Senator Sheila Kuehl, the new chair of the Senate's newly combined Natural Resources and Water Committee, plans to introduce an ambitious and comprehensive bill this year. From the attached background sheet made available by the committee late last week you will see many issues of interest to the state's water users. According to the author's office, the purpose of the Bill is to strengthen water conservation policy, reduce uncertainty about the use and abundance of our water resources, and increase the integrity and integration of water resources planning and management. Among other things, the background sheet notes an intent to expand groundwater reporting requirements; remove the CEQA exemption for Urban Water Management Plans; and establish a rebuttable presumption of waste for those not implementing "cost effective water conservation practices."
The Bill is not yet in print but Nossaman's lobbyists are monitoring the committee's actions and will have the bill language soon.
To view a copy of the background sheet, click here.
Richard Harris and Margaret Catzen-Brown are lobbyists in Nossaman's Sacramento office. Please feel free to contact them at (916) 442-8888 or at rharris@nossaman.com or mcatzen-brown@nossaman.com for more information.