BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 496 Page A Date of Hearing: April 22, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION Patrick O'Donnell, Chair AB 496 Rendon - As Amended April 13, 2015 SUBJECT: Pupil nutrition: fresh drinking water: funding SUMMARY: Requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to identify available sources of funding to fund school water quality and infrastructure. Specifically, this bill: 1)Requires the CDE to consult with the State Water Resources Control Board's (SWRCB) Division of Drinking Water Programs to identify available sources of funding, including, but not limited to, funding from Proposition 1, approved by the voters at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election; funds for safe drinking water programs administered by the CDE, the Department of Public Health, the Department of Water Resources, and the SWRCB; other state funding; and federal funding available to fund school water quality and infrastructure. 2)Authorizes the CDE to receive funds transferred from any available state and federal source, to be allocated by the CDE to school districts for the purpose of complying with the requirement for schools to provide access to free, fresh drinking water during meal time. AB 496 Page B 3)Authorizes school districts to use funds received for water quality projects including, but not limited to, water treatment, water facilities restructuring, water filling stations, and maintenance of water facilities. 4)Finds and declares that recent studies show that unsafe drinking water plagues school water systems at a startling rate, that some schools have sealed pipes and turned off drinking fountains due to lead piping and other water system contaminants, and that schools need a one-stop shop where information and funding is available for clean drinking water programs. EXISTING LAW: 1)Requires a school district to provide access to free, fresh drinking water during meal times in the food service areas of the schools under its jurisdiction, including, but not necessarily limited to, areas where reimbursable meals under the National School Lunch Program or the federal School Breakfast Program are served or consumed. Authorizes a school district to comply with this requirement by, among other means, providing cups and containers of water or soliciting or receiving donated bottled water. 2)Authorizes the governing board of a school district to adopt a resolution stating that it is unable to comply with the requirement to provide access to free, fresh drinking water during meal times and demonstrating the reasons why it is unable to comply due to fiscal constraints or health and safety concerns. Requires the resolution to be publicly noticed on at least two consecutive meeting agendas, first as an information item and second as an action item, and approved by at least a majority of the governing board. AB 496 Page C FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown COMMENTS: Access to free, fresh water. Current law requires school districts to provide free, fresh drinking water during meal times in the food service areas. A school district may provide cups and containers of water or bottled water to comply with this requirement. The goal of this provision of law is to reduce the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverage while increasing the consumption of water in an effort to reduce obesity among children. According to a 2012 study on the water access law conducted by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, in conjunction with the California Food Policy Advocates and ChangeLab Solutions, one in four schools had not complied with the law in 2011. Of those that did comply, drinking fountains were cited as the most common source of free drinking water in schools. One of the reasons cited by schools for not complying was concerns about water safety and quality. Among others, the report recommended facilitating and supporting the development of good models for purchase, installation, and maintenance of a range of water delivery systems, from short-term solutions to permanent solutions, and requiring annual water-quality testing at the tap of every school's drinking water. What does this bill do? This bill requires the CDE to consult with the SWRCB to identify available funding sources that schools can access to improve drinking water quality. Some of the funding sources the CDE is required to explore include Proposition 1, the water bond passed by voters in November 2014, which provided $520 million for expenditures, grants, and loans for projects that improve water quality or help provide clean, safe, and reliable drinking water to all Californians. The bill requires CDE to collect information, but does not require CDE to AB 496 Page D inform school districts of the available funding sources. Staff recommends requiring CDE to post the information on its Internet Web site. The author may also wish to consider strengthening the bill by requiring the SWRCB to consider allocations to school projects. Water quality in schools. According to an Associated Press evaluation of data from the Environmental Protection Agency, schools in California reported the most federal drinking water violations from 1998-2008 in schools with their own water supplies. The contaminant most frequently identified in water was coliform bacteria, followed by lead and cooper, arsenic and nitrates.<1> According to the SWRCB, while the "majority of Californians are drinking water that meets water quality standards, many small water systems, both that serve residential communities as well as noncommunity facilities, such as factories and rural schools, struggle to achieve compliance.<2>" Small water systems have difficulties with upgrading treatment facilities due to costs. The author states, "Limited funding a growing list of needs to repair school infrastructure causes clean drinking water to fall to the wayside. School districts may be unaware of various State and federal funding streams available to them. Districts need a one-stop shop where information and funding is available for clean drinking water programs. Even if water from a local utility is clean, contamination happens as chemicals such as copper, lead, and arsenic seep into water supplies from school facilities. Water served in cafeterias or school water fountains may contain these harmful chemicals." --------------------------- <1> "Drinking Water Unsafe at Thousands of Schools," Associated Press, September 25, 2009. <2> "Safe Drinking Water Plan for California (draft)," State Water Resources Control Board, October 2014. AB 496 Page E The Community Water Center, Clean Water Action, and Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability support the bill and state, "Schools throughout California have been impacted by unsafe drinking water at the tap, and many schools face recurring challenges to providing safe water. Through our efforts working in communities on water issues in the Central Valley, we have witnessed firsthand the statewide problem of unsafe drinking water in schools caused by contaminants such as lead, nitrates, and bacteria. Consumption of unsafe water in schools is a substantial health risk to children as they are more susceptible to the health effects of exposure to lead and other contaminants than adults." Prior related legislation. SB 1413 (Leno), Chapter 558, Statutes of 2010, required, by July 1, 2011, a school district to provide access to free, fresh drinking water during meal times in the food service areas of the schools under its jurisdiction, including, but not necessarily limited to, areas where reimbursable meals under the National School Lunch Program or the federal School Breakfast Program are served or consumed. Authorizes a school district to comply with this requirement by, among other means, providing cups and containers of water or soliciting or receiving donated bottled water. AB 629 (Krekorian), held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee suspense file in 2009, would have required a school district, by January 1, 2010, to conduct a one-time analysis of the level of lead in water in schools with plumbing that has not been updated since 1993. AB 2965 (Krekorian), held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee suspense file in 2008, would have required a school district to conduct a one-time assessment of water toxicity levels at point of entry and delivery in schools 40 years of age or older, and states the intent of the Legislature that funding be made available from the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality AB 496 Page F and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006 for this purpose. AB 2704 (Leno), vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger in 2008, would have prohibited the governing board of a school district from entering or renewing a contract that prevents or discourages schools from providing free tap water in areas where school meals are served, and authorizes schools to provide free tap water in school meal areas. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support California Academy of Family Physicians California Food Policy Advocates Clean Water Action Community Water Center Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability Los Angeles Unified School District MISSION: READINESS AB 496 Page G Opposition None on file Analysis Prepared by:Sophia Kwong Kim / ED. / (916) 319-2087