BILL NUMBER: SB 821 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 11, 2007
INTRODUCED BY Senator Kuehl
FEBRUARY 23, 2007
An act to amend Section 66473.7 of , and to add Section
65852.10 to, the Government Code, relating to land use.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 821, as amended, Kuehl. Land use: water supplies.
(1) Under existing law, the Subdivision Map Act prohibits approval
of a tentative map, or a parcel map for which a tentative map was
not required, or a development agreement for a subdivision of
property of more than 500 dwelling units, except as specified,
including the design of the subdivision or the type of improvement,
unless the legislative body of a city or county or the designated
advisory agency provides written verification from the applicable
public water system that a sufficient water supply is available or,
in addition, a specified finding is made by the local agency that
sufficient water supplies are, or will be, available prior to
completion of the project. Under these provisions, "subdivision"
means a proposed residential development of more than 500 dwelling
units, except as specified.
This bill would reduce the number of dwelling units to 250 or
more. By this reduction , the bill would increase the
duties of local planning officials and, thereby, impose a
state-mandated local program.
(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
This bill would also establish these same sufficient water supply
requirements as a condition in any entitlement for a project, as
defined.
(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 65852.10 is added to the
Government Code , to read:
65852.10. (a) As used in this section, the following definitions
apply:
(1) "Entitlement" means a permit, use permit, conditional use
permit, special use permit, or building permit, whether discretionary
or ministerial, issued by a local agency for the construction of a
project, or a development agreement authorized pursuant to Article
2.5 (commencing with Section 65864).
(2) "Local agency" means a city, including a charter city, a
county, and a city and county.
(3) "Project" means all of the following:
(A) A proposed shopping center or business establishment employing
more than 1,000 persons or having more than 500,000 square feet of
floor space.
(B) A proposed commercial office building employing more than
1,000 persons or having more than 250,000 square feet of floor space.
(C) A proposed hotel or motel, or both, having more than 500
rooms.
(D) A proposed industrial, manufacturing, or processing plant, or
industrial park planned to house more than 1,000 persons, occupying
more than 40 acres of land, or having more than 650,000 square feet
of floor area.
(E) A mixed-use project that includes one or more of the projects
specified in this paragraph.
(F) A project that would demand an amount of water equivalent to,
or greater than, the amount of water required by 500 dwelling units.
(4) "Public water system" means the water supplier that is, or may
become as a result of serving the project pursuant to subdivision
(b), a public water system, as defined in Section 10912 of the Water
Code, that may supply water for a project.
(5) "Sufficient water supply" means the total water supplies
available during normal, single-dry, and multiple-dry years within a
20-year projection that will meet the projected demand associated
with the proposed project, in addition to existing and planned future
uses, including, but not limited to, agricultural and industrial
uses. In determining "sufficient water supply," all of the following
factors shall be considered:
(A) The availability of water supplies over a historical record of
at least 20 years.
(B) The applicability of an urban water shortage contingency
analysis prepared pursuant to Section 10632 of the Water Code that
includes actions to be undertaken by the public water system in
response to water supply shortages.
(C) The reduction in water supply allocated to a specific water
use sector pursuant to a resolution or ordinance adopted, or a
contract entered into, by the public water system, as long as that
resolution, ordinance, or contract does not conflict with Section 354
of the Water Code.
(D) The amount of water that the water supplier can reasonably
rely on receiving from other water supply projects, such as
conjunctive use, reclaimed water, water conservation, and water
transfer, including programs identified under federal, state, and
local water initiatives such as CALFED and Colorado River tentative
agreements, to the extent that these water supplies meet the criteria
of subdivision (d).
(b) (1) A local agency shall include, as a condition in any
entitlement for a project, a requirement that a sufficient water
supply be available. Proof of the availability of a sufficient water
supply shall be requested by the applicant or local agency, at the
discretion of the local agency, and shall be based on written
verification from the applicable public water system within 90 days
of a request.
(2) If the public water system fails to deliver the written
verification as required by this section, the local agency or any
other interested party may seek a writ of mandamus to compel the
public water system to comply.
(3) If the written verification provided by the applicable public
water system indicates that the public water system is unable to
provide a sufficient water supply that will meet the projected demand
associated with the proposed project, then the local agency may make
a finding, after consideration of the written verification by the
applicable public water system, that additional water supplies not
accounted for by the public water system are, or will be, available
prior to completion of the project that will satisfy the requirements
of this section. This finding shall be made on the record and
supported by substantial evidence.
