TIME SENSITIVE: Please contact your State Senator re: support SB 767 (Tesla)

[EBCNPS News List]

TESLA CONSERVATION ALERT  

If Nancy Skinner is your State Senator, can you contact her at 510-286-1333 by this Wednesday and ask her to SUPPORT SB 767?

SB 767 is the bill that would allow State Parks to sell the Tesla-Alameda expansion land for conservation purposes.  Currently, Tesla is slated to become an expansion area for the Carnegie State Vehicle Recreation Area (SVRA), an off-road vehicle recreation area.

SB767 could save the outstanding natural and cultural resources of Tesla from being destroyed as part of an off-highway vehicle recreation area, and could allow the land to become accessible to the public for low-impact use.  For more information on why Tesla is so important, see "Background" below.

Three State Senators represent our chapter area - Senator Steve Glazer (District 7) who introduced SB 767,  Senator Bob Wieckowski (District 10) who co-sponsored SB 767, and Senator Nancy Skinner (District 9).  

We need calls to Senator Nancy Skinner's office: (510) 286-1333.

Not sure who your State Senator is?  Use this link and your home address:

http://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov/

Do you have friends in other parts of California?  The Friends of Tesla Park have asked that these 12 senators be contacted.  Some of them are Bay Area Senators:

1. Toni Atkins, District 39 - San Diego, https://sd39.senate.ca.gov/
2. Jim Beall, District 15 – San Jose, https://sd15.senate.ca.gov/
3. Maria Elena Durazo, District 24 – LA, https://sd24.senate.ca.gov/
4. Ben Hueso, District 40 - San Diego, Imperial Valley, https://sd40.senate.ca.gov/
5. Melissa Hurtado, District 14 – Fresno, Central Valley, https://sd14.senate.ca.gov/
6. Connie Leyva, District 20 – Chino, https://sd20.senate.ca.gov/
7. Mike McGuire, District 2 – Marin, North Coast, https://sd02.senate.ca.gov/
8. Holly Mitchell, District 30 – LA, https://sd30.senate.ca.gov/
9. Dr. Richard Pan, District 6 – Sacramento, https://sd06.senate.ca.gov/
10. Richard Roth, District 31 - Riverside, https://sd31.senate.ca.gov/
11. Nancy Skinner, District 9- Berkeley, Oakland, https://sd09.senate.ca.gov/
12. Tom Umberg, District 34 - Santa Ana, https://sd34.senate.ca.gov/

Background  

Tesla is a 3,100 acre gem with important natural and cultural resources.  Tesla falls within an EBCNPS Biological Priority Protection Area - there are 7 sensitive plant communities, 13 special status plant species, and 28 locally-rare plants.  Not surprisingly, it's an important place for wildlife too - Tesla has 42 special status species, 8 federal- or state-listed species, designated critical habitat for the California red-legged frog and the Alameda Whipsnake, a critical linkage wildlife habitat corridor, golden eagle nesting/foraging area, and is an Audubon Important Bird Area.  In addition to its outstanding natural resources, Tesla has important Native American sites and remnants of an historic mining town.  Unfortunately, no pre-acquisition EIR was done.  

Currently, Tesla is slated to become a very large expansion of the Carnegie State Vehicular Recreation Area (SVRA) - a place for off-road vehicles.  SB 767 would reimburse the SVRA Division of State Parks for the land, and outstanding natural and cultural resources would be protected from off-road vehicle destruction.  

Local city and county governments, conservation organizations, and citizen groups all oppose the use of this land for off-road use.

Please help us Save Tesla!

[Tara Parker-Essig]

Is it still helpful to contact these senators?

[Beth Wurzburg]

Hi Everyone,

I want to thank all of you who contacted your Assemblymembers (your calls really do make a difference), and give you an update on the status of SB 767 (Glazer). 

On August 30th, the Assembly Appropriations Committee decided to make SB 767 a 2-year bill.  That means that while it wasn't left in the "suspense file" to die, it wasn't sent to the Assembly Floor for a vote either.  Instead, the bill will have to be approved by the Assembly (and the Senate again if the Assembly makes major changes to the bill), by 31 January 2020.

That means we still have time to work on getting support in the Assembly for the bill.  The Friends of Tesla Park will let us know soon what our next steps are, so stay tuned.  In the meantime, if you could talk with your friends and family all over California about why saving Tesla is so important, maybe they'll contact their Assemblymembers when the time comes again. 

Thank you all again for your help!

                Best,

                       Beth 

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[Tom and Jane Kelly]

Thank you. Beth.

 

This same tactic, i.e. making a bill a 2-year bill, just happened to a bill supported by Raptors Are The Solution (RATS).  I understand that the rodenticide industry (the bill’s opponent) celebrated that fact. It makes me wonder why this is occurring.

 

Jane

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