SB 963: Water replenishment districts.

Existing law authorizes a water replenishment district, for the purposes of replenishing the groundwater supplies within the district, to buy and sell water; exchange water; distribute water to persons in exchange for ceasing or reducing groundwater extractions; spread, sink, and inject water into the underground; store, transport, recapture, recycle, purify, treat, or otherwise manage and control water for the beneficial use of persons or property within the district; and build the necessary works to achieve groundwater replenishment.

Existing law authorizes a water replenishment district to establish an annual reserve fund not to exceed $10,000,000, as adjusted annually to reflect percentage increases or decreases in the blended cost of water from district supply sources and, beginning in the 201920 fiscal year, requires a minimum of 80% of the reserve to be used for water purchases. Existing law excepts from this limitation the unexpended balance of any appropriated funds in a capital improvement project construction account established to pay the cost of a project or projects under construction.

This bill would repeal this reserve fund authorization and would make conforming changes.

Existing law requires a water replenishment district to order, review, and maintain on file an independent, audited financial statement not later than 60 days from the conclusion of the districts fiscal year and requires copies of the statements to be submitted to the Governor, the Legislature, and the California State Auditor on or before November 1 of each year. Existing law requires that the independent audited financial statement be consistent with the standards provided in the Standards for Audit of Governmental Organizations, Programs, Activities, and Functions prepared by the Comptroller General of the United States and that it include specified information.

This bill would instead require the district to order, review, and maintain the statement not later than 180 days from the conclusion of the districts fiscal year and would require the statement to be consistent with the Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards prepared by the United States Government Accountability Office. The bill would also revise the required contents of the statement, require that copies of the statement, as described, be submitted to specified committees of the Legislature instead of the Legislature generally, and require that all copies submitted to the Governor, the California State Auditor, and the legislative committees be submitted on or before December 31 of each year. The bill would require the district to provide, in addition to the statement, information on expenditures relating to capital improvement projects planned to be undertaken by the district.