BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 37
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB
37 (Vidak)
As Amended August 18, 2016
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE: 37-0
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------|
|Local |8-0 |Eggman, Waldron, | |
|Government | |Alejo, Bonilla, Chiu, | |
| | |Cooley, Gordon, Linder | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------|
|Water |14-0 |Levine, Gallagher, | |
| | |Bigelow, Dodd, Eggman, | |
| | |Cristina Garcia, | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, Gomez, | |
| | |Lopez, Mathis, | |
| | |Nazarian, Olsen, | |
| | |Salas, Williams | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------|
|Appropriations |19-0 |Gonzalez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, | |
| | |Calderon, Daly, | |
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| | |Eggman, Gallagher, | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, | |
| | |Holden, Jones, | |
| | |Obernolte, Quirk, | |
| | |Santiago, Wagner, | |
| | |Weber, Wood, Chu | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Creates the Kings River East Groundwater
Sustainability Agency, specifies the Board composition of the
Agency, and adds the Agency to the list of agencies created by
statute to manage groundwater that are deemed the exclusive
local agencies to comply with the Sustainable Groundwater
Management Act (SGMA). Specifically, this bill:
1)Enacts the Kings River East Groundwater Sustainability Agency
Act (Act) and creates a groundwater management agency in the
Counties of Fresno and Tulare to be known as the Kings River
East Groundwater Sustainability Agency (Agency).
2)Adds the Agency to the list of agencies created by statute to
manage groundwater that are deemed the exclusive local
agencies within their respective statutory boundaries with
powers to comply with the SGMA.
3)Provides that the Agency is governed by a Board, consisting of
seven members, as follows:
a) One member chosen by Alta Irrigation District;
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b) One member chosen by the County of Fresno;
c) One member chosen by the County of Tulare;
d) One member chosen by the Cities. This member shall be
chosen from members of the city councils of the cities
whose territory, at least in part, overlies the territory
of the Agency. This member shall be chosen at a public
meeting where each city is represented by its mayor;
e) One member chosen from the members of the governing
board of the following special districts that are not
governed by the boards of supervisors of either county, are
engaged in water activities, and whose territory, at least
in part, overlies the territory of the Agency:
i) Hills Valley Irrigation District;
ii) Orange Cove Irrigation District;
iii) Tri-Valley Water District; and,
iv) Kings River Water District.
f) One member chosen from members of the governing boards
of special districts that provide drinking water within the
territory of the Agency; and,
g) One member chosen by the other six board members to
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represent agricultural interests within the territory of
the Agency. This member shall reside and be actively and
primarily engaged in production of agriculture within the
territory of the Agency. This member shall be selected
from a list of at least five nominations submitted from the
Fresno County Farm Bureau and the Tulare County Farm
Bureau, acting jointly, but the five nominees need not be
members of either organization.
4)Provides that the board members listed above in 3)a) through
3)c) above, shall be chosen by their respective governing
boards from their board members whose districts or divisions
overlie, at least in part, the territory of the Agency.
5)Provides that the board members listed above in 3)e) and 3)f)
above, shall be chosen at a public meeting where each special
district is represented by the president or chair of its
governing board.
6)Requires an alternate for each board member, chosen in the
same manner and by the same entity as the board member. The
alternative member shall act in place of the board member he
or she is an alternate for in case of that board member's
absence or inability to act.
7)Requires members and there alternates to be chosen on or
before January 31, 2017.
8)Provides that the board members shall serve a four-year term
of office or until the member is no longer an eligible
official of the member agency. Members may serve for more
than one term of office. Provides that the member described
in 3)g) above, shall serve a four-year term of office.
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9)Allows the board to adopt an ordinance to provide compensation
to members of the board in an amount not to exceed $100 per
day for each day's attendance at meetings of the board or for
each day's service rendered as a member of the board by
request of the board. Provides that the determination of
whether a board member's activities on any specific day are
compensable shall be made pursuant to existing law. Provides
that reimbursement for expenses of members of the Board is
subject to existing law.
10)Allows the board to adopt an ordinance to increase the
compensation received by members of the board above the amount
of $100 per day and specifies that the increase shall not
exceed an amount equal to 5%, for each calendar year following
the operative date of the last adjustment, of the compensation
that is received when the ordinance is adopted.
