BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1194
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 11, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 1194 (Block) - As Introduced: February 18, 2011
Policy Committee: HealthVote:17 - 0
E.S.T.M. 9 - 0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill makes changes to the California Safe Drinking Water
Act (SDWA) in order to conform to federal law. Specifically,
this bill:
1)Revises the definition of "human consumption" to include
cooking, which includes preparing food and washing dishes.
2)Exempts, from regulation, public water systems that sell water
to users through a submetered distribution system if the water
supply is obtained from a public water system under certain
limited circumstances.
3)Repeals existing law that requires the Department of Public
Health (DPH) to exempt noncommunity water systems that meet
specified criteria from water quality requirements.
4)Revises penalty provisions, including authorizing DPH to levy
a penalty of up to a $1,000 per day per violation against
public water systems that are in violation of drinking water
standards, regulations, permits, citations or orders.
FISCAL EFFECT
1)There are no significant costs associated with this
legislation. However, DPH could possibly see an increase in
revenue due to an increase in the maximum limits DPH can
assess for administrative penalties.
2)Failure to conform California's safe drinking water laws to
AB 1194
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federal law could result in a loss of over $100 million in
federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale . This bill, sponsored by DPH, is intended to conform
the state's drinking water laws to federal laws and
regulations. According to the author, as a state with
federally delegated authority (referred to as a primacy
state), California's laws and regulations must conform to the
federal Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and be no less
stringent than federal safe drinking water regulations.
The author states that EPA could reduce or withhold DPH's
funding for implementing a drinking water primacy program and
for public water system infrastructure improvements, which
would hinder systems' ability to provide safe drinking water.
The author further states that a loss of funding would hinder
DPH's ability to carry out its regulatory activities through
the DWP.
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081