THE BARBED WIRE - MAY 08, 2015

May 8, 2015
State Water Board Adopts 25 Percent Mandatory Water Conservation Regulations
ARB Releases Strategy on Short-Lived Climate Pollutants
Senate Hears Testimony on Endangered Species Bills and Budget
House Approves Measure to Halt Floodplain Executive Order
Congress Enacts Budget Blueprint
Senator Cantwell Active at Hearing and Promises to Draft Wildfire Legislation
Highway Trust Fund Deadline Approaching
USDA Accepting Regional Conservation Partnership Program Grant Applications
California River Parkways Grant Program Guidelines and Application
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
REGULATORY UPDATE

State Water Board Adopts 25 Percent Mandatory Water Conservation Regulations

This week, the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) adopted  emergency regulations requiring a 25 percent reduction in overall potable urban water use statewide.  The emergency regulations identify how much water communities must conserve based on their average residential water use, per person per day, last summer.  To reduce water use by 25 percent statewide, the adopted regulations place each urban water supplier into one of eight tiers which are assigned a conservation standard ranging between 4 – 36 percent.

The regulations will be submitted to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for approval.  If approved by OAL, the regulation will take effect immediately, and remain in effect for 270 days from that date.  Full details on the adopted regulations and other related information can be accessed here.

ARB Releases Strategy on Short-Lived Climate Pollutants

Late this week, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) released a concept paper outlining the agency’s strategy for addressing short-lived climate pollutant emissions.  The paper is the first step in the agency’s implementation of Senate Bill 605 (Lara), which requires the Board to develop a comprehensive strategy to reduce emissions from short-lived climate pollutants. 

Short-lived climate pollutants have been shown to be among the most harmful to human health and global climate and include methane, black carbon, and fluorinated gases.  The concept paper proposes strategies to reduce emissions from these sources, which include eliminating disposal of organic materials at landfills and better management of forests to reduce emissions from wildfires.  The concept paper can be accessed here.

Senate Hears Testimony on Endangered Species Bills and Budget

On Wednesday, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee heard testimony on the Administration’s budget request for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), as well as several bills aimed at reforming the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  The proposed legislation up for discussion included bills that would place additional requirements on USFWS for economic considerations and approval of lawsuit settlements.  The hearing encompassed a broad discussion of the need for reforming various aspects of how the ESA is administered, and included testimony from Dan Ashe, Director of USFWS, as well as representatives from the Defenders of Wildlife and the National Association of Counties.

Testifying on behalf of county interests, Valley County, Idaho Commissioner Gordon Cruickshank offered recommendations for improvements on ESA, and provided examples of how county governments have been working to help species recovery nationwide.  Most notably, Commissioner Cruickshank highlighted the work of RCRC member Mono County in the species recovery of the bi-state population of sage grouse, which was recently kept off of the Endangered Species list due to a coordinated effort between the county, local wildlife advocates, and state and federal agencies.

Detailed information on the hearing, as well as an archived webcast of the hearing, can be accessed here.

House Approves Measure to Halt Floodplain Executive Order

By voice vote late Friday, the House approved a floor amendment to prohibit funding to implement Executive Order 13690 (EO) and the new Federal Flood Risk Management Standard (FFRMS).  The amendment is yet another rider to the Energy and Water Development Appropriation for FY 2016 that funds the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation.  Representative Ralph Abraham (R-Louisiana) offered the amendment because of concern for its future impact on federal flood insurance rates.  While this amendment restricts funding for only the agencies covered in the Energy and Water Development bill, additional amendments are likely to be introduced to prohibit funding for all federal agencies. 

The EO and FFRMS empower each federal agency to use new methodology to expand the definition of floodplains to much larger areas than currently mapped by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for flood insurance.  Each federal agency must then adopt new restrictions for loans, grants, permits, and other federal actions that are in or could affect the floodplain.

While the EO and FFRMS are not subject to public review, FEMA accepted public comments until May 6, 2015 on guidelines that federal agencies will follow to implement the EO and FFRMS.  RCRC submitted comments about the guidelines’ potential impacts projects and programs, including the prospect of federal agencies defining differing boundaries for the floodplain, the lack of consultation with state and local government agencies, the consideration of floodplain areas protected by flood control projects, and the potential for federal agencies to broadly interpret “critical actions” that would require more restrictions in the floodplain.  RCRC’s comment letter can be accessed here.

Congress Enacts Budget Blueprint

The Senate’s passage of the FY 2016 budget resolution on Tuesday marked the first time in five years that both chambers of Congress have agreed on a unified spending blueprint.  The nonbinding budget conference report passed the Senate by a vote of 51-48.  Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) were the only Republicans to vote against the measure, which no Democrats supported.  The House passed the budget conference agreement last week before adjourning for a weeklong recess. 

Now the House and Senate Budget committees will turn the resolution's call for sharp domestic spending cuts into guidelines for the twelve appropriations subcommittees to follow in crafting this year's annual spending bills.  The budget includes across-the-board "sequestration" spending cuts that are opposed by Democrats and President Obama.

Senator Cantwell Active at Hearing and Promises to Draft Wildfire Legislation

Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Ranking Member on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, announced she will be working on a bill to reduce the cost of wildfires and increase the government’s ability to response in a wildfire emergency.  The announcement comes just one day after the Committee examined the U.S. Forest Services’ wildland fire management capabilities on Tuesday.  Senator Cantwell’s bill will address the following four areas: hazardous fuels, wildfire borrowing, budget accountability, and emergency response.  While her bill will aim to prevent wildfire borrowing, she has indicated it will be different from the Wyden-Crapo bill.  She has not released a timeline for when she plans to introduce the bill, but has indicated it will likely be in the next few months.  Senator Cantwell’s announcement of her legislation came after the Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing earlier this week on wildfire management. 

