BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Tom Torlakson, Chairman
2270 (Laird)
Hearing Date: 7/7/08 Amended: 6/12/08
Consultant: Miriam Barcellona IngenitoPolicy Vote: EQ 5-2; NR&W
7-1
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AB 2270 (Laird)
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 2270 would (1) refer to the statewide recycling
goals for water as targets; (2) require the Department of Water
Resources (DWR) to update these targets every five years, as
specified; (3) require DWR to include the revised targets in the
California Water Plan beginning in 2013; (4) require urban water
suppliers to include in their urban water management plans
information on recycled water, as specified; (5) require persons
that supply or distribute recycled water to report annually to
the appropriate regional water quality control board the amount
of recycled water it supplied or distributed in the previous
year; (6) authorize any local agency that maintains a community
sewer system to take action to control residential salinity
inputs, including those from water softeners, if the State Water
Resources Control Board (SWRCB) or any regional board makes a
finding that the control of residential salinity input will
contribute to achievement of water quality objectives; and (7)
express legislative intent that Proposition 84 funds earmarked
for drinking water grants to local agencies be spent to
implement the requirements of this bill.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 Fund
Ca. Water Plan Update: $50 $50 $50
Bond*
include recycled water info.
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*Proposition 84
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STAFF COMMENTS:
DWR estimates it would require additional funding of $200,000
every five-years (over four-years for the first report) to
include the revised targets in the California Water Plan. AB
2270 specifies the intent of the Legislature to use Proposition
84 monies to implement this bill. Staff notes that while
Proposition 84 may authorize the use of bond monies for
non-capital expenditures this may not be the best use of
long-term monies. If bond monies were used to fund this update,
total costs to the General Fund over 30 years would be $390,000
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AB 2270 (Laird)
for a portion of an update that has a shelf-life of only five
years.
AB 2270 would authorize any local agency that maintains a
community sewer system, upon a finding by SWRCB or any regional
board, to control residential salinity inputs to the system that
are due primarily from household water softener devices. The
SWRCB and regional boards do not anticipate any new costs
associated with this provision. AB 2270 authorizes the boards to
make the finding that the control of residential salinity input
will contribute to the achievement of water quality objectives
in other water quality actions adopted by the state or regional
boards, including the water quality control plans and policies,
waste discharge requirements, master reclamation permits, water
recycling requirements, and cease and desist orders.
AB 2270 would authorize local agencies that maintain a community
sewer system to take a number of actions to control residential
salinity inputs, including the prohibition of the installation
of residential self-regenerating water softeners or requiring
the removal of previously installed self-regenerating water
softeners. If the local agency adopts an ordinance to require
the removal of previously installed residential
self-regenerating water softeners, the local agency would be
required to make available a program to compensate the owner of
the softener for the reasonable value of the removed softener,
as determined by the local agency. All of the remedies made
available to local agencies in AB 2270 are permissive and
therefore the provisions of AB 2270 do not constitute a
state-mandated local program.