AB 642 — Wildfires.

Summary

(1) Existing law requires the Director of Forestry and Fire Protection to identify areas of the state as very high fire hazard severity zones, as provided. Existing law requires a local agency, within 30 days of receiving a transmittal from the director that identifies very high fire hazard severity zones, to make the information available for public review. This bill would require the director to also identify areas in the state as moderate and high fire hazard severity zones. The bill would modify the factors the director is required to use to classify areas into fire hazard severity zones, as provided. The bill would instead require a local agency, within 30 days of receiving a transmittal from the director that identifies fire hazard severity zones, to make the information available for public review and comment. Because the bill would impose additional duties on local agencies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law creates in the Office of the State Fire Marshal a State Board of Fire Services to succeed to all the powers, duties, and responsibilities of the former State Fire Advisory Board. Existing law requires the board to consist of members, including, among others, the State Fire Marshal, the Chief Deputy Director of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Director of Emergency Services, and the Chairperson of the California Fire Fighter Joint Apprenticeship Program. This bill would require the Director of Forestry and Fire Protection to appoint a cultural burning liaison. The bill would require the cultural burning liaison to, among other duties, serve on the State Board of Fire Services and to advise the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection on developing increased cultural burning activity. (3) Existing law authorizes the Director of Forestry and Fire Protection to enter into an agreement, including a grant agreement, for prescribed burning operations or other hazardous fuel reduction efforts, with any person for specified purposes. Existing law requires the agreement to designate an officer of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection or a certified burn boss with the final authority regarding the prescribed burn operation and to specify the duties of, and the precautions taken by, the person contracting with the department and any personnel furnished by that person. Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal, with the involvement of the Statewide Training and Education Advisory Committee, to develop a curriculum for a certification program for burn bosses. This bill would require the State Fire Marshal, on or before July 1, 2023, to develop a proposal to establish a prescribed fire training center, as provided. This bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2023, to make recommendations on how to understand and model wildfire risk for a community and specific parcels. The bill would require the department to establish an advisory workgroup and would require the department to consult with the advisory workgroup, as specified, in the development of the recommendations. The bill would require the department to post the recommendations on the department's internet website. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2025. Existing law requires the department to actively engage certain entities to enhance its public education efforts regarding fire prevention and public safety. This bill would additionally require the department to actively engage those entities, relevant California State Universities, California Native American tribes, tribal organizations, and cultural fire practitioners to enhance its public education efforts regarding restoring fire processes and function, and cultural burning, as defined. Existing law authorizes an entity that controls brush-covered land, forest lands, woodland, grassland, shrubland, or a combination of those types of land within a state responsibility area to apply to the department for permission to use prescribed burning for certain public purposes. This bill would require the department, in issuing the permit, to consider the availability of nondepartmental contingency resources when determining whether to require department contingency resources as part of the required precautions for the prescribed burn. The bill would require the department, to the extent feasible, to employ burn suspensions at the unit level and not at the state or regional level to not unreasonably restrict prescribed burnings that are within prescription. The bill would require the department to develop and deploy an automated system for issuing burn permits. Existing law authorizes prescribed burning, mastication, herbicide application, mechanical thinning, or other vegetative treatments of chaparral or sage scrub only if the department finds the activity will not cause "type conversion" away from the chaparral and coastal sage scrub currently on site. This bill would authorize the department to order remediation for any type conversion caused in violation of the above provision. This bill would require the department to take into consideration the salary, classification, and recruitment efforts for its personnel that conducts fuel reduction to fill vacancies and retain seasoned fuel reduction experts, and engage in recruitment efforts with California Native American tribes, tribal organizations, and cultural fire practitioners to fill vacancies in positions that engage in fuel reduction on behalf of the department. (4) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Sections 51178 and 51178.5 of the Government Code proposed by AB 9 to be operative only if this bill and AB 9 are enacted and this bill is enacted last. (5) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Bill Text

• Chaptered 09/28/21 - Chaptered Current pdf September 28, 2021
• Enrolled 09/13/21 - Enrolled pdf September 13, 2021
• Amended 09/03/21 - Amended Senate pdf September 03, 2021
• Amended 09/01/21 - Amended Senate pdf September 01, 2021
• Amended 08/16/21 - Amended Senate pdf August 16, 2021
• Amended 06/30/21 - Amended Senate pdf June 30, 2021
• Amended 06/14/21 - Amended Senate pdf June 14, 2021
• Introduced 02/12/21 - Introduced pdf February 12, 2021
• AB642 View text html

Action History

1. September 28, 2021

   Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 375, Statutes of 2021.

2. September 28, 2021

   Approved by the Governor.

3. September 17, 2021

   Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3 p.m.

4. September 09, 2021

   Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 77. Noes 0. Page 3029.).

5. September 08, 2021

   In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.

6. September 08, 2021

   Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 37. Noes 0. Page 2506.).

7. September 07, 2021

   Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

8. September 03, 2021

   Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

9. September 02, 2021

   Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

10. September 01, 2021

    Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

11. August 26, 2021

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

12. August 26, 2021

    From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 26).

13. August 23, 2021

    In committee: Referred to APPR suspense file.

14. August 16, 2021

    In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

15. August 16, 2021

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on APPR.

16. July 06, 2021

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (July 6). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

17. June 30, 2021

    Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on G.O.

18. June 29, 2021

    From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on G.O. (Ayes 9. Noes 0. Page 1719.) (June 29).

19. June 14, 2021

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on N.R. & W.

20. June 09, 2021

    Action rescinded whereby the bill was referred to Com. on HOUSING.

21. June 09, 2021

    Referred to Coms. on N.R. & W., G.O. and HOUSING.

22. May 28, 2021

    In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

23. May 27, 2021

    Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 73. Noes 0. Page 1638.)

24. May 24, 2021

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

25. May 20, 2021

    From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (May 20).

26. May 12, 2021

    In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.

27. March 25, 2021

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (March 24). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

28. February 25, 2021

    Referred to Com. on NAT. RES.

29. February 13, 2021

    From printer. May be heard in committee March 15.

30. February 12, 2021

    Read first time. To print.

Sponsors

• Friedman · Primary
• Wood · Cosponsor

Votes

Subjects