BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1896
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 29, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
Luis Alejo, Chair
AB 1896 (V.M. Perez) - As Amended: April 7, 2014
SUBJECT : Coachella Valley Water District: nonpotable water
use.
SUMMARY : Adds landscaped common areas of residential
developments maintained by a homeowner's association to those
entities within the Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD)
service area for which a person or local public agency is
prohibited from using potable water for nonpotable uses.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Adds landscaped common areas of residential developments
maintained by a homeowner's association to those entities
within the CVWD service area for which a person or local
public agency is prohibited from using potable water for
nonpotable uses, if the Board of Directors of the CVWD (Board)
determines that suitable nonpotable water is available.
2)Makes legislative findings regarding the overdraft status of
the Coachella Valley aquifer; stating that expanded nonpotable
water use for landscaping is a key part in a regional water
plan for the Coachella Valley; and, regarding existing
requirements on the Board to manage nonpotable and potable
domestic water.
3)Adds, within the CVWD service area, landscaped common areas of
residential developments to the list of entities whose use of
potable water for notpotable uses is considered a waste and
unreasonable use of water within the meaning of Section 2 of
Article X of the California Constitution, if nonpotable water
is available, under specified conditions.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that the right to use water does not extend to waste
or unreasonable use of the water. (CA Const., Article X,
Section 2)
2)Provides that the use of potable domestic water for nonpotable
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uses, including, but not limited to, cemeteries, golf courses,
parks, highway landscaped areas, and industrial and irrigation
uses, is a waste or an unreasonable use of the water within
the meaning of Section 2 of Article X of the California
Constitution if recycled water is available that meets
specified conditions, including quantity, quality, and cost,
as determined by the State Water Resources Control Board
(SWRCB). (Water Code § 13550)
3)Provides that the use of potable domestic water for the
irrigation of residential landscaping is a waste or an
unreasonable use of water within the meaning of Section 2 of
Article X of the California Constitution if recycled water for
this use is available to the residents and meets specified
conditions, as determined by the SWRCB. (Water Code §
13552.2)
4)Authorizes any public agency, including a state agency, city,
county, city and county, district, or any other political
subdivision of the state, to require the use of recycled water
for irrigation of residential landscaping, if specified
requirements are met. (Water Code § 13552.4)
5)Provides that, within CVWD's service area, the use of potable
domestic water for nonpotable uses for cemeteries, parks,
highway landscaped areas, new industrial facilities, and golf
course irrigation is a waste and an unreasonable use of water
within the meaning of Section 2 of Article X of the California
Constitution if nonpotable water is available that meets
specified conditions, including quantity, quality, and cost,
as determined by the CVWD. (Water Code § 32601)
6)Prohibits a person or local public agency from using water
within CVWD's service area from any source that is suitable
for potable domestic use for nonpotable uses for cemeteries,
parks, highway landscaped areas, new industrial facilities, or
golf course irrigation, if the Board determines that suitable
nonpotable water is available. (Water Code § 32602)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS :
Need for the bill : According to the author, "The Coachella
Valley aquifers are over-drafted and CVWD and other area water
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districts have aggressive and expanding replenishment programs
in place. These programs have significantly reversed trend in
one of the aquifers but the best and most efficient approach is
to decrease the dependency and increase the efficiency of use of
groundwater domestic water. The 2006 non-potable bill
identified five areas in which non-potable water could be
substituted for domestic quality groundwater: cemeteries,
parks, highway landscaped areas, new industrial facilities, and
golf course irrigation. The initial bill language would have
permitted the District board to expand this list after hearings
and public debate. The Legislature decided nevertheless to
limit the bill to these five areas, requiring future
Legislatures to decide if an expansion into other areas would be
justifiable. Since homeowner associations (HOA) are frequently
managers of private golf courses, it simply makes sense to
request the Legislature to expand the list to include common
landscaped areas managed by the homeowners associations to be
added to the mandate to use non-potable water when it is
available and after a public discussing in the Board for each
development is held. Adding the common area landscaping at the
same time that the golf courses are switched to non-potable
water will be more efficient, less costly and will reduce
groundwater demand by as much as 40% more for each HOA
development added to the program."
Groundwater in the Coachella Valley : According to the CVWD,
groundwater is the source of virtually all drinking water and
other domestic water in the Coachella Valley. Potable water is
currently utilized for many nonpotable purposes, including
irrigation for golf courses and other outdoor landscaping. CVWD
states that as a result, the Coachella Valley's
significantly-sized aquifer is in a state of overdraft. As a
result, the CVWD, the sponsors of the bill, are seeking to limit
nonpotable uses of potable water, if there is suitable
nonpotable water available.
A waste or an unreasonable use of water : In California, the use
of potable domestic water for non-potable purposes is a waste or
unreasonable use within the meaning of the California
Constitution, Article X, Section 2, if nonpotable water is
available that meets specific conditions. Those conditions
include that the nonpotable water is of adequate quality, is
furnished at a reasonable cost, meets public health
requirements, will not adversely affect downstream water rights,
and will not degrade the environment. This means that if
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nonpotable water is available that meets the conditions
established in statute, and a water user instead uses potable
water for the uses limited by statute, the water rights
associated with the potable water are at risk of violating
Article X, Section 2 of the California Constitution.
Current limitations on uses of potable domestic water : SB 1557
(Ducheny), Chapter 67, Statutes of 2006, prohibits a person or
local public agency from using, within the CVWD's service area,
water from any source that is suitable for potable domestic use
for specified nonpotable uses if the Board determines, after
notice and an opportunity for hearing, that suitable nonpotable
water is available, as specified, and other requirements are
met. SB 1577 listed cemeteries, parks, highway landscaped
areas, new industrial facilities, and golf course irrigation as
entities prohibited from using potable water if nonpotable water
is available.
This bill seeks to add landscaped common areas of residential
developments maintained by a homeowner's association to those
entities within the CVWD service area for which a person or
local public agency is prohibited from using potable water for
nonpotable uses.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support :
Association of California Water Agencies
City of Palm Desert
Coachella Valley Water District
Desert Valleys Builders Association
Opposition :
None received.
Analysis Prepared by : Shannon McKinney / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965