(4) If the written verification is not provided by the public
water system, notwithstanding the local agency or other interested
party securing a writ of mandamus to compel compliance with this
section, then the local agency may make a finding that sufficient
water supplies are, or will be, available prior to completion of the
project that will satisfy the requirements of this section. This
finding shall be made on the record and supported by substantial
evidence.
(c) The applicable public water system's written verification of
its ability or inability to provide a sufficient water supply that
will meet the projected demand associated with the proposed project
as required by subdivision (b) shall be supported by substantial
evidence. The substantial evidence may include, but is not limited
to, any of the following:
(1) The public water system's most recently adopted urban water
management plan adopted pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section
10610) of Division 6 of the Water Code.
(2) A water supply assessment that was completed pursuant to Part
2.10 (commencing with Section 10910) of Division 6 of the Water Code.
(3) Other information relating to the sufficiency of the water
supply that contains analytical information that is substantially
similar to the assessment required by Section 10635 of the Water
Code.
(d) When the written verification pursuant to subdivision (b)
relies on projected water supplies that are not currently available
to the public water system to provide a sufficient water supply to
the project, the written verification as to those projected water
supplies shall be based on all of the following elements, to the
extent each is applicable:
(1) Written contracts or other proof of valid rights to the
identified water supply that identify the terms and conditions under
which the water will be available to serve the proposed project.
(2) Copies of a capital outlay program for financing the delivery
of a sufficient water supply that has been adopted by the applicable
governing body.
(3) Securing of applicable federal, state, and local permits for
construction of necessary infrastructure associated with supplying a
sufficient water supply.
(4) Any necessary regulatory approvals that are required in order
to be able to convey or deliver a sufficient water supply to the
project.
(e) If there is no public water system, the local agency shall
make a written finding of sufficient water supply based on the
evidentiary requirements of subdivisions (c) and (d) and identify the
mechanism for providing water to the project.
(f) In making any findings or determinations under this section, a
local agency, or designated advisory agency, may work in conjunction
with the project applicant and the public water system to secure
water supplies sufficient to satisfy the demands of the proposed
project. If the local agency secures water supplies pursuant to this
subdivision, which supplies are acceptable to and approved by the
governing body of the public water system as suitable for delivery to
customers, it shall work in conjunction with the public water system
to implement a plan to deliver that water supply to satisfy the
long-term demands of the proposed project.
(g) The written verification prepared under this section shall
also include a description, to the extent that data is reasonably
available based on published records maintained by federal and state
agencies, and public records of local agencies, of the reasonably
foreseeable impacts of the proposed project on the availability of
water resources for agricultural and industrial uses within the
public water system's service area that are not currently receiving
water from the public water system but are utilizing the same sources
of water. To the extent that those reasonably foreseeable impacts
have previously been evaluated in a document prepared pursuant to the
California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with
Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code) or the National
Environmental Policy Act (Public Law 91-190) for the proposed
project, the public water system may utilize that information in
preparing the written verification.
(h) When a water supply for a proposed project includes
groundwater, the public water system serving the proposed project
shall evaluate, based on substantial evidence, the extent to which it
or the landowner has the right to extract the additional groundwater
needed to supply the proposed project. Nothing in this subdivision
is intended to modify state law with regard to groundwater rights.
(i) This section shall not apply to any residential subdivision or
mixed-use project proposed for a site that is within an urbanized
area and has been previously developed for urban uses, or where the
immediate contiguous properties surrounding the residential
subdivision or mixed-use project site are, or previously have been,
developed for urban uses, or housing projects that are exclusively
for very low and low-income households.
(j) The determinations made pursuant to this section shall be
consistent with the obligation of a public water system to grant a
priority for the provision of available and future water resources or
services to proposed housing developments that help meet the city's
or county's share of the regional housing needs for lower income
households, pursuant to Section 65589.7.
(k) Nothing in this section shall preclude the legislative body of
a city, county, or city and county, or the designated advisory
agency, at the request of the applicant, from making the
determinations required in this section earlier than required
pursuant to subdivision (b).
(l) Nothing in this section shall be construed to create a right
or entitlement to water service or any specific level of water
service.
