AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 29, 2023
california legislature—2023–24 regular session
ASSEMBLY BILL No. 882
Introduced by Assembly Member Davies
February 14, 2023
An act to amend Section 31113 of add and repeal Section 31123 of the Public Resources Code, relating to coastal resources. legislative counsel’s digest
AB 882, as amended, Davies. Coastal resources: Climate Ready Program: State Coastal Conservancy. Conservancy: advance payments.
Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the State Coastal Conservancy. Existing law establishes the Climate Ready Program, administered by the conservancy, in order to address the impacts and potential impacts of climate change on resources within the conservancy’s jurisdiction. Existing law requires the conservancy, when allocating specified funds, to do specified things, including prioritizing projects that use natural infrastructure in coastal communities to help adapt to climate change and prioritizing projects that provide multiple public benefits, as specified. Existing law authorizes the conservancy to award certain grants for specified purposes.
Existing law establishes a pilot program, which is repealed on July 1, 2025, to explore possible improvements to the state’s existing advance payment practices for state-funded assistance grants. Existing law authorizes an administering state agency of a grant program to advance a payment to a recipient entity, which means a local agency or a nongovernmental entity that is awarded a grant by an administering state agency and with whom the administering state agency has entered into a contract pursuant to that grant, in accordance with specified 98 ATTACHMENT 2
procedures. These procedures include stipulating an advance payment structure and request process within the grant agreement or contract and ensuring that the advance payment to the recipient entity does not exceed 25% of the total grant amount awarded to the recipient entity, except in specified circumstances.
This bill would permit the conservancy to authorize advance payments on a contract or grant awarded in accordance with the pilot program.
The bill would repeal this authorization on the date the pilot program is repealed.
This bill would require the conservancy to prioritize the review of applications for specified projects and to process those applications no later than 45 days from the date the conservancy receives the application.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
line 1 SECTION 1. Section 31123 is added to the Public Resources line 2 Code, to read:
line 3 31123. (a) The conservancy may authorize advance payments line 4 on a contract or grant awarded pursuant to this division in line 5 accordance with Section 11019.1 of the Government Code. line 6 (b) This section shall remain in effect only until the date that line 7 Section 11019.1 of the Government Code is repealed, and as of line 8 that date is repealed.
line 9 SECTION 1. Section 31113 of the Public Resources Code is line 10 amended to read:
line 11 31113. (a) The Climate Ready Program is hereby established line 12 and shall be administered by the conservancy to address the impacts line 13 and potential impacts of climate change on resources within the line 14 conservancy’s jurisdiction.
line 15 (b) In implementing this division, the conservancy may line 16 undertake projects within its jurisdiction, including, but not limited line 17 to, those that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, address extreme line 18 weather events, sea level rise, storm surge, beach and bluff erosion, line 19 salt water intrusion, flooding, and other coastal hazards that line 20 threaten coastal communities, infrastructure, and natural resources. line 21 (c) Pursuant to the Climate Ready Program, the conservancy line 22 may award grants to public agencies and nonprofit organizations line 23 for activities authorized pursuant to subdivision (b). In awarding 98 AB 882 — 2 —
line 1 the grants, the conservancy shall, to the extent allowed, prioritize line 2 projects that maximize public benefits and that accomplish either line 3 of the following:
line 4 (1) Reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, reduce hazards to line 5 harbors and ports, preserve and enhance coastal wetlands and line 6 natural lands, conserve biodiversity, and provide recreational line 7 opportunities.
line 8 (2) Reduce flood risk and enhance fish and wildlife habitat, line 9 including projects with multiple benefits that remove sediment line 10 where the excavated material can be used to enhance shorelines line 11 or ecosystems.
line 12 (d) (1) The conservancy shall do all of the following:
line 13 (A) Prioritize projects that use natural infrastructure in coastal line 14 communities to help adapt to climate change.
line 15 (B) Prioritize projects that provide multiple public benefits, line 16 including, but not limited to, protection of communities, natural line 17 resources, and recreational opportunities.
line 18 (C) Give consideration to projects in a variety of ecosystems line 19 along the state’s coastline, including, but not limited to, the line 20 protection and expansion of coastal estuaries and lagoons that line 21 provide critical feeding and nursery habitat for juvenile fish species line 22 and foraging habitat for migratory waterfowl and other waterbirds, line 23 including eelgrass habitat.
line 24 (D) Prioritize the review of applications for projects described line 25 in subparagraphs (A) and (B) and process those applications no line 26 later than 45 days from the date the conservancy receives the line 27 application.
line 28 (2) The conservancy shall provide information to the Office of line 29 Planning and Research on any projects funded pursuant to this line 30 subdivision to be considered for inclusion into the clearinghouse line 31 for climate adaption information, established pursuant to Section line 32 71360.
line 33 (3) The conservancy may provide technical assistance to coastal line 34 communities to better assist them with their projects that use natural line 35 infrastructure.
line 36 (4) For purposes of this subdivision, “natural infrastructure” line 37 means using natural ecological systems or processes to reduce line 38 vulnerability to climate change related hazards, or other related line 39 climate change effects, while increasing the long-term adaptive line 40 capacity of coastal and inland areas by perpetuating or restoring 98 — 3 — AB 882
line 1 ecosystem services. This includes, but is not limited to, the line 2 conservation, preservation, or sustainable management of any form line 3 of aquatic or terrestrial vegetated open space, such as beaches, line 4 dunes, tidal marshes, reefs, seagrass, parks, rain gardens, and urban line 5 tree canopies. It also includes systems and practices that use or line 6 mimic natural processes, such as permeable pavements, bioswales, line 7 and other engineered systems, such as levees that are combined line 8 with restored natural systems, to provide clean water, conserve line 9 ecosystem values and functions, and provide a wide array of line 10 benefits to people and wildlife.
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