BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1398|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 1398
Author: Leyva (D)
Amended: 8/18/16
Vote: 21
SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE: 6-1, 4/20/16
AYES: Wieckowski, Bates, Hill, Jackson, Leno, Pavley
NOES: Gaines
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 6-1, 5/27/16
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza
NOES: Nielsen
SENATE FLOOR: 36-0, 6/2/16
AYES: Allen, Anderson, Bates, Beall, Berryhill, Block, Cannella,
De León, Galgiani, Glazer, Hall, Hancock, Hernandez, Hertzberg,
Hill, Hueso, Huff, Jackson, Lara, Leno, Leyva, Liu, McGuire,
Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Pan,
Pavley, Roth, Stone, Vidak, Wieckowski, Wolk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Fuller, Gaines, Nielsen, Runner
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 72-7, 8/29/16 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Public water systems: lead user service lines
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill requires, by July 1, 2018, a public water system
(PWS) to identify and replace known lead service lines.
Assembly Amendments (1) add intent language stating the risk to
public health from exposure to lead in water service lines; (2)
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clarify that the service lines, not just the pipes, should be
evaluated for lead and replaced as-needed; and (3) give the State
Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) authority to
approve and/or revise a PWS's timeline for service line
replacement.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires PWSs to take specified actions to test for and remediate
certain contaminants in drinking water, including lead and
copper.
2)Prohibits the use of any pipe, pipe or plumbing fitting or
fixture, solder, or flux that is not "lead free" in the
installation or repair of any PWS or any plumbing in a facility
providing water for human consumption, except as specified.
3)Prohibits any person engaged in the business of selling plumbing
supplies, except manufacturers, from selling solder or flux that
is not "lead free" as defined in statute.
4)Prohibits the introduction into commerce of any solder or flux
that is not "lead free" unless the solder or flux bears a label
stating that it is illegal to use the solder or flux in the
installation or repair of any plumbing providing water for human
consumption.
5)Prohibits the introduction into commerce of any pipe, pipe or
plumbing fitting, or fixture intended to convey or dispense water
for human consumption that is not "lead free" as defined in
statute.
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This bill requires, by July 1, 2018, a 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
PWSs evaluate water service lines of unidentified composition and
take appropriate action to ascertain whether they contain lead;
and, that PWSs 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 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.
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.
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5)Prohibits the State Water Board, where a portion of a PWS'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.
Background
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 requires
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
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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.
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, the US EPA is mandated to set enforceable drinking water
standards, or maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for contaminants.
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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 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 exceedances, 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.
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
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health risks and the costs of corrosion control treatment from lead
in public water system pipes."
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal:No
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, any additional
costs to the State Water Board would not be significant, and likely
absorbable.
SUPPORT: (Verified8/29/16)
California Association of Environmental Health Administrators
California Environmental Justice Alliance
California League of Conservation Voters
California Public Interest Group
Center for Food Safety
Community Water Center
Consumer Attorneys of California
East Bay Municipal Water District
Environment California
Environmental Justice Coalition for Water
Environmental Working Group
Food and Water Watch
Natural Resources Defense Council
Pacific Water Quality Association
Rural Community Assistance Corporation
Sierra Club California
Water Program Manager
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/29/16)
None received
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Page 8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 72-7, 8/29/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,
Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos,
Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly,
Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo
Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Hadley, Roger
Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey,
Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, McCarty, Medina,
Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Quirk,
Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone,
Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood,
Rendon
NOES: Bigelow, Beth Gaines, Gray, Grove, Harper, Mayes, Obernolte
NO VOTE RECORDED: Cooper
Prepared by:Rachel Machi Wagoner / E.Q. / (916) 651-4108
8/30/16 20:24:28
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