BILL NUMBER: AB 353	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 26, 2015

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Lackey

                        FEBRUARY 17, 2015

   An act to amend Section 5515 of  , and to add Section 2081.6
to,  the Fish and Game Code, relating to fish.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 353, as amended, Lackey.  Fish: fully protected
species: taking or possession.   Protected species:
take: Bouquet Canyon: habitat restoration project. 
   Existing law prohibits the taking or possession of any fully
protected fish, except as  provided. Under existing law, the
Department of Fish and Wildlife is authorized to permit the taking of
those species for necessary scientific research, including efforts
to recover fully protected, threatened, or endangered species.
  provided, and designates the unarmored threespine
stickleback as a fully protected fish. The California Endangered
Species Act prohibits the taking of an endangered or threatened
species, except as specified. The Department of Fish and Wildlife may
authorize the take of listed species if the take is incidental to an
otherwise lawful activity and the impacts are minimized and fully
mitigated. 
   This bill would  make a nonsubstantive change to those
provisions.   require the department to authorize, under
the California Endangered Species Act, the take of the unarmored
threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus williamsoni) resulting
from impacts attributable to the habitat restoration project to
restore and improve riparian habitat on public lands in the Bouquet
Canyon area, and projects to restore the flow capacity to Bouquet
Creek in Bouquet Canyon on public lands, as specified, if certain
conditions are satisfied. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    Section 2081.6 is added to the 
 Fish and Game Code   , to read:  
   2081.6.  The department shall authorize, under this chapter, the
take of the unarmored threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus
williamsoni) resulting from impacts attributable to the habitat
restoration project to restore and improve riparian habitat on public
lands in the Bouquet Canyon area, and projects to restore the flow
capacity to Bouquet Creek in Bouquet Canyon on public lands,
undertaken by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works, the
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, and the United States
Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, if all of the following
conditions are satisfied:
   (a) The department has determined that the appropriate agreements
have been executed to address environmental impacts at the Bouquet
Canyon area, including, but not limited to, Bouquet Creek.
   (b) The requirements of subdivisions (b) and (c) of Section 2081
are satisfied for the take of the unarmored threespine stickleback.
   (c) The take authorization provides for the development and
implementation, in cooperation with federal and state agencies, of an
adaptive management process for monitoring the effectiveness of, and
adjusting, as necessary, the measures to minimize and fully mitigate
the impacts of the authorized take. The adjusted measures are
subject to Section 2052.1.
   (d) The take authorization provides for the development and
implementation, in cooperation with state and federal agencies, of an
adaptive management process that substantially contributes to the
long-term conservation of the unarmored threespine stickleback. 

   SECTION 1.   SEC. 2.   Section 5515 of
the Fish and Game Code is amended to read:
   5515.  (a) (1) Except as provided in Section  2081.6, 
2081.7  ,  or 2835, fully protected fish or parts thereof
may not be taken or possessed at any time. No provision of this code
or any other law shall be construed to authorize the issuance of
permits or licenses to take any fully protected fish, and no permits
or licenses heretofore issued shall have any force or effect for that
purpose. However, the department may authorize the taking of those
species for necessary scientific research, including efforts to
recover fully protected, threatened, or endangered species. Before
authorizing the take of any of those species, the department shall
make an effort to notify all affected and interested parties to
solicit information and comments on the proposed authorization. The
notification shall be published in the California Regulatory Notice
Register and be made available to each person who has notified the
department, in writing, of his or her interest in fully protected
species and who has provided an e-mail address, if available, or
postal address to the department. Affected and interested parties
shall have 30 days after notification is published in the California
Regulatory Notice Register to provide any relevant information and
comments on the proposed authorization.
   (2) As used in this subdivision, "scientific research" does not
include any actions taken as part of specified mitigation for a
project, as defined in Section 21065 of the Public Resources Code.
   (3) Legally imported fully protected fish or parts thereof may be
possessed under a permit issued by the department.
   (b) The following are fully protected fish:
   (1) Colorado River squawfish (Ptychocheilus lucius).
   (2) Thicktail chub (Gila crassicauda).
   (3) Mohave chub (Gila mohavensis).
   (4) Lost River sucker (Catostomus luxatus).
   (5) Modoc sucker (Catostomus microps).
   (6) Shortnose sucker (Chasmistes brevirostris).
   (7) Humpback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus).
   (8) Owens River pupfish (Cyprinoden radiosus).
   (9) Unarmored threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus
williamsoni).
   (10) Rough sculpin (Cottus asperrimus).