BILL NUMBER: AB 1249 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 30, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 20, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JANUARY 6, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Salas
FEBRUARY 22, 2013
An act to amend Section 10541 of, and to add Section
Sections 10544.5 and 10545 to, the Water Code,
relating to water quality.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1249, as amended, Salas. Integrated regional water management
plans: nitrate, arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium
contamination.
Existing law, the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply,
Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006, an
initiative bond act approved by the voters as Proposition 84 at the
November 7, 2006, statewide general election, authorized the issuance
of bonds in the amount of $5,388,000,000 for the purposes of
financing a safe drinking water, water quality and supply, flood
control, and resource protection program. Existing law, with regard
to those bond funds, makes available to the Department of Water
Resources, $1,000,000,000 for grants for projects that assist local
public agencies to meet the long term water needs of the state
including the delivery of safe drinking water and the protection of
water quality and the environment. The act requires that eligible
projects implement integrated regional water management plans that
meet specified criteria and requires the department to give
preference to certain proposals.
Existing law, the Integrated Regional Water Management Planning
Act, authorizes a regional water management group, as defined, to
prepare and adopt an integrated regional water management plan. The
act requires the Department of Water Resources to develop and adopt
guidelines for the preparation of integrated regional water
management plans used to apply for the above-described Proposition 84
funds.
This bill would make the guidelines applicable to all funds that
are or may become available for integrated regional water management
plan implementation. If an area within the boundaries of an
integrated regional water management plan has nitrate, arsenic,
perchlorate, or he xavalent chromium contamination, the
bill would require that the plan include a description of (1) the
location and extent of that contamination in the region,
(2) the impacts caused by the contamination to communities within the
region, (3) existing efforts being undertaken in the region to
address the impacts, and (4) any additional efforts needed to address
the impacts. If a grant application includes areas that have
nitrate, arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium contamination,
the bill would require the regional water management group include in
the grant application information regarding how a project or
projects in the application helps to address the contamination or an
explanation why the application does not include such a project or
projects. For grant applications that include areas that have
nitrate, arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium contamination,
the bill would require the department to consider whether the
regional water management group has included projects that help
address the impacts caused by the contamination, including projects
that provide safe drinking water to small disadvantaged
communities.
The bill would require an integrated regional water management
plan to include an explanation of how the plan addresses nitrate
contamination, or an explanation of why the plan does not address
nitrate contamination, if an area within the boundaries of the plan
has been identified as a nitrate high-risk area by the State Water
Resources Control Board.
The bill would require the department when selecting projects for
the above-described funds to establish a preference for projects that
implement integrated regional water management plans that address
nitrate impacts in areas identified as nitrate high-risk areas.
The bill would impose these same requirements with respect to
arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium contamination,
irrespective of whether an area within the boundaries of the plan has
been identified as high risk for those contaminants.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 10541 of the Water Code is amended to read:
10541. (a) The department shall develop project solicitation and
evaluation guidelines for the application of funds made available
pursuant to Section 75026 of the Public Resources Code and all other
funds that are or may become available for integrated regional water
management plan implementation, including a future water bond, to
enable broad and diverse participation in integrated regional water
management plan development and refinement.
(b) The department shall conduct two public meetings to consider
public comments prior to finalizing the guidelines. The department
shall publish the draft solicitation and evaluation guidelines on its
Internet Web site at least 30 days before the public meetings. One
meeting shall be conducted at a location in northern California and
one meeting shall be conducted at a location in southern California.
Upon adoption, the department shall transmit copies of the guidelines
to the fiscal committees and the appropriate policy committees of
the Legislature. To the extent feasible, each state agency shall
provide outreach to disadvantaged communities to promote access to
and participation in those meetings.
(c) The department shall consult with the board, the California
regional water quality control boards, the State Department of Public
Health, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, the California
Bay-Delta Authority or its successor, and other state agencies with
water management responsibility and authority in the development of
the guidelines.
(d) The department may periodically review and update the
guidelines to accommodate changes in funding sources, statutory
requirements, new commonly accepted management practices, and changes
in state water management policy. Any guideline changes shall be
made with appropriate consultation with other state agencies and
public review pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (c).
(e) The guidelines shall require that integrated regional water
management plans include all of the following:
(1) Consideration of all of the resource management strategies
identified in the California Water Plan, as updated by department
Bulletin No. 160-2005 and future updates.
(2) Consideration of objectives in the appropriate basin plan or
plans and strategies to meet applicable water quality standards.
(3) Description of the major water-related objectives and
conflicts within a region.
(4) Measurable To the extent possible,
measurable regional objectives and criteria for developing
regional project priorities.
(5) An integrated, collaborative, multibenefit approach to
selection and design of projects and programs.
(6) Identification and consideration of the water-related needs of
disadvantaged communities in the area within the boundaries of the
plan.
