Bill Text: CA AB975 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Lake and streambed alteration agreements: exemptions: culverts and bridges.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)

Status: (Vetoed) 2026-01-22 - Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file. [AB975 Detail]

Download: California-2025-AB975-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Assembly  April 10, 2025

Amended  IN  Assembly  March 18, 2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 975

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Introduced by Assembly Member Gallagher

February 20, 2025

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An act to amend Section 1610 of the Fish and Game Code, and to add Sections 21080.63 and 21080.64 to the Public Resources Code, relating to natural resources. fish and wildlife.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 975, as amended, Gallagher. California Environmental Quality Act: lake Lake and streambed alteration agreements: exemptions: culverts and bridges.

(1)Existing

Existing law prohibits a person, a state or local governmental agency, or a public utility from substantially diverting or obstructing the natural flow of, or substantially changing or using any material from the bed, channel, or bank of, any river, stream, or lake, or depositing or disposing of debris, waste, or other material containing crumbled, flaked, or ground pavement where it may pass into any river, stream, or lake, unless prescribed requirements are met, including written notification to the Department of Fish and Wildlife regarding the activity. Existing law requires the department to determine whether the activity may substantially adversely affect an existing fish and wildlife resource and, if so, to provide a draft lake or streambed alteration agreement to the person, agency, or utility. Existing law prescribes various requirements for lake and streambed alteration agreements. Existing law also establishes various exemptions from these provisions.

This bill would exempt from these provisions emergency projects undertaken, carried out, or approved by a state or local government agency to maintain, repair, restore, or reconstruct a bridge 30 feet long or less or reconstruct a culvert 70 feet long or less, that has been damaged as a result of fire, flood, storm, earthquake, land subsidence, gradual earth movement, or landslide, within one year of the damage.

(2)The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment.

This bill would provide an exemption from CEQA those projects or actions taken for the installation, maintenance, repair, or replacement of culverts and those projects or actions taken for the repair or replacement of a bridge with a span of 200 feet or less.

Because the bill would require a local agency to determine the applicability of the above exemptions, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YESNO  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Section 1610 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read:

1610.

 (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), this chapter does not apply to any of the following:

(1) Immediate emergency work necessary to protect life or property.

(2) Immediate emergency repairs to public service facilities necessary to maintain service as a result of a disaster in an area in which a state of emergency has been proclaimed by the Governor pursuant to Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 8550) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

(3) Emergency projects undertaken, carried out, or approved by a state or local governmental agency to maintain, repair, or restore an existing highway, as defined in Section 360 of the Vehicle Code, within the existing right-of-way of the highway, that has been damaged as a result of fire, flood, storm, earthquake, land subsidence, gradual earth movement, or landslide, within one year of the damage. Work needed in the vicinity above and below a highway may be conducted outside of the existing right-of-way if it is needed to stop ongoing or recurring mudslides, landslides, or erosion that pose an immediate threat to the highway, or to restore those roadways damaged by mudslides, landslides, or erosion to their predamage condition and functionality. This paragraph does not exempt from this chapter any project undertaken, carried out, or approved by a state or local governmental agency to expand or widen a highway damaged by fire, flood, storm, earthquake, land subsidence, gradual earth movement, or landslide. The exception provided in this paragraph does not apply to a highway designated as an official state scenic highway pursuant to Section 262 of the Streets and Highways Code.

(4) Emergency projects undertaken, carried out, or approved by a state or local government agency to maintain, repair, restore, or reconstruct a bridge 30 feet long or less or reconstruct a culvert 70 feet long or less, that has been damaged as a result of fire, flood, storm, earthquake, land subsidence, gradual earth movement, or landslide, within one year of the damage.

(b) The entity performing the emergency work described in subdivision (a) shall notify the department of the work, in writing, within 14 days of beginning the work. Any work described in the emergency notification that does not meet the criteria for the emergency work described in subdivision (a) is a violation of this chapter if the entity did not first notify the department in accordance with Section 1602 or 1611.

(c) This chapter does not apply to activities undertaken pursuant to Section 1242.1 of the Water Code.

SEC. 2.Section 21080.63 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:

21080.63.

This division does not apply to a project or action taken for the installation, maintenance, repair, or replacement of culverts.

SEC. 3.Section 21080.64 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:

21080.64.

This division does not apply to a project or action taken for the repair or replacement of a bridge with span of 200 feet or less.

SEC. 4.

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code.