Powers And Duties - - CA Public Resources

Section § 71550

This section explains that once a majority of the board members are appointed, they will act as the founders of an endowment. They must complete all necessary steps to create this endowment under the Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation Law.

Additionally, the law specifies that the endowment should only be incorporated after the board has received an initial application notice from the Department of Fish and Game.

(a) The members of the board first appointed shall serve as incorporators of the endowment and shall take whatever actions are necessary to establish the endowment pursuant to the Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation Law (Part 2 (commencing with Section 5110) of Division 2 of Title 1 of the Corporations Code) once a majority of the board is appointed.

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the endowment not be incorporated until the endowment board has received its initial notice of application from the Department of Fish and Game, pursuant to Section 6610 of the Fish and Game Code.

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(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 687, Sec. 2. (AB 2503) Effective January 1, 2011.)

Section § 71551

This section states that the California Endowment for Marine Preservation is designated to receive money that is collected under the California Marine Resources Legacy Act. This act involves various regulations tied to marine conservation and management.

The California Endowment for Marine Preservation shall receive funds generated pursuant to the California Marine Resources Legacy Act (Article 2 (commencing with Section 6420) of Chapter 5 of Part 1 of Division 6 of the Fish and Game Code).

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(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 687, Sec. 2. (AB 2503) Effective January 1, 2011.)

Section § 71552

The endowment is designed to provide ongoing funding for projects aiming to conserve and improve California's coastal and marine resources. Grants can go to public agencies or nonprofits for activities such as research, habitat enhancement, enforcement programs, sustainable fishing initiatives, and more. Up to 10% of funds annually may be used for research, which should leverage local academic expertise. The goal is to foster sustainable marine activities and protect open coastal waters.

The endowment is not a substitute for regular budget funding for these efforts. It can also secure grants or loans and partner with various agencies or institutions to further its mission. A business plan must be created and updated yearly, and an annual report must be submitted to the Governor and the Legislature detailing the previous year's activities, financial health, and specific grants or loans awarded.

(a) The purpose of the endowment is to create a permanent source of funding for projects and programs that will conserve, protect, restore, and enhance the coastal and marine resources of the state, with an emphasis on open coastal marine resources, and that will improve the sustainability of marine activities and encourage and support environmentally sustainable marine activities. To achieve this objective, the endowment board may award grants to public agencies and nonprofit organizations to support any or all of the following activities:

(1) Applied research, including, but not limited to, monitoring and data collection in support of projects to conserve, protect, restore, and enhance the open coastal marine resources of the state. In so doing, the board shall take maximum advantage of the scientific research expertise available from the University of California, the California State University, other institutions of higher learning, and marine science research institutions with expertise in marine resource issues. No more than 10 percent of funds awarded by the endowment in any fiscal year shall be awarded for research.

(2) Projects in open coastal waters that enhance environmentally sustainable marine activities.

(3) Projects in open coastal waters to enhance the habitat for open coastal marine life, including, but not limited to, the identification, monitoring, and protection of important ecological areas.

(4) Enforcement programs that protect, conserve, and enhance natural resources and marine habitat in and adjacent to open coastal waters, including regulating the take of open coastal marine species and monitoring of open coastal marine species and habitat with an emphasis on innovative approaches.

(5) Programs to aid in the establishment of sustainable fishing levels, including, but not limited to, ecosystem-based management of forage species, and programs to reduce or prevent habitat damage in open coastal waters.

(6) Programs to monitor catch and bycatch and to reduce bycatch in fisheries managed by the State of California and by the United States.

(7) Programs, projects, and activities that are directly related to the conservation, protection, restoration, and enhancement of coastal and marine resources of the state, with an emphasis on open coastal marine resources, and that are authorized by either paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 35650 or by Section 75060.

(b) Funds provided by the endowment are not intended, and shall not be used, to supplant funding provided through the annual budget process to support existing obligations and activities related to coastal and marine resources.

(1) Obtain grants from, and contract with, individuals and with private, local, state, and federal agencies, organizations, and institutions.

(2) Contract with, or make grants to, conservation and educational organizations; marine institutes; aquariums and museums; institutions of higher education; and local, state, and federal agencies to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

(3) Loan funds to local, state, and federal agencies, organizations, and institutions to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

(d) The endowment shall create a business plan for a five-year period. The endowment shall update the plan annually.

(e) On or before February 1 each year following incorporation, the endowment shall submit a report for the preceding fiscal year to the Governor and to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature. The report shall include all of the following:

(1) The updated business plan created pursuant to subdivision (c).

(2) A comprehensive and detailed report of the endowment’s operations, activities, financial condition, and accomplishments under this section.

(3) A listing of each recipient of a grant from the endowment and the purposes and amount of that grant.

(4) A listing of any loan that the endowment has received and the plan for repaying the loan.

(5) A report of each independent audit required pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 71560.

endowment funding marine resource conservation open coastal waters sustainable marine activities grants to nonprofits scientific research expertise enforcement programs sustainable fishing bycatch reduction habitat enhancement business plan reporting annual report fiscal responsibility marine activities improvement

(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 687, Sec. 2. (AB 2503) Effective January 1, 2011.)

Section § 71553

This law states that board members and relevant staff must be ready to provide testimony to suitable legislative committees when required.

Members of the board and appropriate staff shall be available to testify before appropriate committees of the Legislature.

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(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 687, Sec. 2. (AB 2503) Effective January 1, 2011.)

Section § 71554

This law states that the endowment is forbidden from giving any money or support to political parties, candidates running for public office, or initiatives on the ballot.

The endowment shall not contribute to, or otherwise support, any political party, candidate for elective public office, or ballot measure.

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(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 687, Sec. 2. (AB 2503) Effective January 1, 2011.)

Section § 71555

This law allows the endowment to hire its own employees and obtain legal counsel, but these employees are not considered state employees of California. They are also not covered by certain state labor laws as outlined in specified government codes. However, they are entitled to representation rights under federal labor law, specifically the National Labor Relations Act.

The endowment may hire employees and may obtain legal counsel. No employee of the endowment is an employee of the State of California. No employee of the endowment is subject to Chapter 10.3 (commencing with Section 3512) of, or Chapter 10.5 (commencing with Section 3525) of, Division 4 of Title 1 of the Government Code. Employees of the endowment have the right to representation consistent with the federal National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. Sec. 151 et seq.).

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(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 687, Sec. 2. (AB 2503) Effective January 1, 2011.)

Section § 71556

This law section states that the endowment must work together with various state and federal agencies involved in environmental conservation and marine management, such as the Department of Fish and Game and the California Coastal Commission. It also clarifies that this coordination does not reduce the authority or responsibilities of those agencies.

The endowment shall coordinate its activities with the Department of Fish and Game, the California Coastal Commission, the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, the State Lands Commission, and appropriate federal agencies, including the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Minerals Management Service of the United States Department of the Interior. Nothing in this division limits the authority and responsibility of any of these agencies.

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(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 687, Sec. 2. (AB 2503) Effective January 1, 2011.)