66540. This title shall be known and may be cited as the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Response and
Disaster Recovery Act.
66540.1. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) In 1999, based on the findings and analyses in a study
sponsored by the Bay Area Council, the Legislature created the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority for purposes of preparing
a bay area water transit implementation and operations plan and
operating a comprehensive regional public water transportation
system. In 2002, after two years of study, public hearings,
collaboration with existing bay area transit and public
transportation ferry service providers, and peer review, the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority submitted the required
plan to the Legislature. The plan included rationale for expanded
ferries, ridership projections and routes, potential terminal
locations, capital, operating and maintenance costs, vessel
specification, and emergency and safety response capabilities.
(b) While the efforts of the existing San Francisco Bay Area Water
Transit Authority to develop a regional water transit plan are
commendable, the country has seen several significant disasters,
including the 9/11 tragedy and Hurricane Katrina, which have
emphasized the need for coordinated emergency response. From the
lessons learned from those events, it is apparent that the bay area's
current emergency response infrastructure is not sufficient to
respond to emergencies of the magnitude witnessed in the past few
years and anticipated in the future.
(c) In 2006, the Bay Area Council sponsored a study on the role a
comprehensive public water transportation system would play in the
bay area's emergency response infrastructure. The 2006 study found
that a comprehensive water transportation system is vital to
emergency preparedness and response for the region. If bridges,
roads, highways, tunnels, and trains are out of service as a result
of an emergency, only the waters of the bay are certain to remain
open for traffic. However, current infrastructure and equipment
capabilities are grossly inadequate. Ferry terminals exist in only a
few locations on the bay, and the vessel fleet lacks the capacity to
make up for even one out-of-service bridge. The few vessels that
exist are in the hands of many different public and private owners
and operators, and there is no detailed plan or identified leader to
activate and coordinate them.
(d) The study further urged that action be taken immediately to
strengthen and expand the regional public water transportation system
so that the bay area would be prepared in the event of a
catastrophic emergency. The San Francisco Bay area is almost certain
to experience moderate to severe earthquakes in the foreseeable
future. A major earthquake or a series of earthquakes on any of the
region's faults would have the potential of closing thousands of area
roads and rendering some or all transbay bridges and mass transit
lines impassable. With the regional transportation system disabled,
first responders would be unable to help tens of thousands of
homeless, injured, and starving victims. A failure of transportation
would be particularly devastating to the most vulnerable of our
population, the elderly, children, and the poor. The loss of any
portion of the regional transportation system, from either a natural
or manmade disaster, would place lives and property at risk and would
seriously undermine the San Francisco Bay area economy.
(e) It is the responsibility of the state to protect and preserve
the right of its citizens to a safe and peaceful existence. To
accomplish this goal and to minimize the destructive impact of
disasters and other massive emergencies, the actions of numerous
public agencies must be coordinated to effectively manage all four
phases of emergency activity: preparedness, mitigation, response, and
recovery. It is a matter of statewide interest to establish an
expanded and coordinated regional water transportation system to
provide necessary security, flexibility, and mobility for disaster
response and recovery in the San Francisco Bay area. This transcends
any local interest, and requires a single governmental entity with
appropriate powers and scope of authority to serve this statewide
interest.
(f) As emergencies and other catastrophic events are certain (only
the timing is unpredictable), it is crucial for immediate action to
be taken to develop and implement these emergency response
strategies. It is not only impractical, but rather impossible, to
cobble together an emergency water transportation system after the
fact. It is a task of years, not months, to make the real changes and
create the essential infrastructure for an integrated and
comprehensive water transit emergency system. In light of the
ever-present threat, it is imperative to begin this crucial effort
without delay.
(g) The public interest requires swift action and steadfast
resolve to prepare for the coming earthquakes, as well as other
emergencies, with the speed and determination that is due for a
threat of this magnitude. The water transit emergency response and
recovery system must be fully implemented as quickly as possible, as
if the lives of bay area residents depend on it, because they do.
(h) It is a matter of statewide interest to stimulate the maximum
use of the San Francisco Bay for emergency response and recovery. The
geographical situation of the San Francisco Bay makes it ideal for
emergency response and recovery, but at the same time prevents the
full utilization of the bay by acting as a physical barrier to an
effective transportation system between the various jurisdictions
surrounding the bay. Only a specially created local entity of
regional government can freely operate in the numerous individual
units of county, city and county, and city governments located in the
area. In order to protect the lives and livelihoods of the bay area,
the Legislature in this act establishes a new governmental entity
specifically charged and empowered with the responsibility to plan,
implement, and manage these critical services and facilities, as a
matter of the utmost urgency.
66540.2. It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this title
to provide for a unified, comprehensive institutional structure for
the ownership and governance of a water transportation system that
shall provide comprehensive water transportation and emergency
coordination services for the bay area region. It is further the
intent of the Legislature that the authority established by this act
shall succeed to the powers, duties, obligations, liabilities,
immunities, and exemptions of any general purpose local government or
special district that operates or sponsors water transit, except the
Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District.