11)Prohibits a board member from being compensated for more than
a total of 10 days in any calendar month.
12)Allows the board to adopt ordinances for the purpose of
regulating, conserving, managing, and controlling the use and
extraction of groundwater within the territory of the Agency.
13)Specifies that an ordinance adopted by the board shall become
effective 30 days from the date of its passage.
14)Requires all ordinances shall be adopted at noticed, public
hearings by a majority vote of the Board, and requires notice
of the hearing to be published in a newspaper of general
circulation, as specified. Requires the board to provide
notice of the adoption of all ordinances.
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15)Allows the Agency to contract with either county or Alta
Irrigation District for staff and other services. Allows the
Agency to hire contractors and consultants as it considers
appropriate.
16)Requires the Agency to enter into a coordination agreement
with other local agencies for purposes of coordinating the
Agency's plan with other agencies or groundwater
sustainability plans within the King Subbasin, as required by
the SGMA.
17)Allows the Agency to exclude from any of the requirements of
this Act, or the operation of any ordinance, any operator who
annually extracts less than a minimum amount of groundwater,
as specified by an ordinance adopted by the Board.
18)Allows the Agency to collect data and conduct technical and
other investigations of all kinds in order to carry out the
provisions of this Act. Requires all hydrological
investigations and studies carried out by or on behalf of the
Agency to be constructed by or under the supervision of
licensed engineers or other persons qualified in groundwater
geology or hydrology.
19)Allows the Agency to recommend and encourage water recycling
and other water development projects, where those projects
will enhance and contribute to the responsible management of
groundwater resources, as part of its annual plan for
implementation of groundwater management objectives.
20)Requires the Agency to develop and implement a groundwater
sustainability plan, pursuant to existing law, to achieve
sustainable groundwater management within the territory of the
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Agency.
21)Requires the Agency to elect to be a groundwater
sustainability agency, pursuant to existing law, for that
portion of the Kings Subbasin that lies within the boundaries
of the Agency.
22)Allows the Agency to exercise specified powers, pursuant to
SGMA.
23)Allows, pursuant to SGMA, the Agency to impose fees,
including, but not limited to, permit fees and fees on
groundwater extraction or other regulated activity, to fund
the costs of a groundwater sustainability program, that
include, but are not limited to, the preparation, adoption,
and amendments of a groundwater sustainability plan,
investigations, inspections, compliance assistance,
enforcement, and program administration, including a prudent
reserve.
24)Declares that the availability of supplemental water to any
operator shall not subject that operator to regulations that
are more restrictive than those imposed on other operators.
25)Declares that no provision of this Act shall be construed as
denying to the Counties, any City, or any other member agency
any rights or powers that they already have or that they may
be granted.
26)Specifies the initial boundaries of the Agency, for purposes
of the Act, as follows:
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a) All land located within the exterior perimeter
boundaries of Alta Irrigation District that is within the
Counties of Fresno and Tulare;
b) All land located in the incorporated City of Reedley;
c) All land located in Kings River Water District plus
parcel 350-150-16 within the County of Fresno, as that
parcel existed as of January 1, 2016, and excluding the
incorporated City of Sanger; and,
d) Land that is east of Alta Irrigation District and east
of the east line of Sections 13 and 24, Ti3S, R23E, between
Alta Irrigation District and east line and the east line of
the Bulletin 118 Kings Subbasin boundary, as described in
the report by the Department of Water Resources titled,
"California's Groundwater: Bulletin 118," updated in 2003,
as it may be subsequently updated or revised in accordance
with Water Code Section 12924.
27)Allows the initial boundaries of the Agency to be changed
upon a petition to the Boards of Supervisors of the Counties
of Fresno and Tulare after a noticed public hearing in which
the change is proposed. Requires the boundaries to be
depicted on a map that is maintained by the Boards of
Supervisors of those counties and thereafter recorded in the
office of the county recorder of each county.
28)Prohibits the boundaries of the Agency from being adjusted to
include an area of the basin within the management area of
another groundwater sustainability agency unless the agency
has entered into a memorandum of agreement or other legal
agreement with that groundwater sustainability agency that
permits the area to be included.
