Amended in Senate August 15, 2016

Amended in Senate June 9, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 11, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 17, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1794

Introduced by Assembly Member Cristina Garcia

(Coauthors: Assembly Members O'Donnell and Rendon)

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(Coauthor: Senator Lara)

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February 4, 2016

An act to add Chapter 1.6 (commencing with Section 71265) to Part 3 of Division 20 of the Water Code, relating to municipal water begin delete districts, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately. end delete begin insert districts. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1794, as amended, Cristina Garcia. Central Basin Municipal Water District.

Existing law, the Municipal Water District Law of 1911, provides for the formation of municipal water districts and grants to those districts’ specified powers. Existing law permits a district to acquire, control, distribute, store, spread, sink, treat, purify, recycle, recapture, and salvage any water for the beneficial use of the district, its inhabitants, or the owners of rights to water in the district. Existing law requires the board of directors of a district to consist of 5 members and each director to be a resident of the division from which the director is elected.

This bill would require the board of directors of the Central Basin Municipal Water District to be composed of 8 begin delete directors, end delete begin insert directors end insert until the directors elected at the November begin delete 6, 2018, end delete begin insert 8, 2022, end insert election take office, when the board would be composed of 7 directors, as prescribed. begin delete This bill would require the Central Basin Municipal Water District to establish a technical oversight committee composed of 5 water purveyors selected every 2 years, as specified, to meet on at least a quarterly basis for certain purposes. end delete By imposing new duties on the district, this bill would create a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

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This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

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This bill would make its operation contingent on the enactment of SB 953 of the 2015-16 Regular Session.

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Vote:  begin delete ²⁄₃ end delete begin insert majority end insert . Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

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

SECTION 1.  

Chapter 1.6 (commencing with Section 71265)
is added to Part 3 of Division 20 of the Water Code, to read:

 

Chapter  1.6. Central Basin Municipal Water District

 

71265.  

For the purposes of this chapter:

(a) “District” means the Central Basin Municipal Water District.

(b) “Large water purveyor” means a public water system that
is one of the top five purveyors of water as measured by the total
purchase of potable and recycled water from the district for the
three prior fiscal years.

(c) “Public water system” has the same meaning as in Section
116275 of the Health and Safety Code.

(d) “Relevant technical expertise” means employment or
consulting for a total period of at least five years, prior to the date
of first appointment, in one or more positions materially responsible
for performing services relating to the management, operations,
engineering, construction, financing, contracting, regulation, or
resource management of a public water system.

(e) “Small water purveyor” means a public water system with
less than 5,000 connections.

71266.  

(a) Except as provided in subdivision begin delete (b) end delete begin insert (c) end insert and
notwithstanding any other provision of this division, the board of
directors of the district shall be composed of seven directors as
follows:

(1) Four directors, one director elected for each division
established pursuant to subdivision (d) by the voters of the division.
Each director shall be a resident of the division from which he or
she is elected. An election pursuant to this paragraph shall be in
accordance with the Uniform District Election Law (Part 4
(commencing with Section 10500) of Division 10 of the Election
Code).

(2) Three directors appointed by the water purveyors of the
district in accordance with Section 71267.

(b) The district shall be subject to Section 84308 of the
Government Code.

(c) Until the directors elected at the November begin delete 6, 2018, end delete begin insert 8, 2022, end insert
election take office, the board of directors shall be composed of
eight directors as follows:

(1) Five directors in accordance with Section 71250.

(2) Three directors appointed by the water purveyors of the
district pursuant to Section 71267.

(d) The board of directors shall divide the district into four
divisions in a manner as to equalize, as nearly as practicable, the
population in the respective divisions pursuant to Section 71540.

71267.  

(a) The general manager of the district shall notify
each water purveyor of the district and provide a 60-day period
during which the district will accept nominations for appointment
of individuals to the board of directors.

(b) Individuals nominated for appointment to the board of
directors shall demonstrate eligibility and relevant technical
expertise.

(c) (1) The three directors appointed by the water purveyors
shall be selected by the water purveyors of the district every four
years as follows:

(A) One director shall be selected by all large water purveyors
from the nominees of large water purveyors. Each large water
purveyor shall have one vote.

(B) One director shall be selected by all cities that are water
purveyors of the district from the nominees of cities. Each city
shall have one vote.

(C) One director shall be selected by all of the water purveyors
of the district from any nominee. The vote of each purveyor shall
be weighted to reflect the number of service connections of that
water purveyor within the district. If the selection of a director
under this subparagraph would result in a violation of paragraph
(2), the first eligible candidate receiving the next highest number
of votes shall be selected.

(2) The appointment of directors pursuant to paragraph (1) shall
not result in any of the following:

(A) The appointment of three directors that are all employed
by or representatives of entities that are all large water purveyors.

(B) The appointment of three directors that are all employed by
or representatives of entities that are all cities.

(C) The appointment of three directors that are all employed by
or representatives of entities that are all small water purveyors.

(3) Each nominee for director who receives the highest number
of votes cast for each office described in paragraph (1) is appointed
as a director to the board of directors and shall take office in
accordance with Section 71512. The general manager shall collect
the votes and report the results to the water purveyors. Votes for
an appointed director are public records.

(d) Each appointed director shall live or work within the district.

