ShareThisBy JIM SANDERS
The California Legislature's last-gasp attempt to pass a package of flood-control proposals designed to lessen disaster risk and increase public safety died on the last day of the session in an Assembly committee.
"I am extremely, extremely disappointed," said Assemblywoman Lois Wolk, a Davis Democrat who had worked all year on the flood-control package but ultimately supported its demise on the final night of the legislative session.
Wolk ultimately concluded it was better to do nothing and tackle the issue next year, than to do the wrong thing and pretend the issue was solved.
Thursday night's death blow to the flood proposals, contained in Assembly Bill 1665, was dealt by the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee chaired by Wolk.
AB 1665 consisted of various Assembly bills declared dead last week by Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, who later changed his mind and decided to consider the proposals if they were combined into a single piece of legislation.
Wolk concluded the end result, cobbled together quickly, was an unsupportable mishmash.
"We should be ashamed," she said.
Earlier Thursday, the measure received the bare-minimum number of votes required for passage in the Senate.
Supporters hailed AB 1665 as a step toward improving protection of flood-prone Delta and Central Valley communities.
"This is a step in the right direction for providing better public safety," said Sen. Mike Machado, D-Linden.
But critics argued the proposal contained provisions that would discourage construction and could hurt local communities financially.
A wide-ranging coalition that included the California Chamber of Commerce, California Building Industry Association, League of California Cities and numerous other groups appeared before Wolk's Assembly committee to oppose the bill.
A lightning rod for controversy was a proposal by Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento, that would have required cities and counties to share flood liability with the state when they approved new development behind state-owned levees.
Another provision of AB 1665 would have required local agencies to determine whether improved flood-protection facilities designed to benefit new construction would worsen flood risks elsewhere.
Yvonne Hunter, of the League of California Cities, said such provisions would invite litigation if levees failed.
"It basically puts a target on (cities) _ sue us," she said.
In other legislative news from the last day of the session:
_ California moved a step closer to becoming one of a handful of states to place broad restrictions on using hand-held cell phones while driving.
On a 21-15 vote, the Senate sent Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger a bill that allows police to cite drivers for using a hand-held cell phone starting July 1, 2008. Drivers not using alternatives _ such as a headset or speakerphone feature _ could be fined $20 for the first infraction and $50 for subsequent offenses.
The bill includes a four-year exemption for drivers using cell phones that have a push-to-talk feature, which doesn't require the device be held close to the ear.
Schwarzenegger has said he will sign the bill.
_ Democrats blocked new compacts that Schwarzenegger negotiated with five of the state's richest casino tribes, stalling action on more than 22,000 new slot machines until next year.
Democratic leaders refused to vote on one bill ratifying the agreements, saying the governor sent details of the compacts too late for proper scrutiny before the end of the legislative session. Assembly Democrats defeated a second bill that would have granted a third casino to the Agua Caliente tribe in Palm Springs.
Democrats blamed the Schwarzenegger administration, which signed some of the agreements with tribes just this week. The compacts, which would renegotiate existing agreements, need legislative approval before they can take effect.
Collectively, the new agreements would eventually increase the number of slot machines in the state by a third. The 30-year agreements could bring in hundreds of millions of dollars in new revenue for the state and for the tribes.