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29)Prohibits the boundaries of the Agency from being adjusted to
include any part of a proposed management area, as defined in
a notice of intent submitted, as specified, unless the Agency
has entered into a memorandum of agreement or other legal
agreement with all agencies listed in the notice of intent
that permits the area to be included.
30)Provides that the Agency has the powers granted by this Act
and the SGMA, for purposes of groundwater management within
the boundaries of the Agency, together with any other powers
as are reasonably implied, necessary, and proper to carry out
the objectives and purposes of the Agency to implement the
SGMA.
31)Defines the following terms:
a) "Actively and primarily engaged in production of
agriculture" to mean that a person derives at least 75% of
his or her annual income from production agriculture;
b) "Agency" means the Kings River East Groundwater
Sustainability Agency;
c) "Alta" means the Alta Irrigation District;
d) "Aquifer" means a geologic formation or structure that
transmits water in sufficient quantities to supply pumping
wells or springs;
e) "Basin" to mean a groundwater basin or subbasin
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identified and defined in the Department of Water
Resources' "California Groundwater: Bulletin 118" updated
in 2003, as it may be subsequently updated or revised, as
specified;
f) "Board" to mean the Board of Directors of the Agency;
g) "Cities" to mean the Cities of Dinuba, Orange Cove, and
Reedley;
h) "Coordination agreement" to mean a legal agreement
adopted between two or more groundwater sustainability
agencies that provides the basis for coordinating multiple
agencies or groundwater sustainability plans within a
basin;
i) "County" to mean either the County of Fresno or the
County of Tulare, as the context requires. "Counties" to
mean the County of Fresno and the County of Tulare;
j) "Extraction" to mean the act of obtaining groundwater by
pumping or other controlled means;
aa) "Groundwater" to mean water beneath the surface of the
earth within the zone below the water table in which the
soil is completely saturated with water, but does not
include water that flows in known and definite channels;
bb) "Groundwater management activities" to mean programs,
measures, or actions taken to preserve, protect, and
enhance groundwater resources within the territory of the
Agency;
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cc) "Kings Subbasin" to mean the San Joaquin Valley
Groundwater Basin Kings Subbasin;
dd) "Member agency" to mean Alta, the counties, the cities,
and the special districts entitled to representation on the
Agency's Board of Directors, as specified;
ee) "Operator" to mean a person operating a groundwater
extraction facility. The owner of a groundwater extraction
facility shall be conclusively presumed to be the operator,
unless a satisfactory showing is made to the governing body
of the groundwater sustainability agency that the
groundwater extraction facility actually is operated by
some other person;
ff) "Person" has the same meaning as defined in Water Code
Section 10735;
gg) "Plan" to mean a groundwater sustainability plan
prepared by the Agency; and,
hh) "Supplemental water" to mean surface water or
groundwater imported from outside the watershed or
watersheds of the basin or aquifer and floodwaters that are
conserved and saved within the watershed or watersheds that
would otherwise have been lost or would not have reached
the basin or aquifer.
32)Provides that in the event of any conflict between the Act
and the provisions of SGMA, the provisions of SGMA shall
prevail.
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33)Contains chaptering out language to avoid conflicts with SB
564 (Cannella) of the current legislative session.
34)Makes findings and declarations.
35)States that no reimbursement is required by this Act 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, as
specified.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA)
to provide local groundwater agencies with the authority and
the technical and financial assistance necessary to
sustainably manage groundwater.
2)Requires, by January 31, 2020, all basins designed as high- or
medium-priority basins by Department of Water Resources (DWR)
that have been designated in Bulletin 118, as may be updated
or revised on or before January 1, 2017, as basins that are
subject to critical conditions of overdraft, to be managed
under a groundwater sustainability plan or coordinated
groundwater sustainability plans.
3)Requires, by January 31, 2022, all basins designed as high- or
medium-priority basins by DWR that are not subject to 2)
above, to be managed under a groundwater sustainability plan
or coordinated groundwater sustainability plans.
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4)Allows any local agency or combination of local agencies
overlying a groundwater basin to elect to be a groundwater
sustainability agency for that basin, except as specified.
5)Requires the local agency or agencies to hold a public hearing
in the county or counties overlying the basin, prior to
electing to be a Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA), and
to provide specified notice of that hearing, pursuant to
existing law.
