Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 38, September 20, 2024
(Note: These regulations were drafted to provide a petition
form and rules and procedures governing the submission and review of petitions
for listing, uplisting, downlisting and delisting of endangered and threatened
species of plants and animals. The intent of the 1994 amendments is a smoother
and more effective implementation of the California Endangered Species Act
(CESA) through procedural clarity. While these amendments generally follow the
chronology of the CESA statutes, they do not recreate each procedural step of
the statutes in regulations.)
Pursuant to Sections
2071
and
2071.5
of the Fish and Game Code, the following rules and procedures shall govern the
submission and review of petitions for listing, uplisting, downlisting and
delisting of threatened or endangered species:
(a) Petition Requirement. Every person
recommending that a species or subspecies be added to or removed from the State
listing of endangered and threatened plants and animals or be changed in status
(endangered to threatened or threatened to endangered) must submit a petition
to the Fish and Game Commission, 1416 Ninth Street, Box 944209, Sacramento,
California 94244-2090. Only petitions submitted on an authorized petition form
(PETITION TO THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION, FGC-670.1
(3/94), which is incorporated by reference herein), available at the Commission
office and offices of the Department of Fish and Game, will be considered by
the Commission.
(b) Review of
Petition for Completeness. An incomplete petition shall be returned to the
petitioner by the commission staff within 10 days of receipt. A petition shall
be deemed incomplete if it is not submitted on FGC-670.1 (3/94) or fails to
contain information in each of the required categories set forth in subsection
(d)(1).
(c) Notice of Receipt of
Petition. Pursuant to Section
2073.3
of the Fish and Game Code, the commission staff shall submit a notice of
receipt of an accepted petition to the Office of Administrative Law, for
publication in the California Regulatory Notice Register, at the time the
petition is transmitted to the department for evaluation. Notice of the receipt
of a petition submitted by the department shall be submitted to the Office of
Administrative Law for publication upon receipt. Notices shall contain the date
and location of the Commission meeting at which the petition is scheduled for
receipt.
(d) Department Initial
Evaluation of Petition. (90-Day Review)
(1)
Sufficient Scientific Information. The department's evaluation report, required
pursuant to Section
2073.5
of the Fish and Game Code, shall contain an evaluation of whether or not the
petition provides sufficient scientific information on the following petition
components of Section
2072.3
of the Fish and Game Code to indicate that the petitioned action may be
warranted:
(A) population trend;
(B) range;
(C) distribution;
(D) abundance;
(E) life history;
(F) kind of habitat necessary for
survival;
(G) factors affecting the
ability to survive and reproduce;
(H) degree and immediacy of threat;
(I) impact of existing management
efforts;
(J) suggestions for future
management;
(K) availability and
sources of information; and
(L) a
detailed distribution map.
(e) Consideration of Petition by Commission
(rejection or acceptance).
(1) Rejection of
Petition by Commission. Pursuant to Section
2074.2
of the Fish and Game Code, a petition will be rejected by the commission if it
fails to include sufficient scientific information under the categories of
Section 2072.3 of Fish and Game Code (subsections (d)(1)(A) through (L) above)
that the petitioned action may be warranted. If the commission finds that the
petition does not provide sufficient information to indicate that the
petitioned action may be warranted, a notice of finding that the petition is
rejected, including the reason for objections, will be published in the
California Regulatory Notice Register.
(2) Acceptance of Petition by Commission. If
the commission finds that the petition provides sufficient information to
indicate that the petitioned action may be warranted, a notice of finding that
the petition is accepted for consideration will be published in the California
Regulatory Notice Register. If the petitioned action is to add a species to the
threatened or endangered species list, the notice will declare the species a
candidate.
(f) Department
Review of Candidate Species. Pursuant to Section
2074.6
of the Fish and Game Code, within 12 months of the date of publication of
notice of acceptance of a petition for consideration by the commission, the
department shall provide a written report to the commission, based upon the
best scientific information available to the department. This report shall
indicate whether or not the petitioned action is warranted.
(1) Recommendations for Management and
Recovery. Pursuant to Section
2074.6
of the Fish and Game Code, the department's status report shall contain a
preliminary identification of the habitat which may be essential to the
continued existence of the species and recommendations for management
activities and other recommendations for recovery of the species.
(2) Solicitation of Data and Comments. In
satisfying the requirements of Section
2074.4
of the Fish and Game Code, the department shall solicit both existing data on
the candidate species from independent sources and comments on the petitioned
action. During the status review period the department shall seek independent
and competent peer review of the department status report whenever possible.
For purposes of these regulations, peer review is defined as the analysis of a
scientific report by persons of the scientific/academic community commonly
acknowledged to be experts on the subject under consideration, possessing the
knowledge and expertise to critique the scientific validity of the report. The
department shall include in the status report a listing of the individuals and
agencies that were given an opportunity to review the status report prior to
its submittal to the commission. Any comments received shall also be included
in the status report.
(3) Review
Period for Department-Initiated Petitions. When a department-initiated petition
is accepted by the commission for consideration, commission staff shall
schedule receipt of the department's report prepared pursuant to Section
2074.6
of the Fish and Game Code for a commission meeting no sooner than 90 days from
the date the notice of candidate species is published in the California
Regulatory Notice Register.