(7) Performance measures and monitoring to demonstrate progress
toward meeting regional objectives.
(8) A plan for implementation and financing of identified projects
and programs.
(9) Consideration of greenhouse gas emissions of identified
programs and projects.
(10) Evaluation of the adaptability to climate change of water
management systems in the region.
(11) Documentation of data and technical analyses used in the
development of the plan.
(12) A process to disseminate data and information related to the
development and implementation of the plan.
(13) A process to coordinate water management projects and
activities of participating local agencies and local stakeholders to
avoid conflicts and take advantage of efficiencies.
(14) If an area within the boundaries of the plan has
been identified as a nitrate high-risk area by the state board, the
plan shall include an explanation of how the plan addresses the
nitrate contamination or, if the plan does not address the nitrate
contamination, an explanation of why the plan does not address the
nitrate contamination. The plan shall include an explanation of how
the plan addresses arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium
contamination, or if the plan does not address those contaminants, an
explanation of why the plan does not address that contamination.
nitrate, arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium
contamination, the plan shall include a description of each of the
following:
(A) The location and extent of that contamination in the region.
(B) The impacts caused by the contamination to communities within
the region.
(C) Existing efforts being undertaken in the region to address the
impacts.
(D) Any additional efforts needed to address the impacts.
(15) Any other matters identified by the department.
(f) The guidelines shall include standards for identifying a
region for the purpose of developing or modifying an integrated
regional water management plan. At a minimum, a region shall be a
contiguous geographic area encompassing the service areas of multiple
local agencies, and shall be defined to maximize opportunities for
integration of water management activities. The department shall
develop a process to approve the composition of a region for the
purposes of Sections 75026, 75027, and 75028 of the Public Resources
Code.
(g) The guidelines shall require that the development and
implementation of an integrated regional water management plan
include a public process that provides outreach and an opportunity to
participate in plan development and implementation to appropriate
local agencies and stakeholders, as applicable to the region,
including all of the following:
(1) Wholesale and retail water purveyors, including a local
agency, mutual water company, or a water corporation as defined in
Section 241 of the Public Utilities Code.
(2) Wastewater agencies.
(3) Flood control agencies.
(4) Municipal and county governments and special districts.
(5) Electrical corporations, as defined in Section 218 of the
Public Utilities Code.
(6) Native American tribes that have lands within the region.
(7) Self-supplied water users, including agricultural, industrial,
residential, park districts, school districts, colleges and
universities, and others.
(8) Environmental stewardship organizations, including watershed
groups, fishing groups, land conservancies, and environmental groups.
(9) Community organizations, including landowner organizations,
taxpayer groups, and recreational interests.
(10) Industry organizations representing agriculture, developers,
and other industries appropriate to the region.
(11) State, federal, and regional agencies or universities, with
specific responsibilities or knowledge within the region.
(12) Disadvantaged community members and representatives,
including environmental justice organizations, neighborhood councils,
and social justice organizations.
(13) Any other interested groups appropriate to the region.
(h) The guidelines shall require integrated regional water
management plans to be developed through a collaborative process that
makes public both of the following:
(1) The process by which decisions are made in consultation with
the persons or entities identified in subdivision (g).
(2) The manner in which a balance of interested persons or
entities representing different sectors and interests listed in
subdivision (g) have been or will be engaged in the process described
in this subdivision, regardless of their ability to contribute
financially to the plan.
(i) The guidelines shall provide for a process for the
development, periodic review, updating, and amending of integrated
regional water management plans. The department shall establish
eligibility requirements for the project funding, that provide
sufficient time for the updating of plans as necessary to reflect
changes in the guidelines.
SEC. 2. Section 10544.5 is added to the
Water Code , to read:
10544.5. For grant applications that include areas that have
nitrate, arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium contamination,
the regional water management group shall include in the grant
application information regarding how a project or projects in the
application help to address the contamination or an explanation why
the application does not include that kind of project or projects.
SEC. 2. SEC. 3. Section 10545 is
added to the Water Code, to read:
10545. When selecting projects pursuant to Section 75026 of the
Public Resources Code or for other funds that are or may become
available for integrated regional water management plan
implementation for, the department shall provide a preference for
projects that implement integrated regional water management plans
that address either of the following: implementation,
the department shall consider for grant applications that include
areas that have nitrate, arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium
contamination, whether the regional water management
group has included projects that help address the impacts caused by
nitrate, arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium
contamination, including projects that provide safe drinking water to
small disadvantaged communities.
(a) Nitrate impacts in areas that have been identified by the
state board as nitrate high-risk areas, including projects that
provide safe drinking water to small disadvantaged communities.
(b) Arsenic, perchlorate, or hexavalent chromium impacts,
including projects that provide safe drinking water to small
disadvantaged communities.