BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2515
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
2515 (Weber)
As Amended May 27, 2016
Majority vote
------------------------------------------------------------------
|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Water |13-0 |Levine, Gallagher, | |
| | |Bigelow, Dodd, | |
| | |Eggman, Cristina | |
| | |Garcia, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Gomez, Lopez, | |
| | |Mathis, Medina, | |
| | |Olsen, Williams | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |20-0 |Gonzalez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bloom, Bonilla, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, Eggman, | |
| | |Gallagher, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Roger | |
| | |Hernández, Holden, | |
| | |Jones, Obernolte, | |
| | |Quirk, Santiago, | |
| | |Wagner, Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
AB 2515
Page 2
| | | | |
------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Requires the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to
update the model water-efficient landscape ordinance (MWELO), by
January 1, 2020, and every three years thereafter, or make a
finding that an update is not useful or effective. When the
MWELO is updated it requires DWR to submit it to the Building
Standards Commission (BSC) for consideration in the triennial
revision of the California Green Building Standards (CALGreen).
EXISTING LAW:
1)Requires CALGreen to be updated every three years.
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: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee the bill will have:
1)One-time increased costs of approximately $500,000 (General
Fund) over three years for DWR to update the MWELO.
2)Ongoing minor costs of approximately $15,000, every three
years, for DWR to coordinate with the BSC, Housing and
AB 2515
Page 3
Community Development and the State Architect.
COMMENTS: Synchronization of the MWELO with the CALGreen
building code revision cycle would allow updated MWELO standards
to be adopted in the regular CALGreen building code revisions.
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. 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 microspray. In response to the executive
order the MWELO was updated for the first time since 2010 and
the BSC and Housing and Community Development for the first time
placed mandatory water requirements on new construction.
There is no requirement in current law for future MWELO updates
to be included in building code updates. This bill creates a
process to ensure the latest landscape water use is included in
the triennial building code updates.
Analysis Prepared by:
Ryan Ojakian / W., P., & W. / (916) 319-2096 FN: 0003281
AB 2515
Page 4