(e) In order to ensure continuity of knowledge, the directors
appointed at the first purveyor selection shall classify themselves
by lot so that two of them shall hold office until the selection of
their successors at the first succeeding purveyor selection and one
of them shall hold office until the selection of his or her successor
at the second succeeding purveyor selection.

(f) (1) The term of a director appointed pursuant to
subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) is terminated
if the appointed director no longer is employed by or a
representative of a large water purveyor.

(2) The term of a director appointed pursuant to subparagraph
(B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) is terminated if the
appointed director no longer is employed by or a representative
of a city.

(3) The term of a director appointed pursuant to subparagraph
(C) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) is terminated if the
appointed director no longer is employed by or a representative
of a water purveyor.

(g) (1) An appointed director shall not do begin delete either end delete begin insert any end insert of the
following:

(A) Hold an elected office.

(B) Hold more than 0.5 percent ownership in a company
regulated by the Public Utilities Commission.

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(C) Hold more than one consecutive term of office on the board.

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(2) An appointed director shall be subject to all applicable
conflict-of-interest and ethics provisions and shall recuse himself
or herself from participating in a decision that could have a direct
material benefit on the financial interests of the director.

(h) A vacancy in an office of appointed director shall be filled
in accordance with the selection process described in subdivisions
(a) to (c), inclusive.

(i) (1) An appointed director shall be eligible for all of the
following:

(A) Reimbursement for travel and conference expenses pursuant
to the Central Basin Municipal Water District Administrative Code.

(B) Compensation for up to 10 meetings per month at the per
meeting rate provided by the Central Basin Municipal Water
District Administrative Code.

(C) Health insurance benefits, if those benefits are not provided
by the director’s employer.

(2) An appointed director shall not be eligible to receive
communication or car allowances. For purposes of this paragraph,
“car allowances” does not include travel expenses incurred as
described in paragraph (1).

(3) An appointed director may waive the reimbursement and
compensation described in paragraph (1) and may be required to
reimburse his or her employer for any compensation received.

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71268.  

(a) (1) The board of directors shall establish a technical
oversight committee composed of the representatives of five water
purveyors selected before December 31, 2016, and every two years
thereafter, as follows:

(A) One position shall be selected by the large water purveyors
from nominated large water purveyors, each large water purveyor
having one vote.

(B) One position shall be selected by the cities that are water
purveyors of the district from nominated cities, each city having
one vote.

(C) One position shall be selected by the small water purveyors
from nominated small water purveyors, each small water purveyor
having one vote.

(D) Two positions shall be selected by all water purveyors of
the district from nominated water purveyors with the vote of each
purveyor weighted to reflect the number of service connections of
that water purveyor.

(2) If a position for a large water purveyor, small water
purveyor, or city that is a water purveyor cannot be filled by
someone in that category, the position shall be selected by the
purveyors at large.

(3) Each nominated water purveyor that receives the highest
number of votes cast for each position described in paragraph (1)
is selected to the position. The general manager shall collect the
votes and report the results to the water purveyors. Votes for a
position on the technical oversight committee are public records.

(b) In composing the technical oversight committee, a person
and an alternate from each water purveyor selected to a position
pursuant to subdivision (a) shall serve on the technical oversight
committee. A purveyor may change the person or alternate that
serves on the technical oversight committee at any time. Those
selected shall demonstrate eligibility and relevant technical
expertise.

(c) The general manager of the district shall notify each water
purveyor of the district and provide a 60-day period during which
the district will accept nominations to serve on the technical
oversight committee.

(d) (1) To be eligible to serve on the technical oversight
committee, a water purveyor shall not have an individual employed
by or representing that water purveyor on the board of directors.

(2) A water purveyor shall not hold more than one technical
oversight committee seat.

(3) A member of the technical oversight committee shall not
own more than 1 percent of a company regulated by the Public
Utilities Commission.

(4) A member of the technical oversight committee shall be
subject to all applicable conflict-of-interest and ethics provisions
and shall recuse himself or herself from participating in a decision
that could have a direct material benefit on the financial interests
of the member.

(5) A member of the technical oversight committee may request
reimbursement from the district for actual, necessary, and
reasonable expenses incurred in furtherance of his or her duties
on the technical oversight committee. Those reimbursements shall
not exceed five hundred dollars ($500) during a 12-month time
period.

71269.  

(a) The technical oversight committee shall meet at
least on a quarterly basis for the following purposes:

(1) To review the district’s budget and projects for the purpose
of providing nonbinding advice to the district’s general manager
and the board of directors.

(2) To review and approve proposed changes to the
administrative code relating to ethics, director compensation, and
benefits.

(3) To review and approve proposed changes relating to
procurement.

(b) The board of directors shall not make a change described in
paragraph (2) or (3) of subdivision (a) unless the technical oversight
committee approves the change by majority vote before the change
comes to a vote of the board of directors.

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SEC. 2.  

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

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SEC. 3.  

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

In order that the provisions of this act take effect before the
November 8, 2016, election for the board of directors of the Central
Basin Municipal Water District, it is necessary that this act take
effect immediately.

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begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

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This act shall only become operative if Senate Bill 953
of the 2015-16 Regular Session is enacted and becomes effective.

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