State California PRC Sec 35000-35034 COASTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY ASSISTANCE ACT PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE SECTION 35000-35034 35000. This division shall be known and may be cited as the Coastal Resources and Energy Assistance Act. 35001. The Legislature finds and declares that it is essential that the state, in cooperation with local governments, invest a portion of federal revenues derived from the extraction of publicly owned, nonrenewable offshore energy resources for the sound protection and management of the state's renewable ocean and coastal resources. 35002. The Legislature further finds and declares that the federal government's accelerated and expanded federal offshore leasing program, in conjunction with the State Lands Commission's submerged lands leasing program, have placed a greater strain on state and local government efforts to plan for and manage the ocean and coastal impacts caused by offshore oil and gas development. 35003. The Legislature further finds and declares, therefor, that a portion of federal revenues derived from the extraction of offshore energy resources should be expended by the state to further the following goals: (a) Provision of financial assistance to coastal counties and cities affected by federal and state offshore energy development. (b) Assistance to local governments to exercise their responsibility for improving the management of the state's coastal resources. 35020. "Coastal city" means a city or port district which lies, in whole or in part, within the coastal zone. 35021. "Coastal county" means a county or city and county which lies, in whole or in part, within the coastal zone. 35022. "Coastal zone" means the coastal zone as defined in Section 30103. 35023. "Local coastal program" means a local coastal program as defined in Section 30108.6. 35024. "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Resources Agency. 35030. (a) The secretary, after consulting with the California Coastal Commission and the State Lands Commission concerning offshore energy activities, shall award grants to coastal counties and cities to be used for the purposes of planning, assessment, mitigation, permitting, monitoring and enforcement, public services and facilities, and for other activities related to offshore energy development, consistent with the requirements of the state's coastal management program. (b) Prior to receiving grants under this chapter, each coastal county and city shall submit a report to the secretary describing how the funds are to be expended. Before submitting the report, each coastal county and city shall provide opportunities for the public to review and comment on the report and shall hold at least one public hearing on the report. 35031. Any funds appropriated in accordance with this chapter and not expended as described in Section 35030, may be awarded by the secretary for technical and financial assistance to coastal counties and cities with approved local coastal programs to help them exercise effectively their responsibility for improving the management of the state's coastal resources. Technical and financial assistance shall be made available to coastal counties and cities to do any of the following: (a) Protect wetlands, flood plains, estuaries, beaches, dunes, and fish and wildlife and their habitat within coastal areas. (b) Minimize the loss of life and property in coastal flood-prone, storm surge, geologic hazard, and erosion-prone areas. (c) Provide public access to the coast for recreational purposes, to acquire coastal view sheds, and to preserve, maintain, and restore historic, cultural, and aesthetic coastal sites. (d) Facilitate the process for siting major facilities along the coast related to fisheries, recreation, and ports and other coastal dependent commercial uses, giving full consideration to environmental concerns as well as the need for economic development. (e) Promote other coastal management improvements determined by the secretary to be consistent with the state's coastal management program. 35032. On or before April 15, 1997, the secretary, in cooperation with the California Coastal Commission, shall develop and implement a competitive application process to award coastal counties and cities financial and technical assistance pursuant to this chapter. Thereafter, the secretary shall review that process by April 15 of each year that funds are appropriated pursuant to this chapter. 35033. Any financial assistance provided to local governments under this chapter may not exceed 90 percent of the cost of carrying out the project. Commencing in the 1997 calendar year and in each calendar year thereafter, 50 percent of the amount of funds received by the state pursuant to Section 8(g) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. Sec. 1337(g)) over the amount of funds so received in the 1996 calendar year shall be available, on an annual basis, for appropriation to the secretary for grants to coastal counties and cities pursuant to this chapter. 35034. On an annual basis, the secretary shall review and assess county and city expenditures under this program. Not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) of the funds appropriated annually pursuant to this chapter may be used by the secretary to defray administrative costs and, of that amount, not more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) may be used to cover costs incurred by the California Coastal Commission in the review of grant applications pursuant to this chapter.