BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 935
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
935 (Salas)
As Amended March 26, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+---------------------+---------------------|
|Water |15-0 |Levine, Bigelow, | |
| | |Dababneh, Dahle, | |
| | |Dodd, Beth Gaines, | |
| | |Cristina Garcia, | |
| | |Gomez, Harper, | |
| | |Lopez, Mathis, | |
| | |Medina, Rendon, | |
| | |Salas, Williams | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+---------------------+---------------------|
|Appropriations |17-0 |Gomez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, Eggman, | |
| | |Gallagher, | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, | |
| | |Gordon, Holden, | |
| | |Jones, Quirk, | |
| | |Rendon, Wagner, | |
AB 935
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| | |Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Requires the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to
provide grants and expenditures for the planning, design, and
construction of local and regional conveyance projects that
support regional and interregional connectivity and other listed
benefits. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires DWR to provide grants and expenditures for local and
regional conveyance projects that are consistent with an adopted
integrated regional water management plan (IRWM) and also
provide one or more of the following:
a) Improve regional or interregional water supply
reliability.
b) Mitigate conditions of groundwater overdraft, groundwater
quality, or land subsidence.
c) Adapt to the impacts of hydrologic changes.
d) Improve water security from drought, natural disasters,
and other events that interrupt water supplies.
e) Provide safe drinking water for disadvantaged communities
and economically distressed areas.
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2)Requires a local cost-share of not less than 50% unless the area
is a disadvantaged community or an economically distressed area.
3)Authorizes DWR to adopt regulations to implement the regional
conveyance grant and expenditure program.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Authorizes $7.545 billion in general obligation funding for
water-related projects and programs in Proposition 1, the Safe
Drinking Water, Quality, and Infrastructure Act of 2014
(Proposition 1) including, among other funding:
a) $2.7 billion for surface and groundwater storage projects,
continuously appropriated to the California Water Commission;
and,
b) $810 million for IRWM projects with $100 million of that
amount directed at water conservation and $200 million of
that amount dedicated to stormwater management.
2)Proposition 1 defines a disadvantaged community as a community
with an annual median household income that is less than 80 % of
the statewide annual median household income.
3)Proposition 1 defines an economically distressed area as an area
that meets the following:
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a) A municipality with a population of 20,000 persons or
less, a rural county, or a reasonably isolated and divisible
segment of a larger municipality where the segment of the
population is 20,000 persons or less;
b) The area has an annual median household income that is
less than 85% of the statewide median household income; and,
c) DWR finds the area has one or more of the following
conditions: is in financial hardship; unemployed at a rate
that is 2% higher than the statewide average; or, has a low
population density.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, unknown, potentially significant, funding shifts from
other water management activities to local and regional conveyance
projects (IRWMP bond funding). Also, increased costs to DWR of
$250,000 to $350,000 to develop regulations (IRWMP bond funding).
COMMENTS: This bill would require DWR to fund conveyance
projects, as specified. The Assembly Appropriations Committee
analysis notes that approximately $375 million for planning and
implementation grants within the IRWM funding category could be
used to fund this bill. That figure is based on the $510 million
of Proposition 1 IRWM funds that are eligible to fund conveyance
projects less bond issuance costs, audit costs, and funds
dedicated to addressing the needs of disadvantaged communities.
The author states that conveyance is necessary in order to fully
realize the benefits of virtually every type of local water
management, such as desalination, recycling, use efficiency, and
storage projects. The author notes that the recently-passed
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Proposition 1 has money allocated in it for surface water storage
and groundwater storage projects and that, in order to create the
greatest possible statewide benefit, it will be necessary to have
adequate connections between both.
Other supporters state that this bill could help benefit agencies
in terms of the study, design, and construction of a physical
connection to the State Water Project and that this bill would
provide for up to a 50% state match for the total project costs.
There is no known opposition to this bill.
Analysis Prepared by:
Tina Leahy / W., P., & W. / (916) 319-2096 FN:
0000767