66540. This title shall be known and may be cited as the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Response and
Disaster Recovery Act.
66540.1. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) In 1999, based on the findings and analyses in a study
sponsored by the Bay Area Council, the Legislature created the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority for purposes of preparing
a bay area water transit implementation and operations plan and
operating a comprehensive regional public water transportation
system. In 2002, after two years of study, public hearings,
collaboration with existing bay area transit and public
transportation ferry service providers, and peer review, the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority submitted the required
plan to the Legislature. The plan included rationale for expanded
ferries, ridership projections and routes, potential terminal
locations, capital, operating and maintenance costs, vessel
specification, and emergency and safety response capabilities.
(b) While the efforts of the existing San Francisco Bay Area Water
Transit Authority to develop a regional water transit plan are
commendable, the country has seen several significant disasters,
including the 9/11 tragedy and Hurricane Katrina, which have
emphasized the need for coordinated emergency response. From the
lessons learned from those events, it is apparent that the bay area's
current emergency response infrastructure is not sufficient to
respond to emergencies of the magnitude witnessed in the past few
years and anticipated in the future.
(c) In 2006, the Bay Area Council sponsored a study on the role a
comprehensive public water transportation system would play in the
bay area's emergency response infrastructure. The 2006 study found
that a comprehensive water transportation system is vital to
emergency preparedness and response for the region. If bridges,
roads, highways, tunnels, and trains are out of service as a result
of an emergency, only the waters of the bay are certain to remain
open for traffic. However, current infrastructure and equipment
capabilities are grossly inadequate. Ferry terminals exist in only a
few locations on the bay, and the vessel fleet lacks the capacity to
make up for even one out-of-service bridge. The few vessels that
exist are in the hands of many different public and private owners
and operators, and there is no detailed plan or identified leader to
activate and coordinate them.
(d) The study further urged that action be taken immediately to
strengthen and expand the regional public water transportation system
so that the bay area would be prepared in the event of a
catastrophic emergency. The San Francisco Bay area is almost certain
to experience moderate to severe earthquakes in the foreseeable
future. A major earthquake or a series of earthquakes on any of the
region's faults would have the potential of closing thousands of area
roads and rendering some or all transbay bridges and mass transit
lines impassable. With the regional transportation system disabled,
first responders would be unable to help tens of thousands of
homeless, injured, and starving victims. A failure of transportation
would be particularly devastating to the most vulnerable of our
population, the elderly, children, and the poor. The loss of any
portion of the regional transportation system, from either a natural
or manmade disaster, would place lives and property at risk and would
seriously undermine the San Francisco Bay area economy.
(e) It is the responsibility of the state to protect and preserve
the right of its citizens to a safe and peaceful existence. To
accomplish this goal and to minimize the destructive impact of
disasters and other massive emergencies, the actions of numerous
public agencies must be coordinated to effectively manage all four
phases of emergency activity: preparedness, mitigation, response, and
recovery. It is a matter of statewide interest to establish an
expanded and coordinated regional water transportation system to
provide necessary security, flexibility, and mobility for disaster
response and recovery in the San Francisco Bay area. This transcends
any local interest, and requires a single governmental entity with
appropriate powers and scope of authority to serve this statewide
interest.
(f) As emergencies and other catastrophic events are certain (only
the timing is unpredictable), it is crucial for immediate action to
be taken to develop and implement these emergency response
strategies. It is not only impractical, but rather impossible, to
cobble together an emergency water transportation system after the
fact. It is a task of years, not months, to make the real changes and
create the essential infrastructure for an integrated and
comprehensive water transit emergency system. In light of the
ever-present threat, it is imperative to begin this crucial effort
without delay.
(g) The public interest requires swift action and steadfast
resolve to prepare for the coming earthquakes, as well as other
emergencies, with the speed and determination that is due for a
threat of this magnitude. The water transit emergency response and
recovery system must be fully implemented as quickly as possible, as
if the lives of bay area residents depend on it, because they do.
(h) It is a matter of statewide interest to stimulate the maximum
use of the San Francisco Bay for emergency response and recovery. The
geographical situation of the San Francisco Bay makes it ideal for
emergency response and recovery, but at the same time prevents the
full utilization of the bay by acting as a physical barrier to an
effective transportation system between the various jurisdictions
surrounding the bay. Only a specially created local entity of
regional government can freely operate in the numerous individual
units of county, city and county, and city governments located in the
area. In order to protect the lives and livelihoods of the bay area,
the Legislature in this act establishes a new governmental entity
specifically charged and empowered with the responsibility to plan,
implement, and manage these critical services and facilities, as a
matter of the utmost urgency.
66540.2. It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this title
to provide for a unified, comprehensive institutional structure for
the ownership and governance of a water transportation system that
shall provide comprehensive water transportation and emergency
coordination services for the bay area region. It is further the
intent of the Legislature that the authority established by this act
shall succeed to the powers, duties, obligations, liabilities,
immunities, and exemptions of any general purpose local government or
special district that operates or sponsors water transit, except the
Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District.
