AB1772 - Fish and wildlife: invasive species: invasive mussels.

Amended IN Senate June 25, 2026 Amended IN Senate June 15, 2026 Amended IN Assembly April 27, 2026 Amended IN Assembly March 23, 2026 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 1772 Introduced by Assembly Member Papan (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Ransom) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Ávila Farías, Bains, Boerner, Caloza, Jeff Gonzalez, Hart, Celeste Rodriguez, Rogers, and Blanca Rubio) February 09, 2026 An act to amend Sections 2301 and 2303 of, to add Sections 2301.1, 2301.2, 2301.3, 2301.4, 2301.6, and 2301.7 to, and to add Chapter 3.6 (commencing with Section 2305) to Division 3 of, the Fish and Game Code, relating to fish and wildlife. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1772, as amended, Papan. Fish and wildlife: invasive species: invasive mussels. (1) Existing law, until January 1, 2030, generally prohibits a person from possessing, importing, shipping, or transporting in the state, or from placing, planting, or causing to be placed or planted in any water in the state, invasive mussels, and authorizes the Director of Fish and Wildlife or the director’s designee to engage in various enforcement activities, including ordering the areas in conveyance that contain water be drained, dried, or decontaminated, as provided. Existing law requires a public or private agency that operates a water supply system to cooperate with the Department of Fish and Wildlife to implement measures to avoid infestation by invasive mussels and to control or eradicate any infestation that may occur in a water supply system. Existing law requires, if invasive mussels are detected, the operator of a water supply system to, in cooperation with the department, prepare and implement a plan to control or eradicate invasive mussels within the system, and eliminate or minimize any potential downstream transport of an invasive mussel. Existing law requires, on or before December 31, 2026, the department to review all approved plans and require all plans that do not specifically address all invasive mussel species known to be present in bodies of water in the state as of January 1, 2026, to be updated or revised appropriately to include all invasive mussel species, on or before September 30, 2027. Existing law requires every invasive mussel species to be addressed in a plan no later than 180 days from the date that the species is listed in a certain regulation. Existing law defines “invasive mussel” for these purposes as any nonnative detrimental mussel, as provided. Under existing law, except as otherwise provided, any violation of the Fish and Game Code, or of any rule, regulation, or order made or adopted under the code, is a crime. This bill would prohibit a conveyance from being launched until a specified drying period has completed, as provided. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the department to require water supply system operators to update their plans to address all invasive mussel species present in the operator’s water system as of January 1, 2026, as provided. The bill would require a plan to address every invasive mussel species detected in a water supply system after January 1, 2026, no later than 180 days from the date the species is detected. The bill would require a plan to minimize or eliminate the spread of invasive mussels. The bill would revise the definition of “invasive mussel” to mean any nonnative biofouling mussel, as provided. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would enact a comprehensive inspection and decontamination program to be administered by the department under which the department would license inspection and decontamination stations with qualified inspectors to inspect and decontaminate conveyances for aquatic invasive species and issue certificates of compliance or notices of noncompliance, as prescribed by standards adopted by the department. The bill would establish a length of 2 years for those licenses and qualifications and would impose related application fees. The bill would impose requirements on various entities as part of the program, including requiring inspection and decontamination stations and waterbody managers to use a specified data sharing system for tracking the movement of conveyances, equipment, and other vectors among California waterbodies. Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law establishes a registration fee and a renewal fee for vessels, and imposes an additional fee, known as the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee, on a vessel required to pay the registration fee or renewal fee, as provided. Existing law requires the Division of Boating and Waterways to issue a vessel an invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker to the vessel owner upon payment of the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee. Existing law authorizes a vessel operator to be issued a citation for operating a vessel or a recreational vessel in nonmarine waters without a valid state-issued invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker. This bill would enact similar provisions that would impose an additional invasive mussel infestation prevention fee of $20 per nonmotorized vessel every 2 years, as specified. The bill would require the Department of Fish and Wildlife to issue an invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker to be affixed to the nonmotorized vessel upon payment of the invasive mussel infestation prevention fee. The bill would authorize a vessel operator to be issued a citation for operating a nonmotorized vessel without that valid state-issued invasive mussel infestation prevention sticker. This bill would require the $20 fee to be deposited into the Nonmotorized Vessel Invasive Mussel Infestation Prevention Account, which the bill would create within the Harbors and Watercraft Revolving Fund. Moneys in the account would be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for reasonable regulatory costs of the department and the division and for specified grants. The bill would require any citation moneys to be deposited into the Nonmotorized Vessel Invasive Mussel Infestation Prevention Penalty Account, which the bill would create within the Harbors and Watercraft Revolving Fund. Moneys in the penalty account would be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for specified grants and to expend on certain educational materials and signage. (3) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. (4) Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (1) Aquatic invasive species, including the golden mussel, threaten the ecological health, recreational value, and operational integrity of California’s lakes, rivers, reservoirs, and water conveyance facilities. (2) Efforts to control or prevent the spread of the golden mussel and other aquatic invasive species result in extensive operational and economic impacts to water delivery and hydropower, and have impacted public access to recreational opportunities such as boating, fishing, and