BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 955
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Date of Hearing: May 18, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 955 (Huber) - As Amended: April 12, 2011
Policy Committee: Environmental
Safety and Toxic Materials Vote: 8-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill requires the State Water Resources Control Board
(SWRCB), when developing its regulations for permitting of
onsite water treatment systems (septic systems), to establish
standards based on the risk posed by the system under
consideration.
FISCAL EFFECT
Negligible.
(The SWRCB considers this bill a "placeholder" (spot bill) and
therefore has not completed an analysis of the bill.)
COMMENTS
1)Rationale. According the to the bill's sponsor, the Regional
Council of Rural Counties (RCRC), this bill will be a vehicle
for statutory changes, should they be needed, to ensure
SWRCB's septic tank regulation will have a minimal effect on
rural homeowners and businesses. The author's office describes
the purpose of the bill as addressing the state's water
boards' yet-to-be-adopted approach to septic tank regulation.
2)Background.
a) No Statewide Regulation of Septic Systems. California
is one of only two states that do not have statewide septic
system regulations. As a result, a variety of septic system
standards, practices and regulations exist among the
various regional water boards and the numerous local
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agencies in California's 58 counties.
b) AB 885 and the Development of Statewide Regulations. AB
885 (Jackson, Chapter 781, 2000) provided direction to
SWRCB to provide statewide minimum requirements related to
the permitting and operation of septic systems. AB 885
requires SWRCB, in consultation with certain other
entities, to develop statewide septic system regulations.
AB 885 also requires the regulations to include, at a
minimum, seven requirements (often referred to as AB 885's
"seven points"):
i) Minimum operating requirements that may include
siting, construction and performance requirements
ii) Requirements for septic systems adjacent to waters
listed as impaired under Section 303(d) of the Clean
Water Act
iii) Requirements authorizing local agency
implementation;
iv) Corrective action requirements
v) Minimum monitoring requirements
vi) Exemption criteria and
vii) Requirements for determining when an existing
septic system is subject to major repair
AB 885 requires the state's Regional Water Boards to
incorporate the new statewide regulations into their basin
plans
c) SWRCB Proposed Regulations. SWRCB submitted regulations
in response to the requirements of AB 885 in November of
2008. According to SWRCB, it received more than 2,500
e-mail comments and hundreds of comments from 12 public
workshops held throughout the state. Based on the public
input, the SWRCB is formulating substantial changes to the
regulations. To date, SWRCB as not adopted septic system
regulations.
3)Support . The bill is supported by the sponsor, the RCRC.
4)There is no registered opposition to this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Jay Dickenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081
AB 955
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