The California Endangered Species Act (CESA) declares that "all native species of fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals, and plants, and their habitats, threatened with extinction and those experiencing a significant decline which, if not halted, would lead to a threatened or endangered designation, will be protected or preserved.
[citation needed] In 1970, California was one of the first states to officially create statutory schemes for protecting endangered wildlife and environments.
The Species Preservation Act tasked the Department with creating an inventory of all fish and wildlife that could be considered rare or endangered.
[citation needed] In 1984, CESA was amended and became a more complex Act that determined it the state’s responsibility to preserve and protect endangered species.
In 1997, CESA was amended again to allow the "incidental taking" of protected species beyond the original ruling of scientific and educational purposes only.
[citation needed] While CESA is considered effective, the multitude of agencies working within the framework of CESA can lead to poor communication and effectiveness due to entities working at cross purposes, which ultimately leads to less protection and poorer use of time and resources for conservation programming.
After 90 days of the petition, the Habitat Conservation Planning Branch sends the report to the director for approval.
[12][13] The Supreme Court lets the decision stand that bees can be protected by the California Endangered Species Act.