Marin County Municipal Code Ch. 23.12 Nuclear-Free Zone

(a) The presence of nuclear weapons, or the development, production and/or storage of nuclear weapons-related components and material within the county is in direct conflict with the maintenance of the community's public health, safety, economic well-being, general welfare, and adherence to international law.

(b) The purpose of this chapter is to establish the county as a nuclear-free zone in which work on nuclear weapons, and/or the storage or transportation of weapons-related components and nuclear material is prohibited, or appropriately restricted.

(c) This chapter's further purpose is to prohibit or restrict the county from contracting for services or products with, or investing county funds in, any business which is a nuclear weapons contractor.

(Ord. 2924 § 2, 1986)

As used in this chapter, the following words shall have the following definitions:

(a) "Component of a nuclear weapon" means any device, radioactive or nonradioactive, originally produced or manufactured for exclusive use as part of a nuclear weapon system, whether to be placed on land, at sea, in the air, or in outer space.

(b) "County funds," or "public funds" are those moneys, grants and funds received and managed by the county of Marin.

(c) "Direct activities of the federal government" are the actions of the federal government or of its agencies, but shall exclude the actions of independent contractors.

(d) "Nuclear waste" is any material which is the byproduct of any nuclear reaction or nuclear weapon production, except for the byproduct of applied nuclear medicine.

(e) "Nuclear weapon" means any device the intended explosion of which results from the energy released by fission or fusion reactions involving atomic nuclei, including the means of propelling, guiding or triggering the device if the means is destroyed or rendered useless in the propelling, guiding, triggering or detonation of the device.

(f) "Nuclear weapons contractor" means any person, corporation or other business entity which knowingly or intentionally is engaged in the research, development, production or testing of nuclear warheads, nuclear weapons systems, or nuclear weapons components. A business entity which is a 100% owned subsidiary branch of, and is therefore completely controlled by, an entity described in the foregoing sentence shall also be deemed to be a nuclear weapons contractor.

(g) "Person" means any private person, corporation, institution, or other entity, which is within the jurisdiction of the county of Marin.

(h) "Special nuclear material" or "radioactive material" means any material giving off, or potentially capable of giving off, radiant energy in the form of particles of rays (such as alpha, beta, and gamma rays) by the spontaneous disintegration of atomic nuclei, including accelerator-produced isotopes and byproduct material; and any other material which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission determines to be special nuclear material.

(i) "Transport and transportation" means transportation by any means over passable roadways, navigable waterways, or in the airspace, that are within the jurisdiction of the County of Marin, except where referred to as meaning roadways, waterways, or airspace regulated by preemptive federal or state law.

(Ord. 3308 § 1, 2000; Ord. 2924 § 3, 1986)

The county of Marin is declared to be a nuclear-free zone.

(a) No person shall knowingly engage in any activity within the county, the purpose of which is the applied research, development, production, transport, deployment, launching, testing, maintenance or storage of nuclear weapons or components of nuclear weapons. Nor shall any person store, use, transport, or dispose of special nuclear material or nuclear waste within the jurisdiction of the county.

(b) The transportation of nuclear weapons, their fissionable components, and weapons-related nuclear material and wastes through the county on roadways, waterways, or in airspace regulated by preemptive state or federal law, in the interest of public health and safety, is subject to the following restriction:

(1) As to roadways which are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the county, transportation of such materials is prohibited,

(2) As to roadways which are demonstrably within the jurisdiction of the state or federal government, the county board of supervisors shall post as a regular monthly notice, once each month, in a newspaper of general circulation within the county the fullest description possible of any shipment of such material that has occurred that previous month, transported through or across the county by any means of transportation whatsoever.

(c) The county, nor any agent thereof, shall not make any contract with, or investments in, any nuclear weapons contractor.

(d) The county board of supervisors shall adopt a "peace conversion plan," and shall, within ninety days of the enactment of this chapter, establish a county peace conversion commission of not less than three or more than five members, which shall be comprised of volunteers from the community. The purpose of said commission shall be to divest the county, as a government entity, within two years of the adoption of the ordinance codified in this chapter, of all such existing prohibited investments or contracts held by it. Said commission shall:

(1) Conduct studies of existing county contracts and public fund investments with nuclear weapons contractors, and determine in which cases any reasonable alternative contract or investment exists, in a manner consistent with prudent investment policy, and mindful of the intent and purpose of this chapter. The commission shall further make regular reports to the county board of supervisors concerning the progress of said divestiture, listing the book value of remaining investments in nuclear weapons contractors.

(2) Identify those businesses presently existing and operating in the county, and those who have made application to the county, who are nuclear weapons contractors. The commission will be responsible for conducting a timely phase-out of nuclear weapons contractors from the county, and for insuring the smooth conversion of Marin County businesses to alternative work that is more consistent with the public welfare. For this purpose the commission shall solicit testimony from the public.

(Ord. 2924 § 4, 1986)

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prohibit:

(a) Any activity not specifically described in this chapter;

(b) Research in and application of nuclear medicine or other pure research unrelated to nuclear weapons;

(c) Beneficial or peaceful uses of the technology such as smoke detectors, light-emitting watches and clocks, and other consumer products; or

(d) Activities of the federal and state governments that are preempted by existing law.

(Ord. 2924 § 5, 1986)

(a) The county is directed to install and maintain appropriate signs to be displayed at each ferry terminal, at Gnoss Field Airport, and on all the major roads leading into the county, at or near the county line, including, but not limited to, the following:

(1) U. S. Highway 101 (both ends);

(2) State Highway 1 (both ends);

(3) State Highway 17;

(4) State Highway 37;

(5) Fallon-Two Rock Road;

(6) Tomales-Petaluma Road;

(7) Chileno Valley Road;

(8) Marshall-Petaluma Road;

(9) Point Reyes-Petaluma Road; identifying Marin as a nuclear-free zone and making reference to this chapter. Further, the county must notify the federal government and other appropriate authorities that this law has been enacted.

(b) Before any further public funds shall be invested by the county in the stock, securities or other obligations of any corporation or business entity, the county board of supervisors shall require that said corporation or business submit to the peace conversion commission an affidavit certifying that neither it, nor its parent company, affiliates or subsidiaries are nuclear weapons contractors.

(c) The county is directed to require of each city incorporated within Marin County that, in addition to any other information deemed necessary by its business license officer, that any application for a business license within a city in the county shall state whether or not said business is a nuclear weapons contractor.

(d) Each violation of this chapter shall be punishable by up to one-year imprisonment and/or a fine of up to five thousand dollars. Each day of violation shall be deemed a separate violation. Residents of Marin shall also have the right to enforce this chapter by appropriate civil actions for declaratory or injunctive relief. Reasonable attorneys' fees in enforcing this chapter shall be awarded as is appropriate.

(Ord. 2924 § 6, 1986)