SB 27 Senate Bill

BILL NUMBER: SB 27	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 6, 2008
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 24, 2007
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MARCH 29, 2007

INTRODUCED BY    Senators   Simitian,
    Machado,  
  Perata,     and
Steinberg   Senator  Simitian 

                        DECEMBER 4, 2006

    An act to add Division 26.6 (commencing with Section
79600) to the Water Code, relating to the Sacramento-San Joaquin
Delta.   An act to add Division 26.6 (commencing with
Section 79600) to the Water Code, relating to financing a water
quality, environmental enhancement, and water supply reliability
program, by providing the funds necessary therefor through an
election for the issuance and sale of bonds of the State of
California and for the handling and disposition of those funds. 


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 27, as amended, Simitian. Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta,
Clean Drinking Water, Water Supply Security, and Environmental
Improvement Act of 2008. 
   Under existing law, various bond acts have been approved by the
voters to provide funds for water projects, facilities, and programs.
Under existing law, various state agencies administer programs
relating to water supply, water quality, and flood management in the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.  
   This bill would enact the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta,
Clean Drinking Water, Water Supply Security, and Environmental
Improvement Act of 2008, which, if approved by the voters, would
authorize, for the purposes of financing a water quality,
environmental enhancement, and water supply reliability program, the
issuance, pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law, of bonds
in the amount of $4,000,000,000. The bill would require the
Secretary of State to submit the bond act to the voters at the
November 4, 2008, statewide general election.  
   The bill would establish in state government the Delta Water and
Land Use Authority, prescribe the composition of its board of
directors, and grant to the authority a broad range of powers
relating to the preservation of the delta ecosystem and the delivery
of a reliable state water supply. The bill would authorize the
authority to contract to design, construct, and own one or more
facilities to move water from the Sacramento River to federal and
state pumping facilities on behalf of the State Water Project, the
federal Central Valley Project, and local water agencies that can
reasonably be served by those facilities.  
   The bill would authorize the authority to exercise the powers and
duties of the Department of Water Resources with respect to the
financing, design, construction, ownership, and operation of those
facilities. The authority would succeed to the powers and duties of
the California Bay-Delta Authority, which would cease to exist on the
date on which the authority conducts its first meeting. The bill
would authorize the authority to issue revenue bonds to finance the
design, environmental review, permitting, and construction of those
facilities. The bill would authorize the authority to impose a fee
for the transmission of water through these facilities, and would
continuously appropriate funds generated by that fee to the authority
to repay the revenue bonds and to pay other costs, including costs
associated with the operation and maintenance of the facility and the
expenses of the authority.  
   The bill would require the authority to impose other fees,
including a fee, not to exceed $50 per acre-foot of water transmitted
through the facilities, or otherwise pumped from the delta, as
specified, on federal and state contractors and affected local water
agencies. The bill would authorize the authority to impose a fee on
specified water users to mitigate impacts on delta ecological
functions caused by their diversions. The bill would require the
funds generated by these fees to be deposited in the Clean Drinking
Water, Water Quality Improvement, and Environmental Enhancement Fund,
which the bill would establish. Funds generated by these fees would
be continuously appropriated to the authority for an environmental
restoration program. Proceeds generated from the issuance of general
obligations bonds would be deposited in the fund. These proceeds
would be continuously appropriated to the authority for capital
outlay projects in accordance with the bill's provisions.  
   The bill would establish within the California Coastal Commission
the Delta Watershed Conservancy. The conservancy would be required to
implement projects and programs, within the watershed of the San
Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary and the watershed
of the Trinity River, to restore and enhance the bay-delta ecosystem
and improve water quality. The bill would require the authority to
adopt or reject each decision of the conservancy. The bill would
subject any approval of development by a city or county in specified
zones of the delta, and certain lands adjacent to the delta, to
review by the Delta Protection Commission. The commission would be
prohibited from approving that development unless specified
requirements are met. The bill would require the authority to adopt
or reject these land use decisions of the commission. Public agencies
would be required to manage agricultural lands they own within the
delta in a specified manner.  
   The bill would provide that its provisions would only become
operative if a specified measure is approved by the voters at the
November 4, 2008, statewide general election.  
   Under existing law, various state agencies administer programs
relating to water supply, water quality, and flood management in the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.  
   This bill would require the Secretary of the Resources Agency, on
or before January 1, 2008, to begin implementing certain actions on
behalf of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, including investing
in emergency preparedness, funding projects to aid sustainability in
the delta, identifying critical levels to be strengthened, and
commencing delta restoration projects. The secretary would be
required to take necessary action to ensure that the requirements of
a specified Governor's executive order relating to the delta are met
in a timely manner. The bill would declare legislative intent to
enact legislation to begin implementing a program for sustainable
management of the delta in 2008. The bill would make related
declarations and findings. 
   Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    Division 26.6 (commencing with Section
79600) is added to the   Water Code   , to read:
 

      DIVISION 26.6.  SACRAMENTO-SAN JOAQUIN RIVER DELTA, CLEAN
DRINKING WATER, WATER SUPPLY SECURITY, AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENT
ACT OF 2008


