BILL NUMBER: AB 629 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 6, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 22, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 13, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Krekorian
FEBRUARY 25, 2009
An act to add Section 17577.5 to the Education Code, and to add
Section 75020.5 to the Public Resources Code, relating to school
facilities.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 629, as amended, Krekorian. School facilities: water.
(1) Existing law establishes the School Facilities Needs
Assessment Grant Program under which grants are awarded to school
districts on behalf of schoolsites ranked in deciles 1 to 3,
inclusive, on the Academic Performance Index, as specified. A school
district that receives a grant is required to use the funds to
develop a comprehensive needs assessment of all schoolsites eligible
for grants. Among the information the assessment is required to
contain is the useful life remaining on all major building systems,
including the water system, for each structure housing instructional
space.
This bill would require a school district by January 1, 2012, to
conduct a one-time analysis of the level of lead in water in schools
that were constructed before January 1, 1993, except schools with
plumbing that has been completely replaced since January 1, 1993. The
State Department of Public Health would be required to establish
testing protocols. Water samples would be required to be analyzed by
a laboratory that is certified by the State Department of Public
Health or the United States Environmental Protection Agency. A school
district would be required to report the results of the analysis to
the State Department of Education, which would be required to make
the information available to the public.
The bill would authorize a school district, if the analysis
reveals the presence , at specified levels, of
lead in water that is available, as specified, for human consumption
on a schoolsite, to compete for funding from the Safe Drinking Water,
Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal
Protection Bond Act of 2006. The State Department of Public
Health would be required to establish a de
adline for the submittal of applications for funding and prioritize
applications in order to achieve the greatest protection from lead
exposure among pupils attending public schools.
By requiring school districts to conduct the analysis and report
the results to the department, the bill would impose a state-mandated
local program.
(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 17577.5 is added to the Education Code, to
read:
17577.5. (a) By January 1, 2012, a school district shall conduct
a one-time analysis of the level of lead in water in schools that
were constructed before January 1, 1993, except schools with plumbing
that has been completely replaced on or after January 1, 1993. Only
water dispensed from drinking water fountains and other fixtures that
are intended to convey water for human consumption shall be
analyzed. The analysis shall include, but not be limited to, a
determination of the presence and amount of lead in the water.
(b) The State Department of Public Health shall establish testing
protocols. Water samples shall be analyzed by a laboratory that is
certified by the State Department of Public Health or the United
States Environmental Protection Agency. The school district may
contract with a private certified laboratory or the county health
department laboratory, whichever is more cost-effective.
(c) A school district that has conducted an analysis pursuant to
this section shall report the results of the analysis to the
department, which shall make the information available to the public.
(d) If the analysis reveals the presence of lead in water that is
available from a drinking water fountain or other fixture intended to
convey water for human consumption on a schoolsite at a
concentration that exceeds the lead action level in the federal lead
and copper rule of 15ug/L , the school district maintaining
the schoolsite is eligible to compete for funds made available from
the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control,
River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006, as set forth in
Division 43 (commencing with Section 75001) of the Public Resources
Code in order to mitigate the contamination. An eligible school
district may submit an application for funding to the State
Department of Public Health.
(e) The State Department of Public Health shall establish a
deadline for the submittal of applications for the funding of lead
exposure mitigation and prioritize applications submitted in order to
achieve the greatest protection from lead exposure among pupils
attending public schools.
SEC. 2. Section 75020.5 is added to the Public Resources Code, to
read:
75020.5. If a school district completes an analysis of water
toxicity levels in its schools pursuant to Section 17577.5 of the
Education Code and the assessment analysis reveals the presence
of lead at a concentration that exceeds the lead action
level in the federal lead and copper rule of 15ug/L in water that is
available of lead in water that is available for
human consumption on a schoolsite, the school district maintaining
the schoolsite is eligible to compete for funds made available
pursuant to this chapter.
SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this
act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local
agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant
to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of
the Government Code.