Association of California Water Agencies

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Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 441-4545
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State Water Board Releases Final Draft Bay-Delta Plan Update

The State Water Resources Control Board today released a final draft of its Bay-Delta Plan Update. Its release opens a 30-day comment period ending Sept. 18, with a public hearing scheduled for Oct. 28-29, when the State Water Board is scheduled to consider adopting the updated plan.

The final draft, accompanied by a final Staff Report/Substitute Environmental Document, is being reviewed by ACWA staff and the association plans to provide oral and written comments to the State Water Board. ACWA will also continue to engage with its Bay-Delta Working Group to guide advocacy on the issue, particularly in support of including the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes Program in the updated plan.

ACWA is a long-standing supporter of the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes (HRL) Program as the best approach to protecting, restoring, and enhancing the Bay-Delta.

The comment period will provide a valuable opportunity for ACWA member agencies to show support for advancing the HRL Program and its implementation.

Background

The current update is focused on the portions of the plan relevant to the Sacramento River watershed, Delta eastside tributaries (including the Calaveras, Cosumnes, and Mokelumne rivers), and Delta for the reasonable protection of fish and wildlife beneficial uses. The updated plan includes two regulatory pathways: the HRL Program and the unimpaired flow approach for non-HRL Program parties.

Learn more about the HRL Program’s approach to protecting, restoring, and enhancing California’s Bay-Delta on ACWA’s website or the California Natural Resources Agency’s website. The Northern California Water Association has additional information and videos that can be shared on social media.

Questions

For questions regarding the update, please contact ACWA State Relations Advocate Stephen Pang at (916) 669-2369.

CDFW Releases Proposed Regulatory Amendments on Invasive Mussels

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) on July 3 announced proposed rulemaking action to amend Sections 650, 672, 672.1, and 672.2 within Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations pertaining to invasive mussels. The regulations would expand existing rules to cover all invasive mussel species, including golden mussels, aligning them with the Fish and Game Code as amended by AB149 (2025). They also add management measures for watercraft removed from infested waters and create a departmental list of approved inspection and decontamination service providers. Minor clarifying changes are included as well.  

CDFW will host a virtual public hearing on Aug. 18 following a 45-day comment period. 

Background 

Golden mussels are a highly invasive species first detected in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay-Delta in 2024.  

They are similar to quagga and zebra mussels, two other invasive aquatic mussels in the state, but pose more significant challenges because they can thrive in a wider range of water conditions. Left unaddressed, their continued spread will put massive strain on California’s water system, leading to costs which will ultimately be borne by ratepayers. 

Impacts on Water Agencies 

The impacts of golden mussels are significant as they attach to infrastructure in dense clusters, clogging water conveyance systems, pipelines, pumps, filters, hydropower facilities, agricultural operations, and other critical elements. They also degrade water quality, alter food webs and nutrient cycles, outcompete native species, threaten fisheries, and impact recreational opportunities.  

Environmental impacts include loss of native and game fish through competition for the same food sources and as a contributor to harmful, fish killing algal blooms. 

Recreational impacts of this mussel include waterbody closures, mandatory inspections, increased launch and/or entry fees, and reduced numbers of fish and shellfish for consumption. 

Economic impacts range include costly repairs and maintenance (water infrastructure, hydroelectric facilities, boats), reduced water flow affecting food production, water delivery to homes, and flood control. 

Resources 

The CDFW website contains multiple resources on invasive species, including golden mussels, on its website. In addition, ACWA has developed the following fact sheets for member agencies to share with decision makers and members of the public.  

Next Steps 

ACWA staff will continue to engage with CDFW while reviewing proposed regulatory changes and drafting comments, which are due to the Department no later than Aug. 18. This is in addition to monitoring and advocating on legislation regarding golden mussels and other invasive species impacting water infrastructure.  

Questions 

For questions about the new regulations, please contact ACWA State Relations Advocate Sophie Morin at (916) 669-2388. 

LAO Acknowledges Potential Benefits of Healthy Rivers and Landscapes Program

The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) on March 18 issued a report on the Bay-Delta Plan and Voluntary Agreements, also known as the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes (HRL) Program, that acknowledges the HRL Program’s potential to benefit the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watershed.

ACWA is a long-standing supporter of the HRL Program as the best approach to protecting, restoring and enhancing the Bay-Delta watershed. The LAO report takes a balanced approach in evaluating the HRL Program alongside the State Water Resource Control Board’s pathway that would primarily rely on enforcing unimpaired flows. Both the HRL Program and unimpaired flow approach are included in the draft update of the Bay-Delta Plan currently being considered by the State Water Board.

