Association of California Water Agencies

980 9th Street, Suite 1000
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 441-4545
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Washington, D.C. Office

400 North Capitol Street NW,
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Washington, D.C. 20001

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Submit Legislative Proposals for 2025 by Oct. 11

ACWA is now accepting legislative proposals from member agencies for the 2025 legislative session. ACWA’s State Legislative Committee will evaluate proposals, provide feedback to the proposing agency and determine whether to take a position.

Member agencies that want to submit proposals for consideration must do so by Oct. 11 by taking the following steps:

ACWA staff will contact agencies directly as to the status of the legislative proposal once it is submitted. Agencies may be asked to present their legislative proposals to the State Legislative Committee at its Dec. 5 planning meeting during the 2024 ACWA Fall Conference & Expo in Palm Desert.

Questions

For questions about submitting legislative proposals, contact ACWA State Relations Assistant Julianne Phillips at juliannep@acwa.com or (916) 669-2386.

 

Nearly $500 Million in Funding Restored for Agreements to Support Healthy Rivers and Landscapes

SB 108 (Wiener, D-San Francisco), the Budget Act of 2024, was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom over the weekend. It includes the restoration of nearly $500 million for the Agreements to Support Healthy Rivers and Landscapes (Agreements), formerly known as the Voluntary Agreements.

The funding was previously rescinded in the main budget bill, AB 107 (Gabriel, D-Encino). ACWA, the Northern California Water Association, the State Water Contractors and more than 40 other organizations successfully advocated to maintain nearly all funding for the Agreements.

The Agreements represent an unprecedented opportunity to improve California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay-Delta ecosystem by creating a comprehensive program of habitat enhancement projects coupled with more water for fish and wildlife, managed in a collaborative, science-based manner. ACWA applauds the leadership of Gov. Newsom, Administration officials and the Legislature in restoring this critical funding.

Background

The Agreements create a broad program to implement environmental improvements in many of California’s largest rivers and the Bay-Delta estuary into which these rivers flow. Environmental improvements are needed for these rivers and the Bay-Delta to reverse long-term declines in native fish populations.

The Agreements encompass a set of binding commitments by water agencies and state and federal government agencies to improve environmental conditions during the next eight years. These actions will be monitored for effectiveness over time and adapted as necessary based on scientific monitoring and changing conditions.

Over the last two budget cycles, the Newsom Administration and Legislature have committed funding for the Agreements through the budget process. Two budget bills passed in 2021 appropriated funding for the purpose of improving environmental conditions to promote recovery of native fish species in the Bay-Delta watershed. In addition, a bill passed in 2022 provided $100 million to the California Natural Resources Agency to implement projects related to the Agreements. This funding had broad support from the water community, Legislature, and the Administration.

The State Water Resources Control Board is currently in the process of updating the Sacramento River and Delta portions of the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Water Quality Control Plan (Sacramento/Delta Update to the Bay-Delta Plan). In September 2023, the State Water Board released a draft Staff Report, which assesses alternatives that may be considered for adoption — including the Agreements, as opposed to a 55 percent unimpaired flows approach. The State Water Board is expected to release specific draft changes for the Sacramento/Delta Update to the Bay-Delta Plan, including the program of implementation, later this summer. The State Water Board is also expected to consider adoption of the Sacramento/Delta Update to the Bay-Delta Plan in early 2025.

Questions

For questions about the Agreements, please contact ACWA State Relations Director Adam Quiñonez at (707) 761-9247.

Legislature to Vote on Climate Resilience Bond Proposal

After years of discussion, a $10 billion climate resilience bond that would appear on the Nov. 5 ballot finally went into print in SB 867 (Allen, D-Santa Monica) over the weekend. Both the Assembly and the Senate are expected to vote on it on Wednesday.

As a statewide organization, ACWA has focused on a climate resilience bond as an opportunity for the state to provide funding assistance for water infrastructure at a level that will meaningfully improve California’s resilience to climate change (e.g., helping to prepare water management for longer droughts, loss of snowpack, and floods).

