AB 1000: Water conveyance: use of facility with unused capacity.

Session Year: 2017-2018
House: Assembly

Version:

Existing law prohibits the state or a regional or local public agency from denying a bona fide transferor of water from using a water conveyance facility that has unused capacity for the period of time for which that capacity is available, if fair compensation is paid for that use and other requirements are met.

This bill would, notwithstanding that provision, prohibit a transferor of water from using a water conveyance facility that has unused capacity to transfer water from a groundwater basin underlying desert lands, as defined, that is in the vicinity of specified federal lands or state lands to outside of the groundwater basin unless the State Lands Commission, in consultation with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, finds that the transfer of the water will not adversely affect the natural or cultural resources of those federal and state lands.

Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to establish design and construction standards and energy and water conservation design standards that increase efficiency in the use of energy and water for new residential and new nonresidential buildings to reduce the wasteful, uneconomic, inefficient, or unnecessary consumption of energy. Existing law requires the commission to establish minimum levels of operating efficiency to promote the use of energy and water efficient appliances. The Water Measurement Law requires every water purveyor to require, as a condition of new water service, the installation of a water meter to measure water service. That law also requires urban water suppliers to install water meters on specified service connections, and to charge water users based on the actual volume of deliveries as measured by those water meters in accordance with a certain timetable.This bill would authorize the commission to adopt regulations establishing performance standards for water meters installed in residential and nonresidential buildings, including water meters installed pursuant to the Water Measurement Law.

Discussed in Hearing