HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-01-27 - AGENDA REPORTS - AB 110 (2)CONSENT CALENDAR
DATE:
SUBJECT:
DEPARTMENT
Agenda Item:
I S
CITY OF SANTA CLARITA
AGENDA REPORT
City Manager Approval:
Item to be presented by:
January 27, 2009
Michael Murphy
STATE LEGISLATION: ASSEMBLY BILL 110
City Manager's Office
RECOMMENDED ACTION
City Council approve sponsorship and support for Assembly Bill 110 (Smyth) and transmit
statements of support to Assemblymember Smyth, members of Santa Clarita's state legislative
delegation, appropriate legislative committees, Governor Schwarzenegger, the League of
California Cities and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.
BACKGROUND
In 1999, the California Legislature enacted, and the Governor signed into law, Assembly Bill
339, Chapter 377, Statutes of 1999, authored by then-Assemblymember George Runner,
authorizing the Executive Director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy to extend the
boundaries of the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor. The authorization facilitated the inclusion of
lands in the vicinity of Placerita Canyon State Park and Whitney Canyon into the Corridor. The
new law also contained a prohibition on including Elsmere Canyon within the Rim of the Valley
Trail Corridor.
At that time, Elsmere Canyon was listed on the County of Los Angeles' Countywide Siting
Element, which identified potential landfill locations. In the late 1980s, Elsmere Canyon was
identified as a solid waste disposal site and efforts were made to develop the property into a
190 million -ton landfill. The City of Santa Clarita was a key player in efforts to stop the
proposed large-scale landfill. A critical milestone in the fight against the Elsmere Canyon
landfill was federal legislative language, authored by Senator Barbara Boxer and Representative
Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, that was enacted into law in 1996 prohibiting any portion of the
Angeles National Forest from being used as landfill. The Elsmere Canyon landfill project area
APPROVED
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included property within the Angeles National Forest and adjacent privately owned property.
Elsmere Canyon continues to remain on the Countywide Siting Element. However, in September
2003, Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich introduced a motion that was
adopted by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to remove Elsmere Canyon from the
Countywide Siting Element during the next review of the Countywide Integrated Waste
Management Plan. That plan is the blueprint for how solid waste will be managed in Los
Angeles County. Los Angeles County staff has indicated to City staff that Elsmere Canyon is
being removed from the updated Siting Element. The Siting Element will be available for public
comment in the spring or early summer of 2009. City staff will be monitoring the status of the
document and will review it when it becomes available.
As the project proponent, Browning Ferris Industries officially withdrew their application for use
of Elsmere Canyon as a landfill in 2004, and as the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors has
directed that Elsmere Canyon be removed from the County of Los Angeles Countywide Siting
Element, it is now appropriate to remove the restrictions in state law that prevent Elsmere
Canyon from being included in the Rim of the Valley Corridor.
In 2008, Senator George Runner introduced SB 1180, which would have removed the prohibition'
for inclusion of Elsmere Canyon within the Corridor. Even though SB 1180 was approved by the
Legislature with strong bi-partisan support, the bill was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger. SB
1180 was one of 136 bills vetoed by the Governor as an expression of his displeasure with the
Legislature relating to late adoption of a state budget.
On January 13, 2009, Assemblymember Cameron Smyth reintroduced the bill as AB 110. This
measure if enacted, will remove the language in state law that precludes Elsmere Canyon from
being included in the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor.
ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS
1. Adopt a "neutral" position on Assembly Bill 110.
2. Adopt an "oppose" position on Assembly Bill 110.
3. Other direction as determined by the City Council.
FISCAL IMPA
Approval of the recommended action requires no additional resources beyond those already
contained within the City's adopted Fiscal Year 2008-09 budget.
ATTACHMENTS
State legislation- Assembly Bill 110
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE -2009-10 REGULAR SESSION
ASSEMBLY BILL No. 110
Introduced by Assembly Member Smyth
(Coauthor: Senator Runner)
January 13, 2009
An act to amend Section 33204.4 of the Public Resources Code,
relating to parks and open space.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 110, as introduced, Smyth. Parks and open space: Rim of the
Valley Trail Corridor: boundary revisions.
