BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 37| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- UNFINISHED BUSINESS Bill No: SB 37 Author: Vidak (R), et al. Amended: 8/18/16 Vote: 21 PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE: 8-0, 8/25/16 (pursuant to Senate Rule 29.10) AYES: Pavley, Stone, Allen, Fuller, Hertzberg, Jackson, Monning, Wolk ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 8/23/16 - See last page for vote SUBJECT: Kings River East Groundwater Sustainability Agency Act SOURCE: Author DIGEST: This bill creates the Kings River East Groundwater Sustainability Agency (Agency), specifies the board of directors 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). Assembly Amendments delete prior language regarding Proposition 1E funding and replace with the current language creating the Kings River East Groundwater Sustainability Agency Act. ANALYSIS: SB 37 Page 2 Existing law: 1)Enacts SGMA which, among other things: a) Requires that a groundwater sustainability plan be adopted for high and medium priority groundwater basins in California. i) Limited to "high & medium priority basins" - 127 out of 515 basins in the state. ii) Adjudicated basins are exempt (except for minimal reporting), bringing the number to fewer than 100 affected basins. iii) "Low & very low priority" basins are exempt, though they are encouraged to adopt plans. b) Establishes a timetable for adoption of groundwater sustainability plans. i) By 2017, local groundwater sustainability agencies must be identified. ii) By 2020, overdrafted basins must be covered by a groundwater sustainability plan. Other high and medium priority basins not in overdraft must have plans by 2022. iii) By 2040, each high and medium priority basin must achieve sustainability, though this can be extended by 10 years for good cause. SB 37 Page 3 c) Empowers local agencies to manage their basins sustainably. i) Gives local agencies new authority to adopt and enforce rules, require reporting, raise funds and build new water projects. ii) Department of Water Resources (DWR) will provide technical assistance to local agencies. d) Establishes basic requirements for groundwater sustainability plans. i) Long-term planning and implementation horizon. ii) Measurable objectives and interim milestones to achieve sustainability in 20 years. iii) Most requirements similar to the current, voluntary groundwater plan requirements adopted 22 years ago. iv) DWR will develop new regulations for updating basin boundaries and criteria to evaluate sustainability plans. 2)Creates 15 special act districts to manage groundwater, which are also deemed the exclusive local agencies within their respective statutory boundaries with powers to comply with SGMA. These include districts include, for example: SB 37 Page 4 a) Alameda County Water District. b) Desert Water Agency. c) Fox Canyon Groundwater Management Agency. d) Monterey Peninsula Water Management District. e) Ojai Groundwater Management Agency. f) Orange County Water District. This bill: 1)Enacts the Kings River East Groundwater Sustainability Agency Act, which creates the Agency created in the Counties of Fresno and Tulare. a) The boundaries of the Agency generally comprise the south eastern portion of the Kings groundwater subbasin. i) The initial boundaries of the Agency may be changed upon a petition to the boards of supervisors of the Counties of Fresno and Tulare after a noticed public hearing in the county in which the change is proposed. ii) The boundaries of the Agency shall not be 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 SB 37 Page 5 groundwater sustainability agency that permits the area to be included. b) The Agency shall be governed by a board of directors that shall consist of seven members, as follows: i) One member shall be chosen by Alta Irrigation District. ii) One member shall be chosen by the County of Fresno. iii) One member shall be chosen by the County of Tulare. iv) One member shall be chosen by the cities from the members of the city councils of the cities whose territory, at least in part, overlies the territory of the Agency. v) One member shall be chosen from the members of the governing boards of the specified special districts that are not governed by the board of supervisors of either county, are engaged in water activities, and whose territory, at least in part, overlies the territory of the Agency: vi) One member shall be chosen from the members of the governing boards of special districts that provide drinking water within the territory of the Agency. vii) One member shall be chosen by the other six board members to represent agricultural interests within the territory of the Agency. This member shall SB 37 Page 6 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. c) The board may adopt ordinances for the purpose of regulating, conserving, managing, and controlling the use and extraction of groundwater within the territory of the Agency. d) The Agency shall 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 Kings Subbasin as required by SGMA. e) The Agency may exclude from any of the requirements of the 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. f) The Agency may collect data and conduct technical and other investigations of all kinds in order to carry out the provisions of this Act. g) The Agency shall develop and implement a groundwater sustainability plan pursuant to SGMA to achieve sustainable groundwater management within the territory of the Agency. h) The Agency may exercise any of the powers granted to groundwater sustainability agencies by SGMA. SB 37 Page 7 i) The Agency may impose fees, including groundwater extraction or other regulated activity, to fund the costs of a groundwater sustainability program. 2)Adds Kings River East to the list of special act districts which are deemed the exclusive local agencies within their respective statutory boundaries with powers to comply with SGMA. 3)Includes chaptering instructions should both this bill and SB 564 (Cannella) pass. Comments Kings groundwater subbasin. The Kings subbasin has been designated by DWR as a high-priority basin. DWR has also identified it as being one of 21 basins in critical overdraft. Why does agriculture get its own seat? It is not clear why private agricultural interests need additional representation on a board, considering that an irrigation district directly appoints one of the members and other irrigation districts have input on a second. In addition, while members of the public on the governing boards of some local governments may sometimes be appointed and may have backgrounds in the private sector, the selection from a list provided by private entities is unusual. At a minimum, it is a departure from the way most groundwater sustainability agencies are governed. Related Legislation SB 564 (Cannella) creates the North Fork Kings Groundwater Sustainability Agency, also overlaying a portion of the Kings subbasin and located north east of the Kings River East SB 37 Page 8 Groundwater Sustainability Agency. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.:YesLocal: Yes According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, there will be 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. SUPPORT: (Verified8/24/16) Alta Irrigation District Association of California Water Agencies California Citrus Mutual City of Dinuba City of Orange Cove City of Reedley Community Water Center Cutler Public Utility District Gillette Citrus, Inc. Hills Valley Irrigation District Kings County Water District Kings River Water District London Community Services District Orange Cove Irrigation District Orosi Public Utility District Peltzer Enterprises Sultana Community Services District Tulare County Board of Supervisors Tulare County Farm Bureau OPPOSITION: (Verified8/24/16) None received SB 37 Page 9 ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: 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 [groundwater sustainability agency] through a joint powers agreement, or memorandum of agreement. The act 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." SB 37 Page 10 ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 8/23/16 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon NO VOTE RECORDED: Brough, Beth Gaines Prepared by:Dennis O'Connor / N.R. & W. / (916) 651-4116 8/25/16 17:34:50 **** END ****