MINERAL v. STATE MINING AND GEOLOGY BOARD
Filed 4/12/06
CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT
(Sacramento)
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| MINERAL ASSOCIATIONS COALITION et al., Plaintiffs and Appellants, v. STATE MINING AND GEOLOGY BOARD, Defendant and Respondent. | C049201
(Super. Ct. No. 04AS03539)
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APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Sacramento County, Loren E. McMaster, Judge. Affirmed.
Downey Brand, Patrick G. Mitchell, Michael N. Mills and Joseph S. Schofield for Plaintiffs and Appellants.
Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Tom Greene and Mary E. Hackenbracht, Assistant Attorneys General, and Ralph L. Venturino, Deputy Attorney General, for Defendant and Respondent.
This case presents the question of whether defendant State Mining and Geology Board (the Board), which operates within the California Department of Conservation, exceeded its authority in promulgating an administrative regulation requiring that the Director of the Department of Conservation (the Director) concur in any lead agency determination that a mine operator has fulfilled the terms and conditions of his reclamation plan and that the financial assurance instruments securing his obligation to reclaim lands shall be released.
Plaintiffs Mineral Associations Coalition, California Mining Association, Construction Materials Association of California and Southern California Rock Products Association (collectively, the Associations) filed this declaratory relief action, seeking a judicial declaration that California Code of Regulations, title 14, section 3805.5, subdivision (d) (regulation 3805.5(d))[1] was invalid because it was in conflict with the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975 (SMARA) (Pub. Res. Code, § 2710 et seq.),[2] and therefore in excess of the Board's rulemaking authority. The trial court granted the Board's motion for judgment on the pleadings, ruling that the challenged regulation was within the Board's authority and consistent with SMARA.
We agree with the trial court. As the California Supreme Court recently observed in People ex rel. Dept. of Conservation v. El Dorado County (2005) 36 Cal.4th 971 (El Dorado), the Director has both the authority and responsibility to ensure that mined lands are reclaimed in accordance with an approved reclamation plan and that financial assurances are not released prematurely. Moreover, we discern no clear legislative intent that lead agencies should have exclusive power to determine whether mined lands have been adequately reclaimed as would justify releasing the mine operator from further financial liability. We shall affirm the judgment.
BACKGROUND
A. Overview of SMARA and Provisions for Governmental Enforcement
SMARA was enacted by the Legislature in recognition that â€
