2009 California Government Code - Section 8574.1-8574.10 :: Article 3.5. Oil Spills

8574.1.  In addition to any other authority conferred upon the
Governor by this chapter, the Governor shall establish a California
oil spill contingency plan pursuant to this article.

8574.2.  Any plan established pursuant to this article shall provide
for an integrated and effective state procedure to combat the
results of major oil spills within the state. Such plan shall provide
for specified state agencies to implement the plan.

8574.3.  State agencies granted authority to implement a plan
adopted under this article may use volunteer workers. The volunteers
shall be deemed employees of the state for the purpose of workers'
compensation under Article 2 (commencing with Section 3350) of
Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 4 of the Labor Code. Any payments for
workers' compensation under this section shall be made from the
account specified in Section 8574.4.

8574.4.  State agencies designated to implement the contingency plan
shall account for all state expenditures made under the plan with
respect to each oil spill. Expenditures accounted for under this
section from an oil spill in marine waters shall be paid from the Oil
Spill Response Trust Fund created pursuant to Section 8670.46. All
other expenditures accounted for under this section shall be paid
from the State Water Pollution Cleanup and Abatement Account in the
State Water Quality Control Fund provided for in Article 3
(commencing with Section 13440) of Chapter 6 of Division 7 of the
Water Code. If the party responsible for the spill is identified,
that party shall be liable for the expenditures accounted for under
this section, in addition to any other liability which may be
provided for by law, in an action brought by the Attorney General.
The proceeds from any such action for a spill in marine waters shall
be paid into the Oil Spill Response Trust Fund.

8574.7.  The Governor shall require the administrator, in
consultation with the State Interagency Oil Spill Committee and not
in conflict with the National Contingency Plan, to amend the
California oil spill contingency plan by adding a marine oil spill
contingency planning section that provides for the best achievable
protection of the coast and marine waters. "Administrator" for
purposes of this section means the administrator appointed by the
Governor pursuant to Section 8670.4. The marine oil spill contingency
planning section shall consist of all of the following elements:
   (a) A state marine response element that specifies the hierarchy
for state and local agency response to an oil spill. The element
shall define the necessary tasks for oversight and control of cleanup
and removal activities associated with a marine oil spill and shall
specify each agency's particular responsibility in carrying out these
tasks. The element shall also include an organizational chart of the
state marine oil spill response organization and a definition of the
resources, capabilities, and response assignments of each agency
involved in cleanup and removal actions in a marine oil spill.
   (b) A regional and local planning element that shall provide the
framework for the involvement of regional and local agencies in the
state effort to respond to a marine oil spill, and shall ensure the
effective and efficient use of regional and local resources in all of
the following:
   (1) Traffic and crowd control.
   (2) Firefighting.
   (3) Boating traffic control.
   (4) Radio and communications control and provision of access to
equipment.
   (5) Identification and use of available local and regional
equipment or other resources suitable for use in cleanup and removal
actions.
   (6) Identification of private and volunteer resources or personnel
with special or unique capabilities relating to marine oil spill
cleanup and removal actions.
   (7) Provision of medical emergency services.
   (8) Consideration of the identification and use of private working
craft and mariners, including commercial fishing vessels and
licensed commercial fishing men and women, in containment, cleanup,
and removal actions.
   (c) A coastal protection element that establishes the state
standards for coastline protection. The administrator, in
consultation with the State Interagency Oil Spill Committee, the
Coast Guard and Navy, and the shipping industry, shall develop
criteria for coastline protection. If appropriate, the administrator
shall consult with representatives from the States of Alaska,
Washington, and Oregon, the Province of British Columbia in Canada,
and the Republic of Mexico. The criteria shall designate at least all
of the following:
   (1) Appropriate shipping lanes and navigational aids for tankers,
barges, and other commercial vessels to reduce the likelihood of
collisions between tankers, barges, and other commercial vessels.
Designated shipping lanes shall be located off the coastline at a
distance sufficient to significantly reduce the likelihood that
disabled vessels will run aground along the coast of the state.
   (2) Ship position reporting and communications requirements.
   (3) Required predeployment of protective equipment for sensitive
environmental areas along the coastline.
   (4) Required emergency response vessels that are capable of
preventing disabled tankers from running aground.
   (5) Required emergency response vessels that are capable of
commencing oil cleanup operations before spilled oil can reach the
shoreline.
   (6) An expedited decisionmaking process for dispersant use in
coastal waters. Prior to adoption of the process, the administrator
shall ensure that a comprehensive testing program is carried out for
any dispersant proposed for use in California marine waters. The
testing program shall evaluate toxicity and effectiveness of the
dispersants.
   (7) Required rehabilitation facilities for wildlife injured by
spilled oil.
   (8) An assessment of how activities that usually require a permit
from a state or local agency may be expedited or issued by the
administrator in the event of an oil spill.
   (d) An environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas element
that shall provide the framework for prioritizing and ensuring the
protection of environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas. The
environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas element shall be
developed by the administrator, in conjunction with appropriate local
agencies, and shall include all of the following:
   (1) Identification and prioritization of environmentally and
ecologically sensitive areas in marine waters and along the coast.
Identification and prioritization of environmentally and ecologically
sensitive areas shall not prevent or excuse the use of all
reasonably available containment and cleanup resources from being
used to protect every environmentally and ecologically sensitive area
possible. Environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas shall be
prioritized through the evaluation of criteria, including, but not
limited to, all of the following:
   (A) Risk of contamination by oil after a spill.
   (B) Environmental, ecological, recreational, and economic
importance.
   (C) Risk of public exposure should the area be contaminated.
   (2) Regional maps depicting environmentally and ecologically
sensitive areas in marine waters or along the coast that shall be
distributed to facilities and local and state agencies. The maps
shall designate those areas that have particularly high priority for
protection against oil spills.
   (3) A plan for protection actions required to be taken in the
event of an oil spill for each of the environmentally and
ecologically sensitive areas and protection priorities for the first
24 to 48 hours after an oil spill shall be specified.
   (4) The location of available response equipment and the
availability of trained personnel to deploy the equipment to protect
the priority environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas.
   (5) A program for systemically testing and revising, if necessary,
protection strategies for each of the priority environmentally and
ecologically sensitive areas.
   (6) Any recommendations for action that cannot be financed or
implemented pursuant to existing authority of the administrator,
which shall also be reported to the Legislature along with
recommendations for financing those actions.

