ARTICLE 1. Generally [1500. - 1506.]

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC 1.

in effect

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1500. Section 1500.

The department may, with the approval of the commission and the Department of General Services, exchange any portion of the property lying within the boundaries of any area or range referred to in this section for any property within or contiguous to such area or range or may sell any portion of the property within such boundaries and with the proceeds thereof acquire any property within or contiguous to such area or range; provided, that no exchange or sale of property authorized in this section shall materially reduce the total area of any range or area referred to in this section. A copy of each deed of conveyance executed and delivered by the department, and of each deed conveying lands to the state, pursuant to this section shall be delivered to the State Lands Commission. The provisions of this section apply to all of the following: (a) The Doyle Deer Winter Range, located in Lassen County. (b) The Tehama Deer Winter Range, located in Tehama County. (c) The Honey Lake Waterfowl Management Area, located in Lassen County. (d) The Imperial Waterfowl Management Area, located in Imperial County. (e) The Mendota Waterfowl Management Area, located in Fresno County. (f) The San Jacinto Wildlife Area, located in Riverside County. (g) The Lakes Earl/Talawa Wildlife Area, located in Del Norte County. (h) The Santa Rosa Mountains Bighorn Sheep Reserve, located in Riverside County. (i) The Camp Cady Wildlife Area, located in San Bernardino County. (j) The Butte Valley Wildlife Area, located in Siskiyou County. (k) The Ash Creek Wildlife Area, located in Lassen and Modoc Counties. ( l ) The Moss Landing Wildlife Area, located in Monterey County.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1500.5. Section 1500.5.

(a) The following rules govern an exchange or sale of property pursuant to Section 1500: (1) If a parcel contains 15 acres or less, the director shall except and reserve to the state all mineral deposits below a depth of 500 feet, without surface rights of entry. (2) If a parcel contains more than 15 acres, the director shall except and reserve to the state all mineral deposits, together with the rights to prospect for, mine, and remove the deposits. The rights to prospect for, mine, and remove shall be limited to those areas of the property conveyed that the director, after consultation with the State Lands Commission, determines to be reasonably necessary for the removal of the resources and deposits. (b) For the purposes of this section, the mineral deposits reserved to the state are those described in Section 6407 of the Public Resources Code.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1501. Section 1501.

The department may expend such funds as may be necessary for the improvement of property, including nonnavigable lakes and streams, riparian zones, and upland, in order to restore, rehabilitate, and improve fish and wildlife habitat. The improvement activities may include, but are not limited to, the removal of barriers to migration of fish and wildlife and the improvement of hatching, feeding, resting, and breeding places for wildlife. The department may undertake the services and habitat improvement work on private, public, and public trust lands without the state acquiring an interest in the property.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1501.5. Section 1501.5.

(a) The department may enter into contracts for fish and wildlife habitat preservation, restoration, and enhancement with public and private entities whenever the department finds that the contracts will assist in meeting the department’s duty to preserve, protect, and restore fish and wildlife. (b) The department may grant funds for fish and wildlife habitat preservation, restoration, and enhancement to public agencies, Indian tribes, and nonprofit entities whenever the department finds that the grants will assist it in meeting its duty to preserve, protect, and restore fish and wildlife. (c) (1) Contracts authorized under this section are contracts for services and are governed by Article 4 (commencing with Section 10335) of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code. (2) No work under this section is public work or a public improvement, and is not subject to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 1720) of Part 7 of Division 2 of the Labor Code. (d) This section does not apply to contracts for any of the following: (1) Construction of office, storage, garage, or maintenance buildings. (2) Drilling wells and installation of pumping equipment. (3) Construction of permanent hatchery facilities, including raceways, water systems, and bird exclosures. (4) Construction of permanent surfaced roadways and bridges. (5) Any project requiring engineered design or certification by a registered engineer. (6) Any contract, except contracts with public agencies, nonprofit organizations, or Indian tribes that exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in cost, excluding the cost for gravel, for fish and wildlife habitat preservation, restoration, and enhancement for any one of the following: (A) Fish screens, weirs, and ladders. (B) Drainage or other watershed improvements. (C) Gravel and rock removal or placement. (D) Irrigation and water distribution systems. (E) Earthwork and grading. (F) Fencing. (G) Planting trees or other habitat vegetation. (H) Construction of temporary storage buildings.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1501.6. Section 1501.6.

Notwithstanding Section 1501.5, the department may allocate federal funds and any moneys received as donations for purposes of the Wolf-Livestock Compensation Pilot Program to pay for the deterrence of wolf presence near livestock, the impacts of wolf presence on livestock, and for verified loss of livestock for ranchers who participate in the program.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1502. Section 1502.

The department, in accordance with policies established by the commission, may provide for the feeding of game birds, mammals, or fish at such times as natural foods therefor are not available, and may provide suitable area or areas for such feeding, and may for those purposes expend such money as is necessary from the Fish and Game Preservation Fund.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1503. Section 1503.

The department shall provide for the feeding of deer wherever the director finds that natural forage is unavailable therefor due to excessive snow. The times, extent, and manner of such feeding shall be prescribed by the director. In carrying out the provisions of this section neither the department nor the director shall be bound by any policy determination or regulation of the commission, it being the purpose of this section to commit to the independent discretion of the director all matters within the purview of this section. No deer shall be fed pursuant to this section upon any privately owned land without the consent of the owner or person in lawful possession of such land.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1504. Section 1504.

(a) When income is derived directly from real property acquired and operated by the state as a wildlife management area, and regardless of whether income is derived from property acquired after October 1, 1949, the department may pay annually to the county in which the property is located an amount equal to the county taxes levied upon the property at the time title to the property was transferred to the state. The department may also pay the assessments levied upon the property by any irrigation, drainage, or reclamation district. (b) Any delinquent penalties or interest applicable to any of those assessments made before September 9, 1953, are hereby canceled and shall be waived. (c) Payments provided by this section shall only be made from funds that are appropriated to the department for the purposes of this section. (d) As used in this section, the term “wildlife management area” includes waterfowl management areas, deer ranges, upland game bird management areas, and public shooting grounds. (e) Any payment made under this section shall be made on or before December 10 of each year, with the exception of newly acquired property for which payments shall be made pursuant to subdivision (f). (f) Any payments made for the purposes of this section shall be made within one year of the date title to the property was transferred to the state, or within 90 days from the date of designation as a wildlife management area, whichever occurs first, prorated for the balance of the year from the date of designation as a wildlife management area to the 30th day of June following the date of designation as a wildlife management area, and, thereafter, payments shall be made on or before December 10 of each year. (g) Notwithstanding any other law, payments provided under this section shall not be allocated to a school district, a community college district, or a county superintendent of schools.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1505. Section 1505.

(a) The department may manage, control, and protect the portions of the following spawning areas that occupy state-owned lands, to the extent necessary to protect fishlife in these areas: (1) The Sacramento River between Keswick and Loybas Hill Bridge, near Vina. (2) The Feather River between Oroville and the mouth of Honcut Creek. (3) The Yuba River between Englebright Dam and a point approximately four miles east of Marysville. (4) The American River between Nimbus Dam and a point one mile downstream from Arden Way. (5) The Mokelumne River between Pardee Dam and Lockeford. (6) The Stanislaus River between Goodwin Dam and Riverbank. (7) The Tuolumne River between La Grange Dam and the Geer Road (J14) Bridge. (8) The Merced River between Crocker Huffman Dam and Cressey. (9) The Trinity River between Lewiston Dam and the confluence of the North Fork Trinity, near Helena. (10) The Eel River, from Fort Seward to Lake Pillsbury. (11) The South Fork Eel River. (12) The Middle Fork Smith River, from its mouth to Knopti Creek. (13) The South Fork Smith River, from its mouth to Harrington Creek. (14) The Salmon River, from its mouth to Rush Creek on the South Fork Salmon River, to Carter Meadow on the east fork of the South Fork Salmon River, and to Finley Camp on the North Fork Salmon River. (15) Battle Creek, from its mouth to Coleman Powerhouse. (16) The Cosumnes River, from Meiss Road Bridge to Latrobe Road Bridge. (17) The Van Duzen River, from Yager Creek to the falls 1 1 2 miles above Bloody Run Creek. (18) The Mad River, from Blue Lake Bridge to Bug Creek. (19) The Middle Fork Eel River. (20) The Mattole River. (21) The Noyo River. (22) The Big River, Mendocino County. (23) The Gualala River. (24) The Garcia River, Mendocino County. (b) In the event of a conflict between an action of the department pursuant to this section and the action of another department or agency of the state or another public agency, the action of the Department of Fish and Wildlife taken pursuant to this section shall prevail, except in the event of conflict with the following actions: (1) An action of the state or regional water quality control boards in establishing waste discharge requirements. (2) An action required for commerce and navigation. (3) An action by a public agency that is reasonably necessary for bridge crossings, water conservation or utilization, or flood protection projects, including the construction, maintenance, and operation thereof. This paragraph shall not apply to the depositing of materials, other than necessary structural materials, in, or the removing of materials from the streambeds in the areas designated in this section, other than as necessary for the installation of structures. (c) The director shall disapprove a stream alteration of a prime salmon or steelhead spawning area on land of which ownership has not been legally determined, when in the director’s opinion the alteration would prove deleterious to fishlife.

