BILL ANALYSIS Ó ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 938| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: AB 938 Author: V. Manuel Pérez (D) Amended: 8/23/11 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/27/11 AYES: Simitian, Blakeslee, Hancock, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Pavley NO VOTE RECORDED: Strickland SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8 ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 53-26, 5/31/11 - See last page for vote SUBJECT : Public water systems SOURCE : California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation Clean Water Action Community Water Center Environmental Justice Coalition for Water DIGEST : This bill requires the written public notice of noncompliance with drinking water standards given by a public water system to include information in English, Spanish, and other languages spoken by the impacted community, as specified. ANALYSIS : California Code of Regulations (22 CCR Section 64465) currently requires each public notice for noncompliance provided by a water system to contain CONTINUED AB 938 Page 2 information in Spanish about the importance of the notice, or to contain contact information that Spanish speaking residents may use to obtain a translated copy of the public notice or other assistance in Spanish. For each non-English speaking group other than Spanish speaking that exceeds 1,000 residents or 10 percent of the residents in the community served, whichever is less, the public notice must contain information in the appropriate language(s) regarding the importance of the notice, or contain contact information that such residents may use to obtain a translated copy of the notice or assistance in the appropriate language. This bill seeks to expand upon these existing regulations in order to better inform non-English speaking communities about their drinking water quality. Specifics of this bill 1. Requires, commencing July 1, 2012, a public water system's written public notice of noncompliance with drinking water standards to: A. Be provided in English, Spanish, and in the language spoken by any non-English-speaking group that exceeds 10 percent of persons served by the public water system. It shall contain a telephone number or address where residents may contact the public water system for assistance. B. Contain a telephone number or address where residents may contact the public water system for assistance. C. Contain information regarding the importance of the notice and a telephone number or address where the public water system will provide either a translated copy of the notice or assistance in the appropriate language for each non-English speaking group that speaks a language other than Spanish and that exceeds 1,000 residents or 10 percent of the persons served by the public water system, whichever is less. CONTINUED AB 938 Page 3 D. Provide that, after July 1, 2012, it shall be presumed that the public water system has determined the appropriate languages for notification if the public water system has made a reasonable attempt to utilize the data available through the American Community Survey of the United States Census Bureau to identify the non-English speaking groups that reside in a city, county, or city and county that encompasses the service area of the public water system. E. Provide that, after July 1,2 012, it shall be presumed that the notice has been correctly translated if the public water system has made a reasonable attempt to obtain either in-house or contracted-for translation services for providing a translated copy of the notice or assistance in the appropriate languages and the translated copy of the notice or assistance has been provided. F. Provide that, after July 1, 2012, if the public water system has made a reasonable attempt to have the notice required by the above translated into languages other than Spanish has been adequately provided if it contains translations in the appropriate languages of all of the following: (1) Identification of the contaminant. (2) Information on the health effects associated with the presence of the contaminant in drinking water at a level in excess of the primary drinking water standard. (3) Actions that members of the public should take to protect their health, such as, for example, "Do not drink" "Boil water before using," or "Stop boiling your water." 2. Establishes, after July 1, 2012, a presumption of compliance that the notice has been properly given, with respect to the language of notification, if the public water system utilized the data available through the American Community Survey of the United States Census CONTINUED AB 938 Page 4 Bureau and the county registrar. 3. Authorizes and encourages the public water system to, in addition to non-written notification provided for in the public water system's emergency notification plan, provide notice through foreign language media outlets. 4. States that nothing in the above shall require the department to review or approve notices in any language other than English. 5. Adds environmental documentation to the list of costs to be considered when determining affordability using Department of Public Health criteria for Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund funding. Clarifying amendment . This bill corrects a drafting error in AB 1438 (Conway), Chapter 531, Statutes of 2009, which sets a limit, under the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, of $500,000 for planning, engineering studies, environmental documentation, and design of a single project. Current law also requires total funding for planning, engineering studies, project design, and construction costs, whether in the form of a loan or grant, to be determined by an assessment of affordability using criteria established by the Department of Public Health. AB 1438 (Conway) failed to include "environmental documentation" in the affordability assessment requirement. This bill corrects this oversight. Comments According to the author, "Public notification to residents regarding contaminated drinking water is necessary to prevent illness and disease and protect public health. When a public water system sends a public notification only in English to non-English speakers, the risks to public health persist. If public notices are not provided in the language spoken by the impacted community, residents may not know that the water in their homes is unsafe and what precautions are necessary to protect the health and safety of their family." The author believes that "AB 938 addresses an urgent CONTINUED AB 938 Page 5 problem in some California communities where the water is not safe to drink yet customers are receiving notifications that they do not understand. All Californians have the right to know when it is not safe to drink their water." The author notes that this bill also "makes clarifying amendments to the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund language to correct an oversight in the law related to the list of costs to be determined in affordability assessments for awards from the Fund." FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: No SUPPORT : (Verified 8/23/11) California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation (co-source) Clean Water Action (co-source) Community Water Center (co-source) Environmental Justice Coalition for Water (co-source) Asian Americans for Civil Rights & Equality Asociacion de Gente Unida por el AGUA California League of Conservation Voters California Pan-Ethnic Health Network California Resources Recovery Association Catholic Charities Diocese of Stockton Coachella Valley Water District Committee for a Better Seville Environmental Working Group Food and Water Watch Having Our Say Indian Canyon Nation International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 569 Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund Natural Resources Defense Council Neighbors United (Vecinos Unidos Committee) Planning and Conservation League Southern California Watershed Alliance The Utility Reform Network Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry Action Urban Semillas Winnemem Wintu Tribe Women's International League for Peace and Freedom CONTINUED AB 938 Page 6 ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to one of the bill's sponsors, the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, "Water providers are currently required to know the language of their customer. AB 938 is addressing an urgent problem in some water systems where proper notification is not given to residents when their water is not safe to drink. It is important that ALL Californians have the Right-To-Know when it is not safe to drink their water. AB 938 only applies to serious drinking water violations. Most water systems do not have these violations, because they provide safe drinking water." ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 53-26, 5/31/11 AYES: Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Davis, Dickinson, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Hall, Hayashi, Roger Hernández, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Lara, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Portantino, Skinner, Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez NOES: Achadjian, Conway, Cook, Donnelly, Fletcher, Beth Gaines, Garrick, Grove, Hagman, Halderman, Harkey, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Logue, Mansoor, Miller, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Silva, Smyth, Valadao, Wagner NO VOTE RECORDED: Gorell DLW:mw 8/23/11 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED