Amended in Senate August 19, 2015

Amended in Senate July 16, 2015

Amended in Assembly May 5, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1242


Introduced by Assembly Member Gray

February 27, 2015


An act to add Section 13145.5 to the Water Code, relating to water quality.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1242, as amended, Gray. Water quality: groundwater impacts.

Existing law establishes the State Water Resources Control Board and the 9 California regional water quality control boards as the principal state agencies with authority over matters relating to water quality. Existing law requires the state board to formulate and adopt state policy for water quality control. Existing law requires each regional board to formulate and adopt water quality control plans for all areas within the region and prohibits a water quality control plan, or a revision of the plan, adopted by a regional board, from becoming effective unless it is approved by the state board.

Existing law, the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, requires all groundwater basins designated as high- or medium-priority basins by the Department of Water Resources that are designated as basins subject to critical conditions of overdraft to be managed under a groundwater sustainability plan or coordinated groundwater sustainability plans by January 31, 2020, and requires all other groundwater basins designated as high- or medium-priority basins to be managed under a groundwater sustainability plan or coordinated groundwater sustainability plans by January 31, 2022, except as specified.

This bill would require the state board, in formulating state policy for water quality control and adopting or approving a water quality controlbegin delete plan,end deletebegin insert plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta,end insert to take into consideration, consistent with the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act, any applicable groundwater sustainability plan or alternative and available information and data regarding the impacts of groundwater use and management on beneficial uses of surface waters.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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SECTION 1.  

Section 13145.5 is added to the Water Code, to
2read:

3

13145.5.  

In formulating state policy for water quality control
4and adopting or approving a water quality controlbegin delete plan,end deletebegin insert plan for
5the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta,end insert
the state board shall take into
6consideration, consistent with the requirements of Division 13
7(commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code,
8any applicable groundwater sustainability plan or alternative
9adopted or approved under Part 2.74 (commencing with Section
1010720) of Division 6 and available information and data regarding
11the impacts of groundwater use and management on beneficial
12uses of surface waters.



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