Assembly bill to protect fire rings won’t be heard again this year
An Assembly bill aiming to protect fire rings in Southern California was held back in the state Senate Appropriations Committee and will not be heard again this year.
The committee agreed Monday to delay the vote on AB 1102 until Thursday, but the bill was not brought up or voted on, according to a representative of Assemblyman Travis Allen (R-Huntington Beach).
Allen pledged in a statement Friday that he would continue fighting for the protection of fire rings and blamed politics for the bill being held back.
“Through our efforts, including AB 1102, we have succeeded so far in keeping all of our beach bonfire rings and will continue to work to preserve this iconic pastime,” he wrote. “With the decision of the Democrats to side with the [South Coast Air Quality Management District] in holding AB 1102, they sent the message that politics trumps the voice of the people.”
The fire ring bill, co-sponsored by Allen and Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva (D-Fullerton), would have required cities or counties to obtain a development permit from the California Coastal Commission if they wanted to remove or restrict the use of the wood-burning pits.
An applicant also would have to show what could be done to avoid removal or restriction of the pits.
Debates over the fire rings between neighboring Huntington Beach and Newport Beach erupted last year, with some people arguing that the smoke from the rings is a health hazard. Others said that the rings are a long-standing Southern California tradition.
anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com
Twitter: @acocarpio
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