BILL NUMBER: SB 322 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 26, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 28, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 8, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 22, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 9, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Senator Hueso
FEBRUARY 19, 2013
An act to amend Sections 13563, 13564, 13565, and 13569 of the
Water Code, relating to water recycling.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 322, as amended, Hueso. Water recycling.
(1) Existing law establishes the State Water Resources Control
Board, referred to as the state board, and the California regional
water quality control boards, referred to as regional boards, as the
principal state agencies with authority over matters relating to
water quality. Existing law requires the State Department of Public
Health to investigate the feasibility of developing uniform water
recycling criteria for direct potable reuse, as defined, and to
provide a final report on that investigation to the Legislature not
later than December 31, 2016. Existing law also requires the
department to complete a public review draft of its report by June
30, 2016.
This bill would require the department, in consultation with the
state board, to investigate the feasibility of developing uniform
water recycling criteria for direct potable reuse and to provide a
final report on that investigation to the Legislature not
later than on or before December 31, 2016. This
bill would also require the department to complete the public review
draft of its report by September 1, 2016.
(2) Existing law requires an expert panel to be convened and
administered by the department and requires the expert panel to be
comprised of, at a minimum, an epidemiologist, a microbiologist, and
a chemist, among others. Existing law authorizes the department to
appoint an advisory group, task force, or other group, comprised of
no fewer than 9 representatives of specified entities to advise the
department regarding the development of uniform water recycling
criteria for direct potable reuse.
This bill would require the department to convene and administer
the expert panel not later than January 30,
on or before February 15, 2014. The bill would require the
expert panel, in addition to its existing responsibilities, to assess
any additional areas of research that are needed to be able to
establish uniform regulatory criteria for direct potable reuse and
recommend an approach for accomplishing any of the additional needed
research in a timely manner. The bill would also require the expert
panel to include a limnologist. The bill would require the
department to convene the advisory group, task force, or other group,
on or before January 15, 2014, and would subject the advisory group
to specific open meetings provisions. The bill would
further expand the list of specified entities from which the
representatives of the advisory group, task force, or other group
could be selected to include , among others, the
department, the state board, ratepayer or taxpayer advocate
organizations, and the United States Environmental Protection
Agency. The bill would also provide that
require , on or before June 30, 2016, the department
shall to prepare a draft report summarizing the
recommendations of the expert panel. The bill would authorize the
department to contract with a University of California,
California State University, public university
or other research institution , as prescribed. The bill
would authorize the expert panel, advisory panel, and report to be
directly funded through nonstate donations, and would require the
department to provide staff for specified activities and to use state
funds for those activities to the extent state funds are available
for purposes of the expert panel .
(3) Existing law also authorizes the department to accept funds
from any source and use those funds, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, for certain purposes.
This bill would instead authorize the department to accept funds
from nonstate sources and use those funds for certain purposes.
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 13563 of the Water Code is amended to read:
13563. (a) (1) Not later than On or
before December 31, 2016, the department, in consultation with
the state board, shall investigate and report to the Legislature on
the feasibility of developing uniform water recycling criteria for
direct potable reuse.
(2) The department shall complete a public review draft of its
report by September 1, 2016. The department shall provide the public
not less than 45 days to review and comment on the public review
draft.
(3) The department shall provide a final report to the Legislature
by December 31, 2016. The department shall make the final report
available to the public.
(b) In conducting the investigation pursuant to subdivision (a),
the department shall examine all of the following:
(1) The availability and reliability of recycled water treatment
technologies necessary to ensure the protection of public health.
(2) Multiple barriers and sequential treatment processes that may
be appropriate at wastewater and water treatment facilities.
(3) Available information on health effects.
(4) Mechanisms that should be employed to protect public health if
problems are found in recycled water that is being served to the
public as a potable water supply, including, but not limited to, the
failure of treatment systems at the recycled water treatment
facility.
(5) Monitoring needed to ensure protection of public health,
including, but not limited to, the identification of appropriate
indicator and surrogate constituents.
(6) Any other scientific or technical issues that may be
necessary, including, but not limited to, the need for additional
research.
