[2] It holds jurisdiction over almost the entirety of the Bay, including the reaches into the Sacramento River, Coyote Creek and the Petaluma River[3] Additionally, the commission oversees the San Francisco Bay Salt Ponds and the Suisun Marsh that connects to the ports of Stockton.

[4] BCDC has the authority to administer legal enforcement action and escalate violations of McAteer-Petris Act to the California Attorney General's Office.

The Commission was created by California's McAteer-Petris Act, which the legislature passed on September 17, 1965.

It is the first regional government entity created for an urban area by legislative action.

This multi-agency regional committee allows for cross-jurisdictional work on projects such as Resilient Bay Area [8] and Carbon Free Future [9] In 2020, Commission staff issued a report on the potential impacts of rising sea level.