Amended in Senate July 2, 2014

Amended in Senate August 12, 2013

Amended in Senate July 11, 2013

Amended in Senate June 27, 2013

Amended in Senate June 19, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 69


Introduced by Assembly Member Perea

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(Coauthor: Assembly Member Stone)

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(Coauthors: Assembly Members Brown, Daly, Hall, Roger Hernández, Rodriguez, and Salas)

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(Coauthors: Senators Correa and Torres)

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January 10, 2013


An act to addbegin delete Article 6.5 (commencing with Section 14615) to Chapter 5 of Division 7 of the Food and Agricultural Code, and to add and repeal Chapter 4.7 (commencing with Section 116765) of Part 12 of Division 104 ofend deletebegin insert Section 38576 toend insert the Health and Safety Code, relating tobegin delete drinking water, making an appropriation thereforend deletebegin insert greenhouse gasesend insert, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 69, as amended, Perea. begin deleteGroundwater: drinking water: Nitrate at Risk Fund. end deletebegin insertCalifornia Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006: market-based compliance mechanisms: exemption.end insert

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The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The state board is required to adopt a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit equivalent to the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level in 1990 to be achieved by 2020, and to adopt rules and regulations in an open public process to achieve the maximum, technologically feasible, and cost-effective greenhouse gas emissions reductions. The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing state board regulations require specified entities to comply with a market-based compliance mechanism beginning January 1, 2013, and require additional specified entities to comply with that market-based compliance mechanism beginning January 1, 2015.

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This bill instead would exempt categories of persons or entities that did not have a compliance obligation, as defined, under a market-based compliance mechanism beginning January 1, 2013, from being subject to that market-based compliance mechanism beginning January 1, 2015, and until December 31, 2017. The bill would require all participating categories of persons or entities to have a compliance obligation beginning January 1, 2018.

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This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

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(1) Existing law, the California Safe Drinking Water Act, requires the State Department of Public Health to administer provisions relating to the regulation of drinking water to protect public health, including, but not limited to, conducting research, studies, and demonstration programs relating to the provision of a dependable, safe supply of drinking water, enforcing the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, adopting enforcement regulations, and conducting studies and investigations to assess the quality of water in domestic water supplies.

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This bill would establish the Nitrate at Risk Fund, to be administered by the department. This bill would continuously appropriate, without regard to fiscal years, the fund to the department for the purposes of loans, principal forgiveness loans, or grants to certain water systems operating in a high-nitrate at-risk area for specified purposes. This bill would require the state board, on or before January 1, 2022, to submit a report to the Legislature that includes specified information relating to the fund and contaminated drinking water. This bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2024.

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(2) Existing law requires every person who manufactures or distributes fertilizing materials to be licensed by the Secretary of Food and Agriculture and to pay a license fee that does not exceed $300. Existing law requires every lot, parcel, or package of fertilizing material to have a label attached to it, as required by the secretary. Existing law requires a licensee who sells or distributes bulk fertilizing materials to pay to the secretary an assessment not to exceed $0.002 per dollar of sales for all sales of fertilizing materials, as prescribed, for the purposes of the administration and enforcement of provisions relating to fertilizing materials. In addition to that assessment, existing law authorizes the secretary to impose an assessment in an amount not to exceed $0.001 per dollar of sales for all sales of fertilizing materials for the purpose of providing funding for research and education regarding the use of fertilizing materials.

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This bill, with prescribed exceptions, would require a person who sells for use in this state fertilizer materials to pay to the secretary a fertilizer materials charge, until January 1, 2016, of $0.01 per dollar of materials. This bill, on and after January 1, 2016, would permit the department to increase the amount of the charge, as specified, to an amount no greater than $0.04 per dollar of materials if 80% of the moneys in the fund are committed, and would require the Fertilizer Inspection Advisory Board to discuss the charge and provide a recommendation to the department. This bill would prohibit the fertilizer materials charge from being imposed when the department determines that more than $60,000,000 of the moneys in the fund are uncommitted. This bill would require a seller of fertilizer materials to remit the charge to the secretary to be deposited in the fund.

