, to personally inspect the equipment for its compliance with the relevant safety standards. Existing law requires the commission investigator to report preliminary conclusions to the executive director. Existing law also requires the commission investigator to submit a report, that is required to remain confidential, to an incident review committee and the committee is required to report its findings, if any, to the board. This bill would recast these provisions to instead require the executive director to perform investigations, make findings and recommendations, and report to the board regarding suspected equipment safety standard violations. The bill would require an examination fee to be charged in an amount established by the board to each applicant to the pilot trainee training program who participates in any written or simulator examinations established by the board for the purposes of determining admission to the pilot trainee training program. The bill would require that the fee be charged only to those who actually participate in an examination and not exceed the administrative costs to the board of preparing and administering the examination. The bill would require that the moneys charged and collected from the applicant be paid to the board and deposited into the Board of Pilot Commissioners' Special Fund, a continuously appropriated fund, and be used only to fund the pilot trainee training program in the manner established by the board. By increasing the amount of revenue deposited into a continuously appropriated fund and by authorizing the expenditure of money in that fund for a new purpose, the bill would make an appropriation. Existing law requires the Governor to appoint one assistant director to serve at the pleasure of the Governor. Existing law requires the assistant director to have the duties as assigned by the executive director who is appointed by the Board of Pilot Commissioners. This bill would require that the Secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing appoint one assistant director to serve in a career executive assignment at the pleasure of the secretary.