BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1398
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB
1398 (Leyva)
As Amended August 18, 2016
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE: 36-0
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------|
|Environmental |5-1 |Alejo, Dahle, |Gray |
|Safety | |Arambula, Lopez, | |
| | |McCarty | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------|
|Appropriations |17-2 |Gonzalez, Bloom, |Bigelow, Obernolte |
| | |Bonilla, Bonta, | |
| | |Calderon, Daly, | |
| | |Eggman, Gallagher, | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, | |
| | |Holden, Jones, Quirk, | |
| | |Santiago, Wagner, | |
| | |Weber, Wood, Chu | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SB 1398
Page 2
SUMMARY: Requires, by July 1, 2018, a public water system (PWS)
to identify and replace known lead service lines. Specifically,
this bill:
1)States the intent of the Legislature to ensure that lead water
pipes are identified and replaced as promptly as possible;
that public water systems evaluate water service lines of
unidentified composition and take appropriate action to
ascertain whether they contain lead; and, that public water
systems manage the replacement of service lines on a schedule
that is commensurate with the risks and costs involved.
2)Requires, by July 1, 2018, a PWS to compile an inventory of
known lead user service lines in use in its system, and
identify areas that may have lead user service lines in use in
its distribution system. Requires a PWS to provide a timeline
for replacement of known lead user service lines in its
distribution system to the State Water Resources Control Board
(State Water Board).
3)Requires, by July 1, 2020, a PWS with areas that may have lead
user service lines in its systems to do either of the
following:
a) Determine the existence or absence of lead user service
lines in use in their distribution systems and provide that
information to the State Water Board; or,
b) Provide a timeline for replacement of user service lines
connecting a water main to an individual water meter or
service connection whose content cannot be determined to
the State Water Board.
SB 1398
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4)Authorizes the State Water Board to approve the timelines for
lead user service line replacement and establishes a timeframe
for approving, denying and revising the PWS's proposed
timelines. Requires an approved timeline to be a public
record and available on the State Water Board's Internet Web
site.
5)Prohibits the State Water Board, where a portion of a public
water system's distribution system is located within in a
Superfund site under an active federal cleanup order, from
proposing a timeline for lead user service line replacement
that does not conform to any applicable federal regulatory
requirements or timelines.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, any additional costs to the State Water Board would
not be significant, and likely absorbable.
COMMENTS:
Need for the bill: According to the author, "Given the age of
many of the underground pipes utilized within PWSs, it is not
commonly known where lead pipes disproportionately threaten the
public health of local communities. In fact, current federal or
state law does not require water districts to report locations
of lead service pipes. While lead pipes may be less common in
California, it is vital that we know where these pipes are and
eliminate them? SB 1398 enhances public knowledge of remaining
lead pipes in use and implements a plan for their complete
removal from water for human consumption. By setting in motion
a plan to remove all lead from public water system pipes, SB
1398 helps to reduce public health risks and the costs of
corrosion control treatment from lead in public water system
pipes."
SB 1398
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Lead in water: The most prevalent sources of lead in drinking
water are from pipes, fixtures, and associated hardware from
which the lead can leach. Lead can enter a building's drinking
water by leaching from lead service connections, from lead
solder used in copper piping, and from brass fixtures. The
amount of lead in tap water can depend on several factors,
including the age and material of the pipes, concentration of
lead in water delivered by the public utility (or, for private
domestic wells, the concentration of lead in raw groundwater),
and corrosivity (acidity, temperature, and the concentration of
other mineral components) of the water. More corrosive water
can cause greater leaching from pipes. As pipes age, mineral
deposits will form a coating on the inside of the pipes that
protect against further corrosion.
To address the issue of lead in drinking water, this bill would
require a PWS to compile an inventory of all known lead user
service lines in use in its distribution system, and identify
areas that may have lead service lines in use in its system.
The PWS would then have to establish a timeline for replacing
those known lead pipes and a separate timeline for investigating
and replacing the unknown pipes.
Flint, Michigan: Flint is located along the Flint River
northwest of Detroit, Michigan. In April 2014, Flint switched
its water supply from Lake Huron (via Detroit) to the Flint
River. The Flint River water is corrosive (high pH and low
salinity levels), which, absent an added corrosion inhibitor
chemical like orthophosphate, can erode the pipes or solder
exposing lead. As a cost-saving measure, water officials opted
not to add the corrosion inhibitor chemicals. The corrosive
Flint River water caused lead from aging pipes to leach into the
water supply, causing extremely elevated levels of lead. As a
result, between 6,000 and 12,000 children in Flint have been
exposed to drinking water with high levels of lead and they
potentially will experience a range of serious health problems.
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Who is falling through the cracks in California: According to
the State Water Board, 98% of Californians are served by PWSs
drinking water that meets federal and state drinking water
standards, which leaves 2% of California's drinking water
failing to meet federal and state safe drinking water standards.
While the contaminated water serving that 2% is likely
contaminated at the drinking water source, lead contamination
from corroded plumbing could be a contributing factor.
On July 9, the Fresno Bee reported that lead has been found at
various residences with galvanized pipes in Northern Fresno,
possibly a result of corrosion from the City of Fresno's
(Fresno) water supplies from the Surface Water Treatment
Facility. Much is unknown about what is causing the problem and
how large the problem is. Fresno is testing homes in an effort
to pinpoint the factors causing the problem, from water
chemistry to corrosion control to the types of pipes and
fixtures in affected homes. Potential solutions could be
incremental adjustments of pH levels, corrosion-control
chemicals in the water, running faucets to flush water from the
fixtures, and/or to replacing plumbing fixtures or service lines
coming off Fresno's water meters. As of last month, a total of
69 faucets in 39 homes tested positive for lead contamination at
levels in exceedance of 15 parts per billion, the threshold set
by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) at
which corrective action must be taken.
Federal lead testing requirements: Under the Safe Drinking
Water Act (SDWA), the US EPA is mandated to set enforceable
drinking water standards, or maximum contaminant levels (MCLs)
for contaminants. While there is no MCL for lead, in 1991, the
US EPA adopted the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR), which established
"action levels" for lead of 15 g/L (0.015 mg/L). The LCR
requires a PWS to test water at the tap at a sample of their
customers served for lead levels. If more than 10% of the
samples collected are at or above the action level for lead, it
can trigger 'actions' that include lead user service line
replacement. The LCR requires lead samples to be collected
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every six months. The LCR, however, is not an exhaustive
requirement for identifying the real potential for lead pipes
(or user service lines) in a PWSs territory.
Given recent events in Flint, Michigan, the US EPA is increasing
oversight of state programs to identify and address any
deficiencies in current implementation of the LCR. The US EPA
is meeting with every state drinking water program across the
country to ensure states are taking appropriate actions to
address lead action level exceedences, including optimizing
corrosion control, providing effective public health
communication and outreach to residents to reduce lead exposure,
and removing lead service lines where required by the LCR.
This bill is getting in front of the problem by necessitating
the replacement of all known lead-containing service lines
before they potentially leach lead into the drinking water they
convey.
Analysis Prepared by:
Paige Brokaw / E.S. & T.M. / (916) 319-3965 FN:
0004403