Water, parks, and wildlife: omnibus bill.

(1) Existing law authorizes the Department of Fish and Wildlife to enter into contracts or other agreements with nonprofit conservation groups or resource conservation districts for the management and operation of department-managed lands, defined to include public shooting grounds, state marine recreational management areas, ecological reserves, and wildlife management areas. Existing law also requires the department to establish the Nesting Bird Habitat Incentive Program to encourage landowners to cultivate or retain certain plants to provide waterfowl and other game bird nesting habitat cover and authorizes the department to enter into grants or contracts with landowners and other specified entities to implement the program, as specified. Existing law authorizes the department, except for specified types of contracts, to enter into contracts with, or grant funds to, public and private entities for fish and wildlife habitat preservation, restoration, and enhancement whenever the department finds that the contract will assist in meeting the department's duty to preserve, protect, and restore fish and wildlife. Existing law, for purposes of this authorization, provides for certain public contract rules and establishes exemptions from certain labor requirements. This bill would, except as specified, apply those last described provisions to contracts and other agreements for the management and operation of department-managed lands and contracts and grants under the Nesting Bird Habitat Incentive Program, as provided. (2) Existing law establishes a registration fee and a renewal fee for vessels, and imposes an additional fee, known as the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee, on a vessel required to pay the registration fee or renewal fee, as provided. Existing law requires the department to issue a vessel an invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker to the vessel owner upon payment of the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee. Existing law authorizes a vessel operator to be issued a citation for operating a vessel or a recreational vessel in nonmarine waters without a valid state-issued invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker. This bill would exempt from that provision relating to citations a person who operates a vessel or recreational vessel on the waters of Lake Tahoe or Topaz Lake, as determined by the department, and the vessel is registered in the State of Nevada and the State of Nevada has a program in effect for the management of aquatic invasive species. (3) The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act requires the Department of Water Resources to prioritize groundwater basins, as specified. Existing law requires all groundwater basins designated as high- or medium-priority basins by the department to be managed under a groundwater sustainability plan or coordinated groundwater sustainability plans, except as specified. The act requires that, any time the department updates certain water basin boundaries pursuant to a specified provision, the department reassess the prioritization of basins, as prescribed. This bill would instead require, any time the department updates those boundaries, to reassess the prioritization of groundwater basins for which boundary changes have been made, and would require the department on or before January 1, 2035, and not less than every 10 years thereafter, to review, and determine, whether a reprioritization of all groundwater basins is warranted. (4) This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes. (5) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for Lake Tahoe and Topaz Lake.