      CHAPTER 1.  GENERAL PROVISIONS


   79600.  This division shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, Clean Drinking Water, Water
Supply Security, and Environmental Improvement Act of 2008.
   79601.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
   (a) The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta is a web of channels
and reclaimed islands at the confluence of the Sacramento and San
Joaquin Rivers. It forms the eastern portion of the wider San
Francisco Estuary, which includes the San Francisco, San Pablo, and
Suisun Bays. The delta collects water from California's largest
watershed, which encompasses roughly 45 percent of the state's
surface area and stretches from the eastern slopes of the coastal
ranges to the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada.
   (b) Levees built 100 years ago confined water to channels and
transformed the delta from marshland into dry "islands" of land
available for human use. Within 837,594 acres in the delta and the
Suisun Marsh, levees confine water to 10 percent of the total area,
while 557,896 acres are devoted to agriculture.
   (c) The delta supports a unique and irreplaceable combination of
environmental and economic values, including all of the following:
   (1) Delta ecosystem. The San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin
Delta Estuary is a unique ecosystem. The delta and the adjacent
Suisun Marsh, an integral part of the delta ecosystem, provide
habitat for 700 species, including 12 species listed under either the
federal or state endangered species laws. Eighty percent of the
state's commercial fishery species live in or migrate through the
delta. It is a major stopping point for hundreds of thousands of
migrating birds along the Pacific Flyway. The Suisun Marsh alone
contains more than 10 percent of California's remaining wetlands.
   (2) Water supply. Two-thirds of the state's residents rely on the
delta for part or all of their drinking water. Water exported from
the delta irrigates 45 percent of the fruits and vegetables produced
in the United States, and one-sixth of all irrigated lands in the
nation are located in this watershed.
   (3) Agricultural and other land uses. Delta lands have contributed
significantly to the agricultural economy in California. Supporting
a population of about 470,000, the cities, towns, and settlements
within the delta are of significant historical, cultural, and
economic value.
   (4) Major transportation corridors. Three state highways, three
rail lines, and two deepwater channels cross the delta and the delta
is home to two inland ports. Most of these transportation corridors
serve other areas of the state.
   (5) Utility corridors. Hundreds of gas lines, five high voltage
lines, and critical water supply aqueducts that serve public health
and safety needs cross the delta, including multiple delta islands.
The delta is also home to numerous underground natural gas storage
sites.
   (6) Recreation. The delta's 635 miles of boating waterways are
served by 138 marinas containing 11,700 inwater boat slips and dry
storage for 5,500 boats. In 2000, there were an estimated 6.4 million
boating-related visitor days, with 2.13 million boating trips. Other
major recreational activities in the delta include fishing,
waterfowl, and upland game bird hunting, wildlife viewing, bird
watching, and windsurfing.
   (7) Flood management. The delta is the natural drain to a 42,500
square mile watershed that includes the central valley and the
western slope of the Sierra Nevada from Fresno to Mount Shasta. As
such, it is the main conduit for floodwaters to flow out to the
ocean. The delta itself is protected by extensive, but fragile, flood
management facilities, including about 1,100 miles of levees in the
delta and about 230 miles of levees in the Suisun Marsh. These levees
protect about 65 islands and tracts in the delta. Most of these
levee-protected lands are below sea level; some areas are as much as
25 feet below sea level.
   (d) The delta cannot sustain important environmental and economic
values under current conditions. All of these values either are
already in significant decline or are at risk of sudden failure.
Several factors are intensifying the problems, including all of the
following:
   (1) Land subsidence, sea level rise, and changes in climate make
delta levees increasingly vulnerable to failure from earthquakes,
floods, and other causes. Over the next 50 years, there is a
two-thirds chance of a catastrophic levee failure in the delta,
leading to flooding of multiple islands and the intrusion of
seawater. For one such scenario, the Department of Water Resources
estimates that a large earthquake near the delta would cause major
interruptions in water supplies for southern California, the San
Joaquin Valley, and the San Francisco Bay area, as well as
disruptions of power, road, and shipping lines, costing the state's
economy as much as $40 billion. These failures also would create
major environmental disruptions and local flooding risks.
   (2) Endangered species and fisheries have continued to decline in
the delta and disruptive nonnative species continue to invade. In the
fall of 2004, routine fish surveys registered sharp declines in the
numbers of several open-water (pelagic) species, including the delta
smelt, already listed as threatened under the federal and state
endangered species laws. Subsequent surveys have confirmed the trend,
raising concerns that the delta smelt, which are sometimes seen as
an indicator of ecosystem health in the delta, risks extinction if a
solution is not found quickly. In the winter of 2008, salmon
populations reliant on the delta declined precipitously.
   (3) Delta water quality remains at risk from salts entering from
the ocean and the central valley's agricultural drainage, as well as
from pesticides and metals coming from agricultural and urban lands.
Chronic toxicants continue to be a problem, and episodic toxic events
from urban and agricultural applications are also a major problem.
   (4) Regional population and economic growth have increased
pressure to urbanize delta lands near major transportation routes and
urban centers. This "hardening" of delta lands simultaneously raises
the costs of flood risks and reduces the flexibility of land
management options. Unlike most other activities in the delta,
urbanization is generally irreversible. Additionally, urbanization is
self-accelerating. Urbanization in one location significantly
increases the value of adjacent lands. This, coupled with declining
profit margins for farming, will increase the pressure to convert
farmlands to subdivisions. This shift will come at the expense of
habitat protection and other services, such as water quality and
water supply that are important for other parts of California.
   (e) The Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force found that new
facilities for conveyance and storage, and better linkage between the
two, should be developed to better manage California's water
resources for both the estuary and exports.
   79602.  It is the intent of the Legislature to begin implementing
a program for sustainable management of the delta. By enacting this
division, the Legislature intends to accomplish all of the following:

