BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2409|
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CONSENT
Bill No: AB 2409
Author: Nestande (R), et al
Amended: 6/15/10 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE : 7-0, 6/9/10
AYES: Pavley, Cogdill, Huff, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Padilla,
Wolk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hollingsworth, Simitian
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 74-0, 4/22/10 (Consent) - See last page
for vote
SUBJECT : Urban water suppliers: water shortage
contingency
SOURCE : California Spa & Pool Industry Education
Council
DIGEST : This bill requires, commencing with the urban
water management plan update due December 31, 2015, water
contingency analyses included in urban water management
plans to analyze and define water features artificially
supplied with water, such as ponds, lakes, waterfalls and
fountains, separately from swimming pools and spas.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law
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1. Requires Urban Water Management Plans to include an
urban water shortage contingency analysis, with required
elements identifying stages of actions to be taken in
response to water supply shortages, and including
mandatory actions to be taken against certain water use
practices during water shortages.
2. Requires the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to
update the state model water efficient landscaping
ordinance through regulation by January 1, 2009, and
requires all local agencies by January 1, 2010 to adopt
the updated model ordinance or another ordinance at
least as effective. Makes the updated model ordinance
effective within the jurisdiction of a local agency if
the local agency has not adopted it's own ordinance by
January 1, 2010. The model ordinance defines water
features to include ponds, lakes, waterfalls, fountains,
artificial streams, spas and swimming pools (where water
is artificially supplied).
3. Requires a 20 percent reduction in urban per capita
water use in California by December 31, 2020. Requires
the state to make incremental progress towards this goal
by reducing per capita water use by at least 10 percent
on or before December 31, 2015. Requires each urban
retail water supplier to develop urban water use targets
and an interim urban water use target.
This bill requires, commencing with the urban water
management plan update due December 31, 2015, water
contingency analyses included in urban water management
plans to analyze and define water features artificially
supplied with water, such as ponds, lakes, waterfalls and
fountains, separately from swimming pools and spas.
Background
The Water Conservation in Landscaping Act, (AB 325 of
1990), required DWR to appoint and work with an advisory
task force to develop a state model local water efficiency
in landscaping ordinance, and required each local agency to
adopt a water efficiency in landscaping ordinance by
January 1, 1993, or to adopt findings as to why an
ordinance was unnecessary. AB 2717 (Laird), enacted in
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2004, requested the California Urban Water Conservation
Council to convene a stakeholder workgroup to make
recommendations on water efficiency in urban landscaping.
The task force report was released in December of 2005 and
contained 43 recommendations. AB 1881 (Laird), enacted in
2006, enacted a number of the recommendations of the task
force, required DWR to update the model ordinance by
January 1, 2009 by regulation, and required local agencies
by January 1, 2010 to adopt the updated model ordinance or
another ordinance at least as effective in achieving water
conservation and efficiency. If a local agency does not
adopt its own ordinance by January 1, 2010, then the model
ordinance automatically takes effect within that local
jurisdiction.
DWR's new regulations updating the model water efficiency
landscaping ordinance became effective on September 10,
2009, and are contained in the California Code of
Regulations, Title 23, Sections 490-495.1. The
regulations, among other things, require applicants for new
construction and landscape rehabilitation projects to
submit a landscaping documentation package to the local
agency. The landscaping documentation package is required
to include specified elements, including a water budget
calculation, with a maximum applied water allowance and an
estimated total water use.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/14/10)
California Spa & Pool Industry Education Council (source)
California Park and Recreation Society
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According tot eh Sponsor, "AB 2409
aims to correct a dangerous precedent in regulations
adopted by the Department of Water Resources. Those
regulations combine in the definition of 'water feature'
decorative fountains, ponds and streams with swimming pools
and spas for purposes of the Model Efficient Water
Landscape Ordinance. We are concerned that the 'water
feature' definition could be adopted by local agencies for
drought ordinances and inadvertently lead to swimming pools
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and spas being ordered to shut down in certain emergency
situations. AB 2409 will resolve any confusion in this
area by amending the Urban Water Management Planning Act to
provide that decorative water features be treated
separately from swimming pools and spas."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Charles Calderon, Carter, Chesbro,
Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeVore,
Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes,
Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore,
Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Jeffries,
Jones, Knight, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma,
Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello,
Nielsen, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas,
Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Audra
Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran,
Villines, Yamada, John A. Perez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Blumenfield, Caballero, Huber, Huffman,
Norby, Vacancy
CTW:do 6/15/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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