BILL NUMBER: AB 2453 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 4, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 2, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 28, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Achadjian
FEBRUARY 21, 2014
An act to add Part 8.2 (commencing with Section 37900) to Division
13 of the Water Code, relating to water.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2453, as amended, Achadjian. Paso Robles Basin Water District.
Existing law, the California Water District Law, provides for the
formation of California water districts and grants these districts
authority relating to, among other things, the production, storage,
transmission, and distribution of water. That district law generally
requires the members of the board of a California water district, and
the voters of that district, to be landowners, but provides for the
modification of these requirements by the board of that district.
This bill would , until January 1, 2019, provide for
the formation of the Paso Robles Basin Water District, and would set
forth the composition of, and method of election by landowners and
registered voters for, the board of directors for the Paso Robles
Basin Water District, the boundaries of which would be established
and may be modified by the San Luis Obispo County Local Agency
Formation Commission. The bill would require the district to be
formed in accordance with the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government
Reorganization Act of 2000, except as specified. The bill would
prescribe various powers of the district relating to the use and
extraction of groundwater that the district, by ordinance, would be
authorized to exercise, including, among others, collecting data,
conducting investigations, and requiring conservation practices and
measures under specified circumstances.
The bill would authorize the district to develop, adopt, and
implement a groundwater management plan to control extractions from
the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin aquifers, as specified. The bill
would also authorize the district to impose groundwater extraction
charges, to establish extraction allocations, and to impose
extraction surcharges to, among other things, discourage the use of
groundwater beyond the extraction allocation. The bill would provide
that the moneys collected by the district shall be available for
expenditure by the district to carry out its groundwater management
functions.
This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to
the necessity of a special statute for the County of San Luis Obispo.
Because an intentional violation of the act's provisions would be
a crime, and because the bill would expand the crime of perjury, the
bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Part 8.2 (commencing with Section 37900) is added to
Division 13 of the Water Code, to read:
PART 8.2. Paso Robles Basin Water District
CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS
37900. (a) For purposes of this part, the following definitions
apply:
(1) "Aquifer" means a geologic formation or structure that
transmits water in sufficient quantities to supply pumping wells or
springs.
(2) "Available supply" means that quantity of groundwater that can
be withdrawn in any given year from a groundwater basin or aquifer
without resulting in or aggravating conditions of overdraft,
subsidence, or groundwater quality degradation. Available supply of a
groundwater basin or aquifer includes the natural water supply,
imported water, or other water that has been spread to a basin or
aquifer or otherwise added to a basin or aquifer, and return flows to
the basin or aquifer attributable to these sources reaching the
groundwater basin or aquifers in the course of use.
(3) "Board" means the board of directors of the Paso Robles Basin
Water District.
(4) "Conjunctive use" means the coordinated operation of a
groundwater basin and groundwater and surface water supplies.
Conjunctive use includes increased groundwater use or decreased
groundwater replenishment with surface supplies in years when surface
supplies are less than normal and, in years of more abundant surface
supplies, the increased use of surface water in lieu of groundwater,
either to allow groundwater levels to recover or to replenish
artificial groundwater supplies. Conjunctive use also includes
long-term storage of water in a groundwater basin.
(5) "County" means the County of San Luis Obispo.
(6) "District" means the Paso Robles Basin Water District, the
boundaries of which shall be established and may be modified by the
San Luis Obispo County Local Agency Formation Commission.
(7) "Excess extractions" means those extractions in excess of an
operator's extraction allocation or adjusted extraction allocation.
(8) "Extraction" means the act of obtaining groundwater by pumping
or other controlled means.
(9) "Extraction allocation" means the amount of groundwater that
may be extracted from an extraction facility during a calendar year
before a surcharge is imposed.
(10) "Extraction surcharge" means a surcharge assessed annually
each time an operator exceeds his or her extraction allocation.
(11) "Extraction facility" means any device or method for the
extraction of groundwater within a groundwater basin or aquifer.
