SB 80

Bill Subjects

Abstract

(1) Existing law prohibits a person from using or operating, or assisting in using or operating, a boat, aircraft, net, trap, line, or other appliance to take fish for commercial purposes unless the person holds a commercial fishing license issued by the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Existing law generally requires any person who engages in any business for profit involving fish to have a commercial fish business license issued by the department, and requires specialty licenses for specified classes of fish business. Existing law requires all fish taken or otherwise dealt with under the law to be exhibited upon demand to any person authorized by the department to enforce any law relating to the protection and conservation of fish. A violation of the Fish and Game Code or a regulation adopted pursuant to the code is a crime. This bill would require a person who holds a commercial fishing license or a commercial fish business license, upon request of an authorized agent or employee of the department, to immediately relinquish, at no charge, fish or parts of fish caught or landed in California to the department for the purpose of collecting a biological sample. Because a violation of this provision would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law requires the Ocean Protection Council to make a grant, upon appropriation of funding by the Legislature, for the development and administration of a Dungeness crab task force. Under existing law, the task force is comprised of 21 voting members and 6 nonvoting members, with the voting members representing various fishing and crab processing interests. Existing law requires the task force, among other things, to make recommendations on various topics and requires these recommendations to be forwarded to the Joint Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Fish and Game Commission upon an affirmative vote of at least 23 of the task force members. Existing law also authorizes a proposed recommendation of the Dungeness crab task force regarding a modification to the Dungeness crab trap limit program to be transmitted to the Director of Fish and Wildlife and the Legislature if the recommendation receives an affirmative vote of at least 15 of the non-ex officio members of the Dungeness crab task force. This bill would revise the vote threshold for these purposes by requiring an affirmative vote of at least 23 of the voting members of the task force to forward or transmit a recommendation. (3) Existing law prohibits a person from using a vessel to take, possess, or land Dungeness crab for commercial purposes using Dungeness crab traps without a Dungeness crab vessel permit. Existing law prohibits the transfer of a Dungeness crab vessel permit except under certain circumstances. Existing law authorizes, upon written approval of the Department of Fish and Wildlife, the owner of a vessel to whom a Dungeness crab vessel permit has been issued to retain that permit upon the sale of that permitted vessel for the purpose of transferring the permit to another vessel to be purchased by that individual within one year of the time of sale of the vessel for which the permit was originally issued if certain requirements are satisfied. This bill would delete the requirement that the vessel to which the permit will be transferred be purchased by that individual within one year of the time of sale of the vessel for which the permit was originally issued, and would provide that if the permit is not transferred to a new vessel within one year of the sale of the permitted vessel, the permit shall become void by operation of law. Existing law authorizes, in the event of loss or destruction of a vessel for which a Dungeness crab vessel permit was issued, or serious damage that renders the vessel inoperable, and upon written approval of the department, the owner of the vessel to whom the permit was issued to retain the permit and to transfer the permit to another equivalent vessel during the period of 2 years after the loss or damage of the vessel for which the permit was originally issued. Existing law provides that, if the permit is not permanently transferred to another vessel owned by the person to whom the vessel permit was originally issued within 2 years of the loss or damage, the permit shall become void by operation of law. This bill would delete the requirement that the vessel to which the permit will be transferred be owned by the person to whom the vessel permit was originally issued. (4) Existing law prohibits a person from taking, possessing onboard, or landing Dungeness crab for commercial purposes from a vessel in any ocean waters for 30 days after the opening of those waters for the commercial Dungeness crab fishing season if the opening of the season for those waters has been delayed and the same vessel was used to take, possess onboard, or land Dungeness crab for commercial purposes, from ocean waters outside of the delayed waters, before the opening of the delayed waters for the season. This law is commonly referred to as "fair start." Existing law specifies the circumstances in which a delay has occurred for the purposes of the fair start law. Existing law requires the Department of Fish and Wildlife, on or before November 1, 2020, to adopt regulations establishing criteria and protocols to evaluate and respond to potential risk of marine life entanglement, as prescribed. Upon the effective date of these regulations, existing law authorizes the Director of Fish and Wildlife to restrict the take of Dungeness crab pursuant to the criteria and protocols. This bill would specify that a delay in the opening of waters implemented pursuant to these criteria and protocols or a delay in the opening of waters in Oregon