BILL NUMBER: AB 2669 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 1, 2010
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member V. Manuel Perez
FEBRUARY 19, 2010
An act relating to water, and making an appropriation
therefor. An act to add Section 83002.2 to the Water
Code, relating to water.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2669, as amended, V. Manuel Perez. The Safe Drinking Water,
Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection
Bond Act of 2006: integrated water quality and wastewater
treatment program plan: Riverside County. integrated
regional water management plans: pilot program: disadvantaged
communities.
The Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control,
River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006 (Proposition 84)
, an initiative measure approved by the voters at the November
7, 2006, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of bonds
in the amount of $5,388,000,000 for the purpose of financing a safe
drinking water, water quality and supply, flood control, and resource
protection program. Of those funds, $1,000,000,000 is available to
the Department of Water Resources, upon appropriation by the
Legislature for that purpose, for grants for projects that assist
local public agencies to meet the long-term water needs of the state,
including the delivery of safe drinking water and the protection of
water quality and the environment. Existing law
appropriates $181,971,000 of that bond money to the department for
integrated regional water management activities.
Of the $181,971,000 appropriated to the department, existing law
allocates $22,091,000 for integrated regional water management
projects with interregional or statewide benefits.
This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to encourage
the department, if it elects to expend the moneys appropriated for
integrated regional water management projects with interregional or
statewide benefits to implement a pilot program for disadvantaged
community assistance, to require a recipient of funds under the pilot
program to (1) comply with a prescribed community engagement
process, (2) give consideration to organizations with relevant
experience, as specified, for purposes of contracting or
subcontracting services to complete pilot program requirements, or
(3) consider specified methods to provide cost savings for
high-priority water-related problems affecting disadvantaged
communities.
This bill would appropriate $2,000,000 of those bond funds to the
department, for allocation to Riverside County, as specified, for an
integrated water quality and wastewater treatment program plan to
address drinking water and the wastewater needs of disadvantaged
communities in the unincorporated areas of Riverside County. The bill
would require the plan to primarily address arsenic contamination of
drinking water and would prescribe other requirements for the plan.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes no
. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 83002.2 is added to the
Water Code , to read:
83002.2. If the department elects to expend any of the funds
described in clause (iii) of subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) of
subdivision (b) of Section 83002 to implement a pilot program for
disadvantaged community assistance, it is the intent of the
Legislature to encourage the department to require a recipient of
funds under the pilot program to do any of the following:
(a) Implement a community engagement process that includes
consultation with appropriate stakeholders, including, but not
limited to, the county in which the project is located, local
environmental health departments, tribes with existing or ancestral
land within or adjacent to the region's boundaries, community-based
organizations, and representatives of disadvantaged communities, and
other appropriate entities with experience or interest in drinking
water and wastewater infrastructure and other water-related issues
affecting disadvantaged communities.
(b) For purposes of contracting or subcontracting services to
complete pilot program requirements, give consideration to nonprofit
organizations or other organizations with relevant experience in the
region in which the project is located.
(c) Consider methods that provide cost savings for high-priority
water-related problems affecting disadvantaged communities, including
consolidation of community water systems, wastewater systems, and
flood systems, and steps to implement consolidation of those systems,
where appropriate and feasible.
SECTION 1. (a) Of the funds made available for
the purposes of Section 75026 of the Public Resources Code, as
described in paragraph (12) of subdivision (a) of Section 75027, the
sum of two million dollars ($2,000,000) is hereby appropriated to the
Department of Water Resources for allocation to Riverside County for
the development of an integrated water quality and wastewater
treatment program plan to address the drinking water and wastewater
needs of, and primarily address arsenic contamination of drinking
water in, disadvantaged communities in the unincorporated areas of
Riverside County.
(b) Funds allocated pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be available
for assessment and feasibility studies necessary to develop the
plan. The plan shall primarily address arsenic contamination of
drinking water, shall include recommendations for planning,
infrastructure, and other water management actions, and shall include
specific recommendations for regional drinking water treatment
facilities, regional wastewater treatment facilities, conjunctive use
sites and groundwater recharge, groundwater for surface water
exchanges, related infrastructure, and cost-sharing mechanisms.
(c) Riverside County shall consult with appropriate stakeholders,
including representatives of disadvantaged communities and the
Coachella Valley Water District, when preparing the plan.
(d) The Department of Water Resources, in consultation with the
State Department of Public Health, shall submit the plan to the
Legislature by January 1, 2013.