(a) Except as specified in subdivision (b), the commission shall award water bottom leases to the highest responsible bidder, if the bid meets or exceeds the minimum annual rent established by the commission, which shall not be less than two dollars ($2) per acre, for all species cultivated, unless the acreage applied for is 10 acres or less, in which case the minimum acceptable rent shall be ten dollars ($10) per acre. The annual rent for any lease in effect on January 1, 1983, for the cultivation of oysters shall be one dollar ($1) per acre until the expiration thereof. The commission may reject any or all bids for the lease of state water bottoms if it deems the rejection to be in the public interest.
(b) Fees for marine finfish aquaculture leases shall, at a minimum, be sufficient to pay for the costs of administering the marine finfish leasing program, and for monitoring and enforcing the terms of the leases.
(Amended by Stats. 2006, Ch. 36, Sec. 7. Effective January 1, 2007.)