(12) "Groundwater" means water beneath the surface of the earth
within the zone below the water table in which the soil is completely
saturated with water.
(13) "Groundwater basin" means a geologically and hydrologically
defined area containing one or more aquifers that store and transmit
water yielding significant quantities of water to wells.
(14) "Groundwater management activities" means programs, measures,
or actions taken to preserve, protect, and enhance groundwater
resources within the territory of the district.
(15) "Groundwater rights adjudication" means the determination of
substantially all rights in a groundwater basin or the area subject
to the adjudication.
(16) "Operator" means a person who operates a groundwater
extraction facility. In the event the district is unable to determine
who operates a particular extraction facility, then "operator" shall
mean the person to whom the extraction facility is assessed by the
county assessor or, if not separately assessed, the person who owns
the land upon which the extraction facility is located.
(17) "Overdraft" means the condition of the groundwater basin or
aquifer where the average annual amount of water extracted exceeds
the average annual supply of water to a basin or aquifer.
(18) "Program" means a groundwater management program prepared by
the district pursuant to this act.
(19) "Recharge" means the natural or artificial replenishment of
groundwater storage by percolation or injection of one or more
sources of water at the surface.
(20) "Replenishment" means spreading water over a permeable area
for the purpose of allowing it to percolate to groundwater basins or
aquifers, or otherwise adding water to groundwater basins or
aquifers.
(21) "Safe yield" means the condition of a groundwater basin when
the total average annual groundwater extractions are equal to, or
less than, the total average annual groundwater recharge, either
naturally or artificially.
(22) "Supplemental water" means surface water or groundwater
imported from outside the watershed or watersheds of the groundwater
basin or aquifer and floodwaters that are conserved and saved within
the watershed or watersheds that would otherwise have been lost or
would not have reached the groundwater basin or aquifers.
(23) "Well interference" means a substantial water level decline
in a short time period in a localized area caused by pumping from
extraction facilities.
(b) This part shall apply only to the Paso Robles Basin Water
District.
37901. The Legislature finds and declares that the provisions of
this part are enacted in order to provide a governmental framework
for the district to balance the supply to and consumption of
groundwater within the basin underlying the district, and thereby
pursue stabilizing that basin and sustaining its resources for the
beneficial use of all who use water within the district.
37902. The creation of the district is not intended to and shall
not modify the powers of the County of San Luis Obispo and the San
Luis Obispo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District,
carried out consistent with applicable law, to manage and protect
groundwater resources within the County of San Luis Obispo, including
the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin.
37903. If formed, the district shall not involve itself in
activities normally and historically undertaken by the county, the
San Luis Obispo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District,
or other local agency, without the agreement of the agency.
37904. If formed, the board shall provide by resolution the dates
on which and the time and place at which regular meetings of the
board shall be held. A copy of each resolution establishing the date,
time, and place of a regular meeting shall be filed with the
secretary of the board and the clerk, or secretary of the legislative
body of each of the members. The board shall comply with the
provisions of the Ralph M. Brown Act (Chapter 9 (commencing with
Section 54950) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5).
CHAPTER 1.5. FORMATION
37905. The formation process shall comply with the
Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Reorganization Act of
2000, 2000 (Division 3 (commencing with
Section 56000) of Title 5 of the Government Code), with the
exception of the following provisions:
(a) A majority On or before January 1,
2019, 10 percent of landowners may petition for
for, or an affected local agency within the county,
including the county and the San Luis Obispo County Flood Control and
Wate r Conservation District, may apply for by
resolution, the formation of a district, consistent with the
following definitions:
(1) "Landowner" means any person who holds title to land within
the boundaries of the proposed district as shown on the last
assessment roll prepared by the county assessor, or a legal
representative of a landowner who holds title to land within the
boundaries of the proposed district as shown on the last assessment
roll prepared by the county assessor.
(2) "Landowner" does not include individuals, partnerships,
corporations, or public agencies holding easements or less than fee
interests, including leaseholds of any nature.