(1) Existing law provides that, if the Santa Monica Mountains
Conservancy determines, based on relevant scientific information and
land use planning studies, that a revision of the boundaries of the Rim
of the Valley Trail Corridor in the vicinity of Placerita Canyon State
Park east of Route 14, including Whitney Canyon, is necessary, the
executive director of the conservancy is required to prepare and file
with the Secretary of State and specified committees of the Legislature,
a revised map showing the changes in the boundaries of the Rim of the
Valley Trail Corridor.
This bill instead, would, authorize the conservancy to revise the
boundaries of the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor in the vicinity of
the City of Santa Clarita, including Whitney Canyon, Elsmere Canyon,
and their adjacent watersheds. An owner of property located in Elsmere
Canyon would be authorized to request of the conservancy that his or
her property be included within the boundaries of the Rim of the Valley
Trail Corridor. The conservancy, upon receipt of the request, would be
authorized, in accordance with specified procedures, to revise the map
showing the boundaries of the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor to
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AB 110
include the property in Elsmere Canyon that is the subject of the request.
The bill would provide that the above authorization to the property
owner would not affect inclusion of the property in the corridor pursuant
to other provisions of law.
(2) Existing law prohibits the provision related to the revision of
boundaries of the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor from being
interpreted to affect any portion of Elsmere Canyon, or from affecting
the decision of whether to permit Elsmere Canyon as a solid waste
facility.
The bill would delete that provision.
(3) The bill also would make a technical, nonsubstantive change.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State -mandated local program: no.
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The people of the State of California do enact as follows.
SECTION 1. Section 33204.4 of the Public Resources Code
is amended to read:
33204.4. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) The boundary of the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor should
be determined exclusively upon the best scientific and
resource-based information regarding trail, recreational, and
environmental resources in the area.
(2) Landowners, local government entities, members of the
public, and other affected parties should be afforded maximum
participation in the process by which the Rim of the Valley Trail
Corridor is delineated.
(b) (1) Notwithstanding the requirements of Section 33015.5
33105.5, if the conservancy determines, based on relevant scientific
information and land use planning studies, and after holding at
least one public hearing in the area that would be affected by a
revision of the boundaries of the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor,
that a boundary revision in the vicinity of
Park east f State Route � 4 the City of Santa Clarita, including
Whitney Canyon, Elsmere Canyon, and—'its their adjacent
watersheds, is necessary, the executive director shall prepare and
file with the Secretary of State, the Assembly Committee on
Natural Resources and the Senate Committee on Natural Resources
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and ` 4kH+ e Water, a revised map showing the changes in the
boundaries of the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor.
(2) A revised map prepared pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be
supported by relevant scientific information and be in accordance
with the purposes and objectives of Section 33204.3.
(e) Nothing in this seetion shall be interpreted to
Peftion Of Ftl ti. in addition, nothing in this seetio�
shall be interpreted to have any eff�et an the deeisions whethef ff
in the final Los Angeles Gounty Gountywide Siting Element,
Seetion 40000),
(3) (A) An owner of property located in Elsmere Canyon, at
any time, may request of the conservancy, in writing, that his or
her property be included within the boundaries of the Rim of the
Valley Trail Corridor. Upon receipt of the request, the conservancy
may, in accordance with the procedures prescribed in paragraphs
(1) and (2), revise the map showing the boundaries of the Ram of
the Valley Trail Corridor to include within the corridor the
property in Elsmere Canyon that as the subject of the request.
(B) Subparagraph (A) does not affect the inclusion of the
property in the corridor pursuant to other provisions of this section
or other provisions of law.
(c) Notwithstanding Section 33201, nothing in this section sl3a�l
does not affect the jurisdiction of the State Coastal Conservancy.
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