Bill Text: CA AB292 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: High-speed rail: agricultural lands.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2012-07-02 - Read second time. Ordered to third reading. [AB292 Detail]
Download: California-2011-AB292-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 292 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 16, 2011
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 11, 2011
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 27, 2011
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 25, 2011
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 7, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Galgiani
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Perea)
(Coauthor: Senator Rubio)
FEBRUARY 8, 2011
An act to add Section 185034.3 to the Public Utilities Code,
relating to high-speed rail , and declaring the urgency thereof,
to take effect immediately .
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 292, as amended, Galgiani. High-speed rail: agricultural lands.
Existing law, the California High-Speed Rail Act, creates the
High-Speed Rail Authority to develop and implement a high-speed rail
system in the state, with specified powers and duties. Existing law,
pursuant to the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act
for the 21st Century, approved by the voters as Proposition 1A at the
November 4, 2008, general election, provides for the issuance of
$9.95 billion in general obligation bonds for high-speed rail and
related purposes. Various federal laws provide funding for allocation
nationally to high-speed rail and other related projects.
This bill would require the authority to appoint an agricultural
advisory committee with 9 members from a list of nominees recommended
by the Secretary of Food and Agriculture. The bill would require the
authority to consult with the committee and to reflect the committee'
s comments on authority policies and related matters in any action
item brought before the board of the authority.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
Vote: majority 2/3 . Appropriation:
no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) The agricultural industry is concerned that the High-Speed
Rail Authority is not preserving agricultural lands in its planning
activities.
(b) Proposed plans for high-speed rail alignments divide parcels,
separating wells from growing fields, leaving some farmers without
access to water or otherwise adversely affecting irrigation systems.
(c) Proposed plans cause some parcels to be orphaned, without
egress, and potentially unprofitable.
(d) Loss of agricultural lands creates long-term loss of revenues
to farm families, farmworkers and their families, and related
agricultural business suppliers, processors, and handlers.
(e) California farmland is some of the most fertile farmland in
the world and is not a renewable resource.
(f) Many potentially impacted lands are considered heritage lands,
having been farmed and preserved by the same family for over 100
years.
(g) California farmers and ranchers are major contributors to
local, state, and national economies, providing employment to many
and generating a domestic food supply.
(h) The High-Speed Rail Authority's stated policy on its impacts
to industries is to avoid, minimize, and mitigate those impacts.
(i) It is the intent of the Legislature that the authority's
policies should be followed, and that impacts should be avoided and
minimized, and then any remaining impacts on agriculture and
resulting problems from high-speed rail construction should be fully
mitigated. Mitigation considerations should not be limited to
conventional practices, but should also include options used by other
states and nations, or new mitigation options not previously
implemented.
SEC. 2. Section 185034.3 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to
read:
185034.3. (a) The authority shall appoint an agricultural
advisory committee from a list of nominees recommended by the
Secretary of Food and Agriculture. The purpose of the committee is to
advise the authority on the impact that authority policies, plans,
practices, and procedures will have on the agricultural community.
The authority shall consult with the agricultural advisory committee
prior to adopting any policy relevant to agriculture, and reflect the
comments of the advisory committee in any action item to adopt a
policy or other action that is brought before the board of the
authority. The authority shall provide written responses to the
committee's comments, which shall be distributed both to the board
and the committee.
(b) The agricultural advisory committee shall consist of nine
members, representing specific areas proposed to be affected by plans
for high-speed rail. The membership shall change to reflect areas
affected by each planning phase. Each member shall be active in a
farming or agricultural enterprise or in an agricultural or related
trade organization, and have technical expertise in one or more
farm-related activities, including, but not limited to, well
drilling, irrigation systems, animal husbandry, harvesting,
processing, and agricultural transportation.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect any other
requirements that may be imposed by law for the authority to respond
to public comments submitted to the authority in writing or at
public hearings.
SEC. 3. This act is an urgency statute necessary
for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety
within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go
into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order for the agricultural advisory committee set forth in
Section 2 of this act to have an impact on the planning process for
the high-speed rail system, and in consideration of the actions of
the High-Speed Rail Authority to meet federal deadlines that require
construction contracts to be in place by September 2012, it is
necessary for this act to take effect immediately.