The bond bill proposes $2.91 billion in funding for nine of the 10 water-related categories that ACWA advocated to be included, but that level of funding is less than one-third of the bond and includes some funding levels that are very low for some categories that are fundamental to water management. Unfortunately, there is no time left for amendments in the planned legislative process.

ACWA’s State Legislative Committee adopted a watch (neutral) position on the proposal in an emergency meeting today.

Below is a breakdown of the proposed funding for the 10 ACWA-recommended categories:

Background

Due to the state’s current budgetary shortfall and early discussions in 2024 about the potential for three bonds on the November 2024 ballot (climate resilience, education, and housing), a $15 billion climate resilience bond was no longer on the table for 2024. The Legislature continued to work on a climate resilience bond with the actual negotiations happening first simultaneously within the Senate and within the Assembly and then between the Senate and the Assembly. Both the Senate and the Assembly created climate resilience bond working groups comprised of legislators to work on how to recast, and reduce the amount of, the proposed bond (relative to bond bills from 2023).

In 2024, ACWA reconvened the State Legislative Committee’s State Infrastructure Funding Workgroup along with other members to create the ACWA Climate Resilience Bond Workgroup to discuss ACWA’s priorities for investment and recommended funding levels based on the overall size of the bond.

ACWA organized a coalition of over 70 ACWA member agencies and partner organizations ACWA distributed coalition letters to the Legislature urging support for ACWA’s recommended categories and funding levels for water infrastructure. ACWA also convened a Climate Resilience Bond Lobby Team to advocate for ACWA’s proposed bond funding, met numerous times with legislators and their staffs and engaged the media.

Questions

For questions about the climate resilience bond, please contact ACWA State Relations Advocate Soren Nelson at (916) 669-2367 or ACWA Deputy Executive Director Cindy Tuck at (916) 669-2388.

 

Bill That Would Have Banned Some New Groundwater Wells Fails to Pass Out of Senate Committee

AB 2079 (Bennett), which would have banned local agencies from permitting some new groundwater wells, failed to pass out of the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee on Tuesday, effectively stopping the bill.

ACWA’s State Legislative Committee adopted an oppose-unless-amended position due to concerns over the moratorium on new wells throughout much of the state and the potential legal liability it created for local agencies. The bill would have prohibited well-permitting agencies from approving applications for agricultural and industrial wells in basins that experienced more than half a foot of subsidence since 2015, or if the well was within a quarter-mile of a domestic well.

ACWA participated in a large coalition of associations, water agencies, business and agricultural interests in opposing the bill. On Tuesday, ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Kristopher Anderson testified before the committee and encouraged Senators to vote against the bill.

“This bill could have been an opportunity to meaningfully improve the well permitting process by thinking critically about how to integrate SGMA and local management practices. Unfortunately, this bill is a blanket, one-size-fits-all moratorium on approval of new wells that will harm local economies while failing to address subsidence or well interference,” Anderson testified.

Background

The Department of Water Resources, which sponsored AB 2079, released in March a groundwater well permitting report that summarized various approaches local agencies took to comply with related executive orders, along with recommendations that could be used to develop future solutions to align land use planning, well permitting, and groundwater management and use.

AB 2079, which was originally introduced as a spot bill pertaining to SGMA, incorporated many of the recommendations included in the report.

Questions

For questions about AB 2079, please contact ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Kristopher Anderson at (916) 441-4545.

 

ACWA Removes Opposition to Water Rights Bill Following Significant Amendments

ACWA’s State Legislative Committee voted Wednesday to remove opposition to AB 460 (Bauer-Kahan) after significant amendments limited the bill to increasing penalties for certain violations, including illegal diversions.

These amendments represent an extraordinary improvement to the bill, which previously would have granted the State Water Resources Control Board new and sweeping authority to prevent diverters from exercising their water rights. With the recent amendments, AB 460 would ensure penalties serve as a deterrent to illegal diversions. ACWA is encouraging member agencies to remove opposition to this bill, which is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee on June 11.