or Washington by a closure to prevent a risk of marine life entanglement constitutes a delay for purposes of the fair start law. (5) Existing law authorizes crab traps to be set and baited 64 hours prior to the opening date of the Dungeness crab season in Fish and Game Districts 6, 7, 8, and 9. Existing law also authorizes crab traps to be set and baited in advance of that opening date in those districts if no other attempt is made to take or possess Dungeness crab in those districts. Existing law also provides, except in Fish and Game Districts 6, 7, 8, and 9, that crab traps may be set and baited 18 hours in advance of the opening date of the Dungeness crab season if no other attempt is made to take or possess Dungeness crab. This bill would instead authorize crab traps to be set and baited 64 hours before the opening date of the Dungeness crab season regardless of the Fish and Game District. The bill would also make conforming changes. (6) Existing state law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, makes it unlawful to manufacture, sell, deliver, hold, or offer for sale adulterated food. Existing law prescribes when a food is adulterated, including if it bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious substance that may render it injurious to the health of a person or other animal that may consume it. Existing law makes a violation of the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law or a regulation adopted pursuant to that law a misdemeanor. Existing law authorizes the Director of Fish and Wildlife to order the closure of any waters or otherwise restrict the taking in state waters of any species of fish if the Director of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, in consultation with the State Public Health Officer, determines that the species or subspecies of fish is likely to pose a human health risk from high levels of toxic substances. Existing law requires the Director of Fish and Wildlife, upon receiving notification from the Director of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment that a human health risk no longer exists and a request to reopen those waters, to reopen those waters in a manner that promotes a fair and orderly fishery. A violation of the Fish and Game Code or a regulation adopted pursuant to the code is a crime. This bill would authorize a fishing vessel to transit closed waters in possession of species where take is otherwise restricted pursuant to those provisions if the vessel adheres to electronic monitoring requirements specified by the Department of Fish and Wildlife. The bill would require the State Department of Public Health to issue an order authorizing the evisceration, as defined, of Dungeness crab or rock crab if the domoic acid for Dungeness crab or rock crab exceeds the allowable levels for viscera in certain areas when specified criteria exist. The bill would require the State Department of Public Health to only authorize the evisceration of Dungeness crab or rock crab by a licensed processor, as defined, that also has a Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point plan approved by the State Department of Public Health for handling and preparing eviscerated crab. The bill would require the State Department of Public Health to collect from a processor a fee of $350 for the cost of reviewing the processor's Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point plan for handling and preparing eviscerated crab, to be deposited in the Food Safety Fund for expenditure by the State Department of Public Health, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the costs of reviewing the plans. The bill would also require the State Department of Public Health to establish labeling requirements for eviscerated crab, as specified, and to require the processor to maintain written recall procedures. Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the State Department of Public Health to consult with the Dungeness crab task force or a successor task force or committee to establish the criteria for the manufacture, sale, delivery, holding, or offering for sale of Dungeness crab or rock crab caught in areas subject to an evisceration order by the State Department of Public Health. The bill would require the State Department of Public Health to publish notice of the proposed criteria, as specified, and make the criteria effective by operation of law as regulations 90 days after the notice is published. Because a violation of these regulations would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize the Director of Fish and Wildlife, in accordance with specified requirements, to open waters that are otherwise restricted for the commercial take of Dungeness crab or rock crab during a time period when the State Department of Public Health authorizes the manufacture, sale, delivery, holding, or offering for sale of eviscerated Dungeness crab or rock crab pursuant to the above-described provisions. The bill would require the holder of a Dungeness crab vessel permit or rock crab permit to submit to electronic monitoring of the vessel while engaged in the take of Dungeness crab or rock crab, as specified. The bill would authorize a person who takes Dungeness crab or rock crab to sell or provide the Dungeness crab or rock crab only to a processor licensed and approved by the State Department of Public Health, as specified. The bill would require the Director of Fish and Wildlife, when evisceration procedures established pursuant to the bill are no longer in effect, to lift related restrictions in a manner that promotes a fair and orderly fishery. Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (7) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. (8) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.