20250AB__084696AMD INTRODUCED 2025-02-19 AMENDED_ASSEMBLY 2025-03-27 AMENDED_ASSEMBLY 2025-05-23 AMENDED_SENATE 2025-06-26 2025 AB AMD Introduced by Assembly Member Connolly (Coauthor: Assembly Member Lackey) LEAD_AUTHOR ASSEMBLY Connolly COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Lackey

An act to add

Article 3.6 (commencing with

Section 2089.01) to

Chapter 1.5 of Division of the Fish and Game Code, relating to fish and wildlife. fish and wildlife Endangered species: incidental take: wildfire preparedness activities. The California Endangered Species Act prohibits the taking of an endangered, threatened, or candidate species, except as specified. Under the act, the Department of Fish and Wildlife (department) may authorize the take of listed species by certain entities through permits or memorandums of understanding for specified purposes.

Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal to identify areas in the state as moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones based on consistent statewide criteria and based on the severity of fire hazard that is expected to prevail in those areas. Existing law requires a local agency to designate, by ordinance, moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones in its jurisdiction within days of receiving recommendations from the State Fire Marshal, as provided.

This bill would authorize a city, county, city and county, special district, or other local agency to submit to the department a wildfire preparedness plan to conduct wildfire preparedness activities on land designated as a fire hazard severity zone, as defined, that minimizes impacts to wildlife and habitat for candidate, threatened, and endangered species.

The bill would require the wildfire preparedness plan to include, among other things, a brief description of the planned wildfire preparedness activities, the approximate dates for the activities, and a description of the candidate, endangered, and threatened species within the plan area. The bill would require the department to impose a fee on a local agency for the cost of reviewing a wildfire preparedness plan submitted by that local agency, as specified.

The bill would require the department, if sufficient information is included in the wildfire preparedness plan for the department to determine if an incidental take permit is required, to notify the local agency within days of receipt of the wildfire preparedness plan if an incidental take permit or other state permit is needed, or if there are other considerations, exemptions, or streamlined pathways that the wildfire preparedness activities qualify for, including, but not limited to, the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection’s California Vegetation Treatment Program.

The bill would require the department to provide the local agency, in its notification, with guidance that includes, among other things, a description of the candidate, endangered, and threatened species within the plan area and measures to avoid, minimize, and fully mitigate the take of the candidate, threatened, and endangered species, as provided. The bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2026, to make a standard wildfire preparedness plan submission form publicly available on its internet website.

The bill also would require the department, commencing January 1, 2027, to annually post on its internet website a

summary of the wildfire preparedness plans submitted and include specified information in that

summary. MAJORITY NO YES NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION

Article 3.6 (commencing with

Section 2089.01) is added to

Chapter 1.5 of Division of the Fish and Game Code , to read: 3.6. Incidental Take Associated with Wildfire Preparedness Activities 2089.01. (

a) The Legislature finds and declares the importance of undertaking wildfire preparedness activities to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire. It is the intent of the Legislature that this

article provides for enhanced consultation and coordination between agencies seeking to implement vegetation management and other wildfire preparedness activities and the department in order to facilitate the subsequent application for and timely approval of any necessary incidental take permits required before undertaking the wildfire preparedness activities. (b)

(1) A city, county, city and county, special district, or other local agency may submit to the department a wildfire preparedness plan to conduct wildfire preparedness activities on land designated as a fire hazard severity zone, pursuant to subdivision (

a) of

Section of the Government Code or

Section of the Public Resources Code, that minimizes impacts to wildlife and habitat for candidate, threatened, and endangered species.

(2) The department shall impose a fee on a local agency described in paragraph (1) for the cost of reviewing the wildfire preparedness plan submitted by that local agency, consistent with the department’s fee authority. (

c) A wildfire preparedness plan submitted pursuant to subdivision (

b) shall include all of the following:

(1) The name and contact information of the participating local agency.

(2) A brief description of the planned wildfire preparedness activities, including a description of the lands within the fire hazard severity zone.

(3) The approximate dates for which wildfire preparedness activities are proposed to occur.

(4) A description of the candidate, endangered, and threatened species within the plan area. (5) (

A) A description of how the local agency is compliant with the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with

Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code), and any planned environmental mitigation or conservation measures the local agency plans to take. (

B) The planned environmental mitigation or conservation measures pursuant to subparagraph (

A) shall include, as applicable, measures to avoid, minimize, and fully mitigate the take of candidate, endangered, and threatened species during the practices to be conducted under the wildfire preparedness plan. (d)

(1) Within days of receipt of the wildfire preparedness plan, the department shall, if sufficient information is included in the wildfire preparedness plan for the department to determine if an incidental take permit is required, notify the local agency if an incidental take permit or other state permit is needed, or if there are other considerations, exemptions, or streamlined pathways that the wildfire preparedness activities qualify for, including, but not limited to, the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection’s California Vegetation Treatment Program.

(2) The department shall provide the local agency with the following guidance, as applicable, in its notification: (

A) A description of candidate, endangered, and threatened species within the plan area. (

B) Measures to avoid, minimize, and fully mitigate the take of candidate, endangered, and threatened species during practices conducted under the plan. (

C) Any additional guidance to facilitate the completion and approval of a local agency’s application to the department for an incidental take permit pursuant to

Section 2081.

(3) The department shall consult with the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection and the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection if technical assistance to evaluate a wildfire preparedness plan is needed. (

e) On or before July 1, 2026, the department shall make publicly available on its internet website a standard form for a local agency to use when submitting a wildfire preparedness plan pursuant to subdivision (b). (f)

(1) If the department determines any activities in a wildfire preparedness plan submitted pursuant to subdivision (

b) require an incidental take permit, the department shall approve or deny the incidental take permit consistent with

Section within days of receiving a complete incidental take permit application from the local agency.

(2) An incidental take permit approved pursuant to this subdivision shall be for a term of no less than five years and shall be eligible for a permit renewal authorization by the department. (

g) Commencing January 1, 2027, the department shall annually post a

summary of wildfire preparedness plans submitted pursuant to subdivision (

b) on its internet website, including, but not limited to, the status of the wildfire preparedness plans, information regarding which regions of the state the wildfire preparedness plans were received from, the dates when the wildfire preparedness plans were submitted, the number of incidental take permits issued pursuant to this section, and a

summary of the other considerations, exemptions, or streamlined pathways local agencies were advised can be used to advance wildfire preparation activities. (

h) This

section does not preclude the department and a local agency from mutually agreeing to an extension of a timeline described in subdivision (

d) or (f). (

i) For the purposes of this article, a “wildfire preparedness plan” means a plan designed by a local agency or jurisdiction that meets all of the following criteria:

(1) Protects communities from the threat of wildfire through vegetation management practices that, to the maximum extent practicable, avoid and minimize the take of candidate, endangered, and threatened species, while encouraging the enhancement of habitat.

(2) Is supported by the best available scientific information for both wildfire preparedness and conservation practices.

(3) Is designed to provide sufficient flexibility to maximize participation and to gain the maximum protection of life and property from the threat of wildfire without compromising wildlife benefits.