6)Requires a local agency or combination of local agencies that
elects to be the GSA to submit a notice of intent to DWR, as
specified.
7)Allows a combination of local agencies to form a GSA by using
any of the following methods:
a) A joint powers agreement (JPA); or,
b) A memorandum of agreement or other local agreement.
8)Requires a groundwater sustainability plan to be developed and
implemented for each medium- or high- priority basin by a GSA
to meet the sustainability goal established, pursuant to SGMA.
9)Specifies that a GSP may be any of the following:
a) A single plan covering the entire basin developed and
implemented by one GSA;
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b) A single plan covering the entire basin developed and
implemented by multiple GSAs; or,
c) Multiple plans implemented by multiple GSAs and
coordinated pursuant to a single coordination agreement
that covers the entire basins, as specified.
10)Allows the State Water Board, after notice and public
hearing, to designate a basin as a probationary basin, if the
board makes certain specified findings.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, negligible state fiscal impact. Although a state
mandate, costs are not reimbursable because the Agency has
authority to levy fees sufficient to cover any costs.
COMMENTS:
1)Local Groundwater Management and the Sustainable Groundwater
Management Act (SGMA). The Legislature passed SGMA (SB 1168
(Pavley), Chapter 346, Statutes of 2014; AB 1739 (Dickinson),
Chapter 347, Statutes of 2014; and SB 1319 (Pavley), Chapter
348, Statutes of 2014), creating a statewide requirement to
sustainably manage groundwater resources. The package of
bills was signed by Governor Brown with the objective to
ensure the long-term reliability of groundwater resources and
connected surface water resources by requiring sustainable
management. Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) must
be formed by 2017, Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSPs) for
critically overdrafted basins must be written by 2020, and
sustainability must be reached by 2040. Prior to 2014, there
was no statutory mandate to manage groundwater in California.
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Prior to SGMA, there were several ways that groundwater was
managed at the local level. A local agency that provided
water service was authorized to develop and implement a
groundwater management plan, known as AB 3030 plans. The
Legislature also created a number of "special act special
districts" that addressed groundwater management - these local
agencies were created via statute to establish unique
governance structures and grant powers that were customized to
the problems and solutions of a particular groundwater basin.
The acts creating these special act districts are located in
the Water Appendix.
Local Control and Governance Options under SGMA. SGMA
requires local entities in medium- and high-priority basins to
establish GSAs by June 2017, to avoid state intervention.
GSAs must self-identify by June 30, 2017, to the DWR, and can
include a city, a county, a special district, or a combination
of these agencies organized via a legal agreement, like a JPA
or Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). One agency can form a GSA
for the entire basin, or multiple agencies can form individual
GSAs and coordinate for basin sustainability. There are
multiple options for local agencies to manage groundwater
under SGMA, including alternatives to forming a GSA and
developing a GSP. SGMA does not specify exactly how GSAs
should govern local groundwater resources to achieve
sustainability goals.
All groundwater basins designated as medium- or high-priority
and identified as subject to critical conditions of overdraft
must be managed under one or more GSPs by January 31, 2020.
The deadline is two years later (January 31, 2022) for other
medium- or high-priority basins. The goal of the GSPs is to
achieve operation within the basins' sustainable yield within
20 years of plan implementation.
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Because of the June 30, 2017, date to have GSAs in place, the
timeline for local agencies to make decisions on management at
the local level, and governance, is very short.
2)Bill Summary. This bill creates the Kings River East
Groundwater Sustainability Agency, and requires the Agency to
be the GSA under SGMA for that portion of the Kings Subbasin
that lies within the boundaries of the Agency, and would
require the Agency to develop and implement a GSP to achieve
sustainable groundwater management within the territory of the
Agency. This bill additionally specifies the powers and
purposes of the Agency, and prescribes the composition of the
seven-member board of directors of the Agency, including the
terms, how the members are chosen, and their compensation and
reimbursement. This bill also adds the Agency to the list of
agencies created by statute to manage groundwater that are
deemed the exclusive local agencies within their respective
statutory boundaries with powers to comply with SGMA.
This bill is sponsored by Alta Irrigation District.
3)Author's Statement. According to the author, "In 2014 the
Legislature passed the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act
(SGMA). The legislation requires local agencies to manage
groundwater basins in a sustainable manner and allows for
state intervention when necessary to protect groundwater
resources.
