BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 261|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 261
Author: Dutton (R) and Ducheny (D), et al
Amended: 5/28/09
Vote: 21
SENATE NATURAL RES. & WATER COMMITTEE : 11-0, 4/28/09
AYES: Pavley, Cogdill, Benoit, Hollingsworth, Huff, Kehoe,
Leno, Padilla, Simitian, Wiggins, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 12-0, 5/28/09
AYES: Kehoe, Cox, Corbett, Denham, DeSaulnier, Hancock,
Leno, Oropeza, Runner, Walters, Wyland, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Wolk
SUBJECT : Water use
SOURCE : Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority
DIGEST : This bill requires each urban water supplier, or
regional water management group acting on behalf of the
urban water supplier, to develop and implement a water use
efficiency and efficient water resources management plan,
and enacts the Comprehensive Urban Water Efficiency Act of
2009.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Requires the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to
CONTINUED
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convene an independent technical panel to provide
information to the department and the Legislature on new
demand management measures, technologies, and
approaches. "Demand management measures" means those
water conservation measures, programs, and incentives
that prevent the waste of water and promote the
reasonable and efficient use and reuse of available
supplies.
2. Requires urban water suppliers to prepare and adopt
urban water management plans with specified components.
This bill:
1. Requires each urban water supplier, or regional water
management group acting on behalf of the urban water
supplier, to develop and implement a water use
efficiency and efficient water resources management
plan.
A. Urban water suppliers achieving extraordinary
water use efficiency is exempt from these
requirements. Extraordinary water use efficiency
is defined as:
(1) The use of less than 70 gallons per
person per day for indoor residential uses.
(2) The use of less than 70 percent of
reference evapotranspiration for outdoor
residential uses.
B. The plans are required to accomplish one or more
of the following:
(1) Reduce residential per capita potable
water use by 20 percent by 2020 as compared
to water use in 2000.
(2) Reduce total residential potable water
use by 2020 by a total of 20 percent as
compared to the 2020 projection in the
agency's 2005 urban water management plan,
which reduction shall include water
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conservation measures already included in the
2005 urban water management plan.
(3) Achieve, by 2020, extraordinary water
use.
C. The plan is required to include interim
milestones for each even-numbered year for progress
towards achieving the 2020 target, and each
reporting agency will report its progress toward
reaching the 2020 target to an unspecified person
or agency, using whatever metrics the reporting
agency considers to be most appropriate for its
circumstances.
D. If an urban water supplier fails to meet an
interim milestone identified in its plan, it would
be:
(1) Required to report its failure to DWR
on the following March 1.
(2) Required, within 90 days, to submit a
plan to DWR to meet the next interim
milestone.
(3) Subject to a penalty of 20 percent of
available points in any competitive grant or
loan program awarded or administered by DWR,
the State Water Resource Control Board
(SWRCB), or the California Bay-Delta
Authority until such time the urban water
supplier satisfies the interim milestones.
2. Enacts the Comprehensive Urban Water Efficiency Act of
2009. This Act will:
A. Require DWR and SWRCB, by April 1, 2010, to
convene a task force to develop best management
practices for commercial, industrial, and
institutional (CII) water uses.
(1) The intent is to result in a statewide
target of at least a 10-percent reduction in
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potable water use in the CII sector by 2020
as compared to statewide water use by that
sector in 2000.
(2) The task force will be composed of
representatives of DWR, SWRCB, urban water
suppliers, trade groups representing the CII
sector, and environmental groups.
(3) Operations of the task force could be
funded by the participants, or by the
California Urban Water Conservation Council.
(4) The task force will be required to
submit a report to DWR and SWRCB no later
than April 1, 2011.
(5) Any recommendation of the task force
shall be endorsed by all members of the task
force.
(6) The task force report shall include a
discussion of numerous subjects, including
metrics, appropriate quantities of water
needed for various CII activities, potential
use of stormwater, recycled water, treated
water, desalinated water, or other
alternative sources of water, and an
evaluation of whether it is feasible to
reduce water use statewide in the CII sector
by at least 10 percent by 2020.
B. Allows DWR to enter into agreements with the
task force participants or the California Urban
Water Conservation Council to fund the state's
costs to carry out the duties of the task force.
If DWR determines, before May 2, 1010, that
revenues pursuant to existing reimbursement
agreements are insufficient to fund those costs,
DWR shall impose a fee on urban water suppliers
in an amount sufficient to fund the costs.
C. Makes numerous findings and statements of
legislative intent regarding water conservation
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planning.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2009-10 2010-11
2011-12 Fund
Taskforce costs Fully
reimbursableSpecial*
*Reimbursements
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/29/09)
Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (source)
Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
California's growing population, periodic and serious
drought conditions, and court-ordered supply reductions
require that Californians adopt reasonable water efficiency
measures that improve water supply reliability. In
addition, the Governor has issued an executive order
calling for a permanent reduction in per capita use by 20
percent by 2020.
CTW:do:m 5/29/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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