other water-dependent activities. (3) No single entity can bear the increasing costs of managing the impacts of golden mussels. The recreational boating community faces increasing costs related to decontamination, quarantine requirements, and aquatic invasive species sticker fees, while water managers face significant costs related to implementing costly prevention and control measures. Without efforts to contain the spread of golden mussels, costs will continue to rise leading to impacts on water affordability for ratepayers. (4) The effects of golden mussels on California’s water systems are currently being studied, and improvements in prevention and mitigation efforts will need to incorporate the latest scientific advancements to effectively respond to the issue. (5) The Harbors and Watercraft Revolving Fund, established in Section 85 of the Harbors and Navigation Code, is structurally imbalanced and remains in deficit, thereby requiring the identification and adoption of alternative and sustainable funding sources to support statewide aquatic invasive species prevention and mitigation programs. (6) Establishing uniform statewide standards for vessel decontamination, including standards applicable to both motorized and nonmotorized paddlecraft, along with a system of tracking compliance with standards, monitoring watercraft launches, and information sharing and voluntary reciprocity among waterbodies, will improve efficiency, protect natural resources, and support California’s economic and recreational interests. (7) Inspection programs help prevent the spread of aquatic species via transportation conveyances. These programs provide for the inspection and decontamination of conveyances, as well as an opportunity for outreach and education on the risks posed by the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species. The programs protect both the environmental and recreational values of the state’s waters, infrastructure, and economy. (8) The transportation of recreational watercraft and associated equipment from one waterbody to another is a primary vector for the spread of aquatic invasive species. (b) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this bill to accomplish all of the following: (1) Require the use of a single, statewide database to track the movement of vessels, equipment, and other vectors among California waterbodies, providing waterbody managers with accurate information on the prior contamination status of these vessels. (2) Provide uniform decontamination standards and certification of decontamination for vessels and equipment moving between noninfested waterbodies, thereby facilitating safe recreational access. (3) Promote a system of voluntary reciprocity between waterbodies. SEC. 2. Section 2301 of the Fish and Game Code is amended to read: 2301. (a) (1) Except as authorized by the department, a person shall not possess, import, ship, or transport in the state, or place, plant, or cause to be placed or planted in any water within the state, invasive mussels. (2) The director or the director’s designee may do all of the following: (A) Conduct inspections of conveyances, which include vehicles, boats and other watercraft, containers, and trailers, that may carry or contain adult or larval invasive mussels. Included as part of this authority to conduct inspections is the authority to temporarily stop conveyances that may carry or contain adult or larval invasive mussels on any roadway or waterway in order to conduct inspections. (B) (i) Order that areas in a conveyance that contain water be drained, dried, or decontaminated pursuant to procedures approved by the department. (ii) An order to dry pursuant to clause (i) may require the owner or person in possession of the conveyance to dry the conveyance for a designated period of time before launching into waters of the state. A conveyance shall not be launched until the required drying period has been completed. (iii) If issued an order to dry pursuant to clause (i), an owner or person in possession of the conveyance may retain possession of the conveyance during the drying period, subject to any requirements established by the department such as attaching a tamper-proof device to the conveyance that prevents the conveyance from coming into contact with water without being broken. (C) Impound or quarantine conveyances in locations designated by the department for the period of time necessary to ensure that invasive mussels can no longer live on or in the conveyance. (D) (i) Conduct inspections of waters of the state and facilities located within waters of the state that may contain invasive mussels. If invasive mussels are detected or may be present, the director or the director’s designee may order the affected waters or facilities closed to conveyances or otherwise restrict access to the affected waters or facilities, and shall order that conveyances removed from, or introduced to, the affected waters or facilities be inspected, quarantined, or disinfected in a manner and for a duration necessary to detect and prevent the spread of invasive mussels within the state. (ii) For the purpose of implementing clause (i), the director or the director’s designee shall order the closure or quarantine of, or restrict access to, these waters, areas, or facilities in a manner and duration necessary to detect and prevent the spread of invasive mussels within the state. A closure, quarantine, or restriction shall not be authorized by the director or the director’s designee without the concurrence of the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency. If a closure lasts longer than seven days, the department shall update the operator of the affected facility every 10 days on efforts to address the invasive mussel infestation. The department shall provide these updates in writing and also post these updates on the department’s internet website in an easily accessible manner. (iii) The department shall develop procedures to ensure proper notification of affected local and federal agencies, and, as appropriate, the Department of Water Resources, the Department of Parks and Recreation, and the State Lands Commission in the event of a decision to close, quarantine, or restrict a facility pursuant to this paragraph. These procedures shall include the reasons for the closure, quarantine, or restriction, and methods for providing updated information to those affected. These procedures shall also include protocols for the posting of the notifications on the department’s internet website required by clause (ii). (iv) When deciding the scope, duration, level, and type of restrictions, and specific location of a closure or quarantine, the director shall consult with the agency, entity, owner, or operator with jurisdiction, control, or management responsibility over the marina, boat launch facility, or other facility, in order to focus the closure or quarantine to specific areas and facilities so as to avoid or minimize disruption of economic or recreational activity in the vicinity [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]