BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 936
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Date of Hearing: April 22, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
936 (Salas) - As Amended April 15, 2015
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable:
SUMMARY:
This bill authorizes the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to
allow projects and programs in disadvantaged communities
currently ineligible for funding due to noncompliance with
groundwater monitoring requirements to receive state funding if
AB 936
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the project includes actions necessary to meet groundwater
monitoring requirements.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)Potential increased shifts in the awarding of grants from
eligible entities to entities currently ineligible.
2)Minor to moderate increased staff costs, likely in the
$100,000 to $150,000 range to evaluate applications to
determine if the grant request would result in compliance with
monitoring functions.
DWR administers a number of grant programs to which this bill
may apply including Integrated Regional Water Management
Program, Local Groundwater Assistance Grants, Agricultural
Water Conservation grants, and Urban Water Conservation
grants. Each program may potentially have the additional duty
of reviewing requests to determine if the applicant is in a
disadvantaged community and the grant brings the entity into
compliance.
COMMENTS:
1)Rationale. The California Statewide Groundwater Elevation
Monitoring Program (CASGEM) requires reporting of groundwater
basin elevation information to DWR, and requires DWR to assume
monitoring functions if the local agency is unable or
unwilling to perform the reporting and monitoring duties.
Basins for which DWR assumes the duties, or are out of
compliance with CASEGEM requirements, are prohibited from
receiving state grants and loans.
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According to the author, the policy of denying CASGEM
noncompliant basins state funding is having the negative
consequence of preventing local agencies from receiving much
needed water grants and loans in order to set up groundwater
monitoring programs This bill would allow basins to receive
funding under specified circumstance.
2)Background. On January 17, 2014, Governor Brown proclaimed a
drought State of Emergency. That was followed on April 25,
2014 by a continued State of Emergency and on April 3, 2015 by
a seven-page Executive Order, B-29-15, with 31 directives to
address the drought crisis.
Directive 15 states that local agencies in all high and medium
priority groundwater basins are to immediately implement all
CASGEM requirements or be referred to the State Water
Resources Control Board for possible enforcement action.
There are currently 127 high and medium priority basins in
California. Those groundwater basins account for 96% of all
groundwater use. Of the high and medium priority basins, DWR
has determined that 9 are fully unmonitored and 16 are
partially unmonitored. In other words, 102 are currently
CASGEM compliant and 25 are noncompliant.
In the 25 non-compliant basins, local agencies can still be
eligible for a water grant or loan if their whole area is a
disadvantaged community. That is because it is assumed that
the bar to compliance is that the entity's customers are
financially incapable of supporting a monitoring program.
This bill will further clarify eligibility.
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Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)
319-2081