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(3) The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

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Vote: 23. Appropriation: begin deleteyes end deletebegin insertnoend insert. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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P3    1

begin insertSECTION 1.end insert  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:

3(a) The landmark California Global Warming Solutions Act of
42006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the
5Health and Safety Code) set the goal of reducing greenhouse gas
6emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The act required the State Air
7Resources Board to develop a scoping plan, including direct
8regulations, performance-based standards, and market-based
P4    1mechanisms to achieve this level of greenhouse gas emissions
2reductions.

3(b) The State Air Resources Board has implemented a
4market-based compliance mechanism under the California Global
5Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with
6 Section 38500) of the Health and Safety Code).

7(c) Beginning January 1, 2015, the State Air Resources Board’s
8market-based compliance mechanism will expand from covering
9large industrial facilities to include carbon-based transportation
10fuels used today by the state’s motorists.

11(d) Including transportation fuels in a market-based compliance
12mechanism will require suppliers of transportation fuels to
13purchase carbon allowances for gasoline and diesel sold and used
14in the state, therefore, adding a carbon price to the cost of
15transportation fuels.

16(e) The State Air Resources Board’s regulatory analysis for the
17market-based compliance mechanism anticipates carbon allowance
18costs ranging from $15 to $75, inclusive, per ton between 2015
19and 2020.

20(f) Including transportation fuels in a market-based compliance
21mechanism will link the cost of gasoline and diesel to potentially
22volatile carbon markets placing the state’s motorists, families, and
23small businesses at risk.

24(g) Many areas of the state continue to struggle from
25disproportionately high unemployment rates and the state’s
26hard-working low-income and middle-income families will likely
27suffer most from this sudden addition in addition to potentially
28volatile carbon costs on transportation fuels.

29(h) Before including transportation fuels in a market-based
30compliance mechanism, the State Air Resources Board must ensure
31that the state’s motorists, families, and small businesses are
32prepared for this carbon price signal with sufficient notice,
33information, and protection from certain and volatile cost increases
34for their transportation fuels.

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35begin insert

begin insertSEC. 2.end insert  

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begin insertSection 38576 is added to the end insertbegin insertHealth and Safety Codeend insertbegin insert,
36to read:end insert

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37

begin insert38576.end insert  

(a) For purposes of this section, “compliance
38obligation” means the quantity of greenhouse gas emissions for
39which a person or entity is required to submit greenhouse gas
P5    1emissions allowances or offsets to the state board pursuant to a
2market-based compliance mechanism.

3(b) (1) If the state board adopts a market-based compliance
4mechanism pursuant to this part, only those categories of persons
5or entities that had a compliance obligation beginning January 1,
62013, and until December 31, 2014, shall have a compliance
7obligation beginning January 1, 2015, and until December 31,
82017.

9(2) Beginning January 1, 2018, all categories of persons or
10entities participating in a market-based compliance mechanism
11shall have a compliance obligation.

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12

begin insertSEC. 3.end insert  

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
13immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
14the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
15immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

16To allow sufficient lead time to make necessary adjustments to
17the program before it takes effect January 1, 2015, it is necessary
18for this act to take effect immediately.

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19

SECTION 1.  

Article 6.5 (commencing with Section 14615) is
20added to Chapter 5 of Division 7 of the Food and Agricultural
21Code
, to read:

22 

23Article 6.5.  Nitrate at Risk Fund Charge
24

 

25

14615.  

(a) For the purposes of this section, “fund” means the
26Nitrate at Risk Fund created by Section 116765 of the Health and
27Safety Code.

28(b) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (d), every person who
29sells for use in this state fertilizer materials shall pay to the
30secretary the applicable charge. Those sales expressly include all
31sales made electronically, telephonically, or by any other means
32that result in a fertilizer material being shipped to or used in the
33state. There is a rebuttable presumption that fertilizer materials
34that are sold or distributed into or within this state by any person
35are sold or distributed for use in this state. A fertilizer materials
36charge shall be paid at the following rates for sales of fertilizer
37materials for use in this state:

38(1) Until January 1, 2016, a charge of $0.01 per dollar of
39materials sold.

