BILL NUMBER: SB 1672 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 767
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 21, 2002
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 20, 2002
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 31, 2002
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 29, 2002
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 28, 2002
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 1, 2002
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 22, 2002
INTRODUCED BY Senator Costa
FEBRUARY 21, 2002
An act to add Part 2.2 (commencing with Section 10530) to Division
6 of the Water Code, relating to water.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1672, Costa. Integrated Regional Water Management Planning Act
of 2002.
Existing law requires urban water suppliers, as defined, to
prepare urban water management plans to facilitate long-term resource
planning to ensure adequate water supplies to meet existing and
future demands for water.
This bill would enact the Integrated Regional Water Management
Planning Act of 2002. The bill would authorize a regional water
management group, as defined, to prepare and adopt a regional plan,
in accordance with certain procedures, that addresses programs,
projects, reports, or studies relating to water supply, water
quality, flood protection, or related matters, over which any local
public agency, as defined, that is a participant in that group has
authority to undertake.
The bill would require the Department of Water Resources, the
State Water Resources Control Board, the State Department of Health
Services, or CALFED, as appropriate, to include in any set of
criteria used to select the projects and programs they administer
under specified provisions of law or under a specified CALFED program
a criterion that provides a benefit for qualified projects or
programs.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Part 2.2 (commencing with Section 10530) is added to
Division 6 of the Water Code, to read:
PART 2.2. INTEGRATED REGIONAL WATER MANAGEMENT PLANS
CHAPTER 1. SHORT TITLE
10530. This part shall be known and may be cited as the
Integrated Regional Water Management Planning Act of 2002.
CHAPTER 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS
10531. The Legislature finds and declares as follows:
(a) Water is a valuable natural resource in California, and should
be managed to ensure the availability of sufficient supplies to meet
the state's agricultural, domestic, industrial, and environmental
needs. It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage local
agencies to work cooperatively to manage their available local and
imported water supplies to improve the quality, quantity, and
reliability of those supplies.
(b) Improved coordination among local agencies with
responsibilities for managing water supplies and additional study of
groundwater resources are necessary to maximize the quality and
quantity of water available to meet the state's agricultural,
domestic, industrial, and environmental needs.
(c) The implementation of the Integrated Regional Water Management
Planning Act of 2002 will facilitate the development of integrated
regional water management plans, thereby maximizing the quality and
quantity of water available to meet the state's water needs by
providing a framework for local agencies to integrate programs and
projects that protect and enhance regional water supplies.
CHAPTER 3. DEFINITIONS
10532. Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions set
forth in this chapter govern the construction of this part.
10533. "Local public agency" means any city, county, city and
county, special district, corporation, or mutual water company.
10534. "Qualified projects or programs" means regional projects
or programs that improve source water quality, improve drinking water
quality, provide flood protection, improve levee stability, provide
water supply reliability, increase agricultural, domestic, or
environmental water supply, improve the quality or quantity of
groundwater, protect watersheds for the purposes of improving water
quality or water quantity, or undertake environmental mitigation,
restoration, or enhancement.
10535. "Qualified reports or studies" means reports or studies
relating to regional water quality, water supply planning, flood
protection, or environmental mitigation, restoration, or enhancement
projects or programs.
10536. "Regional plan" means a plan for the implementation or
operation of qualified projects or programs or the preparation of
qualified reports or studies.
10537. "Regional water management group" means a group in which
three or more local public agencies, at least two of which have
statutory authority over water supply, participate by means of a
joint powers agreement, memorandum of understanding, or other written
agreement, as appropriate, that is approved by the governing bodies
of those local public agencies.
CHAPTER 4. INTEGRATED REGIONAL WATER MANAGEMENT PLANS
10540. (a) A regional water management group may prepare and
adopt a regional plan in accordance with this part.
(b) The plan may address qualified programs or projects or
qualified reports or studies over which any local public agency that
is a participant in that group has authority to undertake, including
any of those matters described in subdivision (c).
(c) A regional water management group may address any of the
following matters in a regional plan:
(1) Groundwater management planning pursuant to Part 2.75
(commencing with Section 10750).
