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State
California
PRC Sec 30988-30988.3 SANTA MONICA BAY RESTORATION

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE
SECTION 30988-30988.3





30988. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that Santa Monica
Bay is a public trust for present and future generations of
Californians, and an invaluable element in the ecosystem of southern
California.
(b) The biological health and recreational resources of Santa
Monica Bay are threatened by the historical accumulation of DDT, PCBs
and other toxic pollutants, pathogens, nutrients, stormwater and
urban runoff, nonpoint pollutant sources, oil spills, and industrial
discharges, increasing with population pressures in the region.
(c) Santa Monica Bay's Palos Verdes Shelf has been identified as a
federal Superfund site, and designated under the United States
Environmental Protection Agency's National Estuary Program. Since
1988, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has
designated the former Santa Monica Bay Restoration Project as an
agency to plan for the Santa Monica Bay's restoration, and to oversee
implementation of the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Plan. The State
of California has expended millions of dollars for the administration
of the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Project, and the Safe
Neighborhood Parks, Clean Water, Clean Air, and Coastal Protection
Bond Act of 2000 (the Villaraigosa-Keeley Act; Chapter 1.692
(commencing with Section 5096.300) of Division 5 of the Public
Resources Code) earmarks up to twenty-five million dollars
($25,000,000) for Santa Monica Bay restoration projects, as
identified by the former Santa Monica Bay Restoration Project.
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Santa Monica Bay
Restoration Commission be a nonregulatory, locally based state
government entity that will monitor, assess, coordinate, and advise
all state programs, and oversee funding that affects the beneficial
uses, restoration, and enhancement of Santa Monica Bay and its
watershed.



30988.2. (a) The Santa Monica Bay Restoration Project is hereby
renamed the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission. The commission
shall independently execute the duties described in this section, and
the State Water Resources Control Board shall provide administrative
services to the commission. Any reference in any statute to the
Santa Monica Bay Restoration Project shall be deemed to be a
reference to the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission.
(b) (1) The Secretary for Environmental Protection, the Secretary
of the Resources Agency, and the Chair of the Bay Watershed Council
of the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission shall enter into a
memorandum of understanding that ensures the coordination of state
programs affecting Santa Monica Bay, and that delineates the
authority of that commission, and its governance structure with
respect to the implementation of those state programs. The
commission membership shall be prescribed in the memorandum of
understanding, and shall include federal, state, and local public
agency officials and employees, and representatives of other
stakeholder interests.
(c) The commission may do all of the following:
(1) Request and receive federal, state, local, and private funds
from any source, and expend those moneys for the restoration and
enhancement of Santa Monica Bay and its watershed.
(2) Award and administer grants for the restoration and
enhancement of Santa Monica Bay and its watershed.
(3) Enter into contracts and joint powers authority agreements, as
necessary, to carry out the purposes of the commission.
(4) Monitor, assess, and coordinate activities among federal,
state, and local agencies and, where appropriate, private firms, to
restore and enhance Santa Monica Bay and its watershed.
(d) (1) The Santa Monica Bay Restoration Account is hereby created
in the State Treasury, and moneys in the account may be expended,
upon appropriation by the Legislature, to support the activities of
the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission.
(2) The balance of any funds previously appropriated by the
Legislature, prior to January 1, 2003, from the General Fund or from
bond proceeds to support the activities of the former Santa Monica
Bay Restoration Project shall be transferred into the account.
(3) (A) Funds transferred to the account that are derived from an
appropriation from the General Fund are available for expenditure
only for the duration originally authorized and only for a purpose
authorized by this division as it read on December 31, 2002.
(B) Funds transferred to the account that are derived from an
appropriation of bond proceeds are available for expenditure only for
the duration originally authorized and may be expended for any
purpose authorized by this division on and after January 1, 2003.



30988.3. The Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission shall
prioritize in its educational, monitoring, and bond proceeds
expenditure decisions, proposals, or projects designed to achieve bay
restoration objectives including, but not limited to, all of the
following:
(a) The reduction or elimination of stormwater, urban runoff, and
point and nonpoint source pollution.
(b) The reduction or prevention of the threat of oil and sewage
spills and leaks.
(c) The reduction and prevention of beach erosion.
(d) The reduction and prevention of public health threats from
pollution.
(e) The prevention and restoration of, and protection against,
loss of wetlands, coastal and riparian habitats, and Santa Monica Bay'
s natural and living resources.
(f) Effective enforcement of appropriate environmental laws.
(g) Public education and warnings of any dangers of consuming
contaminated seafood.
(h) Increased public education concerning the Santa Monica Bay in
collaboration with universities and grades K-12 schools.
(i) Assuring that ocean resources are accessible to all
Californians regardless of socioeconomic status, and are preserved
and enhanced for future generations.