P6    1(2) On and after January 1, 2016, the State Department of Public
2Health may increase the amount of the charge to an amount no
3greater than $0.04 per dollar of materials sold if 80 percent of the
4moneys in the fund are committed. In determining the amount of
5the charge, the State Department of Public Health shall consider
6the demand for the moneys in the fund. In determining the charge,
7the State Department of Public Health shall allow stakeholder
8participation and make available to the public the information upon
9which the State Department of Public Health calculates, bases, or
10determines the charge. The Fertilizer Inspection Advisory Board,
11described in Section 14581, shall discuss the charge and provide
12a recommendation to the State Department of Public Health.

13(2) A seller of fertilizer materials shall remit the fertilizer
14materials charge to the secretary to be deposited in the fund.

15(c) The fertilizer materials charge shall not be imposed when
16more than sixty million dollars ($60,000,000) of the moneys in
17the fund are uncommitted.

18(d) A person is not required to pay the charge provided for in
19this section as follows:

20(1) In those cases where the person did not first sell the fertilizer
21material into or within this state or have actual knowledge, at the
22time of its sale, that the fertilizer would be sold for use in this state.

23(2) If the fertilizer material is for use in further manufacturing
24or formulating of fertilizer material.

25

SEC. 2.  

Chapter 4.7 (commencing with Section 116765) is
26added to Part 12 of Division 104 of the Health and Safety Code,
27to read:

28 

29Chapter  4.7. Nitrate at Risk Fund
30

 

31

116765.  

The Nitrate at Risk Fund is hereby established in the
32State Treasury, to be administered by the State Department of
33Public Health. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government
34 Code, moneys in the Nitrate at Risk Fund are continuously
35appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, to the State Department
36of Public Health for the purposes described in Section 116766.

37

116766.  

(a) Moneys in the Nitrate at Risk Fund shall be used
38for loans, principal forgiveness loans, or grants to a water system
39operating in a high-nitrate at-risk area that is one of the following:

P7    1(1) A small community water system serving a disadvantaged
2community.

3(2) An unregulated system of 2 to 15, inclusive, service
4connections.

5(3) A nontransient noncommunity water system owned by a
6public agency.

7(b) Moneys in the Nitrate at Risk Fund may be used for any of
8the following purposes:

9(1) Preplanning drinking water projects.

10(2) Planning drinking water projects.

11(3) Interim water solutions.

12(4) Constructing drinking water projects.

13(5) Operating and maintaining drinking water systems. The
14State Department of Public Health shall ensure that moneys used
15for the purposes of this paragraph are for the operation and
16maintenance of drinking water systems in communities that have
17a substantial need and otherwise would not be able to afford to
18operate or maintain their systems. The State Department of Public
19Health shall ensure that moneys available for the operation and
20maintenance of a particular drinking water system pursuant to this
21paragraph shall not be permanent and shall be phased out over
22time.

23(c) Moneys in the Nitrate at Risk Fund shall not be used for
24loans, principal forgiveness loans, or grants to a water system that
25is a small community water system for the purposes of either
26paragraph (2) or (4) of subdivision (b) unless no other funding
27source is available to that system for that purpose.

28

116767.  

(a) On or before January 1, 2022, the state board, in
29consultation with any other state entity or research institution as
30appropriate, shall submit to the Legislature a report that includes
31all of the following information:

32(1) Communities that rely on contaminated drinking water as a
33primary source of drinking water.

34(2) The principal contaminants and other constituents of concern
35affecting groundwater and contamination levels in the groundwater
36sources for the communities described in paragraph (1).

37(3) Potential solutions and funding sources to clean up or treat
38groundwater or to provide alternative water supplies to ensure the
39provision of safe drinking water to communities identified in
40paragraph (1).

P8    1(4) The effect of the use of the moneys in the Nitrate at Risk
2Fund for the purposes described in Section 116766 on nitrate
3contaminated groundwater used as a source of drinking water.

4(b) A report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall
5be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
6Code.

7

116768.  

If the responsibility for administering Chapter 4
8(commencing with Section 116270) is transferred to the state board,
9the state board shall succeed to and is vested with all of the
10authority, duties, powers, responsibilities, and jurisdiction of the
11State Department of Public Health pursuant to this article.

12

116769.  

This article shall remain in effect only until January
131, 2024, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
14statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2024, deletes or extends
15that date.

16

SEC. 3.  

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
17immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
18the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
19immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

20To address the public health problem of nitrate contaminated
21drinking water as soon as possible, it is necessary for this act to
22take effect immediately.

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