California Assembly Bill AB2800 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 2800AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 16, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 12, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 18, 2016 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Quirk FEBRUARY 19, 2016 An act to add Section 71155 to the Public Resources Code, relating to climate change. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2800, as amended, Quirk. Climate change: infrastructure planning. Existing law requires the Natural Resources Agency, by July 1, 2017, and every 3 years thereafter, to update the state's climate adaptation strategy to identify vulnerabilities to climate change by sectors and priority actions needed to reduce the risks in those sectors. This bill would require state agencies to take into account the expected impacts of climate change when planning, designing, building, and investing in state infrastructure. The bill, by July 1, 2017, would require the agency to establish a Climate-Safe Infrastructure Working Group for the purpose of examining how to integrate scientific data concerning projected climate change impacts into state infrastructure engineering, as prescribed. The bill would require the working group to consist of  registered  professional engineers with relevant expertise from the Department of Transportation, the Department of Water Resources,  and  the Department of General  Services   Services, and other relevant state agencies  and scientists with certain expertise from the University of California and the California State University systems. The  bill, by July 1, 2018,   bill  would require the working  group   group, by July 1, 2018,  to recommend to the Legislature a process for integrating scientific knowledge of projected climate change impacts into state infrastructure design and addressing information gaps in a timely manner. 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. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) The impacts of climate change are already being felt in California and include record-breaking drought, wildfires, flooding, sea level rise, coastal erosion, and heat waves. These impacts are projected to worsen with a future punctuated by what are now considered extreme weather events. (b) As the climate warms, California will need to design and maintain infrastructure, including, but not limited to, roads, bridges, buildings, and water systems, to withstand increasingly severe impacts. (c) The scientific community is developing sound scientific understanding of projected impacts from climate change. The engineers responsible for overseeing, designing, and building state infrastructure must consider the influence of climate change impacts on siting and design standards and specifications. (d) As California spends billions of dollars on infrastructure, expecting it to last many decades, state engineers should be provided with information on projected climate change impacts that they should consider when establishing standards and planning and designing structures that are critical to California's economy and public safety. (e) Prolonged heat waves, extreme precipitation events, severe drought, increasing wildfires, and other potentially dangerous climate change impacts will require significant changes in designing and building projects, such as roads, bridges, buildings, and water infrastructure, and require planning for the resilience and restoration of natural systems. (f) There is a significant body of climate science being developed and continually updated to inform decisionmakers and provide guidance on the predicted impacts. Infrastructure project planning and design must incorporate design standards and specifications for climate change impacts. (g) Due to Executive Order B-30-15, current efforts by state agencies provide built-in resources, processes, and expertise that can be utilized to provide coordination between scientists and those responsible for designing, building, and overseeing critical state infrastructure. SEC. 2. Section 71155 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read: 71155. (a) State agencies shall take into account the expected impacts of climate change when planning, designing, building, and investing in state infrastructure. (b) (1) By July 1, 2017, the agency shall establish a Climate-Safe Infrastructure Working Group for the purpose of examining how to integrate scientific data concerning projected climate change impacts into state infrastructure engineering, including oversight, investment, design, and construction. (2) The working group shall consist of the following: (A) Professional engineers  registered in accordance with Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 6700) of Division 3 of the Business and Professions Code  with relevant expertise in state infrastructure design from the Department of Transportation, the Department of Water Resources,  and  the Department of General  Services.   Services, and other relevant state agencies, as applicable.  (B) Scientists from the University of California and the California State University systems with expertise in climate change impacts in California, including scientists who produce publicly available climate data concerning California and its regions.  (3) Membership of the working group shall be reasonably and equitably distributed between the groups specified in paragraph (2).   (3)   (4)  The working group shall work in coordination with other climate adaptation planning efforts and shall consider and build upon existing information produced by the state, among other resources. (c) The working group may wish to consider and offer recommendations on the following issues: (1) The current barriers to integrating projected climate change impacts into state infrastructure design. (2) The development of practicable guidelines for planning and designing infrastructure that is more resilient to the expected impacts of climate change. (3) The identification of gaps in the critical information that engineers responsible for infrastructure design and construction need to address climate change impacts. (4) Consideration of the appropriate engineering design for multiple projected scenarios for future climate change. (5) Consideration of a platform or process to facilitate communication between climate scientists and infrastructure engineers. (d) By July 1, 2018, the working group shall recommend to the Legislature a process for integrating scientific knowledge of projected climate change impacts into state infrastructure design and for addressing the information gaps in a timely manner. (e) For the purposes of this section, "infrastructure" has the same meaning as defined in Section 13101 of the Government Code.