   (a) Implement the recommendations of the Delta Vision Blue Ribbon
Task Force created by Executive Order S-17-06 directing that entity
to "develop a durable vision for sustainable management of the Delta"
with the goal of "managing the Delta over the long term to restore
and maintain identified functions and values that are determined to
be important to the environmental quality of the Delta and the
economic and social well being of the people of the state."
   (b) Establish policies to manage the delta that balance equally
public trust values and the reasonable use of the state's limited
water resources.
   (c) Complete the environmental evaluation of the preferred
alternatives identified by the Bay Delta Conservation Plan and
construct the facilities authorized by this division as soon as is
feasible.
   (d) Develop short and intermediate strategies to protect
endangered species endemic to the delta while the longer-term
preferred alternative is under review and being implemented.
   (e) Develop short and intermediate actions to protect the
drinking, industrial, and farm agricultural water supplies, including
critical water supply aqueducts that serve public health and safety
needs and cross multiple delta islands, while the longer-term
preferred alternative is under review and being implemented.
   (f) Develop a program designed to restore the delta's environment
and protect the state's water conveyance capabilities and
infrastructure within the delta.
   (g) Develop a program that is guided by the principal that the
land and waterways of the delta are an integral part of a healthy
estuary. The goal of actions and decisions for the delta by relevant
governmental entities should be to preserve and enhance native
species by creating a more heterogeneous estuarine environment,
including a diverse habitat mosaic, expanded areas of seasonal and
tidal wetlands, effective connections between the estuary and the
larger landscape, and freshwater flows of the right temperatures at
the right times. The physical geography of the delta and patterns of
food production, nutrient distribution, subsidence reversal,
migration, water flow, and salinity should support ecosystem
functions and processes characteristic of a productive estuary.
   (h) Develop programs recognizing that California's water supply is
limited and should be managed with significantly higher efficiency
to be adequate to meet the needs of future populations, a growing
economy, and a sustainable environment.
   (i) Invest limited financial resources in greater conservation,
increased regional self-sufficiency in water supplies, more
conjunctive use of groundwater, integrated water system management
and demand management, and new technologies.
   (j) Encourage equitable access to higher quality water sources and
seek to reduce conflict among water users for diversion from the
highest water quality locations.
   (k) Make water conservation the first priority underlying
governmental decisions and expenditures regarding water originating
within the delta watershed and encourage all areas of California to
develop policies relying on increased regional self-sufficiency.
   (l) Ensure that investments of public funds pursuant to this
division result in public benefits.
   (m) Encourage regulatory agencies to respond expeditiously to
requests for review of project documents and permit applications by
the Delta Water and Land Use Authority established by Section 79604.
   79603.  Unless the context requires otherwise, the definitions set
forth in this section govern the construction of this division:
   (a) "Acquisition" means the acquisition of a fee interest or any
other interest, including easements, leases, and development rights.
   (b) "Adoptive management" means a method of constructing and
operating physical facilities in a manner that maximizes operational
flexibility in response to changing physical and biological
conditions.
   (c) "Authority" means the Delta Water and Land Use Authority
established by Section 79604.
   (d) "Bay area counties" means those counties that are members of
the Association of Bay Area Governments.
   (e) "Bay-delta" means the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin
Delta.
   (f) "Bay Delta Conservation Plan" means any natural communities
conservation plan or habitat conservation plan being developed by the
Resources Agency through a consortium of public agencies and
nonprofit organizations to protect and restore endangered and
threatened species and their habitat in the delta.
   (g) "Board" or "board of directors" means the board of directors
of the authority.
   (h) "CALFED" means the consortium of state and federal agencies
with management and regulatory responsibilities in the bay-delta.
   (i) "CALFED Bay-Delta Program" means the undertaking by CALFED to
develop and implement, by means of the final programmatic
environmental impact statement/environmental impact report, the
preferred programs, actions, projects, and related activities that
will provide solutions to identified problem areas related to the
bay-delta ecosystem, including, but not limited to, the bay-delta and
its tributary watersheds.
   (j) "California Environmental Quality Act" refers to the
California Environmental Quality Act as set forth in Division 13
(commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code.
   (k) "Delta" means the area of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
that is defined in Section 12220.
   (l) "Delta Protection Commission" or "commission" means the
commission established pursuant to Section 29735 of the Public
Resources Code.
   (m) "Delta Watershed Conservancy" or "conservancy" means the
conservancy established pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with
Section 79640).
   (n) "Department" means the Department of Water Resources.
   (o) "Facility" means one or more facilities described in Chapter 3
(commencing with Section 79609), and includes the intake facilities
and related facilities necessary to implement the facility.
   (p) "Fund" means the Clean Drinking Water, Water Quality
Improvement, and Environmental Enhancement Fund established by
Section 79670.
   (q) "Nonprofit organization" means any nonprofit corporation
formed pursuant to the Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation Law
(Division 2 (commencing with Section 5000) of Title 1 of the
Corporations Code) and qualified under Section 501(c)(3) of the
United States Internal Revenue Code.
   (r) "Public water agency" means any public entity, as defined in
Section 514, that provides water service, as defined in Section 515.
      CHAPTER 2.  DELTA WATER AND LAND USE AUTHORITY


   79604.  There is hereby established in state government the Delta
Water and Land Use Authority.
   79605.  (a) (1) The board of directors of the authority shall
consist of seven members, of which five are appointed by the Governor
and confirmed by the Senate, one is appointed by the Senate
Committee on Rules, and one is appointed by the Speaker of the
Assembly.
   (2) The initial term of office of each member of the board shall
be two, four, or six years, as specified in subdivision (b), and all
subsequent terms shall be eight years. No member of the board shall
serve two consecutive terms, but a member may be reappointed to the
board after a period of two years following the end of his or her
term.
   (b) (1) At the first meeting of the board, the members shall
classify themselves by lot into three classes. One class shall have
three members and the other two classes shall have two members each.
For the class that has three members, the terms of office shall be
two years. The second class, composed of two members, shall serve
four years. The third class, composed of two members, shall serve six
years. Thereafter, the terms of all succeeding members shall be
eight years.
   (2) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), all initial board members may
serve two consecutive terms.
   (c) Any vacancy shall be filled by the appointing authority within
60 days. If the term of a board member expires, and no successor is
appointed within the allotted timeframe, the existing member may
serve 180 days beyond the expiration of his or her term.
   (d) The Governor shall appoint a chairperson from among the board
members, who shall serve for not more than four years.
   (e) The authority shall meet once a month in a public forum. At
least two meetings each year shall take place within the delta.
   (f) The Commissioner of the United States Bureau of Reclamation,
the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the
Director of the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the Director
of the United States Geological Service, if those federal officials
wish to participate, as well as the director of the department and
the Director of Fish and Game, shall be nonvoting ex officio members
of the board of directors.
   79606.  The chairperson shall serve full time. Other members shall
serve one-third time. The board of directors may select a vice
chairperson and other officers determined to be necessary.
   79607.  (a) Each member of the board shall receive the salary
provided for in Section 11564 of the Government Code.
   (b) The members of the board of directors shall be reimbursed for
expenses necessarily incurred in the performance of official duties.
   (c) The board of directors shall appoint an executive director who
shall serve full time.
   (d) The authority shall hire employees necessary to carry out the
functions of the agency.
   (e) The number of employees and qualifications of those employees
shall be determined by the authority, subject to the availability of
funds.
   (f) The salary of each agency employee shall be determined by the
State Personnel Board, and shall reflect the duties and
responsibilities of the position.
   (g) All persons employed by the authority are state employees,
subject to the duties, responsibilities, limitations, and benefits of
the state.
   79608.  The headquarters of the agency shall be located in
Sacramento.
      CHAPTER 3.  MISSION, DUTIES, AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE DELTA
WATER AND LAND USE AUTHORITY


