Bill Text: CA AB2669 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Public water systems.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2010-08-31 - Senate Rule 29.3(b) suspended. (Ayes 21. Noes 13. Page 5083.) From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on RLS. Withdrawn from committee. Ordered to third reading. Read third time, passage refused. (Ayes 15. Noes 8. Page 5103.) Motion to reconsider made by Senator Ducheny. Reconsideration granted. (Ayes 37. Noe [AB2669 Detail]

Download: California-2009-AB2669-Amended.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 2669	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 20, 2010
	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 18, 2010
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 17, 2010
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  JUNE 1, 2010

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member V. Manuel Perez

                        FEBRUARY 19, 2010

   An act to amend Sections 116450 and 116761.23 of the Health and
Safety Code, relating to drinking water.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2669, as amended, V. Manuel Perez. Public water systems.
   (1) Existing law, the California Safe Drinking Water Act, requires
the State Department of Public Health to administer provisions
relating to the regulation of drinking water to protect public
health, including, but not limited to, conducting research, studies,
and demonstration programs relating to the provision of a dependable,
safe supply of drinking water, enforcing the federal Safe Drinking
Water Act, adoption of enforcement regulations, and conducting
studies and investigations to assess the quality of water in domestic
water supplies.
   Existing law establishes the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving
Fund, which is continuously appropriated to the department for the
provision of grants and revolving fund loans to provide for the
design and construction of projects for public water systems that
will enable suppliers to meet safe drinking water standards.
   Under existing law, the funding for grants for planning,
engineering studies, environmental documentation, and design of a
single project is set at a maximum of $500,000. Existing law requires
total funding for planning, engineering studies, project design, and
construction costs of a single project, whether in the form of a
grant, a loan, or both, to be determined by an assessment of
affordability using criteria established by the department.
   This bill would add environmental documentation to the costs of a
single project that the department is required to determine by an
assessment of affordability.
   (2) Existing law requires that various notices be made by a public
water system and others regarding compliance with safe drinking
water requirements.
   This bill would require that a public notice given by a public
water system pursuant to these provisions be in English and in the
language spoken by prescribed numbers of residents of the community
served, and contain prescribed public water system and department
contact information.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 116450 of the Health and Safety Code is amended
to read:
   116450.  (a) When any primary drinking water standard specified in
the department's regulations is not complied with, when a monitoring
requirement specified in the department's regulations is not
performed, or when a water purveyor fails to comply with the
conditions of any variance or exemption, the person operating the
public water system shall notify the department and shall give notice
to the users of that fact in the manner prescribed by the
department. When a variance or an exemption is granted, the person
operating the public water system shall give notice to the users of
that fact.
   (b) When a person operating a public water system determines that
a significant rise in the bacterial count of water has occurred in
water he or she supplies, the person shall provide, at his or her
expense, a report on the rise in bacterial count of the water,
together with the results of an analysis of the water, within 24
hours to the department and, where appropriate, to the local health
officer.
   (c) When the department receives the information described in
subdivision (b) and determines that it constitutes an immediate
danger to health, the department shall immediately notify the person
operating the public water system to implement the emergency
notification plan required by this chapter.
   (d) In the case of a failure to comply with any primary drinking
water standard that represents an imminent danger to the health of
water users, the operator shall notify each of his or her customers
as provided in the approved emergency notification plan.
   (e) In addition, the same notification requirement shall be
required in any instance in which the department or the local health
department recommends to the operator that it notify its customers to
avoid internal consumption of the water supply and to use bottled
water due to a chemical contamination problem that may pose a health
risk.
   (f) The content of the notices required by this section shall be
approved by the department. Notice shall be repeated at intervals, as
required by the department, until the department concludes that
there is compliance with its standards or requirements. Notices may
be given by the department.
   In any case where public notification is required by this section
because a contaminant is present in drinking water at a level in
excess of a primary drinking water standard, the notification shall
include identification of the contaminant, information on possible
effects of the contaminant on human health, and information on
specific measures that should be taken by persons or populations who
might be more acutely affected than the general population.
   (g) Whenever a school or school system, the owner or operator of
residential rental property, or the owner or operator of a business
property receives a notification from a person operating a public
water system under any provision of this section, the school or
school system shall notify school employees, students and parents if
the students are minors, the owner or operator of a residential
rental property shall notify tenants, and the owner or operator of
business property shall notify employees of businesses located on the
property.
   (1) The operator shall provide the customer with a sample
notification form that may be used by the customer in complying with
this subdivision and that shall indicate the nature of the problem
with the water supply and the most appropriate methods for
notification that may include, but is not limited to, the sending of
a letter to each water user and the posting of a notice at each site
where drinking water is dispensed.
   (2) The notice required by this subdivision shall be given within
10 days of receipt of notification from the person operating the
public water system.
   (3) Any person failing to give notice as required by this
subdivision shall be civilly liable in an amount not to exceed one
thousand dollars ($1,000) for each day of failure to give notice.
   (4) If the operator has evidence of noncompliance with this
subdivision the operator shall report this information to the local
health department and the department.
   (h) A public notice given by a public water system pursuant to
this article shall comply with all of the following:
   (1) It shall be provided in English and in the language spoken by
any non-English-speaking group that exceeds 1,000 residents, or that
exceeds 10 percent of residents in the community served, whichever is
less.
   (2) It shall contain a telephone number or address where residents
may contact the public water system for assistance  ,
including, but not limited to, oral interpretation of the notice in
the appropriate language.   . 
   (3) It shall contain a telephone number where residents may
contact the department for more information in the appropriate
language.
  SEC. 2.  Section 116761.23 of the Health and Safety Code is amended
to read:
   116761.23.  (a) The maximum amount of a planning grant permitted
under this chapter for each participating public water system's share
of the costs of the planning, engineering studies, environmental
documentation, and design of a single project shall be no more than
five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).
   (b) Unless the department approves an increase pursuant to this
subdivision, the maximum amount of a construction grant award
authorized under this chapter to each participating public water
system for its share of the cost of the construction of a single
project shall be no more than three million dollars ($3,000,000). The
department may approve an increase in the maximum amount for a
construction grant award authorized under this chapter so that the
maximum amount of the construction grant award does not exceed ten
million dollars ($10,000,000) only if the department makes all of the
following findings:
   (1) A public water system that serves a disadvantaged community
has a defined project need that exceeds the maximum grant amount of
three million dollars ($3,000,000).
   (2) The defined project has been bypassed in at least one funding
cycle due to a lack of funds.
   (3) The defined project is eligible for funding pursuant to the
program regulations.
   (4) The defined project represents the highest public health risk
among unfunded projects, as determined by the department according to
its standard criteria.
   (c) Total funding under this article for planning, engineering
studies, environmental documentation, project design, and
construction costs of a single project, whether in the form of a loan
or a grant, or both, shall be determined by an assessment of
affordability using criteria established by the department.