(2) Any activity identified in Section 10753.7.
(3) Urban water management planning pursuant to Part 2.6
(commencing with Section 10610).
(4) The preparation of a water supply assessment required pursuant
to Part 2.10 (commencing with Section 10910).
(5) Agricultural water management planning pursuant to Part 2.8
(commencing with Section 10800).
(6) The planning, construction, or modification of a flood
management project that meets the requirements for funding under
Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 12570), Chapter 3 (commencing with
Section 12800), or Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 12850), of
Part 6.
(7) The planning, construction, or modification of a flood
management project that meets the requirements for funding under
Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 12310) of Part 4.8.
(8) The planning, construction, or modification of a flood
management project approved pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with
Section 12639) of Part 6.
(9) The planning, construction, or modification of a levee
maintenance project that meets the requirements for funding under
Part 9 (commencing with Section 12980) of this division, or Article 4
(commencing with Section 78540) of Chapter 4 of Division 24.
(10) The planning, construction, or modification of a water
recycling project that meets the requirements for funding under
Article 4 (commencing with Section 79135) of Chapter 7 of Division
26.
(11) The planning, construction, or modification of a publicly
owned treatment works that meets the requirements of paragraph (1) of
subdivision (a) of Section 13480.
(12) The planning, construction, or modification of a domestic
water supply facility to meet safe drinking water standards in
accordance with the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund Law
of 1997 (Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 116760) of Part 12 of
Division 104 of the Health and Safety Code).
(13) The planning, construction, or modification of a drainage
water management unit, as that term is defined in subdivision (a) of
Section 78640.
(14) A water recycling project that meets the requirements for
funding under Article 4 (commencing with Section 79135) of Chapter 7
of Division 26.
(15) The implementation of a water conservation program that meets
the definition of a voluntary cost-effective capital outlay water
conservation program pursuant to Section 78670.
(16) The planning, construction, or modification of a program or
project that carries out any of the activities described in
subdivision (c) of Section 79080 or reduces the impacts of nonnative
plant species on water quality, water supply, or ecosystem health.
(17) The planning, construction, or modification of a program or
project that desalts brackish or saline waters for use as an
agricultural, domestic, or municipal water supply.
10541. (a) A regional water management group shall publish a
notice of intention to prepare a regional plan in accordance with
Section 6066 of the Government Code if three or more participants in
the group propose to prepare the regional plan.
(b) Not later than 15 days after the last date of the publication
of the notice pursuant to subdivision (a), the regional water
management group shall hold a public hearing as to whether or not to
prepare a regional plan. After the hearing, if three or more
participants in the group determine to prepare the regional plan, the
group shall prepare the plan not later than three years after the
date of the hearing.
(c) Upon the completion of the regional plan, the regional water
management group shall publish a notice of intention to adopt the
regional plan in accordance with Section 6066 of the Government Code
if three or more participants in the group propose to adopt the
regional plan.
(d) Not later than 15 days after the last date of the publication
of the notice pursuant to subdivision (c), the regional water
management group shall hold a public hearing as to whether or not to
adopt the regional plan. After the hearing, if three or more
participants in the group determine to adopt the regional plan,
including at least two of which that have statutory authority over
water supply, the group shall adopt the plan not later than 30 days
after the date of the hearing.
CHAPTER 5. FUNDING FOR QUALIFIED PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS
10543. When selecting projects and programs pursuant to Division
24 (commencing with Section 78500), Division 26 (commencing with
Section 79000), Division 26.5 (commencing with Section 79500), if
enacted by the voters on November 5, 2002, or as part of any Category
A program, as defined in the CALFED Record of Decision, dated August
28, 2000, the department, board, State Department of Health
Services, or CALFED, as appropriate, shall include in any set of
criteria used to select projects and programs they administer under
those divisions or as part of any Category A program, a criterion
that provides a benefit for qualified projects or programs.
CHAPTER 6. MISCELLANEOUS
10545. Nothing in this part affects any powers granted to a local
public agency by any authority other than this part.
10546. Nothing in this part authorizes a regional water
management group to define, or otherwise determine, the water rights
of any person or entity.