BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2515
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Date of Hearing: April 12, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS, AND WILDLIFE
Marc Levine, Chair
AB 2515
(Weber) - As Amended April 5, 2016
SUBJECT: Water Conservation in Landscaping Act: model water
efficient landscaping ordinance
SUMMARY: Requires the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to on
or before January 1, 2020, and at least every three years
thereafter update the model water-efficient landscape ordinance
(MWELO) or make a finding that an update is not useful or
effective. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires DWR to hold at least one public hearing to determine
if the MWELO should be updated or make a finding that an
update is not useful or effective.
2)Requires on or before June 30, 2017, that DWR enter into a
cooperative agreement with the Building Standards Commission,
the Department of Housing and Community Development and the
Division of the State Architect to coordinate the MWELO with
the triennial revision cycle of the building standards code.
EXISTING LAW:
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1)Requires the building standards code to be updated every three
years with state agencies proposing changes at the front end
of that cycle.
2)Requires local agencies to have a water efficient landscape
ordinance or DWR's MWELO will apply.
3)Directs DWR to form an Independent Technical Panel (ITP) to
provide information and recommendations to DWR and the
Legislature on new demand management measures, technologies
and approaches to water use efficiency.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS: Requires DWR starting in 2020 to update the MWELO
every three years or find an update to be ineffective.
1)Author's Statement: In this prolonged and serious drought,
everyone has been asked to do everything they can to conserve
water and improve water use efficiency. With outdoor water
use constituting more than half of the average household water
use, attention to improving landscape irrigation efficiency
should be an ongoing focus.
Synchronization of the Model Water Efficient Landscape
Ordinance with the CALGreen building code revision cycle would
allow updated Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance
standards to be adopted in the CALGreen building code
revisions during the same triennial cycle. This would provide
assurance to all state and local agencies, code officials, and
other stakeholders that the Department of Water Resources will
be a reliable and consistent partner in updating the Model
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Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance.
2)Background: One of the recommendations out of the February
2016 draft Independent Technical Panel report to the
Legislature on Landscape Water Use Efficiency was to make the
policy change in this bill.
The policy in this bill would build on several actions that
were in the Governor's Executive Order B-29-15 from April
2015. In particular, the executive order required DWR to
update the MWELO and required the State Water Resources
Control Board to prohibit outdoor irrigation with potable
water in new construction unless the irrigation was drip or
mircospray. In response to the executive order the MWELO was
updated for the first time since 2010 and the Building
Standards Commission and the Department of Housing and
Community Development for the first time placed mandatory
water requirements on new construction.
What was learned following those actions is that the process
for reducing outdoor water use between the Building Standards
Commission's regular triennial update is not well coordinated
with other departments. Shortly after adoption some of the
positive steps taken toward outdoor water efficiency as a
result of the Executive Order were potentially going to be
rolled back because those actions were not synced up with the
process at the Building Standards Commission and were not
going to be included in the building code update.
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As a matter of practice when a structure is newly constructed
or remodeled it must be "brought up to code". In the case of
this policy, coordination between the building standards code
and the MWELO would provide a mechanism for compliance on
newly constructed or remodeled structures with the MWELO.
This bill will help ensure slippage in progress toward
improved landscape water efficiency does not occur and that
steady progress can be made.
DWR has raised technical concerns related to cost with the
approach in this bill. Should the bill move forward the
author may wish to address these concerns.
3)Prior and Related Legislation:
a) AB 2525 (Holden) 2016 requires DWR to establish the
California Water Efficient Landscaping Program, to among
other things, promote the efficient use of water in
landscaping. AB 2525 passed this committee 10-3 earlier
this year.
b) AB 1928 (Campos) 2016 requires the State Energy
Resources Conservation and Development Commission to
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adopt landscape irrigation equipment performance
standards and labeling requirements. AB 1928 passed this
committee 11-1 earlier this year.
c) AB 2617 (Mayes) 2016 requires the California Energy
Commission to analyze the costs and benefits of
incentives for various water efficiency measures.
d) AB 1420 (Laird) Chapter 628, Statutes of 2007,
directed DWR to form the ITP.
e) AB 1881 (Laird), Chapter 559, Statues of 2006,
required DWR to develop the MWELO and local agencies to
comply with the MWELO.
4)Supporting Arguments: This bill will increase MWELO
enforcement and improve water efficiency. The bill will also
eliminate the current practice of updating MWELO in an
uncoordinated, unplanned, and ad hoc manner.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
San Diego County Water Authority
AB 2515
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Opposition
None on File
Analysis Prepared by:Ryan Ojakian / W., P., & W. / (916)
319-2096