"SGMA provides local agencies the ability to develop plans and
implement strategies to sustainability manage groundwater
resources, prioritizes basins with the greatest need and sets
a timeline for implementation. Establishing a sustainability
agency as required by SGMA, authorizes any local agency or a
combination of local agencies to elect to be a GSA through a
joint powers agreement, or memorandum of agreement. The act
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leaves no room for a private, non-profit, or unelected member
of the public to sit on a GSA as a voting member.
"SB 37 will create the Kings River East Groundwater
Sustainability Agency as a special act district. The GSA will
cover an area in Fresno and Tulare counties east of the Kings
River, including all of the cities of Dinuba, Orange Cove, and
Reedley as well as the communities of Cutler, East Orosi,
London, Orosi, and Sultana.
"The GSA created under SB 37 would consist of seven members
chosen by the following categories: 1) Alta Irrigation
District; 2) Tulare County; 3) Fresno County; 4) Cities
(Dinuba, Orange Cove, Reedley); 5) Water Districts (Hills
Valley Irrigation District, Orange Cove Irrigation District,
Tri-Valley Water District, and Kings River Water District); 6)
Special Districts that provide drinking water (Cutler Public
Utility District, East Orosi Community Services District,
London Community Service District, Orosi Public Utilities
District, and Sultana Community Services District); and 7) an
agricultural representative.
"SB 37 provides that the GSA shall only have the ability to
carry out the powers provided in SGMA. Additionally, the
creation of this district will not pose challenges to other
GSAs in terms of coordination because of requirements under
SGMA for multiple plans implemented by multiple GSAs within a
basin to be coordinated pursuant to a single coordination
agreement."
4)Notice of Election to Serve as a Groundwater Sustainability
Agency. On March 28, 2016, Alta Irrigation District filed
paperwork with the California Department of Water Resources on
behalf of the to-be created Kings River East Groundwater
Sustainability Agency, in order to notify DWR that Kings River
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East would like to serve as the GSA for that portion of the
Kings Sub-basin of the San Joaquin Valley Basin. The notice
to DWR says that "all of those local agencies, acting as
interested parties, have entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding to form the Kings River GSA,?. in the MOU, such
interested parties commit to forming either a) a special act
district, or b) a JPA to implement the GSA."
The notice to DWR also states:
"On March 17, 2016, the Kings River East held a public hearing
to consider serving as the GSA. The signed MOUs state the
intent of the parties to form the GSA. The Kings River East
noticed the public hearing in a paper in Fresno County
(Reedley Exponent) and a paper in Tulare County (Dinuba
Sentinel) as required by Water Code Section 10723(b) and
Government Code Section 6066.
"The District did not receive any written comments prior to
the hearing. Furthermore, at that public hearing, the Kings
River East did not receive any comments or conditions
objecting to or criticizing the formation of the Kings River
East GSA. Section 6 of the MOU, regarding the GSA Governing
Body, specifies and describes the governance structure for the
Kings River East GSA."
The notice to DWR also references this bill, the intent of
which is to establish a special act district.
5)Policy Considerations. The Legislature may wish to consider
the following:
a) Ag Representative on Board. This bill allows for an
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agriculture "seat" on the Board of the Agency. That member
is to be chosen by the other six board members to represent
agricultural interests, selected from a list of at least
five nominations submitted from the Fresno County Farm
Bureau and the Tulare County Farm Bureau, acting jointly.
The sponsor notes that this board makeup is modeled after
the governing board of the Fox Canyon Groundwater
Management Agency, created by statute in 1982, which
includes a member that represents production agriculture.
The Committee may wish to contemplate the inclusion of a
seat on the Board that is not held by a member appointed by
a public agency or combination of public agencies, given
the requirements of SGMA on public water agencies.
b) Other Alternatives to Special Act District. The
Legislature may wish to ask the author to discuss why other
local management options (JPA, MOA, electing to have an
existing district serve as the GSA) do not suffice.
6)Arguments in Support. According to the supporters, it is the
intent of all the interested parties to work collaboratively
to solve the groundwater issues in the region and to develop
the governance structure that will facilitate implementing a
groundwater sustainability plan.
7)Arguments in Opposition. None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:
Debbie Michel / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958 FN:
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