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Program Contact(s):
For questions, please email wjt@wildlife.ca.gov |
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WJTCA Annual Mitigation Fee Adjustment to be Implemented January 1, 2025
The Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act (WJTCA) allows the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to authorize take of western Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia, WJT) that is incidental to otherwise legal projects. In lieu of conducting compensatory mitigation, permittees pay a fee for each WJT taken based on location and size class. The WJTCA established the original fees in Fish and Game Code section 1927.3 subsections (d) and (e).
Fish and Game Code 1927.8(b) mandates that the department shall annually adjust the fees provided for in Section 1927.3 pursuant to Section 713. Section 713 describes annual adjustments based on the implicit price deflator and is applied annually to fees for permits issued by CDFW. In addition, Fish and Game Code 1927.8(b) also mandates CDFW, beginning in 2026, to adopt regulations to adjust the fees as necessary to ensure the conservation of the species. The annual adjustment announced here is based only on the implicit price deflator under Section 713 and is not based on factors related to the conservation of the species.
The 2025 WJTCA ITP annual mitigation fee adjustment will go into effect on January 1, 2025. All required fees that have not been invoiced and paid by December 15, 2024, will be subject to the 2025 fee increase.
The following table shows the amount the fees will increase and the updated fees.
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WJT Size Class and Fee Area Type
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2024 Fee Per WJT
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2025 Proposed Increase*
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2025 Proposed Fee Per WJT
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5 meters or greater - reduced fee area
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$1,000.00
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$17.75
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$1,017.75
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1 meter to less than 5 meters - reduced fee area
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$200.00
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$3.50
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$203.50
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Less than 1 meter - reduced fee area
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$150.00
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$2.75
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$152.75
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5 meters or greater - standard fee area
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$2,500.00
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$44.75
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$2,544.75
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1 meter to less than 5 meters - standard fee area
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$500.00
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$9.00
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$509.00
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Less than 1 meter - standard fee area
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$340.00
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$6.00
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$346.00
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*Implicit Price Deflater Index: 0.017863
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Persons with disabilities needing reasonable accommodation to participate in public meetings or other CDFW activities are invited to contact CDFW's Accessibility Coordinator in the CRO Office at (916) 902-5577, or send an email to CivilRights@wildlife.ca.gov. Reasonable Accommodation requests for facility and/or meeting accessibility should be received at least 21 days prior to the event. Requests for American Sign Language Interpreters should be submitted at least two weeks prior to the event, and requests for Real-Time Captioning at least four weeks prior to the event. These timeframes are to help ensure that the requested accommodation is met. If a request for an accommodation has been submitted but due to circumstances is no longer needed, please contact the Accessibility Coordinator immediately. |
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