Senator Cantwell, and other democrats on the Committee, sought answers to the agency’s fire suppression funding issue.  Almost all members of the Committee, including Republicans, agree that a new mechanism for funding suppression efforts is needed in order to protect other agency programs from being affected by rising suppression costs.  Committee Republicans, however, remain divided between their support for the Wildfire Disaster Funding Act, a measure that would shift 30 percent of suppression costs to disaster funding, and between a measure sponsored by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) that would allow the agency to access disaster relief money only after all Congressionally appropriated money is expended.  The Committee also discussed NEPA streamlining for forest projects, hazardous fuels reductions through the biomass industry, and the need to better protect and promote resiliency at the Wildland Urban Interface. 

Highway Trust Fund Deadline Approaching

With only two more weeks before the Memorial Day recess, Congress will need to act soon to extend the authorization of the nation’s highway and transit programs, set to expire May 31, 2015.  While the U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has reported that the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) will likely become insolvent in late July or early August, Congress would need to pass an extension to authorize spending beyond the expiration.  Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle have spoken in favor of a multiyear surface transportation bill, but have not been able to agree on a revenue source to pay for an extension of the HTF.  It is therefore likely that a shorter-term extension of the program will be necessary, although the length of such an extension has also been the source of considerable disagreement.  To fund the previous short-term HTF extension, Congress transferred approximately $11 billion from the General Fund which was offset by a variety of financing mechanisms such as “pension smoothing,” an extension of expiring customs duties, and funding transfers from the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund.  Those types of options appear to have been exhausted and Congress must now look toward other financing solutions.  

Despite these challenges, Congress appears to be considering three options for an extension: through July when the trust fund is scheduled to become insolvent, through the end of the fiscal year to provide time for a potentially longer-term agreement to be reached, or through the end of calendar year.  Political insiders fear that if Congress is unable to reach a long-term agreement before the end of fiscal year this September, we will be looking at a series of short-term extensions until well beyond the November 2016 elections.  RCRC anticipates Congress will make an announcement on a funding extension in the coming week.

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

RCRC members are encouraged to share letters addressed to state and federal representatives and regulatory bodies with RCRC’s Government Affairs staff.  Click “Read More” to access information related to the current status of legislation impacting California’s rural counties.  

AB 57 (Quirk): Telecommunications: Wireless Telecommunication Facilities.  Assembly Bill 57 would establish “deemed granted” approval for all wireless telecommunication facilities siting and collocation applications when a local government fails to meet the Federal Communications Commission’s “Shot Clock Rule.”  Status: AB 57 is scheduled for a hearing in the Assembly Local Government Committee on May 13, 2015.  RCRC Position: Oppose

AB 327 (Gordon): Public Works: Volunteers.  Assembly Bill 327 would extend the sunset that is set to expire January 1, 2017 until January 1, 2024 which would extend the exemption from the definition of “public works” for any work performed by a volunteer, a volunteer coordinator, or by members of the California Conservation Corps or certified Community Conservation Corps.  Status: AB 327 gained passage in the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee.  RCRC Position: Support

AB 390 (Cooper): Criminal Law: DNA Evidence.  Assembly Bill 390 would restore the ability of government officials to collect DNA samples from adult offenders convicted of offenses that were recently converted from felonies to misdemeanors.  Status: AB 390 is on suspense in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.  RCRC Position: Support

AB 896 (Wagner): Counties: Search or Rescue: Costs.  Assembly Bill 896 would authorize a county to seek reimbursement for costs incurred for any extraordinary methods used in search and rescue operations from a resident within their jurisdiction.  Status: AB 896 awaits final consideration on the Assembly Floor.  RCRC Position: Support

AB 1119 (Rendon): Public Utilities: Rights of Way.  Assembly Bill 1119 would counties the same authority granted to cities to challenge a utility project located in the unincorporated portion of the county.  Status: AB 1119 gained passage in the Assembly Local Government Committee.  RCRC Position: Support

AB 1262 (Wood): Telecommunications: Universal Service.  Assembly Bill 1262 would transfer $5 million collected for the California Advanced Services Fund from the Broadband Infrastructure Revolving Loan Account to the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Account to support regional broadband deployment and expansion.  Status: AB 1262 gained passage in the Assembly.  RCRC Position: Support

SB 16 (Beall): Transportation Funding.  Senate Bill 16 would increase various fees and taxes associated with a variety of transportation-related funding sources to raise approximately $3.5 billion in overall funding for the state and local transportation system.  Status: SB 16 gained passage in the Senate Governance and Finance Committee and awaits consideration in the Senate Appropriations Committee.  RCRC Position: Watch

REGULATORY UPDATE

RCRC members are encouraged to submit comments on regulatory matters to state and federal regulatory bodies, and to provide a copy to RCRC’s Government Affairs staff.  Click “Read More” to access information related to the current status of regulations impacting California’s rural counties. 

Waiver of Waste Discharge Requirements for Marijuana Cultivation and Associated Activities: Creates a water quality regulatory structure to address impacts from marijuana cultivation activities.  Agency: North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Status: Draft published for a 45-day comment period, comments due on June 8, 2015.  Public hearing in Eureka scheduled for May 7, 2015.  Proposed order and related documents can be accessed here.  RCRC Comments: Staff is seeking input from member counties.  RCRC Advocate: Staci Heaton sheaton@rcrcnet.org