ACWA strongly opposed AB 460 as originally introduced in 2023 based on the proposed interim relief authority for the State Water Board and the considerable uncertainty this would have created for water managers and the communities and industries they serve. The bill would have limited a water right holder’s ability to contest an alleged violation while also preventing courts from meaningfully reviewing any State Water Board order.

Background

The bill was introduced in response to an incident on the Shasta River in August 2022, when a group of ranchers knowingly violated a State Water Board-issued curtailment order for several days. During this time, the ranchers illegally diverted water from the Shasta River, opting to face a fine from the State Water Board rather than the mounting costs from hauling water and purchasing hay to replace dried out pastures. Under existing law, the State Water Board could only assess a penalty of up to $500 per day for violation of the curtailment order, which ultimately resulted in a $4,000 fine for the ranchers.

This incident demonstrated that fines for certain violations were inadequate. ACWA and its member agencies endorsed the concept of increasing fines as illegal diversions harm law-abiding water right holders and undermine the water rights system. Unfortunately, AB 460 went far beyond increasing penalties and would have unfairly punished law-abiding water right holders, including ACWA member agencies.

AB 460 was one of three water rights bills introduced in the California Legislature last year, making water rights a top priority for ACWA. ACWA led a large coalition of more than 100 organizations, including water industry, agricultural, business, and labor interests in opposing AB 460. The coalition, including many ACWA member agencies, was instrumental in advocacy through extensive contact with local legislators and testifying at hearings.

AB 460 eventually stalled last July in the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee. As a two-year bill, ACWA staff continued to engage with the author and coalition on appropriate amendments until the bill was amended and all problematic provisions were removed.

Questions

For questions about AB 460 or any of the water rights bills, please contact ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Kristopher Anderson at (916) 441-4545.

 

ACWA-Sponsored AB 2257 Passes Assembly, Moves to Senate

ACWA-sponsored AB 2257 — which would help member agencies defend against Proposition 218 lawsuits — passed off the Assembly floor today and is now headed to the Senate.

Authored by Assemblymember Lori Wilson (D-Suisun City), the bill would require litigants to participate and raise specific objections before a public hearing, providing an opportunity to resolve a dispute and avoid litigation altogether. It would build on the success of ACWA-sponsored SB 323 (Caballero, 2021), which created a 120-day statute of limitations for filing lawsuits against water and sewer rates through the Proposition 218 process.

ACWA has been leading a coalition in support of the bill. Member agencies can join the coalition by completing a short online form A fact sheet is available for more information about the bill.

Background

The revenue necessary for public agencies to fulfill their essential functions predominantly comes from service rates and assessments. While these agencies require financial stability to meet ever increasing demands, a rise in Proposition 218 litigation is making it increasingly difficult to ensure agencies can pass fair and reasonable rates to cover the costs of operations and investments.

Oftentimes, these suits are filed without first having raised alleged violations with the public agency during the public process leading up to the decision to adopt rates or an assessment. When litigants avoid raising concerns with proposed rates or assessments during the ratemaking process, public agencies cannot endeavor to resolve the dispute and avoid litigation. Surprise lawsuits have the potential to undermine an agency’s ability to maintain stable budgets necessary to operate effectively.

AB 2257 builds on the strict procedural ratemaking requirements of Proposition 218 by creating a robust public process that facilitates dialogue, transparency, and the opportunity to resolve issues and avoid costly litigation.

Questions

For questions about AB 2257, please contact ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Kristopher Anderson at (916) 441-4545.

 

State Legislature Back in Session; Members Encouraged to Start Outreach

The California Legislature convenes today, launching into the second year of the 2023-’24 legislative session and reviving discussion of issues important to the water industry, including water rights bills and the possibility of a water/climate resilience bond on the November statewide ballot.  

ACWA’s State Relations Department has continued to meet with legislators during the winter recess to advance the association’s goals. ACWA encourages member agencies to make similar contacts and use ACWA’s “Outreach Handbook” as a helpful guide for such engagement. 

Suggested Activities 

Resources 

Questions 

For questions about ACWA’s legislative efforts, please contact ACWA State Relations Director Adam Quiñonez at (916) 441-4545.