The Barbed Wire - January 12, 2016

February 12, 2016
State Proposing Long Term Drought Exemptions for Tree Removal
Senator Feinstein Introduces Revised Drought Relief Bill
Sierra Nevada Watershed Improvement Program Regional Strategy Comment Period Open
U.S. EPA Awards $12.7 Million to Assist Small Drinking Water and Wastewater Systems
President Releases Budget
President’s Budget Continues SRS and Federal PILT Funding
President’s Budget Includes Wildfire Budget Fix
House Committee Considers FAA Reauthorization
Water Resources Bill Could Address Drinking Water Issues
BULLETIN BOARD
KEEPING UP
REGULATORY UPDATE

State Proposing Long Term Drought Exemptions for Tree Removal

The California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection (Board) has released a rule package that would grant a two-year extension of various emergency forest management exemptions granted last year to expedite the ability of land owners to remove dead, dying, and diseased trees resulting from the drought.  

The initial emergency exemptions, approved in July 2015, relaxed a variety of reporting and plan submission requirements in the Z’berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973 to help expedite the removal of trees impacted by bark beetle infestations resulting from the state’s recent severe drought conditions.

The proposed extension is one of many actions various State agencies are undertaking to implement the Emergency Proclamation on Tree Mortality issued by Governor Brown in October 2015.  The exemptions allow for more expedient removal of diseased trees on both State and private forest lands to mitigate tree mortality impacts on the state’s forests and to protect public safety. 

Comments are due by March 28, 2016, and the Board is scheduled to hear the rule package on April 6, 2016.  Proposed regulatory language and related documents can be accessed here.

Senator Feinstein Introduces Revised Drought Relief Bill

This week, Senator Dianne Feinstein introduced the California Long-Term Provisions for Water Supply and Short Term Provisions for Emergency Drought Relief Act (S.2533), a revised drought relief bill to provide both long- and short-term solutions to the drought in California.  

Senator Feinstein acknowledged that the bill won’t be everything for everyone, but stated her belief that the bill strikes the right balance as it invests $1.3 billion in defined long-term projects while making targeted, temporary changes to water operations that last for the length of the drought, or two years, whichever is longer, and which do not violate environmental laws.  Senator Feinstein also expressed the hope that Senate Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell will hold a markup on the bill and the Senate will take it up for debate.  

The text of the bill can be accessed here

Sierra Nevada Watershed Improvement Program Regional Strategy Comment Period Open

The Sierra Nevada Watershed Improvement Program (WIP) Regional Strategy comment period is open until March 18, 2016.  The Sierra Nevada Conservancy and the U.S. Forest Service, Region 5, are urging the Region’s stakeholders to provide feedback on the Regional Strategy.  

The Regional Strategy identifies key information, trends, plans, efforts, and data for major categories influencing watershed health, as well as the process and timeline for implementing the WIP.

The Regional Strategy and related information can be accessed here.

U.S. EPA Awards $12.7 Million to Assist Small Drinking Water and Wastewater Systems

This week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the award of $12.7 million in grants to help small drinking and wastewater systems and private well owners located in urban and rural communities throughout the United States and its territories.  

The water systems will receive training and technical assistance to improve small system operations and management practices, promote system sustainability, and better protect public health and the environment.

More than 97 percent of the nation’s 157,000 public water systems serve fewer than 10,000 people, and more than 80 percent of these systems serve fewer than 500 people.  Many small systems face unique challenges in providing reliable drinking water and wastewater services that meet federal and state regulations.  These challenges can include a lack of financial resources, aging infrastructure, and high staff turnover.

Details on funding for training and technical assistance for small systems can be accessed here.

President Releases Budget

President Obama released his $4.1 trillion Budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2016-17, which was sent to the Congress on Tuesday.  The Budget includes the President’s eighth and final Budget requests, but the specific proposals have a difficult path forward with a Republican-controlled Congress.  

Congress is currently under a two-year Budget deal that was passed at the end of 2015.  Accordingly, while Congress can increase or decrease funding for certain programs, overall funding will remain essentially static.

President’s Budget Continues SRS and Federal PILT Funding

President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2016-17 Budget proposal includes an extension of the Secure Rural Schools and Self-Determination Act (SRS) program.  Under the President’s proposal, SRS would be extended through FY 2020 with significant funding reductions each year until the program is zeroed out in its final year. 

Specifically, SRS would be provided $279 million in FY 2016, $251 million in FY 2017, $158 million in FY 2018, $122 million in FY 2019, and $101 million in FY 2020.  Last year Congress provided a two-year reauthorization of SRS for FY 2014 and FY 2015, with the FY 2015 payment being approximately $275 million. 

Congress enacted the SRS program in 2000 to provide funding for rural counties and school districts to replace revenue from dwindling forest receipts due to national decline in timber harvesting.  When first enacted, SRS provided nearly $60 million annually to California’s forested counties, with half of the funding allocated to school districts, and half of the funding allocated to counties for county roads.  SRS initially expired in 2006 and has been reauthorized multiple times since it was first enacted.  Each reauthorization has seen a reduction in the amount of funding for the program.  

In addition to providing funding for SRS, the President’s Budget request allocates $480 million for the Federal Payment In Lieu of Taxes (Federal PILT) program for one year.  Federal PILT payments compensate counties for land that is taken off the private rolls and placed into federal ownership.

While this is welcomed news for these two critical county programs, due to the growing political ideological divide between liberals and conservatives in both chambers of Congress, the President’s Budget is unlikely to advance as proposed.  Rather, the President’s Budget will serve as the basis for negotiations amongst House and Senate appropriators. 

