AB 2737, as amended, Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials. Safe drinking water.
Existing law, the California Safe Drinking Water Act, enacts provisions governing drinking water quality, and requires the State Department of Public Health ensure that all public water systems, as defined, are operated in compliance with the act. Among other things, the act requires the department to adopt primary drinking water standards for contaminants in drinking water, as specified. Existing law also authorizes the department to fund improvements and expansions of small community water systems and to give priority to funding projects in disadvantaged communities.
This bill would require the department to develop and implementbegin delete a pilot project in the Counties of Fresno, Imperial, and Montereyend deletebegin insert
pilot projects in the geographical areas known as Salinas Valley, Tulare Lake Basin, and Coachella Valleyend insert to collect data to determine the schools and communities in each county, particularly those located in economically disadvantaged areas, in which high levels of arsenic or nitrate contamination have been detected in the drinking water, and any other data or information necessary to develop regulations to implement effective solutions to contamination of the drinking water, including regulations governing water treatment devices. The bill would also require the department to work cooperatively with community-based nonprofit organizations to develop and implement effective interim and long-term solutions designed to ensure safe drinking water in those communities, and to provide technical assistance to those organizations to improve drinking water.
The bill would require the pilot projects to be in effect for a minimum of 3 years. The bill would require the department, upon completion of the pilot projects, to submit a report to the Legislature on the results of the pilot projects. The bill would require the pilot projects to include specified elements, including consideration of the use of point-of-use or point-of-entry water treatment systems based on cost and system effectiveness.
end insertVote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 116327 is added to the Health and Safety
2Code, to read:
The department shall develop and implementbegin delete aend delete pilot
4begin delete project in the Counties of Fresno, Imperial, and Montereyend deletebegin insert projects
5in the geographical areas known as Salinas Valley, Tulare Lake
6Basin, and Coachella Valley,end insert to do all of the following:
7(a) Collect data to determine the schools and communities in
8each county, particularly those located in economically
9disadvantaged areas, in which high levels of arsenic or nitrate
10contamination have been detected in
the drinking water, and any
11other data or information necessary to develop regulations to
12implement effective solutions to contamination of the drinking
13water, including regulations governing water treatment devices.
14(b) Work cooperatively with community-based nonprofit
15organizations to develop and implement effective interim and
16long-term solutions designed to ensure safe drinking water in those
17communities.
18(c) Provide technical assistance to community-based nonprofit
19organizations to improve drinking water.
P3 1(d) The pilot projects shall be in effect for a minimum of three
2years. Upon completion of the pilot projects, the department shall
3submit a report to the
Legislature on the results of the pilot
4projects. The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section
59795 of the Government Code. The pilot projects shall do all of
6the following:
7(1) Include installation costs as well as operations and
8maintenance costs for a minimum of three years.
9(2) Consider the use of point-of-use or point-of-entry water
10treatment systems based on cost and system effectiveness.
11(3) Provide technical assistance to community-based nonprofit
12organizations to improve drinking water.
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