In analyzing the benefits of the HRL Program, the report acknowledges that it has potential to balance multiple competing goals in restoring the Bay-Delta’s health and native fishery, while also pointing out that many of the HRL Program’s habitat restoration projects are already underway.
The LAO report also called on the State Water Board to take timely action on approving the plan and recommended legislative oversight to monitor the success of the HRL Program once the plan is implemented.

Background

The LAO functions as a nonpartisan fiscal and policy advisor to the state Legislature.

The HRL Program represents a collaborative, modern, and holistic approach to improving the Bay-Delta ecosystem and water supply reliability. Developed by the Newsom Administration, the HRL Program is supported by federal, state, and local water leaders to create a comprehensive program of habitat enhancement projects coupled with more water for fish and wildlife, managed in a collaborative, science-based manner.

Learn more about the HRL Program’s approach to protecting, restoring and enhancing California’s Bay-Delta on ACWA’s website or the California Natural Resources Agency’s website.

What’s Next

As the State Water Board approaches a final decision on the Bay-Delta Plan Update, expected by the end of this year, ACWA will continue engaging with its Bay-Delta Working Group. ACWA’s advocacy will remain focused on supporting the HRL Program’s inclusion in the updated plan and ensuring its successful implementation.

Questions
For questions regarding the HRL Program, please contact ACWA State Relations Advocate Stephen Pang at (916) 669-2369.

State Water Board Releases Draft Bay-Delta Plan Documents

The State Water Resources Control Board today released the latest revision to the Bay-Delta Plan and has scheduled a multiday public hearing Jan. 28-30 for comments. ACWA encourages member agencies to engage in the public comment process to voice support for the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes (HRL) Program in the plan.

The updates are focused on the portions of the plan relevant to the Sacramento River watershed, Delta eastside tributaries (including the Calaveras, Cosumnes, and Mokelumne rivers), and Delta (Sacramento/Delta) for the reasonable protection of fish and wildlife beneficial uses. The revised draft Sacramento/Delta updates incorporate proposed changes to the October 2024 draft based on public comment and include two regulatory pathways: the HRL Program and the unimpaired flow approach for non-HRL Program parties.

In addition, the State Water Board is conducting a limited recirculation of the draft Staff Report/Substitute Environmental Document (Staff Report) in support of Sacramento/Delta updates to the Bay-Delta Plan by releasing a new chapter for public review and comment. The new chapter provides a comparative analysis of the revised draft updates based on the 2023 draft Staff Report.

The State Water Board will hold a public hearing Jan. 28-30 to receive public comments on the revised draft updates and draft Staff Report. Written comments are due to the State Water Board by Feb. 2. The notice includes additional information about the hearing and instructions for submitting comments to the State Water Board.

ACWA is a long-standing supporter of the HRL Program as the best approach to protecting, restoring, and enhancing the Bay-Delta. ACWA is reviewing the revised draft changes and plans to provide oral and written comments to the State Water Board. ACWA staff will continue to engage with its Bay-Delta Working Group to guide ACWA’s advocacy on the Sacramento/Delta update to the Bay-Delta Plan.

Background

The HRL Program represents a collaborative, modern, and holistic approach to improving the Bay-Delta ecosystem and water supply reliability. Developed by the Newsom Administration, the HRL Program is supported by federal, state, and local water leaders to create a comprehensive program of habitat enhancement projects coupled with more water for fish and wildlife, managed in a collaborative, science-based manner.

Learn more about the HRL program’s approach to protecting, restoring, and enhancing California’s Bay-Delta on ACWA’s website or the California Natural Resources Agency’s website.

Questions

For questions regarding the draft changes, please contact ACWA State Relations Advocate Stephen Pang at (916) 669-2369.

 

State Water Board Sets Lower Notification & Response Levels for Some PFAS

The State Water Resources Control Board’s Division of Drinking Water (DDW) has announced lower Drinking Water Notification and Response Levels for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), and perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA).

Notification and response levels are nonregulatory, health-based advisory levels established for contaminants in drinking water for which maximum contaminant levels have not been set. When chemicals are found at concentrations greater than their notification levels, certain requirements and recommendations apply. Where detected levels of PFOA and PFOS exceed the response level, water systems shall either (1) take the sources out of service immediately; (2) utilize treatment or blending; or (3) provide public notification of the response level exceedance within 30 days.

The new notification and response levels for these four per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are:

PFOA: notification level = 4.0 ng/l, response level = 10 ng/l

PFOS: notification level = 4.0 ng/l, response level = 40 ng/l

PFHxS: notification level = 3.0 ng/l, response level = 10 ng/l

PFHxA: notification level = 1.0 ng/l, response level = 10 ng/l

Toolkit

ACWA has a PFAS toolkit to assist member agencies in educating customers, stakeholders and the media about PFAS. The toolkit includes:

Background

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals,” are a group of thousands of man-made chemicals that have been used extensively in numerous consumer products, such as Teflon pans, stain resistant carpets, fast food packaging, fire-fighting foams and other materials designed to be waterproof, stain-resistant or non-stick.

