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 CALIFORNIA ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
         9/14/96 8:10 pm


         To:   California ESA Activists

         From: Darryl Young, Principal Consultant
               (darryl.young@sen.ca.gov)
               Senate Natural Resources & Wildlife Committee,
               Tom Hayden, Chairman

         Re:   Status of California Endangered Species Bills

         ------------------------------------------------------

              The California Legislature is considering several
         measures dealing with California Endangered Species Act.
         The Legislature must adjourn by August 30.

              Here is a partial list of relevant bills under
         consideration.

         SENATE BILL 1120 (COSTA) - BROAD TAKE EXEMPTIONS FROM
         CESA
              As introduced, SB 1120 addressed concerns of
         agribusiness which included the fear that they could be
         criminally prosecuted for accidentally killing an
         endangered species. The bill passed out of the Senate
         even though it contained no limit on the number of
         accidents that were allowable.

              Now Senator Costa is proposing amendments that
         would remove requirements that the carcasses of
         "accidentally" taken endangered species be provided to
         DFG upon request.  More importantly, Costa's new
         amendments for ongoing and routine activities go far
         beyond the needs of agriculture.

              The amendments exempt from CESAs take prohibitions
         a wide range of activity including range management,
         operation or use of water storage or conveyance
         facilities (such as rivers and streams), operation of
         pipelines by oil companies and electric transmission
         lines by the utilities.  The use of roads is even
         exempted.  All of these activities would be exempted
         from the CESAs mandate to conserve, protect, restore and
         enhance endangered species and their habitat.

              SB 1120 is currently on the Assembly floor awaiting
         these amendments.  Senator Costa and Assemblyman
         Bustamante will attempt to put these amendments into SB
         1120 on Thursday, August 15.  Letters and calls to your
         Assemblymember in opposition to these amendments are
         needed immediately


         AB 3151 (OLBERG) - ALLOWING INCIDENTAL TAKE PERMITS
              As introduced this bill allowed DFG broad authority
         to issue permits to take threatened and endangered
         species without reference to CESAs standard of
         conserving, protecting, restoring and enhancing species
         and their habitats.  AB 3151 was striped of its language and
         placed in conference committee.  As the bill now reads:

         It is the intent of the Legislature to address in the
         California Endangered Species Act the issues of take,
         standards for take, and habitat destruction as it
         relates to take.

              The AB 3151 conference committee chaired by
         Assemblymember Keith Olberg (R-Victorvile) and is
         comprised of Assemblymembers Cruz Bustamante (D-Fresno),
         George House (R-Hughson) and Senators Byron Sher (D-Palo
         Alto), Ray Haynes (R-Murietta) and Tom Hayden (D-Los
         Angeles).  For a conference committee to issue a
         conference committee report (a bill) two members from
         each house must concur with the language.  The
         conference committee report would then go to each house
         for ratification.

         Assemblyman Olberg has fowarded the following langauge
         to the conferees.

         Section 2081.  (a) Through permits or memorandums of
         understanding, the department may authorize persons,
         public agencies, universities, zoological gardens, and
         scientific or educational institutions, to import,
         export, take or possess any endangered species,
         threatened species, or candidate species incidental to
         otherwise lawful activities, or for scientific,
         educational, or management purposes.  Any authorization
         for an incidental taking of a species under this section
         shall require that, to the maximum extent practicable,
         the impacts of that taking will be minimized and
         mitigated.  However, any required mitigation shall not
         exceed that which is necessary to offset the impact of
         that taking.

              (b) Nothing in this chapter or any other provision
         of law prohibits the taking of any species that the
         commission has determined to be a candidate species,
         threatened species, or endangered species if that taking
         was authorized by the department prior to January 1,
         1997, in a permit issued by the department, a memorandum
         of understanding with the department, or a natural
         communities conservation plan, habitat conservation
         plan, habitat management plan, or other plan or
         agreement approved by or entered into by the department,
         or any amendments to any of those permits, memoranda,
         plans or agreements.  All those permits, memoranda,
         plans, or agreements shall remain in force and effect
         according to the terms thereof, or as they may be
         amended by mutual agreement of the parties thereto.


         In the cover letter Olberg stated, "It will be used as a
         tool to facilitate discussion at the next meeting of the
         Conference Committee, and by no means represents final
         consensus by any group, organization, or interest.

         The next meeting of the conference committee is
         scheduled for Monday, August 19, 1996 upon the
         adjournment of session.


         AB 795(GOLDSMITH) - CEQA EXEMPTIONS FOR PROJECTS WITHIN
         AN NCCP
              AB 795 would grant projects that are within an
         Natural Communities Conservation Plan a 50-75 year
         exemption from CEQA review of impacts to wildlife.  The
         bill is opposed by local environmental representatives
         from the San Diego Chapters of the Sierra Club, the
         California Native Plant Society and Audubon.  The bill
         is currently in the Senate Natural Resources Committee
         and  for it to move it would require a rules waiver with
         the consent of the Committee Chair (Senator Hayden).


         AB 3150 (OLBERG) - JOINTLY LISTED SPECIES
              This bill deals with threatened and endangered
         species that are jointly listed under both the federal
         and state endangered species acts.  The bill is
         currently under negotiation between Senator Hayden and
         Assemblyman Olberg.  At issue is whether to exempt
         permittees from having to get a state take permit if
         they have a federal take permit as long as the federally
         authorized take is consistent with CESA.  AB 3150 is
         currently in the Senate Natural Resources Committee.
         For it to move, it would require a rules waiver with the
         consent of the Committee Chair (Senator Hayden).


         AB 350 (BUSTAMANTE) - PILOT RECOVERY STRATEGIES
              As introduced, AB 350 would have weakened the
         listing process for threatened and endangered species.
         As amended, the measure establishes a pilot project for
         the development of a recovery strategy for a limited
         number of target species.  The bill is currently in
         suspense (on hold) in the Senate Appropriations
         Committee due to the fiscal costs of the bill.  The
         Audubon Society and the Sierra Club are currently
         negotiating with Assemblymember Bustamante to further
         define the parameters and standards for the pilot
         program.


         AB 137 (OLBERG) - ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF CESA COMMISSION
              AB 137 is currently in the Senate Appropriations
         Committee.  The measure would establish a new commission
         to evaluate the impact that CESA has had on the economy
         of the state including benefits to biodiversity,
         tourism, and public health.  The commission would be
         comprised of a balanced number of business and
         environmental interests and would be staffed by the
         non-partisan California Research Bureau.  The measure is
         currently awaiting amendments to specify the exact
         number of members that would comprise the committee.



         FOR MORE INFORMATION ON POSITIONS ON BILLS
         AND WHAT YOU CAN DO CONTACT:

         Stacy Shull, Endangered Species Coalition
         Phone: (415) 522-6644
         E-mail: Mermaid@igc.apc.org

         Linda Barr, Sierra Club California
         Phone: (916) 557-1100
         E-mail: linda.barr@sfsierra.sierraclub.org

         John McCaul, National Audubon Society
         Phone: (916) (916) 444-5557




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Date: Mon, 19 Aug 1996 08:51:14 -0700
To: earthday@qualcomm.com
From: cdchase@qualcomm.com (Carolyn Chase)
Subject: CALIFORNIA ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT LEGISLATIVE UPDATE