RCRC will continue to advocate for a long-term reauthorization of both programs as each remain critical for the nation’s forested counties to continue providing programs and services that meet the needs of our local communities.  

President’s Budget Includes Wildfire Budget Fix

President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2016-17 Budget proposal to Congress once again included a policy provision to change the way the nation Budgets for wildfire suppression activities.  This is the third year in a row the President has included the proposal in his annual request.  

The proposal would move 30 percent of the previous 10 years suppression cost average from the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) annual budget into a disaster account within the Disaster Relief Fund.  The requested policy would allow the USFS to access disaster funds in a similar manner to other natural disaster response activities.  Supporters of the policy believe it will give the USFS the budgetary certainty it needs to conduct prevention and restoration work in national forests year round without having to raid those accounts to pay for suppression activities.  Support for the policy on Capitol Hill remains split on the issue.  

The House of Representatives have already passed a bill with a similar provision but refuse to take up the President’s language.  The Senate has yet to act on any forest management provisions thus far in the 114th Congress.

House Committee Considers FAA Reauthorization

On Thursday, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee met to consider amendments to H.R. 4441, the Aviation Innovation Reform Reauthorization (AIRR) Act.  This six-year bill on federal aviation programs would authorize funding for the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), the Small Community Air Service Development Program (SCASDP), and the Essential Air Service (EAS) small community support program.  

The most controversial provision in the bill is one to create a non-for-profit corporation to take over and run the nation’s air traffic control system.  RCRC sent a letter to the Committee prior to the markup urging support of the AIP, EAS, and SCASDP programs.  Among the 75 amendments considered, several were approved to increase funding for each of these programs.  The bill was approved on a 32-26 vote, which was largely along party lines.  Its fate is uncertain due to opposition to the air traffic control privatization provisions in the bill.

Water Resources Bill Could Address Drinking Water Issues

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee held its first hearing on reauthorizing the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), and Senators indicated an interest in doing more than providing for traditional Corps of Engineers projects such as navigation and flood control.  

The recent drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan may result in more funding assistance to local governments, where new federal regulations on lead and copper control and aging infrastructure will increase the need for replacing water mains and pipes.  Senators discussed the possibility of reauthorizing the Safe Drinking Water Act, revising the State Revolving Fund for drinking water, and expanding a fledgling loan guarantee program to provide more financing options for local government.  Attempts to amend pending energy legislation in the Senate to provide aide to the City of Flint have stalled, leaving the water resources bill as a more likely legislative vehicle to assist local governments.  A similar hearing is scheduled in the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee later this month, resulting in a WRDA bill in the coming months.

BULLETIN BOARD

Save-the-Date: RCRC-Sponsored H.E.A.T. Institute North State Informational Summit on Human Trafficking

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Request for Proposals: County Counsel Services for Sierra County

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NACo Webinars

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2016 California Financing Coordinating Committee (CFCC) Funding Fairs

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OPR Conducts Webcasts on Revised Proposal Updating Methodologies for Transportation Analysis in the CEQA Guidelines.

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KEEPING UP

Mia Marvelli Appointed California Building Standards Commission (CBSC) Executive Director

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Steven Moore Reappointed to State Water Resources Control Board

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Joseph Countryman Reappointed to Central Valley Flood Protection Board

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Clyde Macdonald Reappointed to Central Valley Flood Protection Board

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Tim Ramirez Reappointed to Central Valley Flood Protection Board

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Emma Suarez Reappointed to Central Valley Flood Protection Board

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REGULATORY UPDATE

Drought Mortality Amendments, 2015: Extends until December 2018 various exemptions to the forest practice rules allowing for the removal of dead, dying, and diseased trees due to the drought.  Agency: California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection Status: Draft released for public review, comments due by 5 p.m. on March 28, 2016.  Hearing set for April 6, 2016.  Proposed regulatory language and related documents can be accessed here.  RCRC Comments: RCRC is seeking member county input.  RCRC Advocate: Staci Heaton sheaton@rcrcnet.org

Sierra Nevada Watershed Improvement Program Regional Strategy: Provides strategies and potential actions for the improvement of watershed health in the Sierra Nevada region.  Agency: Sierra Nevada Conservancy / USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region Status: Draft available for public comment, comments due March 18, 2016.  Draft strategy and related documents can be accessed here.  RCRC Comments: RCRC is seeking member county input.  RCRC Advocate: Staci Heaton sheaton@rcrcnet.org

Revised Proposal to Update CEQA Guidelines regarding Analysis of Transportation Impacts: Senate Bill 743 (Steinberg; 2013) required an initial draft of changes be developed to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) regarding the analysis of transportation impacts by the summer of 2014.  This revised proposal reflects input received on that preliminary discussion draft.  Agency: The Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) Status: Draft language released January 20, 2016 with comments due February 29, 2016.  RCRC comments:  Staff is seeking input from member counties.  A copy of the revised proposal can be accessed hereRCRC Advocate: Mary Pitto mpitto@rcrcnet.org

Proposed Changes to the CDBG Regulations: The proposed changes to current Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Regulations will include additional language to allow special allocations of funding for use in mitigating disasters and disaster recovery.  Agency:  The Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) Status: The proposed language was released January 22, 2016, with public comment open until March 8, 2016.  RCRC comments: Staff is seeking input from member counties.  A copy of the proposal and additional information can be accessed here.  RCRC Advocate: Mary Pitto mpitto@rcrcnet.org