July 14, 2020

The Honorable Member, State Assembly State Capitol, Room 4098 Sacramento, CA 95814

RE: Assembly Bill 235 – SUPPORT As Amended June 29, 2020

Dear Assembly Member Mayes:

On behalf of the Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC), I am writing to express our support for your Assembly Bill 235, which would permit the California Fish and Game Commission (CFGC) to determine that typical protections offered to candidate species under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) may be outweighed by the potential economic hardship or critical infrastructure the species impact during the review process. RCRC is an association of thirty-seven rural California counties, and the RCRC Board of Directors is comprised of elected supervisors from those member counties.

CFGC is required by CESA to establish a list of endangered species and a list of threatened species, and anyone may request via a petition process that a species be added to either list. During the petition process, the CFGC must consider all scientific information included in the petition, as well as address a range of issues related to the species to determine whether the action is warranted. Under existing law, if CFGC accepts a petition and determines that the action may be warranted, the species automatically becomes a “candidate species” and is afforded the same protections as listed species until the lengthy determination process is concluded.

Many listing actions have halted vital infrastructure maintenance activities in RCRC member counties, which will prove more cumbersome in the future as local governments struggle to meet state housing and development mandates. AB 235 will aid local governments by preserving the CESA listing process while allowing CFGC to concurrently determine that a listing may lead to economic hardship or an impact on critical infrastructure. This will allow CFGC to treat a candidate species the same during a listing process as it was before the petition was accepted during the review period, enabling them to authorize a taking of the candidate species in those special circumstances.

1215 K Street, Suite 1650, Sacramento, CA 95814 | www.rcrcnet.org | 916.447.4806 | Fax: 916.448.3154

ALPINE AMADOR BUTTE CALAVERAS COLUSA DEL NORTE EL DORADO GLENN HUMBOLDT IMPERIAL INYO LAKE LASSEN MADERA MARIPOSA MENDOCINO MERCED MODOC MONO MONTEREY NAPA NEVADA PLACER PLUMAS SAN BENITO SAN LUIS OBISPO SHASTA SIERRA SISKIYOU SONOMA SUTTER TEHAMA TRINITY TULARE TUOLUMNE YOLO YUBA The Honorable Chad Mayes Assembly Bill 235 July 14, 2020 Page 2

For these reasons we support your AB 235. If you should have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at [email protected] or (916) 447-4806.

Sincerely,

STACI HEATON Senior Regulatory Affairs Advocate

cc: The Honorable , Member of the State Assembly The Honorable , Member of the State Assembly The Honorable , Member of the State Assembly The Honorable Rob Bonta, Member of the State Assembly The Honorable Jacqui Irwin, Member of the State Assembly The Honorable Steven Bradford, Member of the State Senate Members of the Senate Natural Resources & Water Committee Consultant, Senate Natural Resources & Water Committee Todd Moffitt, Consultant, Senate Republican Caucus