Natural resources.

The California Constitution provides for the delegation to the Fish and Game Commission of powers relating to the protection and propagation of fish and game. Existing statutory law delegates to the commission the power to regulate the taking or possession of birds, mammals, fish, amphibians, and reptiles, except as provided. Existing law establishes procedures that are specific to regulations adopted by the commission pursuant to this authority. This bill would clarify that those procedures apply generally to any commission regulation that governs the take or possession of any bird, mammal, fish, amphibian, or reptile, except as provided. The bill would conform certain commission rulemaking procedures to the rulemaking procedures of the Administrative Procedure Act. The bill would delete obsolete and superfluous provisions, make organizational changes, delete obsolete cross references, and make other conforming changes. Existing law confirms a 1949 grant of tidelands and submerged lands in trust to the City of Santa Monica, with the exception of certain described lands reserved to the state, subject to certain conditions. Existing law authorizes additional uses of those lands relating to the construction of transportation infrastructure and public facilities, authorizes the city to execute franchises and leases for terms not exceeding 99 years with respect to those lands, authorizes expenditure of revenues from the granted lands for specified purposes, and authorizes the city to sell its interest in portions of the granted lands to the state for freeway or park purposes. Existing law also grants certain tidelands and submerged lands in trust to the City of Los Angeles and the County of Los Angeles, subject to the same conditions and authorized uses. Under existing law, those provisions are not operative unless and until a specified master plan is reviewed by the State Lands Commission and approved by the Legislature. Existing law authorizes the City of Santa Monica, the City of Los Angeles, and the County of Los Angeles to enter into a joint exercise of powers agreement to accomplish their common purposes with respect to the granted lands, and requires the net revenues from the granted lands to be divided between the state and local jurisdictions, as provided. Existing law requires title to the granted lands to revert to the state if those lands are not improved in accordance with the master plan within 10 years after approval of the master plan, subject to the rights of any lessee, franchise holder, or holder of any security interest or other contractual privilege with respect to the lands. This bill would repeal those provisions. As a result, the bill would restore the 1949 grant of tidelands and submerged lands in trust to the City of Santa Monica, subject to the terms and conditions of that grant, and, with respect to those tidelands and submerged lands granted to the City of Los Angeles and the County of Los Angeles, would restore jurisdiction over those lands to the State Lands Commission. Existing law authorizes the Department of Parks and Recreation to enter into contracts with natural persons, corporations, partnerships, and associations for the construction, maintenance, and operation of concessions within units of the state park system. Existing law requires those concession contracts to contain certain specified provisions, including a provision that the maximum term shall be 10, 20, or 50 years depending on certain conditions. Notwithstanding those provisions, existing law authorizes the term to exceed 20 years for a concession agreement at Will Rogers State Beach executed prior to December 31, 1997, as provided, upon approval by the Director of Parks and Recreation and pursuant to a determination by the Director of Parks and Recreation that the longer term is necessary to allow the concessionaire to amortize improvements made by the concessionaire that are anticipated to exceed $1,500,000 in capital improvements. Existing law prohibits an extension of the term from exceeding 15 years. This bill would instead authorize the concession agreement to be awarded for up to 50 years in length and would delete the limitation that the concession agreement be executed before December 31, 1997. The bill would also delete the provision limiting an extension of the term of the concession agreement from exceeding 15 years. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 7120 of the Fish and Game Code proposed by SB 345 to be operative only if SB 345 and this bill are chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, and this bill is chaptered last. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 131052 of the Health and Safety Code proposed by SB 1287 to be operative only if SB 1287 and this bill are chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, and this bill is chaptered last. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 5080.18 of the Public Resources Code proposed by AB 2249 to be operative only if AB 2249 and this bill are chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, and this bill is chaptered last.