   79609.  The authority shall do all of the following:
   (a) Have as primary coequal goals, the preservation of the native
species of the delta ecosystem and the delivery of a reliable water
supply. In adopting programs to achieve these coequal goals, the
authority shall balance the legal concepts of reasonable use of the
waters flowing into the delta, and maintenance of the public trust
values of the delta and its waters. For the purposes of this
subdivision, "delivery of a reliable water supply" includes assisting
in meeting delta water quality standards established by the State
Water Resources Control Board.
   (b) Adopt capital investment strategies that strengthen selected
levees, improve floodplain management, and improve water circulation
and quality. The strategies shall address the protection of critical
water supply aqueducts that serve public health and safety needs and
cross multiple delta islands. In adopting land use decisions in the
delta, first priority shall be given to strategies that restore the
level of delta lands to above sea level, and that reduce the emission
of greenhouse gases from the delta.
   (c) (1) The authority shall develop goals for minimum flow levels
for streams tributary to the delta consistent with achieving
ecological benchmarks, including doubling of specified fish
populations in designated timeframes.
   (2) The authority shall consult with the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service and, where applicable, shall adopt stream
restoration guidelines for fisheries developed within the anadromous
fish restoration program.
   (3) The authority shall, in addition, utilize as guidelines for
ecosystem restoration those developed by the CALFED Ecosystem
Restoration Program.
   (d) (1) The authority and the Delta Watershed Conservancy may
purchase, sell, hold, and transfer water rights for both
environmental and water supply purposes. The water rights shall be
used to meet water supply and fishery restoration goals, and shall be
acquired only from willing sellers with the approval of the State
Water Resources Control Board.
   (2) The authority granted by this subdivision is for the express
purpose of providing a design and setting priorities for water
purchases from willing sellers and meeting fishery restoration goals,
and does not contradict, conflict with, or supersede any existing
water rights, statutes, or adjudications.
   (e) Adopt policies discouraging inappropriate urbanization of the
delta to maximize public safety and protect critical infrastructure
of statewide significance.
   (f) Adopt delta land use policies that minimize the risk of
flooding of vital infrastructure, and urbanization of the delta.
   (g) (1) Adopt policies for the delta that are designed for
resiliency and adaptive management of the terrestrial and aquatic
habitat.
   (2) These policies shall include specific benchmarks and timelines
for habitat purchase that shall guide decisions by the Delta
Watershed Conservancy, and land use decisions undertaken by the Delta
Protection Commission.
   (3) In determining whether to adopt decisions made by the Delta
Watershed Conservancy and the Delta Protection Commission, the
authority shall determine that those decisions are consistent with
and do not conflict with the habitat restoration goals established by
this division.
   (h) Adopt policies designed to bring about immediate improvements
to the existing through-delta export system, while the preferred
long-term option is being designed and is undergoing environmental
review.
   (i) (1) Adopt benchmarks for assessing progress toward critical
goals drawing on contributions from scientists, state and federal
agency program managers, and knowledgeable members of the public.
   (2) Fishery restoration goals shall include, at a minimum, those
established by the anadromous fish restoration program of the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service.
   (j) Mitigate, to the extent feasible, adverse impacts to native
fish that may result from actions taken pursuant to this division.
   79610.  (a) The authority may contract to design, construct, and
own a facility or facilities to move water from the Sacramento River
to the Harvey Banks Pumping Plant of the State Water Resources
Development System, and the Tracy Pumping Plant of the federal
Central Valley Project.
   (b) The authority shall serve as the lead agency for conducting
environmental studies pursuant to the California Environmental
Quality Act and the state lead agency for purposes of the National
Environmental Protection Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 4321 et seq.). The
authority shall serve as the successor lead agency to scoping and
drafting environmental documents contracted for by the department and
the Resources Agency prior to the date on which the authority
becomes operational.
   (c) The authority shall conduct an environmental review of the
preferred alternative or alternatives adopted in the Bay Delta
Conservation Plan. Alternatives considered shall include at least all
of the following:
   (1) A dual conveyance option that includes an isolated conveyance
facility combined with an improved through-delta mechanism.
   (2) A stand-alone isolated facility, if the authority determines
that moving water from the Sacramento River to the pumps through the
delta is significantly threatened by seismic activity, flooding,
ocean rise, or other human or natural causes.
   (3) A no-project alternative analysis consistent with the
California Environmental Quality Act and the National Environmental
Protection Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 4321 et seq.).
   (d) (1) The facility shall be designed to convey water for the
State Water Project, the federal Central Valley Project,
                                 and local water agencies that can
reasonably be served by the facility. The design of the facility
shall reflect consideration of the recommendations of the Delta
Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force established by Executive Order S-17-06
and the final program developed pursuant to the October 6, 2006,
Planning Agreement for the Bay Delta Conservation Plan, as well as
designs and mitigation actions identified in the environmental impact
report/environmental impact statement prepared in accordance with
subdivision (c).
   (2) The authority shall not construct facilities to convey water
for a water agency unless the authority has entered into a contract
with the water agency for repayment of the authority's costs in
accordance with this division.
   (3) The authority may contract with any public agency to transport
water through the facility, subject to the requirements of this
division.
   (4) The design, construction, and operation of the facility shall
comply with all of the following requirements:
   (A) Allow the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley
Project, if the federal Central Valley Project wishes to participate,
to reliably deliver water to export contractors.
   (B) Reduce impacts to native fish caused by the operation of the
export pumps and improve the operational flexibility and ability of
the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project to
provide ecosystem and water supply benefits.
   (C) Provide conditions that will allow for habitat improvements
for fish and wildlife in the delta, the recovery of listed species,
and sustainable ecosystem functions.
   (D) Provide improved water supply reliability and conveyance for
the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project and
for water transfers.
   (E) Reduce the quantity of bromide, total organic carbon, and
total dissolved solids in the water pumped at state and federal water
pumping facilities and by local agencies to protect the public
health and improve the ability to manage salinity concentrations in
water exported.
   (F) Increase the flexibility to manage uncertainties associated
with climate change and future fishery needs.
   (G) Promote ecosystem restoration of the delta.
   (H) Facilitate wet-year water storage for use in dry years.
   (e) The authority shall have all the powers, duties, and
obligations of the department with respect to the financing, design,
construction, ownership, and operation of the facility.
   (f) The facility shall be operated consistent with Sections 10505,
10505.5, 11128, 11460 to 11463, inclusive, and nothing in this
division affects the application of those sections.
   (g) The construction and operation of the facility shall be
subject to, and the authority shall comply with, all applicable state
and federal environmental laws and regulations and the terms and
conditions of any applicable water rights permits and licenses.
   (h) (1) The authority shall enter into a contract with a joint
powers agency composed of water agencies using the facility,
including, if willing to participate, the United States or its water
contractors, for the design, construction, operation, maintenance,
and repair of the facility. The authority shall approve or reject
proposed actions of the joint powers agency and make written findings
with regard to those actions.
   (2) The contract shall comply with all of the following
requirements:
   (A) Provide for an appropriate allocation of costs attributable to
the use of the facility to deliver water to the State Water
Resources Development System, the federal Central Valley Project, and
other water users, including a pro rata share of capital, operation,
maintenance, and replacement regulatory and environmental costs.
   (B) Allocate capacity in and priority to use the facility. The
allocation shall be consistent with the contracts for delivery of
water by the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley
Project.
   (C) Include other terms and conditions that the authority
determines necessary or appropriate.
   (D) Provide for the replacement of components of the facility as
necessary and shall otherwise be performed in a manner ensuring that
the facility is maintained in good condition and protected to ensure
its long-term operation.
   (3) The authority shall be fully responsible for all work carried
out pursuant to contract, including the quality and timeliness of
that work. The authority shall provide those taking water from the
facility with documentation that demonstrates substantial compliance
with those contract provisions.
   79612.  (a) The authority shall take all necessary or appropriate
actions to expeditiously obtain permits and other approvals for, and
commence operation of, the facility, including coordinating and
cooperating with all state or federal regulatory agencies.
   (b) Any state agency with regulatory or approval authority with
respect to the construction, implementation, or operation of the
facility shall take all actions necessary or appropriate to process
and make any required determinations on permits or approvals as
expeditiously as possible.
   79614.  All of the costs of the authority that are associated with
the ordinary operations, maintenance, and replacement of the
facility shall be paid for from funds generated pursuant to Section
79622. The portion of the costs so paid attributable to deliveries to
State Water Project contractors shall be considered a transportation
cost billable to the State Water Project contractors pursuant to the
applicable provision of each contractor's long-term water supply
contract.
   79616.  (a) The facilities constructed pursuant to Section 79610
shall not adversely impact the intake facility jointly operated by
the County of Sacramento and the East Bay Municipal Utility District.