In April 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a new national maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 4.0 parts per trillion (ppt) for PFOA and PFOS as individual contaminants and a standard of 10 ppt for three other chemicals — PFNA, PFHxs, and HFPO-DA (commonly referred to as GenXChemicals). Utilities have five years to come into compliance with the rule.

ACWA advocated that the EPA set drinking water standards that are based on sound science and robust analysis.

In a separate effort, the California Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment in April 2024 adopted and published public health goals of 0.007 ppt for PFOA and 1.0 ppt for PFOS. A public health goal is a drinking water objective that does not pose a significant risk to health and is not an enforceable standard.

Questions

For questions about the new Response and Notification Levels, please contact ACWA State Relations Advocate Amber Rossow at amberr@acwa.com.

 

California Air Resources Board Adopts Advanced Clean Fleets Resolution

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) on Sept. 25 adopted a resolution that includes changes to the Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulation that do the following:

The resolution will take effect once the change is processed through the Office of Administrative Law, and CARB plans to finalize the ACF rulemaking in 2026.

ACWA staff attended the hearing and provided oral comments that supported the resolution and reinforced ACWA’s comment letter, calling for much-needed flexibility beyond what the current exemptions provide. More than 20 ACWA members provided oral comments at the workshop and 20 members submitted written comments.

Next Steps

ACWA staff will continue to engage with CARB board and staff members, as well as the ACWA Clean Fleets Working Group, to work on solutions and improvements that will enable ACWA members to comply with the ACF regulation without compromising essential public services. The CARB board directed their staff to provide an update on progress made to find workable solutions and improvements in the near future. In addition, ACWA staff will continue to organize site visits for CARB staff at member agencies.

Background

CARB adopted the regulation in April 2023. It requires all fleet owners and operators to start purchasing zero-emission vehicles in 2024, with the goal to move California’s medium- and heavy-duty trucks to zero emission, where feasible, by 2045.

ACWA led an active coalition that helped ensure CARB built exemption pathways in the regulation for situations where available zero-emission vehicles do not meet fleet needs and when charging infrastructure is not yet built to support fleet electrification.

Staff also led a coalition in support of AB 1594 (Garcia), which was designed to help local governments comply with the new regulation without compromising critical services to customers. The bill, which was passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, will offer greater flexibility to public agency utilities. It specifically addresses replacing traditional utility-specialized vehicles that are at the end of their useful life —without regard to the model year of the vehicle being replaced — to maintain reliable service and respond to major foreseeable events, including severe weather, wildfires, natural disasters and physical attacks.

ACWA’s coalition advocated to expand the bill to include more than just drinking water systems. As a result, the law going into effect now includes water districts, irrigation districts, flood control agencies, water authorities, reclamation districts, and others.

Questions

For questions about the Advanced Clean Fleets Regulation, please contact ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Nick Blair at (916) 441-4545.

 

State Water Board Releases Revised Draft of Bay-Delta Plan Update

The State Water Resources Control Board today released a revised draft of updates for the Sacramento/Delta portions of the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta Watershed (Bay-Delta Plan). The revised draft includes proposed changes to the draft Sacramento/Delta updates, released in October 2024, based on public input and comments received throughout the planning process. The revised draft updates include two regulatory pathways: the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes (HRL) Program and the unimpaired flow approach for non-HRL Program parties.

The State Water Board will hold a public hearing Sept. 8-9 to receive public comments on the revised draft updates. Written comments are due to the State Water Board by Sept. 10. The notice includes additional information about the hearing and instructions for submitting comments to the State Water Board.

ACWA is a long-standing supporter of the HRL Program as the best approach to protecting, restoring, and enhancing the Bay-Delta. ACWA is reviewing the revised draft changes and plans to provide oral and written comments to the State Water Board. ACWA staff will continue to engage with its Bay-Delta Working Group to guide ACWA’s advocacy on the Sacramento/Delta update to the Bay-Delta Plan.

Background

The HRL Program represents a collaborative, modern, and holistic approach to improving the Bay-Delta ecosystem and water supply reliability. Developed by the Newsom Administration, the HRL Program is supported by federal, state, and local water leaders to create a comprehensive program of habitat enhancement projects coupled with more water for fish and wildlife, managed in a collaborative, science-based manner.

Learn more about the HRL program’s approach to protecting, restoring, and enhancing California’s Bay-Delta on ACWA’s website or the California Natural Resources Agency’s website.

Questions

For questions regarding the draft changes, please contact ACWA State Relations Advocate Stephen Pang at (916) 669-2369.

