SECTIONS 4570-4578 - California Statutes

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE

SECTION 4570-4578

4570. For purposes of this article, "real person in interest" means
an individual who is one of the following:
(a) The sole proprietor, principal owner, or principal officer of
an entity that is applying for a license or the renewal of a license
under this article.
(b) The on-site supervisor responsible for the conduct of timber
operations pursuant to the license, including the authority to hire
and fire persons conducting those timber operations.

4571. (a) No person shall engage in timber operations until that
person has obtained a license from the board.
(b) The board may issue a limited timber operator license for the
commercial cutting or removal of Christmas trees, tanbark, fuelwood,
root crown burls, posts, or split products.

4572. (a) The board shall, by regulation, prescribe the form and
content of an application for a timber operator license or license
renewal, establish procedures for filing the application, and require
a reasonable filing fee. The amount of the filing fee shall not
exceed the amount necessary to administer licensing under this
article.
(b) First-time applicants for a timber operator license shall
furnish to the board proof that the real person in interest has
complied with both of the following requirements:
(1) Completion, within the preceding 12 months, of an education
program approved by the director that covers the statutes and
regulations governing timber operations in this state.
(2) (A) Except as specified in subparagraph (B) and subdivision
(d), completion of 3000 hours of work experience in two or more areas
of employment in timber operations.
(B) An applicant shall be exempt from this paragraph if the
applicant furnishes proof to the board that the applicant is sole
proprietor of, principal owner of, or principal officer of an entity
that owns, the land on which all timber operations under the license
will be conducted, and the applicant will supervise those timber
operations.
(c) (1) Except as specified in paragraph (2) and subdivision (d),
all applicants shall file with the director written evidence of
timber operation insurance coverage under an insurance policy issued
by an insurer eligible to do business in this state that includes
both of the following:
(A) Commercial general liability insurance for not less than one
million dollars ($1,000,000) per occurrence for bodily injury and
property damage combined, including within that limit, or in a
separate limit, loggers third party property damage liability.
(B) A provision requiring the insurer to provide to the director a
certificate of insurance and notice of any amendment to, or
cancellation of, the policy within 30 days from the date of policy
amendment or cancellation.
(2) This subdivision does not apply to an applicant who owns the
land upon which the timber operations are to be conducted pursuant to
the license.
(d) Subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) and
paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) do not apply to an applicant for a
limited timber operator license.

4573. The board may deny a timber operator license for any of the
following reasons:
(a) The applicant is not the real person in interest.
(b) Material misrepresentation or false statement in the
application.
(c) Conviction within one year of the application of unlawfully
operating without a license.
(d) The failure or refusal of the applicant to comply with this
chapter or the rules and regulations adopted by the board pursuant to
this chapter, within three years prior to the date of application.
(e) The failure or refusal of the applicant to pay a judgment
assessed or awarded by a court of competent jurisdiction that is the
result of a violation of this chapter or the rules and regulations
adopted by the board pursuant to this chapter.
(f) The failure or refusal of the applicant to keep current the
insurance required by subdivision (c) of Section 4572.
(g) The failure or refusal of the applicant to reimburse the
department for costs incurred by the department as the result of an
action to correct a violation conducted in accordance with Article 8
(commencing with Section 4601).

4574. (a) Timber operator licenses shall be valid for a period not
to exceed two calendar years, as prescribed by the board.
(b) (1) The board may deny an application for license renewal
until any violations by the applicant that exist on the date of
submission of the renewal application, of which the applicant has
been notified and given reasonable opportunity to correct, are
corrected in accordance with any reasonable terms and conditions
required by the board.
(2) The board may issue a temporary license to permit the
applicant to perform those timber operations that are necessary to
correct any violation that has resulted in a denial of license
renewal.
(c) For a license first issued on or after January 1, 1997, the
board may deny an application for license renewal if the real person
in interest has not completed both an education program approved by
the director that covers the statutes and regulations governing
timber operations in this state, and 3,000 hours of work experience
in two or more areas of employment in timber operations.

4575. A license is subject to future legislation and is not
transferable.

4576. A license may be suspended or revoked by the director
pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code for any of the reasons
specified by Section 4573, for refusal to allow inspections, or for
violations of any of the rules and regulations of the board.

4576.1. During the period for which a timber operator license has
been suspended, revoked, or denied pursuant to Section 4573 or 4576,
the real person in interest, as defined in Section 4570, may not have
any ownership, possessory, security, or other pecuniary interest in,
or any responsibility for the conduct of, the timber operations of
any person licensed pursuant to this article. This provision does not
preclude ownership of publicly traded stock in any corporation.

4577. The board may delegate its authority under this article to
the director.

4578. Timber operations, timber harvesting, and any other
activities pursuant to a timber harvest plan or a federal or state
timber sales contract are exempt from the provisions of Chapter 9
(commencing with Section 7000) of Division 3 of the Business and
Professions Code, and no license shall be required for the conduct of
timber operations on private or public lands, other than as provided
in Section 4571.