California Senate Bill SB1166 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: SB 1166AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 20, 2012 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 15, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 29, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 1, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 18, 2012 INTRODUCED BY Senator Berryhill FEBRUARY 22, 2012 An act to amend Sections 331, 332, 3953, 4334, and 4902 of, and to add Sections 708 and 709 to, the Fish and Game Code, relating to wildlife resources. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1166, as amended, Berryhill. Department of Fish and Game: Big Game Management Account funds. Existing law requires all money collected under the Fish and Game Code, including money received as a result of the sale of licenses issued under the code, to be deposited into the Fish and Game Preservation Fund, unless otherwise provided. Existing law authorizes the Department of Fish and Game to issue tags, stamps, and licenses for the hunting of antelope, elk, upland game birds, deer, wild pigs, bears, and bighorn sheep upon payment of a fee, to be deposited into the fund. Existing law establishes the Big Game Management Account within the fund to permit separate accountability for the receipt and, subject to appropriation, the prescribed expenditure of revenues from antelope, elk, deer, wild pig, bear, and bighorn sheep tags, including fundraising tags. This bill would require the department to authorize a nonprofit organization designated by the department, that is associated with the sale of deer, elk, antelope, or bighorn sheep tags that are sold on behalf of the department for the purpose of raising funds for specified programs and projects, to retain  the lesser of that organization's administrative costs of selling the tag or 10%  a vendor fee of 2%  of the amount for which the tag is sold. The bill would make conforming changes to related provisions. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 331 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read: 331. (a) The commission may determine and fix the area or areas, the seasons and hours, the bag and possession limit, and the sex and total number of antelope (Antilocapra americana) that may be taken under regulations that the commission may adopt from time to time. Only a person possessing a valid hunting license, who has not received an antelope tag under these provisions during a period of time specified by the commission, may obtain a tag for the taking of antelope. (b) The department may issue a tag upon payment of a fee. The fee for a tag shall be fifty-five dollars ($55) for a resident of the state, as adjusted under Section 713. On or before July 1, 2007, the commission, by regulation, shall fix the fee for a nonresident of the state at not less than a fee of three hundred fifty dollars ($350), as adjusted under Section 713. The fee shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended, in addition to moneys budgeted for salaries of persons in the department as set forth in Section 3953. (c) The commission shall direct the department to annually authorize not less than one antelope tag or more than 1 percent of the total number of tags available for the purpose of raising funds for programs and projects to benefit antelope. These tags may be sold at auction to residents or nonresidents of the state or by another method and are not subject to the fee limitation prescribed in subdivision (b). Except as provided in Section 709, all revenues from sales pursuant to this subdivision shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended as set forth in that section. (d) The commission shall direct the department to annually authorize one antelope tag of the total number of tags available for issuance to nonresidents of the state. SEC. 2. Section 332 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read: 332. (a) The commission may determine and fix the area or areas, the seasons and hours, the bag and possession limit, and the number of elk that may be taken under rules and regulations that the commission may adopt from time to time. The commission may authorize the taking of tule elk if the average of the department's statewide tule elk population estimates exceeds 2,000 animals, or the Legislature determines, pursuant to the reports required by Section 3951, that suitable areas cannot be found in the state to accommodate that population in a healthy condition. (b) Only a person possessing a valid hunting license may obtain a tag for the taking of elk. (c) The department may issue an elk tag upon payment of a fee. The fee for a tag shall be one hundred sixty-five dollars ($165) for a resident of the state, as adjusted under Section 713. On or before July 1, 2007, the commission, by regulation, shall fix the fee for a nonresident of the state at not less than one thousand fifty dollars ($1,050), as adjusted under Section 713. The fees shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended, in addition to moneys budgeted for salaries of the department, as set forth in Section 3953. (d) The commission shall annually direct the department to authorize not more than three elk hunting tags for the purpose of raising funds for programs and projects to benefit elk. These tags may be sold at auction to residents or nonresidents of the state or by another method and are not subject to the fee limitation prescribed in subdivision (c). Except as provided in Section 709,  all  revenues from sales pursuant to this subdivision shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended as set forth in that section. (e) The commission shall direct the department to annually authorize one elk tag of the total number of tags available for issuance to nonresidents of the state. SEC. 3. Section 708 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to read: 708. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following: (a) The National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation has been conducted since 1955 and is one of the oldest and most comprehensive continuing recreation surveys. (b) The 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation found all of the following: (1) Eighty-seven million five hundred thousand United States residents 16 years of age and older participated in wildlife-dependent recreation. (2) Individuals participating in wildlife-dependent recreation spent one hundred twenty-two billion three hundred million dollars ($122,300,000,000) in 2006 on their activities, which equated to 1 percent of the gross domestic product. (3) Hunters and anglers spent seventy-six billion six hundred million dollars ($76,600,000,000), while wildlife viewers spent forty-five billion seven hundred million dollars ($45,700,000,000). (4) Seven million four hundred thousand California residents and nonresidents 16 years of age and older fished, hunted, or viewed wildlife in this state. (5) State residents and nonresidents spent  $8   eight  billion  dollars ($8,000,000,000)  on wildlife-dependent recreation in this state. (c) The department reported that, in 2006, hunters and anglers spent seventy-eight million dollars ($78,000,000) on licenses, stamps, tags, and access fees. (d)  Revenue   Revenues  generated by wildlife-dependent recreational activities  plays   play  an exceedingly important role in California's economy. (e)  Revenue   Revenues  generated by hunters  is   are  critical to the department's ability to protect, enhance, and manage wildlife habitat. SEC. 4. Section 709 is added to the Fish and Game Code, to read: 709.  (a)    The department shall authorize a nonprofit organization designated by the department, that is associated with the sale of deer, elk, antelope, or bighorn sheep fundraising tags that are sold on behalf of the department for the purpose of raising funds for specified programs and projects pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 331, subdivision (d) of Section 332, subdivision (a) of Section 4334, or subdivision (d) of Section 4902, to retain  the lesser of that organization's administrative costs of selling the tag or 10   a vendor fee of 2  percent of the amount for which the tag is sold.  (b) The total amount retained from a sale pursuant to subdivision (a) shall not exceed the lesser of the administrative costs of that sale or 10 percent of the amount of the sale.  SEC. 5. Section 3953 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read: 3953. (a) The Big Game Management Account is hereby established within the Fish and Game Preservation Fund. (b) Except as provided in Section 709, all revenues from the sale of antelope, elk, deer, wild pig, bear, and sheep tags, including any fundraising tags, shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account to allow separate accountability for the receipt and expenditure of these funds. (c) Funds deposited in the Big Game Management Account shall be available for expenditure upon appropriation by the Legislature to the department solely for the purposes described in this section. As the primary purpose of the Big Game Management Account, the department shall expend these funds for the purposes set forth in Sections 3951 and 3952, and Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 450) of Division 1, Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 4650), and Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 4900), including acquiring land, completing projects, and implementing programs to benefit antelope, elk, deer, wild pigs, bear, and sheep, and expanding public hunting opportunities and related public outreach. Any land acquired with funds from the Big Game Management Account shall be acquired in fee title or protected with a conservation easement and, to the extent possible, be open or provide access to the public for antelope, elk, deer, wild pig, bear, or sheep hunting. The department may also use funds from the Big Game Management Account to pay for administrative and enforcement costs of the programs and activities described in this section. The amount allocated from the account for administrative costs shall be limited to the reasonable costs associated with administration of the programs and activities described in this section. (d) The department may make grants to, reimburse, or enter into contracts or other agreements as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 1571 with, nonprofit organizations for the use of the funds from the Big Game Management Account to carry out the purposes of this section, including related habitat conservation projects. (e) An advisory committee, as determined by the department, that includes representatives of interested nonprofit organizations that have goals and objectives directly related to the management and conservation of big game species and primarily represent the interests of persons licensed pursuant to Section 3031 shall review and provide comments to the department on all proposed projects  ,  and administrative and enforcement expenditures funded from the Big Game Management Account to help ensure that the requirements of this section have been met. The department shall post budget information and a brief description on an Internet Web site for all expenditures from the Big Game Management Account. (f) Big game projects authorized pursuant to this section are not subject to Part 2 (commencing with Section 10100) of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code or Article 6 (commencing with Section 999) of Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the Military and Veterans Code. (g) The department shall maintain the internal accountability necessary to ensure compliance with the collection, deposit, and expenditure of funds specified in this section. SEC. 6. Section 4334 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read: 4334. (a) The commission shall annually direct the department to authorize, pursuant to Section 1054.8, the sale of not more than 10 deer tags for the purpose of raising funds for programs and projects as set forth in Section 3953. Except as provided in Section 709, all  revenue   revenues  from the sale of tags pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended as set forth in that section. (b) These tags may be sold to residents or nonresidents of the State of California at auction or by any other method and are not subject to the fees prescribed by Section 4332. (c) These funds shall augment, not supplant, any other funds appropriated to the department for the preservation, restoration, utilization, and management of deer. The seller shall remit all revenues derived from the sale of these tags to the department. SEC. 7. Section 4902 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read: 4902. (a) The commission may adopt all regulations necessary to provide for biologically sound management of Nelson bighorn sheep (subspecies Ovis canadensis nelsoni). (b) (1) After the plans developed by the department pursuant to Section 4901 for the management units have been submitted, the commission may authorize sport hunting of mature Nelson bighorn rams. Before authorizing the sport hunting, the commission shall take into account the Nelson bighorn sheep population statewide, including the population in the management units designated for hunting. (2) Notwithstanding Section 219, the commission shall not adopt regulations authorizing the sport hunting in a single year of more than 15 percent of the mature Nelson bighorn rams in a single management unit, based on the department's annual estimate of the population in each management unit. (c) The fee for a tag to take a Nelson bighorn ram may be determined by the commission, but shall not exceed five hundred dollars ($500). Fee revenues shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended as set forth in that section. (d) The commission shall annually direct the department to authorize not more than three of the tags available for issuance that year to take Nelson bighorn rams for the purpose of raising funds for programs and projects to benefit Nelson bighorn sheep. These tags may be sold to residents or nonresidents of the State of California at auction or by another method and are not subject to the fee limitation prescribed in subdivision (c). Commencing with tags sold for the 1993 hunting season, if more than one tag is authorized, the department shall designate a nonprofit organization organized pursuant to the laws of this state, or the California chapter of a nonprofit organization organized pursuant to the laws of another state, as the seller of not less than one of these tags. The number of tags authorized for the purpose of raising funds pursuant to this subdivision, if more than one, shall not exceed 15 percent of the total number of tags authorized pursuant to subdivision (b). Except as provided in Section 709, all  revenue   revenues  from the sale of tags pursuant to this subdivision shall be deposited in the Big Game Management Account established in Section 3953 and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended as set forth in that section. (e) A tag issued pursuant to this section shall not be valid unless and until the licensee has successfully completed a prehunt hunter familiarization and orientation and has demonstrated to the department that he or she is familiar with the requisite equipment for participating in the hunting of Nelson bighorn rams, as determined by the commission. The department shall conduct orientation at convenient locations and times preceding each season, as determined by the commission.