BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 938|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 938
Author: V. Manuel Pérez (D)
Amended: 8/23/11 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/27/11
AYES: Simitian, Blakeslee, Hancock, Kehoe, Lowenthal,
Pavley
NO VOTE RECORDED: Strickland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 53-26, 5/31/11 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Public water systems
SOURCE : California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
Clean Water Action
Community Water Center
Environmental Justice Coalition for Water
DIGEST : This bill requires the written public notice of
noncompliance with drinking water standards given by a
public water system to include information in English,
Spanish, and other languages spoken by the impacted
community, as specified.
ANALYSIS : California Code of Regulations (22 CCR Section
64465) currently requires each public notice for
noncompliance provided by a water system to contain
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information in Spanish about the importance of the notice,
or to contain contact information that Spanish speaking
residents may use to obtain a translated copy of the public
notice or other assistance in Spanish. For each
non-English speaking group other than Spanish speaking that
exceeds 1,000 residents or 10 percent of the residents in
the community served, whichever is less, the public notice
must contain information in the appropriate language(s)
regarding the importance of the notice, or contain contact
information that such residents may use to obtain a
translated copy of the notice or assistance in the
appropriate language.
This bill seeks to expand upon these existing regulations
in order to better inform non-English speaking communities
about their drinking water quality.
Specifics of this bill
1. Requires, commencing July 1, 2012, a public water
system's written public notice of noncompliance with
drinking water standards to:
A. Be provided in English, Spanish, and in the
language spoken by any non-English-speaking group
that exceeds 10 percent of persons served by the
public water system. It shall contain a telephone
number or address where residents may contact the
public water system for assistance.
B. Contain a telephone number or address where
residents may contact the public water system for
assistance.
C. Contain information regarding the importance of
the notice and a telephone number or address where
the public water system will provide either a
translated copy of the notice or assistance in the
appropriate language for each non-English speaking
group that speaks a language other than Spanish and
that exceeds 1,000 residents or 10 percent of the
persons served by the public water system, whichever
is less.
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D. Provide that, after July 1, 2012, it shall be
presumed that the public water system has determined
the appropriate languages for notification if the
public water system has made a reasonable attempt to
utilize the data available through the American
Community Survey of the United States Census Bureau
to identify the non-English speaking groups that
reside in a city, county, or city and county that
encompasses the service area of the public water
system.
E. Provide that, after July 1,2 012, it shall be
presumed that the notice has been correctly
translated if the public water system has made a
reasonable attempt to obtain either in-house or
contracted-for translation services for providing a
translated copy of the notice or assistance in the
appropriate languages and the translated copy of the
notice or assistance has been provided.
F. Provide that, after July 1, 2012, if the public
water system has made a reasonable attempt to have
the notice required by the above translated into
languages other than Spanish has been adequately
provided if it contains translations in the
appropriate languages of all of the following:
(1) Identification of the contaminant.
(2) Information on the health effects associated
with the presence of the contaminant in drinking
water at a level in excess of the primary drinking
water standard.
(3) Actions that members of the public should
take to protect their health, such as, for
example, "Do not drink" "Boil water before using,"
or "Stop boiling your water."
2. Establishes, after July 1, 2012, a presumption of
compliance that the notice has been properly given, with
respect to the language of notification, if the public
water system utilized the data available through the
American Community Survey of the United States Census
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Bureau and the county registrar.
3. Authorizes and encourages the public water system to, in
addition to non-written notification provided for in the
public water system's emergency notification plan,
provide notice through foreign language media outlets.
4. States that nothing in the above shall require the
department to review or approve notices in any language
other than English.
5. Adds environmental documentation to the list of costs to
be considered when determining affordability using
Department of Public Health criteria for Safe Drinking
Water State Revolving Fund funding.
Clarifying amendment . This bill corrects a drafting error
in AB 1438 (Conway), Chapter 531, Statutes of 2009, which
sets a limit, under the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving
Fund, of $500,000 for planning, engineering studies,
environmental documentation, and design of a single
project. Current law also requires total funding for
planning, engineering studies, project design, and
construction costs, whether in the form of a loan or grant,
to be determined by an assessment of affordability using
criteria established by the Department of Public Health.
AB 1438 (Conway) failed to include "environmental
documentation" in the affordability assessment requirement.
This bill corrects this oversight.
Comments
According to the author, "Public notification to residents
regarding contaminated drinking water is necessary to
prevent illness and disease and protect public health.
When a public water system sends a public notification only
in English to non-English speakers, the risks to public
health persist. If public notices are not provided in the
language spoken by the impacted community, residents may
not know that the water in their homes is unsafe and what
precautions are necessary to protect the health and safety
of their family."
The author believes that "AB 938 addresses an urgent
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problem in some California communities where the water is
not safe to drink yet customers are receiving notifications
that they do not understand. All Californians have the
right to know when it is not safe to drink their water."
The author notes that this bill also "makes clarifying
amendments to the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
language to correct an oversight in the law related to the
list of costs to be determined in affordability assessments
for awards from the Fund."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/23/11)
California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation (co-source)
Clean Water Action (co-source)
Community Water Center (co-source)
Environmental Justice Coalition for Water (co-source)
Asian Americans for Civil Rights & Equality
Asociacion de Gente Unida por el AGUA
California League of Conservation Voters
California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
California Resources Recovery Association
Catholic Charities Diocese of Stockton
Coachella Valley Water District
Committee for a Better Seville
Environmental Working Group
Food and Water Watch
Having Our Say
Indian Canyon Nation
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 569
Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund
Natural Resources Defense Council
Neighbors United (Vecinos Unidos Committee)
Planning and Conservation League
Southern California Watershed Alliance
The Utility Reform Network
Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry Action
Urban Semillas
Winnemem Wintu Tribe
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to one of the bill's
sponsors, the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation,
"Water providers are currently required to know the
language of their customer. AB 938 is addressing an urgent
problem in some water systems where proper notification is
not given to residents when their water is not safe to
drink. It is important that ALL Californians have the
Right-To-Know when it is not safe to drink their water. AB
938 only applies to serious drinking water violations.
Most water systems do not have these violations, because
they provide safe drinking water."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 53-26, 5/31/11
AYES: Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Davis, Dickinson, Eng, Feuer,
Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Hall,
Hayashi, Roger Hernández, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman,
Lara, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning,
Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Portantino, Skinner,
Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada,
John A. Pérez
NOES: Achadjian, Conway, Cook, Donnelly, Fletcher, Beth
Gaines, Garrick, Grove, Hagman, Halderman, Harkey,
Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Logue, Mansoor, Miller, Morrell,
Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Silva, Smyth, Valadao,
Wagner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Gorell
DLW:mw 8/23/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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