BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1774
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Date of Hearing: March 23, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS AND WILDLIFE
Jared William Huffman, Chair
AB 1774 (Saldana) - As Amended: March 16, 2010
SUBJECT : Recycled water
SUMMARY : Makes the use of potable water for landscaping an
unreasonable use of water if recycled water is available and
allows public agencies to require the use of recycled water for
the irrigation of landscaping by a state agency.
Specifically, this bill :
1.Makes the existing declaration, that the use of potable water
for residential landscaping is unreasonable if recycled water
is available, applicable to landscaping generally.
2.Allows any public agency, including a state or local agency,
to require the use of recycled water for irrigation of
landscaping by a state agency if certain requirements are met,
including that the recycled water is available at the same or
less cost than potable water.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Recognizes the need to develop recycled water supplies to
supplement existing surface and groundwater supplies in order
to meet future state water needs.
2)Declares the use of potable domestic water for nonpotable
uses, including cemeteries, golf courses, parks, highway
landscaped areas, and industrial and irrigation uses is an
unreasonable use of water if recycled water is available which
meets specified quality, cost, and health requirements.
3)Allows any public agency, including a state or local agency,
to require the use of recycled water for residential
landscaping if recycled water is available which meets
specified quality, cost, and health requirements.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS : Nine years ago AB 331 (Goldberg) required the
AB 1774
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Department of Water Resources to convene a task force to look at
ways to increase the use of recycled water in order to meet the
Legislature's adopted goal of recycling one million acre-feet by
the year 2010. Their 2003 Report, Water Recycling 2030:
Recommendations of California's Recycled Water Task Force,
recognized that California has the ability to recycle up to 1.5
million acre feet of water per year, yielding about 1.2 million
acre feet of new water.
SBX7-7 (Steinberg), passed last year, requires all agencies to
reduce their potable water use 20% by 2020. Using recycled
water for landscape irrigation can be a relatively inexpensive
means of conserving potable water and could be an important part
of reaching this goal.
As the author points out, the current statutory scheme requiring
state agencies to increase their use of recycled water has not
succeeded despite the fact that state agencies, in some areas,
can be using the largest amounts of water. In San Diego, for
example, Caltrans is a major water user and most of that use is
for irrigation needs on approximately 3,000 acres of landscaping
along roads and highways. The author concludes that given the
considerable amount of landscaping irrigated by state agencies,
this bill could result in significant potable water savings.
Committee staff recommends the following amendment to clarify
that the public agency requiring a state agency to use recycled
water for irrigation may only do so within its own jurisdiction:
1.On page 2, line 17, delete "the" after "require" and insert "a
state agency to." Delete "of" after "use."
2.On page 2, line 18, insert "within the jurisdiction of the
public agency" after "by a state agency."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
San Diego County Water Authority (Sponsor)
Desert Water Agency
East Bay Municipal Utility District
El Dorado Irrigation District
Opposition
AB 1774
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None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Tina Cannon Leahy / W., P. & W. / (916)
319-2096