(3) "Legal representative" means either of the following:
(A) A duly appointed and acting guardian, executor, or
administrator of the estate of a holder of title to land.
(B) One of the following:
(i) If the holder of title is a trust, any trustee of the trust
may vote on behalf of the trust.
(ii) If the holder of title is a corporation, the president, vice
president, secretary, or other duly designated officer may vote on
behalf of the corporation.
(iii) If the holder of title is a limited liability company, any
managing member may vote on behalf of the limited liability company.
(iv) An officer or partner with managerial responsibilities of a
legal entity not listed in clauses (i) to (iii), inclusive, may vote
on behalf of the entity.
(b) Following a successful petition,
petition by the landowners or a resolution of application by an
affected local agency, an election among landowners shall be
conducted on the matter of whether to form the district.
(c) For purposes of a petition to form the district and a vote on
the matter to form the district, the following applies:
(1) Each voter, who shall be a landowner as defined in
Section 37905 this section, may cast one vote on
the matter of a petition and one vote on the matter of an election
to form the district. Ownership of multiple parcels of land, in full
or in part, shall not entitle any voter to more than one vote.
(2) For land held jointly, owners collectively get one vote.
Nothing in this section should be construed to indicate that multiple
owners of a property get more than one vote.
(3) In the event any landowner that is a member of the same
commonly controlled group, as defined in Section 25105 of the Revenue
and Taxation Code, or is a member of a combined reporting group, as
defined in paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 25106.5 of
Title 18 of the California Code of Regulations, or under common
ownership with, another landowner in the district, all members of the
commonly controlled group or combined reporting group will be deemed
a single landowner for the purpose of this subdivision.
(4) Each public agency that holds title to land within the
district shall be entitled to one vote.
(5) No person shall vote by proxy unless his or her authority to
cast that vote is evidenced by an instrument acknowledged and filed
with the board of election.
(6) If from the election returns a majority of the votes cast at
the election were in favor of the formation of the district, the
formation of the district shall be complete.
(d) Recognizing that an election is needed to form the Paso Robles
Basin Water District, the protest provisions of the
Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Reorganization Act of 2000 as they pertain to
the formation of a district, do not apply.
CHAPTER 2. ELECTIONS
37910. Notwithstanding any other law or the bylaws of the
district, all elections for the board of directors of the district
shall be conducted in accordance with this part.
37911. The composition of the board of directors shall be as
follows:
(a) There shall be a total of nine directors. A person may only be
a candidate for one director.
(b) Six of the directors shall be qualified for office by being
persons who hold title to land within the district or persons
authorized to vote in elections by landowners, as provided in Section
37913. Each director shall be elected by landowners within the
district as provided by Article 1 (commencing with Section 35003) of
Chapter 1 of Part 4, except that each voter shall be entitled to cast
one vote for each acre owned by the voter within the district. If
the voter owns less than one acre, the voter shall be entitled to one
vote and any fraction shall be rounded to the nearest full acre.
(1) For the purposes of election of the six directors described by
this subdivision, landowners within the district shall be divided
into three classes as follows:
(A) "Large landowners," meaning holders of title owning a total of
400 acres or more.
(B) "Medium landowners," meaning holders of title owning a total
of 40 acres or more but less than 400 acres.
(C) "Small landowners," meaning holders of title owning a total of
less than 40 acres of land.
(2) Of the six directors elected pursuant to this subdivision,
large landowners shall elect two directors, medium landowners shall
elect two directors, and small landowners shall elect two directors.
(3) Candidates for the six directors elected pursuant to this
subdivision may be within any landowner class.
(c) Three of the directors shall be elected by registered voters
within the district at large.
(d) (1) All directors qualified under subdivision (b) shall reside
within the district, within two miles of the district boundary, or
within the boundaries of the City of Paso Robles, the Atascadero
Mutual Water Company, the Templeton Community Services District, the
San Miguel Community Services District, or the San Luis Obispo County
Service Area 16.