(m) Nothing in this section is intended to change existing law
concerning a public water system's obligation to provide water
service to its existing customers or to any potential future
customers.
(n) The Legislature finds and declares that the availability of
sufficient water supplies is a matter of statewide concern and not a
municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of
the California Constitution. Accordingly, this section applies to
every city, including a charter city, county, and city and county.
SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature
to include commercial and industrial developments in the provisions
of Section 66473.7 of the Government Code.
SEC. 2. Section 66473.7 of the Government Code is amended to read:
66473.7. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following
definitions apply:
(1) "Subdivision" means a proposed residential development of more
than 250 dwelling units, except that for a public water system that
has fewer than 5,000 service connections, "subdivision" means any
proposed residential development that would account for an increase
of 10 percent or more in the number of the public water system's
existing service connections.
(2) "Sufficient water supply" means the total water supplies
available during normal, single-dry, and multiple-dry years within a
20-year projection that will meet the projected demand associated
with the proposed subdivision, in addition to existing and planned
future uses, including, but not limited to, agricultural and
industrial uses. In determining "sufficient water supply," all of the
following factors shall be considered:
(A) The availability of water supplies over a historical record of
at least 20 years.
(B) The applicability of an urban water shortage contingency
analysis prepared pursuant to Section 10632 of the Water Code that
includes actions to be undertaken by the public water system in
response to water supply shortages.
(C) The reduction in water supply allocated to a specific water
use sector pursuant to a resolution or ordinance adopted, or a
contract entered into, by the public water system, as long as that
resolution, ordinance, or contract does not conflict with Section 354
of the Water Code.
(D) The amount of water that the water supplier can reasonably
rely on receiving from other water supply projects, such as
conjunctive use, reclaimed water, water conservation, and water
transfer, including programs identified under federal, state, and
local water initiatives such as CALFED and Colorado River tentative
agreements, to the extent that these water supplies meet the criteria
of subdivision (d).
(3) "Public water system" means the water supplier that is, or may
become as a result of servicing the subdivision included in a
tentative map pursuant to subdivision (b), a public water system, as
defined in Section 10912 of the Water Code, that may supply water for
a subdivision.
(b) (1) The legislative body of a city or county or the advisory
agency, to the extent that it is authorized by local ordinance to
approve, conditionally approve, or disapprove the tentative map,
shall include as a condition in any tentative map that includes a
subdivision a requirement that a sufficient water supply shall be
available. Proof of the availability of a sufficient water supply
shall be requested by the subdivision applicant or local agency, at
the discretion of the local agency, and shall be based on written
verification from the applicable public water system within 90 days
of a request.
(2) If the public water system fails to deliver the written
verification as required by this section, the local agency or any
other interested party may seek a writ of mandamus to compel the
public water system to comply.
(3) If the written verification provided by the applicable public
water system indicates that the public water system is unable to
provide a sufficient water supply that will meet the projected demand
associated with the proposed subdivision, then the local agency may
make a finding, after consideration of the written verification by
the applicable public water system, that additional water supplies
not accounted for by the public water system are, or will be,
available prior to completion of the subdivision that will satisfy
the requirements of this section. This finding shall be made on the
record and supported by substantial evidence.
(4) If the written verification is not provided by the public
water system, notwithstanding the local agency or other interested
party securing a writ of mandamus to compel compliance with this
section, then the local agency may make a finding that sufficient
water supplies are, or will be, available prior to completion of the
subdivision that will satisfy the requirements of this section. This
finding shall be made on the record and supported by substantial
evidence.
(c) The applicable public water system's written verification of
its ability or inability to provide a sufficient water supply that
will meet the projected demand associated with the proposed
subdivision as required by subdivision (b) shall be supported by
substantial evidence. The substantial evidence may include, but is
not limited to, any of the following:
(1) The public water system's most recently adopted urban water
management plan adopted pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section
10610) of Division 6 of the Water Code.
(2) A water supply assessment that was completed pursuant to Part
2.10 (commencing with Section 10910) of Division 6 of the Water Code.
(3) Other information relating to the sufficiency of the water
supply that contains analytical information that is substantially
similar to the assessment required by Section 10635 of the Water
Code.
(d) When the written verification pursuant to subdivision (b)
relies on projected water supplies that are not currently available
to the public water system, to provide a sufficient water supply to
the subdivision, the written verification as to those projected water
supplies shall be based on all of the following elements, to the
extent each is applicable:
(1) Written contracts or other proof of valid rights to the
identified water supply that identify the terms and conditions under
which the water will be available to serve the proposed subdivision.
