(a) Under the direction of the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency, the council shall administer its affairs, and provide the staff services that the council needs to carry out this division, including, but not limited to, both of the following:

(1) Administering grants and expenditures authorized by the council from the fund or other sources, including, but not limited to, block grants from other state boards, commissions, or departments.

(2) Arranging meetings, agendas, and other administrative functions in support of the council.

(b) The Legislature may make appropriations to be used for the purposes of this division directly to the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency, for expenditures authorized by the council. If an expenditure has been approved by the council for the purposes of this division, approval of the secretary is not required, except in the case of block grants provided by the council to be administered by the secretary.

(c) Any bond funds received by the State Coastal Conservancy, on or before July 1, 2013, which authorized the use of funds for council programs, shall be transferred to the Natural Resources Agency for use for those programs.

(d) (1) The Legislature finds and declares that, on the effective date of the act adding this subdivision during the 2013–14 Regular Session, various contracts and grants will be pending or remain subject to management and control by the State Coastal Conservancy on behalf of the council. On and after that date, the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency is hereby designated as the legal successor to the State Coastal Conservancy, and the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency shall assume management and control of those contracts and grants and shall have all of the same powers and duties as the State Coastal Conservancy.

(2) In addition to the powers and duties described in paragraph (1), on and after the effective date of the act adding this subdivision during the 2013–14 Regular Session, the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency shall have the following powers and duties on behalf of the council:

(A) The management of all contracts and grants, including the completion, modification, and cancellation of those contracts and grants in accordance with existing law.

(B) The negotiation and settlement of claims relating to contracts and grants.

(C) Responsibility for the completion, maintenance, and disposal of any records relating to the transfer of responsibilities from the State Coastal Conservancy to the Natural Resources Agency.

(Amended by Stats. 2013, Ch. 356, Sec. 32. (SB 96) Effective September 26, 2013.)