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AirTalk

Will new fines prevent Malibu homeowners from restricting public beach access?

By AirTalk Staff
Published Jun 24, 2014
MALIBU, CA - APRIL 18: Luxurious beach houses crowd the shoreline hiding Carbon Beach, a public beach that was gotten to through a recently opened public accessway next to music producer David Geffen's beach house, on April 18, 2005 in Malibu, California. The gate was found re-locked later that afternoon. By opening the gate, Geffen would be fulfilling a 22-year-old legal promise to open a public pathway across his property in exchange for permits from the Coastal Commission to begin building his Cape Cod-style compound across multiple lots on Carbon Beach. In giving up the gate key, the music mogul also stops daily fines of $1,000 a day from accumulating. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
Luxurious beach houses crowd the shoreline hiding Carbon Beach, a public beach that was gotten to through a recently opened public accessway next to music producer David Geffen's beach house, on April 18, 2005 in Malibu, California.
(
David McNew/Getty Images
)
Listen 18:59
Will new fines prevent Malibu homeowners from restricting public beach access?

A new bill signed by Governor Brown gives the California Coastal Commission authority to fine beachside property owners who violate public access requirements. Previously, the commission had to file a lawsuit against property owners who were painting curbsides red and posting fake “No Parking” signs. Homeowners on the Malibu coast claim that the beaches on their property should remain private, and that visitors leave behind a mess. The Coastal Commission fines for fake signs range from hundreds of dollars to $22,000.

Critics of the new bill say that the new laws put an unfair onus on homeowners, who may have pursued a lawsuit protecting their property in the past.

Is it appropriate for the California Coastal Commission to regulate public beach access with fines? Should property owners have a different recourse for keeping beaches private? Will homeowners simply pay the fines or will it actually change their behavior?

RELATED: Malibu’s hidden beaches and how to access them

Guest:

Lisa Haage, Chief of Enforcement at the California Coastal Commission

Damien Schiff, Principal Attorney for Pacific Legal Foundation