(2) All directors qualified under subdivision (c) shall
reside be registered voters residing within the
district.
37912. District elections shall be conducted in conformance with
the Uniform District Election Law (Part 4 (commencing with Section
10500) of Division 10 of the Elections Code) and the laws generally
applicable to districts created and operated pursuant to this
division, provided the following shall apply:
(a) Separate ballots shall be prepared and separate elections
shall be conducted for those director positions which will be elected
by resident voters and for those which will be elected by landowner
voters. Notwithstanding Section 10555 of the Elections Code, these
landowner voter elections and resident voter elections shall be
conducted simultaneously.
(b) District elections may shall be
conducted by all-mailed ballots pursuant to Section 4108 of the
Elections Code. Separate voter lists of resident voters and landowner
voters eligible to vote within the district shall be prepared and
maintained according to applicable provisions of law, including
Section 10525 of the Elections Code. Separate all-mailed ballot
elections shall be held for the directors to be elected by resident
voters and for those to be elected by landowner voters.
(c) The directors elected upon formation of the district shall
hold office pursuant to Section 10505 of the Elections Code. For the
purposes of implementing this section, the director positions elected
by large landowners shall be divided into two director term classes,
the directors elected by medium landowners shall be divided into two
director term classes, the directors elected by small landowners
shall be divided into two director term classes, and the directors
elected by registered voters shall be divided into two director term
classes.
(d) Elections of directors shall be held on the first Tuesday
after the first Monday in October of each odd-numbered year.
(e) The voters list used for the purpose of an election of
directors shall be based upon the last assessment roll prepared by
the county assessor, which shall be conclusive evidence of ownership
and the acreage for purposes of electing directors in accordance with
subdivision (b) of Section 37911. The voters list shall be amended
if satisfactory evidence of a change in ownership is presented at
least 45 days prior to the election to the elections official in the
case of the formation election, and thereafter to the district
secretary. The county assessor shall be reimbursed by the district
for all costs incurred in determining the ownership and acreage
information and providing the information to the county clerk.
(f) For purposes of the Uniform District Election Law (Part 4
(commencing with Section 10500) of Division 10 of the Elections
Code), the district is a landowner voting district.
37913. Notwithstanding any other provision of this division or
the Uniform District Election Law (Part 4 (commencing with Section
10500) of Division 10 of the Elections Code), for the purposes
of election participation by landowners as provided in
subdivision (b) of Section 37912 shall be carried out as follows:
landowners, the following definitions apply:
(a) If the holder of title is a trust, any trustee of the trust
may vote on behalf of the trust.
(b) If the holder of title is a corporation, the president, vice
president, secretary, or other duly designated officer may vote on
behalf of the corporation.
(c) If the holder of title is a limited liability company, any
managing member may vote on behalf of the limited liability company.
(d) An officer or partner with managerial responsibilities of a
legal entity not listed in subdivisions (a) to (c), inclusive, may
vote on behalf of the entity.
(a) "Landowner" means any person who holds title to land within
the boundaries of the proposed district as shown on the last
assessment roll prepared by the county assessor, or a legal
representative of a landowner who holds title to land within the
boundaries of the proposed district as shown on the last assessment
roll prepared by the county assessor.
(b) "Landowner" does not include individuals, partnerships,
corporations, or public agencies holding easements or less than fee
interests, including leaseholds of any nature.
(c) "Legal representative" means either of the following:
(1) A duly appointed and acting guardian, executor, or
administrator of the estate of a holder of title to land.
(2) One of the following:
(A) If the holder of title is a trust, any trustee of the trust
may vote on behalf of the trust.
(B) If the holder of title is a corporation, the president, vice
president, secretary, or other duly designated officer may vote on
behalf of the corporation.
(C) If the holder of title is a limited liability company, any
managing member may vote on behalf of the limited liability company.