(c) (1) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code,
the requirement for submitting a report imposed under paragraph (3)
of subdivision (a) is inoperative on December 31, 2020.
(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to paragraph (3) of
subdivision (a) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of
the Government Code.
SEC. 2. Section 13564 of the Water Code is amended to read:
13564. In developing uniform water recycling criteria for surface
water augmentation, the department shall consider all of the
following:
(a) The final report from the National Water Research Institute
Independent Advisory Panel for the City of San Diego Indirect Potable
Reuse/Reservoir Augmentation (IPR/RA) Demonstration Project.
(b) Monitoring results of research and studies regarding surface
water augmentation.
(c) Results of demonstration studies conducted for purposes of
approval of projects using surface water augmentation.
(d) Epidemiological studies and risk assessments associated with
projects using surface water augmentation.
(e) Applicability of the advanced treatment technologies required
for recycled water projects, including, but not limited to, indirect
potable reuse for groundwater recharge projects.
(f) Water quality, limnology, and health risk assessments
associated with existing potable water supplies subject to discharges
from municipal wastewater, stormwater, and agricultural runoff.
(g) Recommendations of the State of California Constituents of
Emerging Concern Recycled Water Policy Science Advisory Panel.
(h) State funded research pursuant to Section 79144 and
subdivision (b) of Section 79145.
(i) Research and recommendations from the United States
Environmental Protection Agency Guidelines for Water Reuse.
(j) The National Research Council of the National Academies'
report titled "Water Reuse: Potential for Expanding the Nation's
Water Supply Through Reuse of Municipal Wastewater."
(k) Other relevant research and studies regarding indirect potable
reuse of recycled water.
SEC. 3. Section 13565 of the Water Code is amended to read:
13565. (a) (1) Not later than January 30,
On or before February 15, 2014, the department shall convene
and administer an expert panel for purposes of advising the
department on public health issues and scientific and technical
matters regarding development of uniform water recycling criteria for
indirect potable reuse through surface water augmentation and
investigation of the feasibility of developing uniform water
recycling criteria for direct potable reuse. The expert panel shall
assess what, if any, additional areas of research are needed to be
able to establish uniform regulatory criteria for direct potable
reuse. The expert panel shall then recommend an approach for
accomplishing any additional needed research in a timely manner.
(2) The expert panel shall be comprised, at a minimum, of a
toxicologist, an engineer licensed in the state with at least three
years' experience in wastewater treatment, an engineer licensed in
the state with at least three years' experience in treatment of
drinking water supplies and knowledge of drinking water standards, an
epidemiologist, a limnologist, a microbiologist, and a chemist. The
department, in consultation with the National Water Research
Institute advisory group and the state board,
shall select the expert panel members.
(3) Members of the expert panel may be reimbursed for reasonable
and necessary travel expenses.
(b) (1) The On or before January 15, 2014,
the department may shall convene
an advisory group, task force, or other group, comprised of no fewer
than nine representatives of water and wastewater agencies, local
public health officers, environmental organizations, environmental
justice organizations, public health nongovernmental organizations,
the department, the state board, the United States Environmental
Protection Agency, ratepayer or taxpayer advocate organizations,
and the business community, to advise the expert panel
regarding the development of uniform water recycling criteria for
direct potable reuse and the draft report required by Section
13563 . The department, in consultation with the state board,
shall select the advisory group members.
(2) Environmental, environmental justice, and public health
nongovernmental organization representative members of the advisory
group, task force, or other group may be reimbursed for reasonable
and necessary travel expenses.
(3) In order to ensure public transparency, the advisory group
established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be subject to the
Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section
11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code).
(c) On or before June 30, 2016, the department shall prepare a
draft report summarizing the recommendations of the expert panel.
(d) The department may contract with a University of
California, California State University, public
university or other research institution with experience
in convening expert panels on water quality or potable reuse to
meet all or part of the requirements of this section
should the department find that the research institution is better
able to fulfill the requirements of this section by the required
date.
SEC. 4. Section 13569 of the Water Code is amended to read:
13569. The department may accept funds from nonstate sources and
may expend these funds, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for
the purposes of this chapter.