Amended in Assembly April 23, 2013

Amended in Assembly March 19, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 426

Introduced by Assembly Member Salas

February 15, 2013

An act to begin delete add Section 1733 to end delete begin insert amend Section 1740 of end insert the Water Code, relating to water begin insert rights end insert .

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 426, as amended, Salas. Water: water transfers: begin delete temporary changes. end delete begin insert water right decrees. end insert

Existing law regulates water transfers and, among other things, allows a permittee or licensee to temporarily change the point of diversion, place of use, or purpose of use due to a transfer or exchange of water or water rights if the transfer would only involve the amount of water that would have been consumptively used or stored by the permittee or licensee in the absence of the proposed temporary change, would not injure any legal user of the water, and would not unreasonably affect fish, wildlife, or other instream beneficial uses. begin insert Under existing law, any water right determined under a court decree issued after January 1, 1981, is transferable as specified. end insert

begin delete

This bill would additionally allow a permittee or licensee to make a temporary change, as defined, in the point of diversion, place of use, or purpose of use, up to the amount of a permit or license, in order to transfer or exchange water or water rights through a water transfer agreement for a specified term if specific requirements are met. The bill would require a permittee or licensee to submit a notice of the transfer or exchange to the board including specific information. The bill would also require the State Water Resources Control Board to post the notice on its Internet Web site no later than 10 days after the date on which the notice was submitted, and to keep the notice posted on the board’s Internet Web site for 30 days.

end delete begin insert

This bill would eliminate the requirement that a court decree be issued after January 1, 1981.

end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

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

begin insert

begin insert SECTION end insert begin insert 1 end insert begin insert . end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 1740 of the end insert begin insert Water Code end insert begin insert is amended to
read: end insert

1740.  

Any water right determined under a court decree issued
pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 2500) of Part 3 begin delete ,
after January 1, 1981, end delete shall be transferable pursuant to this chapter
and Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 1700). The court having
the appropriate jurisdiction over the decreed rights may enter a
supplemental decree modifying any rights involved upon motion
of the board or any party with a vested water right.

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares the following:

(a) It is the policy of this state to improve the flexibility and
provide greater regional self-reliance of water supplies.

(b) It is the policy of this state to encourage conjunctive use of
surface water and groundwater supplies and to make surface water
available for other beneficial uses.

SEC. 2.  

Section 1733 is added to the Water Code, to read:

1733.  

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, in an above-average
water year in a defined hydrologic region reported by the
department, a permittee or licensee may make a temporary change
in the point of diversion, place of use, or purpose of use, up to the
amount of the permit or license, to transfer or exchange water or
water rights through a water transfer agreement for a specified
term if all of the following requirements are met:

(1) The transfer or exchange facilitates the conjunctive use of
groundwater and surface water supplies within a defined hydrologic
region.

(2) The transferee and transferor are part of an regional
management group of a integrated regional water management
plan as defined in Section 10534.

(3) The integrated regional water management plan under
paragraph (2) includes a conjunctive use component and the
transfer or exchange is implemented consistent with that
component.

(4) The transferee agrees to forgo pumping groundwater in an
amount equivalent to the surface water received through the transfer
during the year of the transfer.

(5) The temporary change occurs at a point of diversion where
a water right or entitlement is held by the transferee or transferor.

(6) The transfer or exchange commences no sooner than 15 days
following the submission of the notice under subdivision (b).

(b) (1) The permittee or licensee shall submit a notice of the
transfer or exchange to the board, which includes all of the
following:

(A) The permit or license number.

(B) The amount of water to be transferred or exchanged.

(C) The boundaries of the relevant integrated regional water
management plan.

(D) The name of the transferor.

(E) The name of the transferee.

(2) The board shall post the notice under paragraph (1) on its
Internet Web site no later than 10 days after the date on which the
notice was submitted, and the notice shall remain posted on the
board’s Internet Web site for 30 days.

(c) Upon the completion of the term of an agreement to transfer
or exchange water or water rights, the right to the use of the water
shall revert to the transferor as if the transfer or exchange of water
or water rights had not been undertaken.

end delete