(D) An officer or partner with managerial responsibilities of a
legal entity not listed in subparagraphs (A) to (C), inclusive, may
vote on behalf of the entity.
CHAPTER 3. GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY
37920. All powers in this part are subject to review and approval
by the San Luis Obispo County Local Agency Formation Commission,
upon formation, change of organization, or reorganization under the
Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Reorganization Act of 2000
(Division 3 (commencing with Section 56000) of Title 5 of the
Government Code).
37921. The board may adopt ordinances for the purpose of
regulating, conserving, managing, and controlling the use and
extraction of groundwater within the territory of the district. All
ordinances shall be adopted, after noticed public hearings by a
majority vote of the board. Notice of the adoption of all ordinances
shall be given. The ordinances of the district shall become effective
on the 31st day after adoption except that the board may, by the
vote of at least four members of the board, dispense with notice of
public hearing and adopt an emergency ordinance that shall become
effective immediately upon adoption, if the board determines that the
public health, safety, or welfare so requires.
37922. Any person who intentionally violates any provision of
this act or any district ordinance shall be guilty of an infraction
and may be required to pay a fine to the district not to exceed five
hundred dollars ($500).
37923. Any person who negligently or intentionally violates any
provision of this act or any district ordinance may also be liable
civilly to the district for a sum not to exceed one thousand dollars
($1,000) per day for each day of violation, in addition to any other
penalties that may be prescribed by law.
37924. Upon the failure of any person to comply with any
provision of this act or any district ordinance, the district may
petition the superior court for a temporary restraining order,
preliminary or permanent injunction, or other equitable relief as may
be appropriate. The right to petition for injunctive relief is an
additional right to those that may be provided elsewhere in this act
or otherwise allowed by law.
37925. The district may petition the superior court of the county
to recover any sums due the district. In order to preserve and
manage the groundwater resources within its territory, the district
may also commence, maintain, intervene in, defend, compromise, and
assume the costs and expenses of legal actions and administrative
proceedings now or hereafter begun involving groundwater, including,
but not limited to, groundwater rights adjudication.
37926. The district may contract with the county, the San Luis
Obispo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District
District, or other local district for staff and
other services and may hire other contractors and consultants as it
considers appropriate.
37927. The district may exclude from any of the requirements of
this act, or the operation of any ordinance, any operator who
extracts less than a minimum amount of groundwater as specified by
ordinance adopted by the board.
37928. The district may collect data and conduct technical and
other investigations deemed necessary in order to carry out the
provisions of this act. All hydrological investigations and studies
carried out by or on behalf of the district shall be conducted by or
under the supervision of licensed engineers or other persons
qualified in groundwater geology or hydrology.
37929. The district may prepare annually or receive reports on
groundwater and supplemental water supplies and conditions in the
territory of the district, including groundwater management and
conjunctive use objectives and a plan for implementation of those
objectives.
37930. The district may recommend and encourage wastewater reuse
and other water development projects, if those projects will enhance
and contribute to the responsible management of groundwater
resources, as part of its annual plan for implementation of
groundwater management objectives.
37931. In addition to the powers identified here, the district
shall have the authority afforded to local agencies as provided in
Part 2.75 (commencing with Section 10750) of Division 6 as that part
may be amended, consistent with the requirements and limitations of
applicable law.
CHAPTER 4. GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT PLANS
37940. In order to balance the water supply and demand within the
Paso Robles Groundwater basin, Basin,
the district may do the following:
(a) Develop, adopt, and implement a groundwater management plan to
control extractions from the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin aquifers
with the objective of balancing water supply and demand in the
region.
(b) The groundwater management plan may also include and address
the following:
(1) Existing groundwater storage.
(2) Long-term recoverable storage, including an estimate of
nonrecoverable storage.
(3) The expected adverse effects of projected extractions.
37941. The groundwater management plan may establish distinct
zones or regions based on the geology of the basin, land use, water
use, the location of extraction facilities, or other concerns as
determined by the board.
