BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 723
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Date of Hearing: May 27, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
723 (Rendon) - As Amended April 30, 2015
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|Committee: |Development | | |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires the California Energy Commission (CEC), when
setting plumbing fixture water efficiency standards, to consider
the performance requirements established by the United States
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) WaterSense standards.
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FISCAL EFFECT:
Negligible costs to the CEC.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. The author notes that "a common criticism of
high-efficiency toilets and other high-efficiency fixtures is
that they break easily and are ineffective." Federally-set
EPA WaterSense qualifications "are considered some of the most
advanced and stringent, in terms of both performance and
efficiency measures. While the recent updates to the CEC's
Title 20 plumbing fixture standards will achieve, and in some
cases exceed, WaterSense efficiency standards for most
plumbing fixtures, Title 20 standards do not necessarily have
WaterSense high- performance requirements." This bill will
encourage the CEC to consider WaterSense performance standards
when setting plumbing fixture water efficiency standards.
2)Background. On April 1, 2015, the Governor issued Executive
Order B-29-15, directing the first ever statewide mandatory
water reduction. One of the four CEC responsibilities in the
executive order is to establish standards that improve the
efficiency of water appliances, including toilets, urinals and
faucets available for sale and installation in new and
existing buildings. According to the CEC, the recently
approved energy efficiency and water standards "require water
appliances to consume less water thereby using less energy
while performing the same function."
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Standards for these appliances were adopted on April 8, 2015,
and the emergency situation allows the CEC to prohibit the
sale and installation of certain toilets, urinals and faucets
that do not meet minimum water efficiency requirements as of
Jan. 1, 2016, regardless of the manufactured date. While these
standards are consistent with WaterSense efficiency standards,
they do not specifically align with WaterSense performance
requirements.
According to the EPA, "WaterSense, a partnership program by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, seeks to protect the
future of our nation's water supply by offering people a
simple way to use less water with water-efficient products,
new homes, and services." Products and services that carry
the WaterSense label have been certified to be at least 20%
more efficient without sacrificing performance. Independent,
third-party licensed certifying bodies certify that products
meet EPA criteria for water efficiency and performance by
following testing and certification protocols specific to each
product category. Products that are certified to meet EPA
specifications are allowed to bear the WaterSense label.
3)Prior Legislation.
a) SB 407 (Padilla), Chapter 587, Statutes of 2009,
requires the replacement of all non-water conserving
plumbing fixtures, as defined, in commercial and
residential properties built prior to 1994 with
water-conserving fixtures by either 2017 or 2019, depending
on the type of property.
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b) AB 715 (Laird), Chapter 499, Statutes of 2007, prohibits
the sale, after January 1, 2014, of toilets that exceed
1.28 gallons per flush and urinals that exceed 0.5 gallon
per flush.
c) SB 1224 (Killea), Chapter 1347, Statutes of 1992,
requires all water closets (toilets) sold or installed on
or after January 1, 1994 to use no more than an average of
1.6 gallons per flush, and requires all urinals sold or
installed on or after January 1, 1994 to use no more than
an average of one gallon per flush.
Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Swenson / APPR. / (916)
319-2081