   (b) If changes are required to be made to the Elk Grove plant of
the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District because of the
operation of the facility constructed pursuant to this division, the
costs shall be included as costs of the facility and shall not be the
responsibility of that district. Nothing in this division prohibits
any regulatory agency from requiring changes to that plant or any
other facility of the district that are required by law.
   79618.  Prior to the operation of the facility, and periodically
thereafter, pursuant to its existing authority, the State Water
Resources Control Board shall adopt water quality standards and water
rights terms and conditions that require delta outflows and water
quality sufficient to protect and restore to sustainable levels
fisheries native to the delta and the San Francisco Bay. To the
extent feasible, water quality standards and water rights shall
include flexibility to allow adaptive management.
   79619.  (a) Nothing in this division shall impact existing area of
origin or county of origin protections.
   (b) Section 5937 of the Fish and Game Code applies to all waters
tributary to the delta.
   (c) The public trust doctrine applies to all waters tributary to
the delta.
   (d) Nothing in this division amends the California Endangered
Species Act (Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 2050) of Division 3
of the Fish and Game Code) or the California Environmental Quality
Act.
   79620.  In addition to the powers and duties granted by this
division, the authority succeeds to, and is vested with, all the
powers, duties, responsibilities, obligations, liabilities, and
jurisdiction of the California Bay-Delta Authority, which shall cease
to exist as of the date on which the board conducts its first
meeting pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 79605.
   79621.  (a) Before a public water agency may enter into a contract
with the authority for water conveyance by means of the facility,
the public water agency, and its contractors and subcontractors, as
applicable, shall submit to the authority a plan approved by the
State Water Resources Control Board for reducing the per capita use
of municipal and industrial water by the public water agency and any
municipal and industrial water contractors of the public water
agency, by 10 percent by 2015 and 25 percent by 2030 as compared to
its average water use in the period from 2000 to 2007, inclusive, by
means of increased water efficiency, improved groundwater management,
recycling, and the use of other local water supplies.
   (b) Before a public water agency may enter into a contract with
the authority for water conveyance by means of the facility, the
public water agency, and its contractors and subcontractors as
applicable, shall submit to the authority a plan approved by the
State Water Resources Control Board that ensures that agricultural
water delivered by the public water agency is used in an economically
efficient manner and that water is not wasted. The plan shall
demonstrate the implementation of financially efficient and
technologically feasible methods of water use reduction.
   79622.  (a) The authority may issue revenue bonds to finance the
design, environmental review, permitting, and construction of the
facility.
   (b) The revenue bonds shall be repaid by charges, imposed pursuant
to subdivision (d), on water contractors and other beneficiaries
that contract for the use of the facilities constructed pursuant to
this division, commensurate with the benefits received. No charges
shall be applied to repay the revenue bonds that are not directly
related to the construction, operation, maintenance, and replacement
of the facility.
   (c) Except for the fee imposed by Chapter 8 (commencing with
Section 79670), as required by Chapter 10 (commencing with Section
11900) of Part 3 of Division 6, any costs incurred in developing,
constructing, or operating the facility for the enhancement of fish
and wildlife or the development of public recreation shall not be
charged to the contractors and shall be nonreimbursable costs.
   (d) The authority shall impose a fee for the transmission of water
through the facility sufficient to pay for all of the following:
   (1) The repayment of the revenue bond issues pursuant to
subdivision (a).
   (2) The operation and maintenance of the facility.
   (3) The salaries and other ongoing expenses of the joint powers
authority described in subdivision (h) of Section 79610 and the
authority.
   (4) The annual audits required by Section 79630.
   (5) The costs imposed on the authority by local, state and federal
agencies, and the courts.
   (6) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, the
moneys generated pursuant to this section are hereby continuously
appropriated to the authority, without regard to fiscal years, for
purposes of this section.
   79623.  (a) The authority may contract to construct, own, and
operate a facility to relocate the intake of the North Bay Aqueduct
to the Sacramento River. That facility may also convey water for
local water agencies that can reasonably be served from the facility,
including, but not limited to, the City of Davis. The North Bay
Aqueduct replacement shall be considered part of the facility.
   (b) The authority shall serve as the lead agency for conducting
environmental studies for the North Bay Relocation Facility pursuant
to the California Environmental Quality Act.
   (c) The authority shall contract to construct the North Bay
Relocation Facility, subject to contracts with participating agencies
to repay the authority's costs.
   79624.  (a) The authority shall adopt or reject, by majority vote,
each decision made by the Delta Watershed Conservancy within 60 days
of that decision.
   (b) The authority shall adopt or reject, by majority vote, each
land use decision made by the Delta Protection Commission that is
made pursuant to the authority granted to that commission pursuant to
Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 79650), within 60 days of that
decision. The authority shall not review decisions that are made by
the Delta Protection Commission pursuant to authority granted by
other than that chapter.
   (c) The authority shall adopt or reject, by majority vote, all
design, construction, and operational decisions made by the joint
powers authority described in subdivision (h) of Section 79610.
   79626.  The authority may receive grants or gifts from public
agencies, private entities, or individuals for the purposes of this
division.
   79628.  The authority shall be represented by the Attorney General
in any litigation, and shall reimburse the Attorney General for any
costs incurred.
   79630.  (a) The Auditor General shall audit the authority
annually, and shall be reimbursed by the authority for the audit. The
Auditor General shall report the findings of the audit to the
Legislature and the Governor, and shall make the results of the audit
available to the public by posting that information on its Internet
Web site.
   (b) The Legislature may appropriate funds for an independent audit
of the authority.
   79632.  Venue for any litigation brought concerning the
construction or operation of the facility implemented pursuant to
this division shall be the Superior Court of Sacramento County.
   79634.  (a) The authority shall prepare plans and take actions to
address near-term water supply reliability needs in the delta. Those
actions shall include actions to ensure that urban and agricultural
water supplies derived from or crossing the delta, including water
supplies within the delta to support beneficial uses, are not
disrupted because of catastrophic failures of the delta levees
resulting from earthquakes, floods, land sinking, rising ocean
levels, or other forces. The actions shall include projects to
improve the reliability and emergency preparedness of water supplies
for public health and safety by interconnecting existing critical
water supply aqueducts that serve public health and safety needs and
cross multiple delta islands.
   (b) The authority shall enter into a memorandum of understanding
with the department to enhance the department's ability to respond to
levee breaches and to reduce the potential for levee failure. The
memorandum shall address all of the following:
   (1) The acquisition and positioning of emergency construction
materials and equipment.
   (2) Emergency projects to prevent levee failure or repair levees
or other flood control facilities to restore conveyance and flood
protection.
   (3) The preparation and implementation of a delta emergency
operations plan.
   (4) Emergency contracts for activities relating to a flood fight
or levee failure to prevent or mitigate loss of, or damage to, life,
health, property, or essential public services.
   (c) For the purposes of implementing this section, priority shall
be given to the improvement of flood protection for vital public
water supplies by protecting critical water supply aqueducts that
serve public health and safety needs and cross multiple delta
islands. To achieve improvements expeditiously, the authority may
make advance funding commitments for this work under agreements with
an agency that is capable of carrying out the work to protect water
supply infrastructure.
   (d) Actions required by this section shall be financed from funds
generated by the issuance of general obligation bonds pursuant to
this division.
      CHAPTER 4.  DELTA WATERSHED CONSERVANCY


