The Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee passed AB 697 as amended to appropriations. The bill would allow the Department of Fish and Wildlife to issue an incidental take permit for a near‑term package of improvements on State Route 37 between Mare Island (Vallejo) and Sears Point (Sonoma) while requiring conservation, monitoring and restoration commitments for four covered species.

Assemblymember Wilson presented the bill and described the corridor’s chronic congestion and safety problems, noting that a 10‑mile bottleneck adds long delays for North Bay commuters and prevents reliable transit service. Sponsors said interim improvements are near‑shovel‑ready, the near‑term phases are mostly funded, and the package would deliver immediate commute relief, accommodate transit and advance wetland restoration projects that complement larger, longer‑term corridor plans. Supporters included the Solano Transportation Authority, Marin County leadership and several construction industry and regional transportation entities.

Opponents and concerned stakeholders included Transform (a Bay Area advocacy coalition), environmental groups and the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. Transform argued the interim widening would lock in a short‑lived asset that could be overtaken by sea‑level rise and would increase vehicle miles traveled and emissions; the tribe and other opponents said the bill lacked an enforceable tribal consultation requirement tailored to impacts on ancestral lands and cultural resources. Testimony also raised questions about whether investing in the interim project could delay comprehensive, long‑term climate‑resilient solutions.

Committee members probed sea‑level rise projections, elevations along the corridor and which segments are vulnerable. The author and project representatives said the interim project and its environmental restoration components were designed with elevation and restoration considerations in mind, and that the most flood‑prone sections are being addressed separately.

The committee passed AB 697 to Appropriations as amended; members said they expected continued work on tribal consultation language and climate‑resilience details as the bill moves forward.