BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 615
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
615 (Rendon)
As Amended June 2, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------|
|Water |11-4 |Levine, Dababneh, |Bigelow, Dahle, Beth |
| | |Dodd, Cristina |Gaines, Harper |
| | |Garcia, Gomez, | |
| | |Lopez, Mathis, | |
| | |Medina, Rendon, | |
| | |Salas, Williams | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------|
|Appropriations |12-5 |Gomez, Bonta, |Bigelow, Chang, |
| | |Calderon, Daly, |Gallagher, Jones, |
| | |Eggman, |Wagner |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, | |
| | |Gordon, Holden, | |
| | |Quirk, Rendon, | |
| | |Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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AB 615
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SUMMARY: Clarifies the types of technical assistance that the
State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) Office of
Sustainable Water Solutions (Office) can provide to disadvantaged
communities. Specifically, this bill states that the types of
technical assistance the Office may provide include, but are not
limited to:
1)Grant application assistance;
2)Project development and management support;
3)Engineering services;
4)Review and support of management, including financial management
and operations;
5)Environmental review;
6)Legal assistance;
7)Certification and training of wastewater treatment plant
operators;
8)Facilitation of discussions within and between communities;
9)Outreach and education to vulnerable communities; and,
10)Income surveys and other assessments needed to qualify for
AB 615
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funding programs.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Transferred the Safe Drinking Water Program and the Safe
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SDWSRF) from the Department
of Public Health to the State Water Board, effective July 1,
2014.
2)Under the California Safe Drinking Water Act, requires the State
Water Board, in administering programs to fund improvements and
expansions of small community water systems, to give priority to
funding projects in disadvantaged communities and encourage the
consolidation of small community water systems that serve
disadvantaged communities in instances where consolidation will
help the affected agencies and the state to meet specified
goals.
3)Establishes the Office, which is administered by the State Water
Board for purposes that include, but are not limited to:
providing assistance, including technical assistance, to small
drinking water systems and disadvantaged communities without
clean, safe, and reliable drinking water or wastewater treatment
systems; promoting and facilitating regional drinking water
solutions and wastewater projects; and advancing the delivery of
affordable, safe, drinking water throughout the state.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, absorbable costs for the Office/State Water Board.
COMMENTS: This bill clarifies the types of activities that could
constitute technical assistance by the Office to disadvantaged
communities.
AB 615
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The author states that the purpose of this bill is to help create
a one-stop-shop in the State Water Board to provide comprehensive
technical assistance for disadvantaged communities to design,
build, and maintain clean and sustainable water projects. The
author adds that in the past, technical assistance programs at the
Department of Public Health provided fragmented services that did
not necessarily engage with disadvantaged communities in a unified
or culturally-sensitive manner and that this bill will help
provide that as well as multidisciplinary assistance.
The Office was established as part of the 2015 Emergency Drought
Legislation, AB 92 (Budget Committee), Chapter 2, Statutes of
2015. The Office was created in recognition that the drought is
affecting many disadvantaged communities, some with shallow wells
that are going dry, are impaired by contamination, or both, and
who may lack the technical assistance to develop and implement
long-term solutions.
Supporters state that studies have shown that disadvantaged
communities know clearly what help they need from the state to
improve their watersheds, but that the technical aspects of water
projects, and water funding, are a barrier to participation.
There is no known opposition to this bill.
Analysis Prepared by:
Tina Leahy / W., P., & W. / (916) 319-2096 FN:
0000810
AB 615
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