   79640.  (a) There is hereby established within the California
Coastal Conservancy the Delta Watershed Conservancy consisting of
five members appointed by the Governor.
   (b) The Delta Watershed Conservancy shall serve as the land
purchasing agent for the authority for environmental and restoration
purposes.
   79642.  (a) The Delta Water Conservancy may expend funds, as
allocated in accordance with this chapter to the conservancy by the
authority from the fund established pursuant to Section 79670 for
that purpose, to implement projects and programs, within the
watershed of the bay-delta and the watershed of the Trinity River, to
restore and enhance the bay-delta ecosystem and improve water
quality.
   (b) The Delta Watershed Conservancy shall establish bay-delta
ecosystem restoration goals and prepare a plan to achieve those
goals. The goals and plan shall be updated at least every 10 years.
The goals shall include all of the following:
   (1) Restoration of listed and candidate species pursuant to the
California Endangered Species Act (Chapter 1.5 (commencing with
Section 2050) of Division 3 of the Fish and Game Code), and the
federal Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1531 et seq.), with
the goal of allowing populations of listed and candidate species to
become large and stable enough so that they no longer need be listed,
or be considered for listing.
   (2) Restoration and expansion of wetlands.
   (3) Restoration of anadromous and other native fish species, by
providing improved and expanded spawning, rearing, and migration
route habitat.
   (4) Restoration of riparian habitat.
   (5) Restoration of islands in the delta by growing vegetation,
thereby reducing the production of greenhouse gas emissions.
   (6) Creation of carbon mitigation programs in the primary zone, as
defined in Section 29728 of the Public Resources Code, to reduce or
eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from delta islands and farms in
accordance with Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the
Health and Safety Code.
   (7) Other biological restoration programs.
   79643.  (a) Funds generated for capital outlay projects by the
issuance of general obligation bonds pursuant to this division, and
fees generated pursuant to Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 79670),
shall be expended for ecosystem restoration activities identified in
the Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force, December 14, 2007, report,
"Foundation Concepts and Initial Activities for Restoring the Delta
Ecosystem," to be prioritized by the Delta Watershed Conservancy, as
follows:
   (1) Restore the tidal marsh in Cache Slough complex.
   (2) Restore the tidal marsh in Suisun.
   (3) Conserve the Cache Slough-Suisun ecological corridor.
   (4) Enhance the Yolo Bypass.
   (5) Enhance the Mokelumne and Cosumnes floodplains linked to tidal
restoration.
   (6) Restore the tidal marsh at Dutch Slough.
   (7) Evaluate and implement, if appropriate, a project to reconnect
Elk Slough to the Sacramento River.
   (8) Manage the Elk, Sutter, and Steamboat Sloughs for salmon
passage and fish habitats.
   (9) Provide matching funds to improve wildlife-friendly
agriculture.
   (10) Evaluate the potential for a lower San Joaquin River
floodplain and, if viable, implement.
   (11) Establish a passage route for migratory fish, particularly
salmonids, from Vernalis to Chipps Island.
   (12) Conserve lowland grasslands.
   (13) Increase late winter and early spring San Joaquin flows for
fish.
   (14) Restore the tidal marsh in Fabian-Union-Middle Roberts
complex.
   (b) Other actions that may be financed from the funds described in
subdivision (a) include actions to accomplish all of the following:
   (1) The control of invasive species.
   (2) Increase spring delta outflows.
   (3) Increase fall delta outflows.
   (4) Implement short-term conveyance enhancements to reduce delta
ecology problems such as entrainment.
   (5) Provide funds for cost sharing for subsidence reversal and
carbon sequestration wetlands at Sherman, Twitchell, and Jersey
Islands.
   (6) Reduce contaminant loadings.
   (7) Experiment with targeted salinity intrusions to control
invasive species and promote fish populations.
   (8) Install screened diversions where determined beneficial by
fish biologists.
   (9) Replace earthen portions of railroad with a causeway across
the Yolo Pass.
   79644.  (a) The Delta Watershed Conservancy shall consult with any
successor to the California Bay-Delta Authority, and the agencies
that participated in that authority, to avoid duplication, and
increase the effectiveness of expenditures under this division.
   (b) The Delta Watershed Conservancy shall consider the objectives
and functions of the CALFED Bay-Delta Program in developing its
expenditure plan under this division.
   79646.  The Delta Watershed Conservancy shall not, by itself,
carry out construction or ecosystem restoration programs financed by
this division, but shall award grants and contracts to public
agencies and nonprofit organizations, including local conservation
corps, to carry out these programs.
   79648.  Only funds reserved for capital outlay projects may be
expended to purchase water rights for the environment and other
beneficial uses for the purpose of this chapter.
      CHAPTER 5.  DELTA PROTECTION COMMISSION


   79650.  Any approval of development by a city or county in the
primary and secondary zones of the delta shall not be effective
unless approved by the Delta Protection Commission. For the purposes
of this chapter and except as otherwise provided, the "primary and
secondary zones" refers to the zones described in Sections 29728 and
29731 of the Public Resources Code.
   79651.  The Delta Protection Commission shall not approve any
development that is not necessary to maintain agricultural or habitat
protection land uses in the primary and secondary zones of the delta
below two feet above mean sea level. Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, these zones include lands adjacent to, but not
within, the delta if the commission determines that any of the
following applies:
   (a) The proposed development would result in a threat to the
safety of those living or working in the development.
   (b) The proposed development would result in damage or destruction
in the case of flooding or seismic activity.
   (c) The proposed development would make flood control or
management in the delta more difficult.
      CHAPTER 6.  DELTA LAND MANAGEMENT


   79655.  No public agency, including any state agency, shall manage
agricultural lands they own within the delta in a way that results
in a reduction in the elevation of those islands. All public agencies
owning land in the delta shall manage those lands to improve habitat
values, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
      CHAPTER 7.  DELTA SCIENCE ADVISORY PANEL


   79660.  (a) There is in the authority a Delta Science Advisory
Panel consisting of scientists selected by the board in accordance
with this section. The scientists shall have knowledge of hydrology,
geomorphology, biology, climatology, economics, soils and civil
engineering, seismology, geology, or other disciplines relevant to
the management of the bay-delta watershed, as determined by the
board.
   (b) The Delta Science Advisory Panel shall have no more than 11
members, and shall include, but not be limited to, employed or
retired scientists from federal and state agencies not having major
project or regulatory authority over the delta, the University of
California, the California State University, and nongovernmental
organizations.
   (c) (1) The board shall select the panel members from a list of
nominees provided by the Director of the University of California
Center for Water Resources and the Director of the United States
Geologic Survey office in Sacramento.
   (2) Panel members shall serve three-year terms. The panel members
shall select the chairperson of the panel.
                                (d) (1) The Delta Science Advisory
Panel shall hold public meetings and prepare an annual report for
submission to the authority on scientific issues related to the
delta.
   (2) The Delta Science Advisory Panel shall include in the report
scientific and technical findings regarding the management of the
delta and recommended actions of the authority, an identification of
short-term and long-term matters for research, and a description of
the relevance of these matters to the design, management, and
operations of the facility.
   (3) The report shall include a discussion relating to the design,
construction, and operation of the facility given scientific
knowledge regarding possible ways to improve water quality, ecosystem
restoration, and methods to improve efficiency of water deliveries
to water users.
   (4) The authority shall consider, and adopt where feasible and
practical, changes in the design, construction, and operation that,
in its judgment, would better utilize the scientific information
provided by the Delta Science Advisory Panel.
   (e) For the first 10 years of operation, up to 10 percent of the
authority's budget shall be devoted to the implementation of a delta
solutions program devoted to scientific and technical work. The
program shall be designed in consultation with the Delta Science
Advisory Panel.
      CHAPTER 8.  CLEAN DRINKING WATER, WATER QUALITY IMPROVEMENT,
ENVIRONMENTAL ENHANCEMENT, AND WATER SUPPLY DISASTER PREVENTION FUND


   79670.  (a) (1) There is hereby established the Clean Drinking
Water, Water Quality Improvement, and Environmental Enhancement Fund.

   (2) The authority shall impose a fee, not to exceed fifty dollars
($50) per acre-foot of water transmitted through the facility, on all
affected federal and state contractors, and any affected local water
agency. The fee shall be increased annually in accordance with the
California Consumer Price Index. Upon commencement of operation of
the facility, the fee shall be imposed on water pumped from the delta
by the State Water Resources Development System and the federal
Central Valley Project without regard to whether the water is
conveyed through the facility.
   (3) The authority may impose a fee of five dollars ($5) per
acre-foot on water agencies that divert water upstream of the delta,
that, under existing state or federal laws, are not otherwise
required to pay mitigation fees for impacts on ecological functions
of the delta that are caused by their diversions.
   (b) Funds generated by the imposition of fees pursuant to this
chapter shall be deposited in the fund.
   (c) The proceeds of bonds issued and sold pursuant to Chapter 9
(commencing with Section 79680) shall be deposited in the fund. These
proceeds may only be expended for capital outlay projects in
accordance with this division. No more than 10 percent of these
proceeds may be expended in any fiscal year for the purposes of
Section 79634.
   (d) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, the
moneys in the fund are hereby continuously appropriated, without
regard to fiscal years, to the authority for expenditure in
accordance with this division.
   (e) Funds generated from the fee imposed by this section shall not
be expended to pay for any action authorized by this division unless
the authority finds that the action mitigates impacts caused by the
use of water by water users subject to the fee.
      CHAPTER 9.  FISCAL PROVISIONS


