BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER Senator Fran Pavley, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Bill No: SB 144 Hearing Date: March 24, 2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Author: |Pan | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Version: |January 27, 2015 | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Consultant:|Dennis O'Connor | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: Water development projects: Sacramento-San Joaquin watersheds BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW Under the State Water Resources Law of 1945, the state may participate in funding local flood control projects that are authorized by the legislature and that meet other specific requirements. One requirement is that the project must be authorized by Congress. Among the local flood control projects that have been authorized by the Legislature is "The project for flood control along the American and Sacramento Rivers ? within the Natomas Basin as described in the final engineer's report dated April 19, 2007, adopted by the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency." This project has been further refined in the "2010 final feasibility study for the American River Watershed, Common Features Project, Natomas Basin, adopted by Congress in Section 7002 of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014." PROPOSED LAW This bill would update the current authorization for this project to reflect the current definition of the project. The bill would also make numerous technical, non substantive changes to the authorizing statutes. ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT According to the Sponsor, SB 144 "would ensure that the historic SB 144 (Pan) Page 2 of ? Federal-State-local cost-sharing partnership is continued and construction moves forward as quickly as possible. The constructed Projects will increase the ability of the existing flood control system to protect heavily urbanized areas within the City of Sacramento and the Counties of Sacramento, Yolo and Sutter. And, as evidenced by the Environmental impact Reports that certified these projects, they will do so without altering or otherwise impairing the designed flows and surface elevations." ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: None Received COMMENTS: None SUGGESTED AMENDMENTS : None SUPPORT: Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency - Sponsor Association of California Water Agencies OPPOSITION: None Received