Amended in Assembly April 12, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 4, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 29, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 28, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2470

Introduced by Assembly Member Gonzalez

(Principal coauthor: Senator Anderson)

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Atkins, Jones, Maienschein, begin delete and end delete begin delete Waldron end delete begin insert Waldron, and Weber end insert )

(Coauthors: Senators Block and Hueso)

February 19, 2016

An act to add Section 71611.5 to the Water Code, relating to water.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2470, as amended, Gonzalez. Municipal water districts: water service: Indian tribes.

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 authorizes a district to sell water under its control, without preference, to cities, other public corporations and agencies, and persons, within the district for use within the district. Existing law authorizes a district to sell or otherwise dispose of water above that required by consumers within the district to any persons, public corporations or agencies, or other consumers.

This bill, upon the request of an Indian begin delete tribe, end delete begin insert tribe and the satisfaction of certain conditions, end insert would require a district to provide service of water at begin insert substantially end insert the same terms begin delete available end delete begin insert applicable end insert to the begin delete current end delete customers of the district to an Indian tribe’s lands that are not within a district, as prescribed, if the Indian tribe’s lands meet certain requirements. begin insert The bill would deem the service areas of a district and of any public agency providing water to the district for all purposes to include an Indian tribe’s land for a prescribed period of time if the district provides service of water to the Indian tribe’s lands under these provisions. This bill would require an Indian tribe provided water service under these provisions to make all required payments as if it were annexed into a district’s service area and would make the payments a condition of continued service of water by the district. end insert By imposing new duties on a municipal water 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 71611.5 is added to the Water Code, to
read:

71611.5.  

begin insert (a) end insert begin insert   end insert Notwithstanding any other law, upon the request
of an Indian begin delete tribe, end delete begin insert tribe and the satisfaction of the conditions stated
in subdivision (b), end insert a district shall provide service of water at
begin insert substantially end insert the same terms begin delete available end delete begin insert applicable end insert to the begin delete current end delete
customers of the district to an Indian tribe’s lands that are not
within a district as if the lands had been fully annexed within the
district and any other special districts required for the provision
of water service if the Indian tribe’s lands meet all of the following
requirements:

begin delete

(a)

end delete

begin insert ( end insert begin insert 1) end insert  The lands were owned by the tribe on January 1, 2016.

begin delete

(b)

end delete

begin insert ( end insert begin insert 2) end insert  The lands are contiguous with at least two districts.

begin delete

(c)

end delete

begin insert ( end insert begin insert 3) end insert  The lands lie within the special study area of at least one
district.

begin delete

(d)

end delete

begin insert ( end insert begin insert 4) end insert  At least begin delete 75 end delete begin insert 70 end insert percent of the Indian tribe’s total Indian lands
are currently within the boundaries of one or more districts.

begin insert

(b) Before a district provides service of water pursuant to this
section, the Indian tribe shall satisfy both of the following
conditions:

end insert begin insert

(1) The Indian tribe complies with all federal and tribal laws.

end insert begin insert

(2) The Indian tribe acquires all federal and tribal approvals
necessary for the applicable district to provide water service to
the tribal lands on substantially the same terms applicable to
customers of the district.

end insert begin insert

(c) If a district provides service of water to an Indian tribe’s
lands pursuant to this section, the service areas of the district and
of any public agency providing water to the district are deemed
for all purposes to include the Indian tribe’s lands for the longest
of the following periods of time:

end insert begin insert

(1) The time service of water is provided by the district to the
Indian tribe.

end insert begin insert

(2) The time moneys are owed by the Indian tribe to the district
for the service of water.

end insert begin insert

(3) The term of any agreement between the district and the
Indian tribe.

end insert begin insert

(d) An Indian tribe provided water service pursuant to this
section shall make all required payments, including service
payments, as if it were annexed into a district’s service area. The
payments are a condition of continued service of water by the
district pursuant to this section.

end insert

SEC. 2.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service
charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or
level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section
17556 of the Government Code.