State Legislation

Legislation evolves continuously! Please let us know if anything new is going on in your state! Call the Tamarisk Coalition at 970-256-7400 or email Clark Tate at ctate@tamariskcoalition.org.

California Legislation

Assembly Bill 984 -

On September 29, 2006 Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law Assembly Bill 984. This law directs California state agencies to work with other Colorado River basin states to develop a comprehensive plan for tamarisk control and revegetation for the entire Colorado River system. Once the plan is completed, California will implement it upon the appropriation of funds. This provides a major step towards cooperative conservation – states and federal agencies working together to approach the problem on a watershed scale. An outgrowth of this legislation is the Colorado River Basin Tamarisk Assessment.

Colorado Legislation

Executive Order D-002-03 -

In 2003 Governor Bill Owens issued Executive Order D-002-03 directing state agencies to coordinate efforts to eradicate tamarisk on public lands. As a result of this action, the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture, completed the 10-Year Strategic Plan on the Comprehensive Removal of Tamarisk and the Coordinated Restoration of Colorado’s Native Riparian Ecosystems, January 2004.

Colorado Water Conservation Board Tamarisk Control Cost-Sharing Grant Program -

Section 29 of House Bill HB08-1346 directs the CWCB to allocate 1 million dollars to implement a cost-sharing grant program for tamarisk and Russian olive control. This new program will provide a funding source for removal, revegetation, and monitoring to ensure restoration of riparian lands. Grants will be available to communities, conservation districts, non-profits, and other eligible entities through a competitive process with input from the Colorado Department of Agriculture. Grant recipients will be required to provide local matching funds of at least half of the cost of restoration. Recipients will also be encouraged to leverage the funds to take advantage of other grant programs (Federal and Private). A portion of the appropriated fund, not to exceed 10 percent, will be used for grant program administration, scientific research, and monitoring to better target projects and assess their effectiveness.