Cal. Fish and Game Code - FGC § 1506. Section 1506.

(a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (1) “Managed wetland habitat” means artificially irrigated and intensively managed wetland habitat administered primarily for the benefit of waterfowl and other wetland-dependent species. (2) “Best management practices” means management strategies jointly developed by the department, the State Department of Public Health, and mosquito abatement and vector control districts, in consultation with the Central Valley Joint Venture, for the ecological control of mosquitoes on managed wetland habitat. (3) “Wildlife management area” has the same meaning as set forth in subdivision (d) of Section 1504. (4) “Mosquito abatement and vector control district” has the same meaning as set forth in subdivision (f) of Section 2002 of the Health and Safety Code. (b) (1) A mosquito abatement and vector control district whose district boundaries include one or more wildlife management areas or a mosquito abatement and vector control district in which vectors and vectorborne diseases from a wildlife management area may enter the district shall periodically, or at least semiannually, notify the department of those areas that are of concern due to the potential for high mosquito populations that may incur associated mosquito control costs. (2) (A) To reduce mosquito production at those wildlife management areas described in paragraph (1), the department shall consult with local mosquito abatement and vector control districts to identify those areas within wildlife management areas having the highest need for additional mosquito reduction through the implementation of best management practices. (B) If the wetland occupies land outside the jurisdictional boundaries of a mosquito abatement and vector control district, the department may consult with the State Department of Public Health to determine which best management practices can be implemented in the absence of an organized local mosquito control program. (c) This section does not affect existing authority of a mosquito abatement and vector control district under Section 2040 of the Health and Safety Code. (d) (1) A private landowner whose property includes managed wetland habitat located within the boundaries of a mosquito abatement and vector control district may initiate the opportunity to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the district if all of the following criteria are met: (A) The managed wetland habitat is encumbered by a state or federal conservation easement or similar state or federal voluntary habitat agreement or is protected in perpetuity by state or federal law. (B) The managed wetland habitat is within the boundaries of the Central Valley Joint Venture, as those boundaries are identified in the Central Valley Joint Venture Implementation Plan. (2) The goal of a memorandum of understanding entered into pursuant to paragraph (1) is to establish a process to implement best management practices for the purposes of decreasing mosquito production, providing net cost savings to the landowner, decreasing the application of pesticides, and maintaining or enhancing the waterfowl habitat values on the property. (3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), the Central Valley Joint Venture, in consultation with mosquito abatement and vector control districts, the department, and the State Department of Public Health, may periodically modify the best management practices in order to best fulfill the purposes described in paragraph (2) of this subdivision. (4) A memorandum of understanding entered into pursuant to paragraph (1) shall not conflict with the provisions of any applicable conservation easement or other state or federal habitat agreement. The participating private landowner shall ensure that the memorandum of understanding is in compliance with the requirements of this paragraph. Compliance with the requirements of this paragraph is the sole responsibility of the private landowner and subject to enforcement pursuant to the terms contained in any applicable conservation easement or habitat agreement.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026