This special network update is focused on the MPA Collaborative Network’s (CN’s) engagement in the adaptive management process following the Decadal Management Review. Please see below for guidance, as far as we currently know it, for submitting petitions to the Fish and Game Commission (FGC) along with supporting resources.
Update October 2023: The Commission released its listserv memo on 10/12/2023 about petitions for changes to MPAs which includes the Commission’s overview of the process to consider potential changes to the MPA network.
Update December 2023: As discussed during the December 13-14, 2023 Commission meeting, the MPA petition deadline for tribes has been extended.
Update March 2024: The Commission has passed along all petitions submitted thus far to the Department of Fish & Wildlife for further review and will have next steps at the Marine Resources Committee meeting on March 19.
Submitting a Petition for Regulation Change
- Information on submitting a petition can be found here.
- The FGC 1 Form “Petition to the California Fish and Game Commission for Regulation Change” is a Word document that can be found on the webpage. The CN is providing a pre-filled template version with comments containing helpful (unofficial) guidance on what to include here.
- All MPA regulation change petitions are due to the Fish & Game Commission by Thursday, November 30
- Submit your petition by emailing: fgc@fgc.ca.gov (other delivery options are available and outlined on the website)
- Questions regarding the use of the form should be directed to fgc@fgc.ca.gov or (916) 653-4899
- See the FGC website for more information
CN Compiled Resources to Support Petitioners
- Google Sheet of the Collaborative Vetted Regulation Recommendations
- Petitioners can refer to this resource in their petitions, indicating that the proposed change was discussed with your local MPA Collaborative and whether or not it had full consensus and why. Refer to the row number for each change suggested in your petition.
- Action Item: Please let us know if you plan to submit a petition for one or more of the recommendations in the sheet.
- To support coordination among petitioners and streamline the number of petitions, CN staff will be working to identify who is taking the lead for submitting petitions for the various recommendations and adding their contact information to the Google Sheet.
- Group regulation changes as much as possible by region or type of change in your petition.
- Refer to the “Summary of Marine Protected Area (MPA) Regulation Change Petition Framework Discussion” that was included in the August 22-23 FGC meeting documents in Exhibit #6 of the Marine Resources Committee (MRC) report. For easy reference, the extracted summary page can be seen here.
- Full California Code of Regulations Title 14, Section 632 here
- Scroll to the bottom to see amendment history
- Examples of Past Successful Petitions/Proposed Amendments here
- MPA Planning Process Historical Information here
- FGC made historical documents available via their password-protected FTP site, the CN downloaded those documents, and shared HERE for easier access. **Start at the word document labeled “READ ME FIRST_ Brief Orientation to Historical Documents”
- The appendices of the Master Plan for MPAs contain a ton of useful information relevant to historical processes and each region
Petition Guidance/Tips (also included on pre-filled template)
- Question 1: Include petition lead contact information, but petitions can be submitted by multiple people/groups. Reference others who support your petition in Question 4, Rationale.
- Question 2: Copy and paste this text directly into the answer box “Authority cited: Sections 200, 205(c), 265, 399, 1590, 1591, 2860, 2861 and 6750, Fish and Game Code; and Sections 36725(a) and 36725(e), Public Resources Code.”
- Question 4: Provide a clear and concise overview of your rationale and reference the Collaborative Vetted Regulation Recommendations spreadsheet (row number for each change) for supporting info, if relevant. Then include a separate attachment where you go into more detailed justification. Not everything needs to fit on Form FGC 1, you can include attachments.
- Question 6: Select Other, and then specify “MPAs, Section 632”
- Reference historical reasoning for MPA regulations/boundaries and provide reasoning for why things have now changed to support your change, as appropriate
- Petitions from a managing agency (e.g., State and National Parks) will need to provide a cover letter with agency letterhead. Agencies can also provide a support letter for petitions from NGOs, individuals, or non-agencies.
- You can include multiple changes on one petition which the Commission can grant in whole or in part. Each change does not need to be a separate petition.
Additional Background Information
California’s MPA network just celebrated its ten-year anniversary and the Decadal Management Review already indicates positive results for increasing biodiversity, size and abundance of marine life and habitat. According to the Marine Life Protection Act, these MPAs were intended to be adaptively managed, meaning that after the ten-year review, they could be “tweaked” in order to be more effective where needed. While it is important to make these changes with the full science-based picture, outreach, enforcement, and manager needs should also be taken into account when determining what makes an MPA effective or not. The easier it is to interpret regulations and boundaries, the easier it will be to gain compliance and the more effective the MPA will be.
Over the past ten years the CN and MPA Collaboratives have created localized outreach products and programs, hosted compliance forums and enforcement trainings, and had many, many conversations within each county about their respective MPAs. Because each collaborative houses the local “area experts” and has years of experience in educating, interpreting and enforcing MPA regulations, CDFW and FGC are interested in getting their input on the area specific adaptive management “fine tuning” they would recommend. Over the summer, each collaborative hosted (mostly) in-person MPA management and regulatory recommendations meetings. Thank you so much for those who joined to provide input – we appreciate you all and are so proud of how quickly we were able to make these important discussions happen together! The “Summary Documents” of discussed management and regulations recommendations for each collaborative have been sent out to each collaborative’s full mailing list. This information has also been compiled here and passed on to the Fish and Game Commission (FGC) and California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) for their reference in ongoing adaptative management processes.
IMPORTANT NOTES: Any individual, organization, or agency can submit a Petition for Regulation Change for any change at any time. Collaboratives have a Memorandum of Understanding with the state recognizing their contributions to MPA management and changes that were discussed in each collaborative reg recs meeting were focused on making more effective and equitable outreach and enforcement. However, a petition can be submitted for changes not discussed or agreed upon in the collaboratives. The CN as an organization will not be submitting petitions but will help connect and coordinate collaborative members and partners in their efforts to submit petitions. This process is unfolding in real-time for all those involved, so guidance and timelines may change. We will share updates as we receive them and encourage you to sign up for updates from CDFW here and FGC here.
Blog cover image is of actor Zach Galifianakis from The Hangover movie.