66540. This title shall be known and may be cited as the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Response and
Disaster Recovery Act.
66540.1. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) In 1999, based on the findings and analyses in a study
sponsored by the Bay Area Council, the Legislature created the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority for purposes of preparing
a bay area water transit implementation and operations plan and
operating a comprehensive regional public water transportation
system. In 2002, after two years of study, public hearings,
collaboration with existing bay area transit and public
transportation ferry service providers, and peer review, the San
Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority submitted the required
plan to the Legislature. The plan included rationale for expanded
ferries, ridership projections and routes, potential terminal
locations, capital, operating and maintenance costs, vessel
specification, and emergency and safety response capabilities.
(b) While the efforts of the existing San Francisco Bay Area Water
Transit Authority to develop a regional water transit plan are
commendable, the country has seen several significant disasters,
including the 9/11 tragedy and Hurricane Katrina, which have
emphasized the need for coordinated emergency response. From the
lessons learned from those events, it is apparent that the bay area's
current emergency response infrastructure is not sufficient to
respond to emergencies of the magnitude witnessed in the past few
years and anticipated in the future.
(c) In 2006, the Bay Area Council sponsored a study on the role a
comprehensive public water transportation system would play in the
bay area's emergency response infrastructure. The 2006 study found
that a comprehensive water transportation system is vital to
emergency preparedness and response for the region. If bridges,
roads, highways, tunnels, and trains are out of service as a result
of an emergency, only the waters of the bay are certain to remain
open for traffic. However, current infrastructure and equipment
capabilities are grossly inadequate. Ferry terminals exist in only a
few locations on the bay, and the vessel fleet lacks the capacity to
make up for even one out-of-service bridge. The few vessels that
exist are in the hands of many different public and private owners
and operators, and there is no detailed plan or identified leader to
activate and coordinate them.
(d) The study further urged that action be taken immediately to
strengthen and expand the regional public water transportation system
so that the bay area would be prepared in the event of a
catastrophic emergency. The San Francisco Bay area is almost certain
to experience moderate to severe earthquakes in the foreseeable
future. A major earthquake or a series of earthquakes on any of the
region's faults would have the potential of closing thousands of area
roads and rendering some or all transbay bridges and mass transit
lines impassable. With the regional transportation system disabled,
first responders would be unable to help tens of thousands of
homeless, injured, and starving victims. A failure of transportation
would be particularly devastating to the most vulnerable of our
population, the elderly, children, and the poor. The loss of any
portion of the regional transportation system, from either a natural
or manmade disaster, would place lives and property at risk and would
seriously undermine the San Francisco Bay area economy.
(e) It is the responsibility of the state to protect and preserve
the right of its citizens to a safe and peaceful existence. To
accomplish this goal and to minimize the destructive impact of
disasters and other massive emergencies, the actions of numerous
public agencies must be coordinated to effectively manage all four
phases of emergency activity: preparedness, mitigation, response, and
recovery. It is a matter of statewide interest to establish an
expanded and coordinated regional water transportation system to
provide necessary security, flexibility, and mobility for disaster
response and recovery in the San Francisco Bay area. This transcends
any local interest, and requires a single governmental entity with
appropriate powers and scope of authority to serve this statewide
interest.
(f) As emergencies and other catastrophic events are certain (only
the timing is unpredictable), it is crucial for immediate action to
be taken to develop and implement these emergency response
strategies. It is not only impractical, but rather impossible, to
cobble together an emergency water transportation system after the
fact. It is a task of years, not months, to make the real changes and
create the essential infrastructure for an integrated and
comprehensive water transit emergency system. In light of the
ever-present threat, it is imperative to begin this crucial effort
without delay.
(g) The public interest requires swift action and steadfast
resolve to prepare for the coming earthquakes, as well as other
emergencies, with the speed and determination that is due for a
threat of this magnitude. The water transit emergency response and
recovery system must be fully implemented as quickly as possible, as
if the lives of bay area residents depend on it, because they do.
(h) It is a matter of statewide interest to stimulate the maximum
use of the San Francisco Bay for emergency response and recovery. The
geographical situation of the San Francisco Bay makes it ideal for
emergency response and recovery, but at the same time prevents the
full utilization of the bay by acting as a physical barrier to an
effective transportation system between the various jurisdictions
surrounding the bay. Only a specially created local entity of
regional government can freely operate in the numerous individual
units of county, city and county, and city governments located in the
area. In order to protect the lives and livelihoods of the bay area,
the Legislature in this act establishes a new governmental entity
specifically charged and empowered with the responsibility to plan,
implement, and manage these critical services and facilities, as a
matter of the utmost urgency.
66540.2. It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this title
to provide for a unified, comprehensive institutional structure for
the ownership and governance of a water transportation system that
shall provide comprehensive water transportation and emergency
coordination services for the bay area region. It is further the
intent of the Legislature that the authority established by this act
shall succeed to the powers, duties, obligations, liabilities,
immunities, and exemptions of any general purpose local government or
special district that operates or sponsors water transit, except the
Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District.