   79685.  (a) Bonds in the total amount of four billion dollars
($4,000,000,000), not including the amount of any refunding bonds
issued in accordance with Section 79697, or so much thereof as is
necessary, may be issued and sold to provide a fund to be used for
carrying out the purposes expressed in this division and to reimburse
the General Obligation Bond Expense Revolving Fund pursuant to
Section 16724.5 of the Government Code. The bonds, when sold, shall
be and constitute valid and binding obligations of the State of
California, and the full faith and credit of the State of California
is hereby pledged for the punctual payment of both the principal of,
and interest on, the bonds as the principal and interest become due
and payable.
   (b) The Treasurer shall sell the bonds authorized by the committee
pursuant to this section. The bonds shall be sold upon the terms and
conditions specified in a resolution to be adopted by the committee
pursuant to Section 16731 of the Government Code.
   79686.  The bonds authorized by this division shall be prepared,
executed, issued, sold, paid, and redeemed as provided in the State
General Obligation Bond Law, and all of the provisions of that law
apply to the bonds and to this division and are hereby incorporated
in this division as though set forth in full in this division.
   79687.  (a) Solely for the purpose of authorizing the issuance and
sale, pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law, of the
bonds authorized by this division, the Sacramento-San Joaquin River
Delta Finance Committee is hereby created. For the purposes of this
division, the Sacramento San Joaquin River Delta Finance Committee is
"the committee" as that term is used in the State General Obligation
Bond Law.
   (b) The committee consists of the Director of Finance, the
Treasurer, and the Controller. Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, any member may designate a deputy to act as that member in his
or her place for all purposes, as though the member were personally
present.
   (c) The Treasurer shall serve as chairperson of the committee.
   (d) A majority of the members of the committee shall constitute a
quorum of the committee, and may act for the committee.
   79688.  The committee shall determine whether or not it is
necessary or desirable to issue bonds authorized pursuant to this
division to carry out the actions specified in this division and, if
so, the amount of bonds to be issued and sold. Successive issues of
bonds may be authorized and sold to carry out those actions
progressively, and it is not necessary that all of the bonds
authorized to be issued be sold at any one time.
   79689.  "Board," as defined in Section 16722 of the Government
Code for the purposes of compliance with the State General Obligation
Bond Law, means the department.
   79690.  There shall be collected each year and in the same manner
and at the same time as other state revenue is collected, in addition
to the ordinary revenues of the state, a sum in an amount required
to pay the principal of, and interest on, the bonds each year, and it
is the duty of all officers charged by law with any duty in regard
to the collection of the revenue to do and perform each and every act
which is necessary to collect that additional sum.
   79691.  Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code,
there is hereby appropriated from the General Fund in the State
Treasury, for the purposes of this division, an amount that will
equal the total of the following:
   (a) The sum annually necessary to pay the principal of, and
interest on, bonds issued and sold pursuant to this division, as the
principal and interest become due and payable.
   (b) The sum that is necessary to carry out the provisions of
Section 79694, appropriated without regard to fiscal years.
   79692.  The board may request the Pooled Money Investment Board to
make a loan from the Pooled Money Investment Account in accordance
with Section 16312 of the Government Code for the purpose of carrying
out this division. The amount of the request shall not exceed the
amount of the unsold bonds that the committee has, by resolution,
authorized to be sold for the purpose of carrying out this division.
The board shall execute those documents required by the Pooled Money
Investment Board to obtain and repay the loan. Any amounts loaned
shall be deposited in the fund to be allocated in accordance with
this division.
   79693.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this division, or
of the State General Obligation Bond Law, if the Treasurer sells
bonds that include a bond counsel opinion to the effect that the
interest on the bonds is excluded from gross income for federal tax
purposes under designated conditions, the Treasurer may maintain
separate accounts for the bond proceeds invested and for the
investment earnings on those proceeds, and may use or direct the use
of those proceeds or earnings to pay any rebate, penalty, or other
payment required under federal law or take any other action with
respect to the investment and use of those bond proceeds, as may be
required or desirable under federal law in order to maintain the
tax-exempt status of those bonds and to obtain any other advantage
under federal law on behalf of the funds of this state.
   79694.  For the purposes of carrying out this division, the
Director of Finance may authorize the withdrawal from the General
Fund of an amount or amounts not to exceed the amount of the unsold
bonds that have been authorized by the committee to be sold for the
purpose of carrying out this division. Any amounts withdrawn shall be
deposited in the fund. Any money made available under this section
shall be returned to the General Fund, with interest at the rate
earned by the money in the Pooled Money Investment Account, from
proceeds received from the sale of bonds for the purpose of carrying
out this division.
   79695.  All money deposited in the fund that is derived from
premiums and accrued interest on bonds sold pursuant to this division
shall be reserved in the fund and shall be available for transfer to
the General Fund as a credit to expenditures for bond interest.
   79696.  Pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 16720) of
Part 3 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code, the cost of
bond issuance shall be paid out of the bond proceeds. These costs
shall be shared proportionately by each program funded through this
division.
   79697.  The bonds issued and sold pursuant to this division may be
refunded in accordance with Article 6 (commencing with Section
16780) of Chapter 4 of Part 3 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the
Government Code, which is a part of the State General Obligation Bond
Law. Approval by the electors of the state for the issuance of the
bonds under this division shall include approval of the issuance of
any bonds issued to refund any bonds originally issued under this
division or any previously issued refunding bonds.
   79698.  The Legislature hereby finds and declares that, inasmuch
as the proceeds from the sale of bonds authorized by this division
are not "proceeds of taxes" as that term is used in Article XIII B of
the California Constitution, the disbursement of these proceeds is
not subject to the limitations imposed by that article. 
   SEC. 2.    Section 1 of this act shall be submitted
to the voters at the November 4, 2008, statewide general election in
accordance with provisions of the Government Code and the Elections
Code governing the submission of a statewide measure to the voters.

   SEC. 3.    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, all ballots of the election shall have printed thereon and in a
square thereof, the words: "Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta Clean
Drinking Water, Water Supply Security, and Environmental Improvement
Act of 2008" and in the same square under those words, the following
in 8-point type: "This act provides for a bond issue of four billion
dollars ($4,000,000,000) to provide funds to substantially improve
drinking water quality, enhance the environment, and prevent
disasters from interrupting California's major water supply." 

   (b) Opposite the square, there shall be left spaces in which the
voters may mark the ballot in the manner required by law to indicate
whether they vote for or against the act.  
   (c) Where voting in the election is done by means of voting
machines used pursuant to law in a manner that carries out the intent
of this section, the use of the voting machines and the expression
of the voters' choice by means thereof are in compliance with this
section. 
   SEC. 4.    Notwithstanding Sections 13247 and 13281
of the Elections Code, the language in Section 3 shall be the only
language included in the ballot label for the condensed statement of
the ballot title, and the Attorney General shall not supplement,
subtract from, or revise that language, except that the Attorney
General may include the financial impact summary prepared pursuant to
Section 9087 of the Elections Code and Section 88003 of the
Government Code. The ballot label is the condensed statement of the
ballot title and the financial impact summary. 
   SEC. 5.    Section 1 of this act shall become
operative only if both of the following occur: 
   (a) Senate Constitutional Amendment 2 of the 2007-08 Regular
Session is submitted to and approved by the voters at the November 4,
2008, statewide general election.  
   (b) The voters approve the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta
Clean Drinking Water, Water Supply Security, and Environmental
Improvement Act of 2008, as set forth in Section 1 of this act. 
All matter omitted in this version of the bill appears in the bill
as amended in Senate, April 24, 2007 (JR11)