(2) Copies of a capital outlay program for financing the delivery
of a sufficient water supply that has been adopted by the applicable
governing body.
(3) Securing of applicable federal, state, and local permits for
construction of necessary infrastructure associated with supplying a
sufficient water supply.
(4) Any necessary regulatory approvals that are required in order
to be able to convey or deliver a sufficient water supply to the
subdivision.
(e) If there is no public water system, the local agency shall
make a written finding of sufficient water supply based on the
evidentiary requirements of subdivisions (c) and (d) and identify the
mechanism for providing water to the subdivision.
(f) In making any findings or determinations under this section, a
local agency, or designated advisory agency, may work in conjunction
with the project applicant and the public water system to secure
water supplies sufficient to satisfy the demands of the proposed
subdivision. If the local agency secures water supplies pursuant to
this subdivision, which supplies are acceptable to and approved by
the governing body of the public water system as suitable for
delivery to customers, it shall work in conjunction with the public
water system to implement a plan to deliver that water supply to
satisfy the long-term demands of the proposed subdivision.
(g) The written verification prepared under this section shall
also include a description, to the extent that data is reasonably
available based on published records maintained by federal and state
agencies, and public records of local agencies, of the reasonably
foreseeable impacts of the proposed subdivision on the availability
of water resources for agricultural and industrial uses within the
public water system's service area that are not currently receiving
water from the public water system but are utilizing the same sources
of water. To the extent that those reasonably foreseeable impacts
have previously been evaluated in a document prepared pursuant to the
California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with
Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code) or the National
Environmental Policy Act (Public Law 91-190) for the proposed
subdivision, the public water system may utilize that information in
preparing the written verification.
(h) Where a water supply for a proposed subdivision includes
groundwater, the public water system serving the proposed subdivision
shall evaluate, based on substantial evidence, the extent to which
it or the landowner has the right to extract the additional
groundwater needed to supply the proposed subdivision. Nothing in
this subdivision is intended to modify state law with regard to
groundwater rights.
(i) This section shall not apply to any residential project
proposed for a site that is within an urbanized area and has been
previously developed for urban uses, or where the immediate
contiguous properties surrounding the residential project site are,
or previously have been, developed for urban uses, or housing
projects that are exclusively for very low and low-income households.
(j) The determinations made pursuant to this section shall be
consistent with the obligation of a public water system to grant a
priority for the provision of available and future water resources or
services to proposed housing developments that help meet the city's
or county's share of the regional housing needs for lower income
households, pursuant to Section 65589.7.
(k) The County of San Diego shall be deemed to comply with this
section if the Office of Planning and Research determines that all of
the following conditions have been met:
(1) A regional growth management strategy that provides for a
comprehensive regional strategy and a coordinated economic
development and growth management program has been developed pursuant
to Proposition C as approved by the voters of the County of San
Diego in November 1988, which required the development of a regional
growth management plan and directed the establishment of a regional
planning and growth management review board.
(2) Each public water system, as defined in Section 10912 of the
Water Code, within the County of San Diego has adopted an urban water
management plan pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 10610)
of the Water Code.
(3) The approval or conditional approval of tentative maps for
subdivisions, as defined in this section, by the County of San Diego
and the cities within the county requires written communications to
be made by the public water system to the city or county, in a format
and with content that is substantially similar to the requirements
contained in this section, with regard to the availability of a
sufficient water supply, or the reliance on projected water supplies
to provide a sufficient water supply, for a proposed subdivision.
() Nothing in this section shall preclude the legislative body of
a city or county, or the designated advisory agency, at the request
of the applicant, from making the determinations required in this
section earlier than required pursuant to subdivision (b).
(m) Nothing in this section shall be construed to create a right
or entitlement to water service or any specific level of water
service.
(n) Nothing in this section is intended to change existing law
concerning a public water system's obligation to provide water
service to its existing customers or to any potential future
customers.
(o) Any action challenging the sufficiency of the public water
system's written verification of a sufficient water supply shall be
governed by Section 66499.37.
SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates
determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs
shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of
Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act
pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution because a local agency or school district has the
authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to
pay for the program or level of service mandated by this act, within
the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code.