37942. The groundwater management plan may include a policy for
the issuance of new well permits that takes into consideration the
location of proposed wells and area of use, projected extractions
from the wells, and the effect of the extractions on existing users
and on storage. In developing the management plan, the district may
consider a ban on new irrigated acreage or new municipal water system
wells. The district may include a contingency plan to deal with
seawater intrusion, basin contamination, or other risks that could
impair the ability to rely on the basin for groundwater.
CHAPTER 5. GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT
37950. If the board determines after a noticed public hearing,
and consideration of any relevant investigations, studies, and
evidence, that groundwater management activities are necessary in
order to improve or protect the quantity or quality of groundwater
supplies within a groundwater basin or aquifer, the board may, by
ordinance, exercise any of the following powers:
(a) Require conservation practices and measures within the
affected portion of its territory.
(b) Control groundwater extractions by regulating, limiting, or
suspending extractions from extraction facilities, the construction
of new extraction facilities, the enlarging of existing extraction
facilities, and the reactivation of abandoned extraction facilities.
(c) Commence and prosecute legal actions to enjoin unreasonable
uses or methods of use of water within the district or outside the
territory of the district to the extent those uses or methods of use
adversely affect the groundwater supply within the district.
(d) Impose spacing requirements on new extraction facility
construction to minimize well interference.
(e) Impose reasonable operating regulations on extraction
facilities to minimize well interference, including requiring pumpers
to operate on a rotation basis.
(f) Require extraction facilities to be registered with the
district within 30 days of notice being given to the operator of the
extraction facility.
(g) Require that the operator of a registered extraction facility
provide the district annually with the following information
regarding the extraction facility:
(1) The name and address of the operator of the extraction
facility.
(2) The name and address of the owner of the land upon which the
extraction facility is located.
(3) A description of the equipment associated with the extraction
facility.
(4) The location of the water extraction facility.
(h) Require extraction facilities to be equipped with waterflow
measuring devices installed and calibrated by the district or, at the
district's option, by the extraction facility operator.
37951. When an extraction facility is equipped with a waterflow
measuring device, the record of extraction, as disclosed by the
waterflow measuring device, may, at the election of the board, be
presumed to be accurate, and shall be used as the basis for computing
the water extraction of the extraction facility in completing the
groundwater extraction statement.
37952. The district may, by ordinance, require proof of the
accuracy of the waterflow measuring device from the operator and may,
absent adequate proof of accuracy, order the operator, at the
operator's sole cost, to
have the waterflow measuring device calibrated in a manner acceptable
to the district. If the district has probable cause to believe that
the extraction of groundwater from any extraction facility is in
excess of the amount reported in groundwater extraction statements,
or if no statements are filed covering an extraction facility, the
district may investigate the extraction of water from each extraction
facility.
37953. The board may, by ordinance, establish reasonable methods
to be used in computing the amount of water extracted by extraction
facilities.
37954. The district may, by ordinance, require the operator of
each extraction facility to file semiannually, or more frequently,
with the district, a groundwater extraction statement that contains,
but is not limited to, the following information:
(1) Total extraction in acre-feet of water from the extraction
facility for the preceding groundwater extraction statement period.
(2) The static groundwater level for the extraction facility.
(3) A description of the location of the extraction facility.
(4) The crop types or other uses and the acreage served by the
extraction facility.
(5) The method of measuring or computing groundwater extraction.
(6) Other information deemed reasonable and necessary by the board
to meet the purposes of this act.
37955. If required by ordinance, each groundwater extraction
statement shall be verified by a written declaration under penalty of
perjury that the information contained in the statement is true and
correct. The operator of an extraction facility that has been
permanently abandoned after January 1, 2015, shall give written
notice of the abandonment to the district.
