Bill Text: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB377

Status: In committee process - In Assembly Committee on Appropriations - Held in Committee - Dead

APWA CA Advocacy Position: Oppose

LOCC Position: Oppose

Last 5 History Actions:

05/20/21 In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

05/20/21 Joint Rule 62(a), file notice suspended.

05/19/21 In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.

04/21/21 From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 5. Noes 3.) (April 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

04/14/21 Re-referred to Com. on E.S. & T.M.

AB 377, as amended, Robert Rivas. Water quality: impaired waters.

(1)Under

Under existing law, the State Water Resources Control Board and the 9 California regional water quality control boards regulate water quality and prescribe waste discharge requirements in accordance with the federal national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit program established by the federal Clean Water Act and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act. Existing law requires each regional board to formulate and adopt water quality control plans for all areas within the region, as provided.

This bill would require all California surface waters to attain applicable beneficial uses by January 1, 2050. The bill would require the state board and regional boards, when issuing an NPDES permit, a waste discharge requirement, or a waiver of a waste discharge requirement, to require that the discharge to surface water does not cause or contribute to an exceedance of an applicable water quality standard in receiving waters, and to not authorize the use of a best management practice permit term to authorize a discharge to surface water that causes or contributes to an exceedance of an applicable water quality standard in receiving waters. The bill would prohibit, on or after January 1, 2030, a regional water quality control plan from including a schedule for implementation for achieving a water quality standard for a surface water of the state that was adopted as of January 1, 2021, and would prohibit a regional water quality control plan from including a schedule for implementation of a water quality standard for a surface water of the state that is adopted after January 1, 2021, unless specified conditions are met. The bill would prohibit an NPDES permit, waste discharge requirement, or waiver of a waste discharge requirement to discharge to a surface water of the state from being renewed, reissued, or modified to contain effluent limitations or conditions that, among other things, are less stringent than those in the previous permit, requirement, or waiver, except as specified.

(2)Existing

Existing law authorizes the imposition of civil penalties for violations of certain waste discharge requirements and requires that penalties imposed pursuant to these provisions be deposited into the Waste Discharge Permit Fund, to be expended by the state board, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for specified purposes related to water quality. For violations of certain other waste discharge requirements, including the violation of a waste discharge requirement effluent limitation, existing law imposes specified civil penalties, the proceeds of which are deposited into the continuously appropriated State Water Pollution Cleanup and Abatement Account, which is established in the State Water Quality Control Fund.

This bill would require, by January 1, 2030, 2023, the state board and regional boards to develop an Impaired Waterways Enforcement Program to enforce prioritize enforcement of all remaining water quality standard violations that are causing or contributing to an exceedance of a water quality standard in a surface water of the state. To ensure any water segments impaired by ongoing pollutants are brought into attainment with water quality standards, the The bill would require the state board and regional boards, by January 1, 2040, 2025, to evaluate the state’s remaining impaired state surface waters using a specified report. The bill would require, by January 1, 2040, the state board and regional boards to and report to the Legislature a plan to bring the final impaired all water segments into attainment by January 1, 2050. The bill would require the state board and regional boards to update the report with a progress summary to the Legislature every 5 years. The bill would create the Waterway Attainment Recovery Account in the Waste Discharge Permit Fund and would make moneys in the Waterway Attainment Recovery Account available for the state board to expend, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to bring remaining impaired water segments into attainment in accordance with the plan. The bill would create in the Waterway Attainment Account the Waterway Attainment Penalty Subaccount, composed of penalties obtained pursuant to the Impaired Waterways Enforcement Program, and would make moneys in the subaccount available for the state board to expend, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of the program. require penalties obtained pursuant to the above-described prioritized enforcement of water quality standards to be deposited into the Waterway Recovery Account. The bill would require, by January 1, 2040, 2026, and subject to a future legislative act, 50% of the annual proceeds of the State Water Pollution Cleanup and Abatement Account to be annually transferred to the Waterway Attainment Recovery Account. The bill would require the state board, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to expend 5% of the annual proceeds of the State Water Pollution Cleanup and Abatement Account to fund a specified state board program.

Bill Text:

Status:

APWA CA Advocacy Position:

LOCC Position:

Last 5 History Actions: