BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1262
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Date of Hearing: June 29, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Susan Talamantes Eggman, Chair
SB
1262 (Pavley and Wieckowski) - As Amended June 15, 2016
SENATE VOTE: 22-13
SUBJECT: Water supply planning.
SUMMARY: Revises requirements that new developments must meet
in order to demonstrate that its water supplies are sufficient
to include consideration of provisions of the Sustainable
Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). Specifically, this bill:
1)Adds information about the reliance on and management of
groundwater supplies in factors considered in determining if
there are sufficient water supplies for residential
development
of more than 500 units.
2)Specifies that a Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP) may be
included as substantial evidence in a public water system's
written verification of its ability or inability to provide
sufficient water supply as part of the approval of a
residential development of more than
500 units.
3)Includes an identification of water systems that are adjacent
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to large-scale projects subject to the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) that trigger a water supply
assessment.
4)Adds SGMA compliance status to required information in a water
supply assessment for projects that receive water supply from
groundwater.
5)Excludes hauled water from consideration as a source of water
under a water supply assessment.
6)States that no reimbursement is required because a local
agency has the authority to levy service charges, fees, or
assessments sufficient to pay for the program or level of
service,
as specified.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Requires every large-scale development project of 500 new
residential connections or an equivalent size to have a water
supply assessment prepared according to the following:
a) A city or county, at the time that it determines that a
development is subject to CEQA, must identify any water
system that may supply water for the project;
b) Identify any existing water supply entitlements, water
rights, or water service contracts relevant to the
identified water supply for the proposed project, and
describe the quantities of water received in prior years by
the public water system, or the city or county, through its
water rights or other sources; and,
c) If the project relies in whole or in part on
groundwater, requires additional information, including a
description of any groundwater basins that will supply the
project; the court or State Water Resources Control Board
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(SWRCB) order, if the basin is adjudicated; and, an
analysis of the sufficiency of the groundwater from the
basin or basins.
1)Requires that, under CEQA, whenever a city or county
determines that a large-scale project is subject to CEQA, it
must comply with the water supply assessment requirements
triggered by that determination.
2)Requires, under the Subdivision Map Act, cities and counties
to demonstrate that a sufficient water supply is available as
a condition of their approval of a tentative map for a
subdivision with more than 500 dwelling units. Specifically
requires:
a) Sufficient water supply is defined as the total water
supplies available during normal, single-dry, and
multiple-dry years within a 20-year projection that will
meet the projected demand associated with the proposed
subdivision, in addition to existing and planned future
uses.
b) Proof of sufficient water must be based on a written
verification from the applicable public water system. In
order to be sufficient, the water supply must be able to
meet the demands of existing and future planned uses, in
addition to the subdivision's demand over the next 20
years.
c) The public water system's written verification of its
ability or inability to provide a sufficient water supply
to meet the projected demand associated with the proposed
subdivision must be supported by substantial evidence.
3)Specifies that SGMA, among other provisions, directs the
Department of Water Resources (DWR) to categorize the state's
groundwater basins into high, medium, low, and very low
priorities, based on factors, such as the population overlying
the basin, number of wells in the basin, and overlying
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irrigated acreage. The DWR must also identify basins subject
to critical overdraft. Under SGMA:
a) Basins designated as high or medium priority must be
managed by a groundwater sustainability agency (GSA).
GSA's must develop a GSP to ensure that by 2040, the basin
is in a sustainable condition.
b) A GSP must include, among other things, a description of
the consideration given to the applicable county and city
general plans, and a description of the various adopted
water resources-related plans and programs within the
basin, and an assessment of how the GSP may affect those
plans.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS:
1)Background and Prior Legislation. The Legislature passed SGMA
[SB 1168 (Pavley),
AB 1739 (Dickinson) and SB 1319 (Pavley), 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. GSAs must
by formed by 2017; 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
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manage groundwater in California.
SB 221 (Kuehl), Chapter 642, Statutes of 2001, required cities
and counties to demonstrate
a sufficient water supply as part of the Subdivision Map Act.
SB 610 (Costa), Chapter 643, Statutes of 2001, required
large-scale development to have a water supply assessment.
2)Bill Summary and Author's Statement. This bill revises
requirements that new developments must meet in order to
demonstrate that its water supplies are sufficient to include
consideration of provisions of the SGMA. This bill is an
author-sponsored measure.
According to the author, "California has a number of
interconnecting laws that together attempt to ensure that
water supply availability is given proper consideration when
making land use decisions, and vice versa. Among those laws
are 2002's SBs 610 (Costa) and 221 (Kuehl), also known as the
'show me the water bills.' When we passed the Sustainable
Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) in 2014, we updated some
water and land use planning laws to reflect SGMA, but not the
show me the water bills."
"SB 1262 (Pavley and Wieckowski), updates the show me the
water bills to integrate groundwater sustainability agencies
and consideration of groundwater sustainability plans into
water supply and land use planning. In addition, it prohibits
the use of hauled water to comply with show me the water
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bills."
3)Arguments in Support. Supporters argue that this bill makes
common sense changes to the water supply assessment process to
ensure that water sources cited are, in fact reliable, and
that land use planning agencies take the status of their
groundwater basins and other water sources into account when
planning or approving new development.
4)Arguments in Opposition. None on file.
5)Double-Referral. This bill is double-referred to the Water,
Parks and Wildlife Committee.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Clean Water Action
Community Water Center
Desert Water Agency (if amended)
East Bay Municipal Utility District
Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability
Planning and Conservation League
Sierra Club California
Valley Ag Water Coalition (if amended)
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Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by:Debbie Michel / L. GOV. / (916)
319-3958