CHAPTER 6. GROUNDWATER EXTRACTION CHARGES
37960. The district may, by ordinance, levy groundwater
extraction charges, including volumetric charges intended to provide
an incentive for reduced water use, on the extraction of groundwater
from all water extraction facilities within the territory of the
district for the purposes of paying the costs of initiating, carrying
on, and completing any of the powers, purposes, and groundwater
management activities described in this act. Any groundwater
extraction charges shall be uniform for groundwater extraction within
the territory of the district.
37961. The Legislature hereby finds and determines that the
groundwater management activities of the district are of equal
benefit to all operators of groundwater extraction facilities within
the territory of the district.
37962. If any operator of any extraction facility fails to pay a
groundwater extraction charge when due, the district may charge and
collect interest at the rate of 11/2 percent each month on the
delinquent amount of the groundwater extraction charge. In addition,
the district may exercise any of the provisions of Sections 75630 to
75633, inclusive, for the purpose of collecting delinquent
groundwater extraction charges.
37963. All moneys collected by the district pursuant to this act
shall be available for expenditure by the district to carry out its
groundwater management functions pursuant to this act.
37964. Groundwater extraction charges shall not exceed six
dollars ($6) per acre-foot pumped per year.
37965. 37964. The district may, by
ordinance, establish an operator's extraction allocation for each
groundwater extraction facility located within the district. The
district may, by ordinance, impose upon the operator of any
groundwater extraction facility located within the district,
extraction surcharges, including volumetric surcharges intended to
provide an incentive for reduced water use, for extractions in excess
of his or her extraction allocation and late penalties for
nonpayment of extraction surcharges.
37966. 37965. The Legislature
hereby finds and declares the following:
(a) Extraction allocations and extraction surcharges authorized
pursuant to this chapter are necessary to eliminate overdraft caused
by excess extractions from the aquifer systems within the district
and to bring the groundwater basins underlying the territory to safe
yield by the year 2017 within 10 years of the
formation of the district and to sustain that safe yield
thereafter.
(b) The extraction surcharges are intended to discourage the use
of groundwater beyond the extraction allocation. They are not
intended to generate tax revenues or proceeds from regulatory
licenses, user charges, or user fees. Consequently, they are not
special taxes for purposes of Section 4 of Article XIII A of the
California Constitution or proceeds of taxes for purposes of Section
8 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.
37967. 37966. The maximum amount of
the extraction surcharge shall be two hundred dollars ($200) per
acre-foot of groundwater extracted in excess of the extraction
allocation, except that the district may increase the maximum amount
of the extraction surcharge to an amount that is necessary to achieve
safe yield.
37968. 37967. If an operator of a
groundwater extraction facility fails to pay the extraction surcharge
when due, the district shall charge and collect a late penalty at
the rate of 11/2 percent each month, or portion thereof, on the
delinquent amount of the extraction surcharge.
37969. 37968. The district may
bring a cause of action, in any court having jurisdiction, against an
operator of a groundwater extraction facility for the collection of
any delinquent extraction surcharge, and Article 5 (commencing with
Section 75630) of Chapter 3 of Part 9 of Division 21 applies to those
actions.
37970. 37969. In addition to any
other authority, the district may order that an extraction surcharge
or late penalty be a personal obligation of the operator or an
assessment against the property, property
on which the extraction facility is located. The assessment
constitutes a lien upon the property, and the lien attaches upon
recordation in the office of the county recorder. The assessment may
be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary ad
valorem taxes are collected, and shall be subject to the same
penalties and the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as
provided for those taxes. All laws applicable to the levy,
collection, and enforcement of ad valorem taxes shall be applicable
to an assessment, except that, if any real property to which the lien
would attach has been transferred or conveyed to a bona fide
purchaser for value, or if a lien of a bona fide encumbrancer for
value has been created and attaches thereon prior to the date on
which the first installment of the taxes would become delinquent, the
lien that would otherwise be imposed by this section shall not
attach to the real property and an assessment relating to the
property shall be transferred to the unsecured roll for collection.
SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares that a special law is
necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable within the
meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution
because of the unique circumstances in the service area of the Paso
Robles Basin Water District.
SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.