Regulation on State, Local Fleets Still in Effect

President Donald Trump signed three measures on June 12 to block California’s Clean Air Act Waivers to administer California Air Resources Board (CARB) programs including: the Advanced Clean Cars Program, the Advanced Clean Truck Program, and the Omnibus Low Nitrogen Emissions Program. These three measures are not related to the Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulation, so CARB is still enforcing the state and local fleet requirements which were effective as of Jan. 1, 2024.

In response to President Trump’s measures, Gov. Gavin Newsom released Executive Order N-27-25 which reaffirms California’s commitment to phasing out gas and diesel vehicles through existing and new regulations. California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against President Trump and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin.

ACWA staff is continuing to work with CARB to advocate for flexibilities for public agencies’ compliance with the ACF regulation that keep essential public services intact and are working with ACWA members to describe compliance challenges faced by individual fleets.

The Regulation

CARB’s ACF regulation went into effect Jan. 1, 2024 requiring vehicle fleet owners and operators, including all public agencies, to start purchasing zero-emission vehicles with the goal to move California’s medium- and heavy-duty trucks to zero emission, where feasible, by 2045.

Public agencies not subject to the ACF regulation purchase requirements until 2027 must still submit annual reports to CARB prior to that year.

CARB is early in the process to amend the ACF regulation to accommodate AB 1594 requirements. ACWA staff continues to participate in this process.

Compliance Resources

ACWA recommends that member agencies take the necessary steps to comply with the ACF regulation and explore the resources available to determine the best path forward. CARB resources available online include the following:

Questions

For questions about the ACF regulation, please contact ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Nick Blair at (916) 441-4545.

 

 

ACWA Updates Guidance on Public Health Goals Reporting

ACWA has prepared a guidance document that can help member agencies prepare a report on the detection of any contaminants above the Public Health Goals (PHGs), which are published by the state’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA). Public water systems with more than 10,000 service connections are required to complete the report by July 1. 

In preparing the report, public water agencies must also list the detection of any contaminant above the Maximum Contaminant Level Goals (MCLGs) set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for all other contaminants until such time as OEHHA has published PHGs for those contaminants. State regulators emphasize that the report needs only to provide information on the number of contaminants that a water system has found at a level exceeding a PHG or a MCLG.  

ACWA members can access the guidance document on ACWA’s website. Member login is required.  

Required every three years, the report is necessary to satisfy requirements of California Health and Safety Code Section 116470(b). This particular reporting requirement is unique to California. It requires reports that are in addition to the extensive public reporting of water quality information that California water utilities have been submitting for many years, as well as in addition to the federally mandated Consumer Confidence Reports (CCRs).  

Questions  

For questions about Public Health Goals reporting requirements, please contact ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Nick Blair at (916) 669-2377. 

CARB Continues to Enforce State and Local Clean Fleets Requirements

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) on Jan. 17 announced it is not enforcing portions of the Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulation that would have required federal authorization, such as the portions that apply to high-priority and drayage fleets. However, CARB will continue to enforce the state and local fleet requirements which were effective as of Jan. 1, 2024.

The announcement came days after CARB withdrew its Clean Air Act Waiver Request to administer the ACF regulation in California from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The original waiver request, which California sought to enable it to require medium- and heavy-duty fleets operating in the state to convert to zero-emission trucks, was submitted to U.S. EPA in November 2023 and resulted in questions about whether CARB retained its ability to enforce ACF.

According to CARB, this withdrawal does not impact ACF enforcement requirements on state and local government fleets in California because CARB was not required to request a waiver for state and local fleets under the Federal Clean Air Act.

ACWA will continue to engage as CARB evaluates next steps. CARB remains committed to working in partnership with interested parties to reduce air pollution to protect public health, and encourages affected industries to continue reducing their emissions.

Background

CARB’s ACF went into effect Jan. 1, 2024 requiring vehicle fleet owners and operators, including all public agencies, to start purchasing zero-emission vehicles with the goal to move California’s medium- and heavy-duty trucks to zero emission, where feasible, by 2045.

Public agencies not subject to ACF purchase requirements until 2027 must still submit annual reports to CARB prior to that year.

CARB is early in the process to amend the ACF Regulation to accommodate AB 1594 requirements, and will continue this effort in 2025. ACWA will continue to participate in this process as it occurs.

ACWA staff continues to participate in CARB’s Truck Regulation Implementation Group, which is meeting quarterly to help CARB work through ACF implementation issues as they arise for public water agencies.

Compliance Resources

ACWA recommends that member agencies take the necessary steps to comply with the regulation and explore the resources available to determine the best path forward. CARB has the following resources available online:

Questions

For questions about the Advanced Clean Fleets Regulation, please contact ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Nick Blair at (916) 441-4545.