8574.8.  (a) The administrator shall submit to the Governor and the
Legislature an amended California oil spill contingency plan
required, pursuant to Section 8574.7, by January 1, 1993. The
administrator shall thereafter submit revised plans every three
years, until the amended plan required pursuant to subdivision (b) is
submitted.
   (b) The administrator shall submit to the Governor and the
Legislature an amended California oil spill contingency plan required
pursuant to Section 8574.7, by January 1, 2010, that consists of
both a marine oil spill contingency planning section and an inland
oil spill contingency planning section. The administrator shall
thereafter submit revised plans every three years.

8574.9.  (a) The State Interagency Oil Spill Committee shall consist
of all of the following persons:
   (1) The administrator named by the Governor pursuant to Section
8670.4.
   (2) The Chairperson of the State Lands Commission, or his or her
designee.
   (3) The Chairperson of the California Coastal Commission, or his
or her designee.
   (4) The Chairperson of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and
Development Commission, or his or her designee. The chairperson of
the commission shall only have voting and decisionmaking authority
regarding matters under the jurisdiction of the commission.
   (5) A designated representative from all of the following
agencies:
   (A) The California Emergency Management Agency.
   (B) The State Water Resources Control Board.
   (C) The Department of Justice.
   (D) The California Highway Patrol.
   (E) The California National Guard.
   (F) The Division of Oil and Gas in the Department of Conservation.
   (G) The Department of Toxic Substances Control.
   (H) The Department of Transportation.
   (I) The Department of Parks and Recreation.
   (J) The Department of Water Resources.
   (K) The Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
   (L) The State Fire Marshal.
   (M) The California regional water quality control boards (one
representative).
   (N) The Resources Agency.
   (O) The California Environmental Protection Agency.
   (P) The California Conservation Corps.
   (Q) The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.
   (R) The Division of Occupational Safety and Health in the
Department of Industrial Relations.
   (b) The administrator shall be the chairperson of the committee.
The administrator shall ensure that personnel serve as staff to the
committee.

8574.10.  (a) The Review Subcommittee of the State Interagency Oil
Spill Committee is hereby established. As used in this chapter,
"review subcommittee" means the Review Subcommittee of the State
Interagency Oil Spill Committee. The Director of Fish and Game, who
shall serve as chair of the review subcommittee, the Executive
Officer of the State Lands Commission, the Executive Director of the
California Coastal Commission, the State Fire Marshal, the State Oil
and Gas Supervisor, the Executive Director of the State Water
Resources Control Board, and the Executive Director of the San
Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, or their
designees, shall constitute the members of the review subcommittee.
The representative of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and
Development Commission only shall have voting and decisionmaking
authority regarding matters under the jurisdiction of the commission.
The administrator may serve as the designee of the Director of Fish
and Game.
   (b) All regulations and guidelines adopted pursuant to Chapter 7.4
(commencing with Section 8670.1) and Division 7.8 (commencing with
Section 8750) of the Public Resources Code, and amendments to the
California oil spill contingency plan, shall, prior to adoption, be
submitted to the review subcommittee for review and comment.
   (c) Within 60 days from the date of receipt of regulations,
guidelines, or amendments pursuant to subdivision (a), the review
subcommittee shall review and submit comments to the submitting
agency. Any recommendation of the review subcommittee shall be based
on the standards of the Lempert-Keene-Seastrand Oil Spill Prevention
and Response Act, consisting of the provisions specified in Section
8670.1. This comment period may overlap any other comment periods
required by law or allowed by the administrator.
   (d) The comments and recommendations of the review subcommittee
shall not be binding on the submitting agency. Prior to adoption, and
within 30 days from the date of receipt of a response from the
review subcommittee, the submitting agency shall respond in writing
to the review subcommittee concerning all of the findings and
recommendations of the review subcommittee. The submitting agency may
reject the recommendations of the review subcommittee only if the
submitting agency determines that the action it chooses more
effectively furthers the purposes of, and more effectively complies
with, the Lempert-Keene-Seastrand Oil Spill Prevention and Response
Act. Whenever the submitting agency departs from a finding or
recommendation of the review subcommittee, the written response of
the submitting agency shall state its rationale for concluding that
its action more effectively furthers the purposes of, and more
effectively complies with, that act. Any public hearing that is
required by this chapter or any other statute shall be held after the
submitting agency has filed a response to the review subcommittee.