(1) Existing law creates the Great Redwood Trail Agency with various powers and duties relating to rail service in the north coast area of the state, including the authority to acquire, own, lease, and operate railroad lines and equipment, and requires the agency, to the extent funding is available, to initiate or complete a railbanking process on its rail rights-of-way and to plan, design, construct, operate, and maintain a trail in, or parallel to, its rail rights-of-way. For purposes of these provisions, existing law grants the agency specified powers including, among others, the power to enter into and perform all necessary contracts in accordance with certain requirements. Under existing law, the authority is governed by a board of directors composed of nonvoting members appointed by the Governor and 9 voting members appointed by various local governments in the north coast area including a city representative selected by the cities served by the authority’s rail line.

This bill would expressly state that the agency is a subdivision of the state and would require the city representative to be selected by the cities through a process adopted by the board. The bill would require the board to adopt an annual budget and to provide for regular audits of the agency’s accounts and records and to maintain accounting records and report accounting transactions in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, as specified. The bill would require a contract and prescribe competitive bidding procedures for any work, as defined, not performed by the personnel of the agency if the agency estimates the work to cost over a specified threshold, as prescribed.

This bill would exempt the agency, except with respect to the development of any projects on properties that are not owned or directly controlled by the agency, from building ordinances and zoning ordinances of the counties and cities in the jurisdiction of the agency. The bill would exempt certain uses of agency real property by third parties from laws governing the disposition of surplus property. The bill would exempt railroad tracks and ties owned by the agency from laws governing the control of hazardous waste if they remain in place within the agency’s right-of-way, as specified.

(2) Existing law authorizes the agency to contract with the State Coastal Conservancy, a state agency, or another organization to staff the agency.

This bill would also authorize the agency to receive funds from the conservancy or any other state agency as may be appropriated by the Legislature.

(3) Existing law authorizes the agency to adopt ordinances and to adopt and enforce rules and regulations for the administration, operation, use, and maintenance of trails, excursion rail service, and other recreational facilities and programs, as specified.

The bill would authorize the agency to contract with state law enforcement agencies, or local law enforcement agencies of jurisdictions within the service area of the agency, to enforce the adopted rules, regulations, and ordinances of the agency.

(4) Existing law requires the ancillary bicycle and pedestrian pathways that provide connections between and access to Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District station sites and the district’s other pathways to be known as “The Great Redwood Trail, Southern Segment.”

This bill would require the planned bike and pedestrian pathway running from the district’s station in the City of Larkspur to the northern terminus of the Golden Gate Bridge in the County of Marin to be known as the Great Redwood Trail.