(g) Receipt of Department's Status Report and
Scheduling of Finding Hearing.
(1) Commission
Meetings for Receipt of Report and Making of Finding. The commission shall
receive the department's status report at a regularly scheduled meeting and
provide for final consideration of the petition at the next scheduled meeting.
Agendas for both of these meetings shall be distributed to all individuals
requesting such notification.
(2)
Upon Receipt by the Commission Office, Availability of Status Report. The
Department's status report shall be made available for public
review.
(h) Submission of
Reports by Interested Parties During the Department's Review Period of
Candidate Species.
(1) Time of Submission.
Public comments, including critiques, rebuttals or comments on the petition or
on the department's status review report, may be submitted in writing to the
commission office or presented as oral or written testimony at the finding
hearing on the petition. Interested parties who wish to submit a detailed
written scientific report to the commission on the petitioned action must
submit such report not later than the time the department submits its report
pursuant to Section
2074.6
of the Fish and Game Code. Detailed scientific reports received after the
department submits its review report may not be considered. The department
shall provide interested parties with a preliminary estimation of the date the
status review report will be submitted to the commission. Such estimations will
be provided only upon written request and shall not obligate the department to
submit the report at the time identified. The department shall reserve the
right to submit the report at a later or earlier date. If, however, the report
will be submitted appreciably earlier or later than the estimated date, the
department shall notify those who made written requests at the earliest
possible time. (Parties planning to submit scientific reports are encouraged to
coordinate with the department during its review period and to share scientific
information useful to the department in its review.)
(2) Solicitation of Comments. Interested
individuals who wish to submit a detailed scientific report pursuant to
subsection
670.1(h)(1) above
may seek independent and competent peer review of this report prior to
submission. All comments from the reviewers shall be included with the report
to verify that peer review has been solicited. Failure to obtain peer review of
privately prepared detailed scientific reports may be a factor considered by
the Commission in its final determination on the petition.
(3) Availability of Detailed Scientific
Report from Interested Individuals. Detailed scientific reports from private
individuals shall be made available for public review upon receipt by the
Commission office.
(i)
Final Consideration of Petition by Commission. (Action warranted or not
warranted.)
(1) Petition Action Warranted.
(A) Listing. A species shall be listed as
endangered or threatened, as defined in sections
2062
and
2067 of
the Fish and Game Code, if the Commission determines that its continued
existence is in serious danger or is threatened by any one or any combination
of the following factors:
1. Present or
threatened modification or destruction of its habitat;
2. Overexploitation;
3. Predation;
4. Competition;
5. Disease; or
6. Other natural occurrences or human-related
activities.
(B)
Delisting. A species may be delisted as endangered or threatened, as defined in
sections
2062
and
2067 of
the Fish and Game Code, if the Commission determines that its continued
existence is no longer threatened by any one or any combination of the factors
provided in subsection (i)(1)(A) above.
1.
Status During Delisting Process. A threatened or endangered species petitioned
for delisting shall retain its listed status throughout the delisting
process.
2. Removal of Species.
After the commission has determined that the petitioned action is warranted, a
delisted species shall retain its listed status until 30 days after the Office
of Administrative Law has approved the associated rulemaking file and filed the
regulation change with the Secretary of State.
(C) Uplisting and Downlisting. A threatened
species may be uplisted to endangered if its continued existence throughout all
or a significant portion of its range is in serious danger of becoming extinct
by any one or any combination of the factors listed in subsection (i)(1)(A)
above. An endangered species may be downlisted to threatened if it is no longer
in serious danger of becoming extinct but special protection and management are
still required because of continued threats to its existence by any one or any
combination of the factors listed in subsection (i)(1)(A)
above.
(2) Petitioned
Action Not Warranted. The commission shall enter its findings in the public
records and the subject species shall revert to its status prior to the filing
of the petition.
(j)
Submission of Regulatory Document. The department shall prepare an Initial
Statement of Reasons for Regulation Change (also called Pre-publication of
Notice Statement), including an assessment of the potential for adverse
economic impact pursuant to Government Code Sections
11346.5
and 11346.53, when listing, delisting or change in status is recommended in the
Department's report prepared pursuant to subsection (f) of this section. This
document shall be submitted to the commission staff at the commission meeting
after final consideration of the petition if the commission makes a finding
that the petitioned action is warranted.
1. New
sections filed 5-30-86; effective thirtieth day thereafter (Register 86, No.
22).
2. Amendment of subsection (a) filed 8-31-90; operative 9-30-90
(Register 90, No. 42).
3. Amendment of section and NOTE filed
8-29-94; operative 9-28-94 (Register 94, No.
35).
Note: Authority cited: Sections
2071
and
2071.5,
Fish and Game Code. Reference: Sections
2062,
2067,
2071,
2071.5,
2072,
2072.3,
2072.7,
2073.3,
2073.5,
2074.2,
2074.4,
2074.6
and
2075.5,
Fish and Game Code.
