AB 367: County water districts: County of Ventura: fire suppression.

Existing law, the County Water District Law, authorizes the formation of county water districts and authorizes those districts to appropriate, acquire, and conserve water and water rights for any useful purpose and to operate water rights, works, properties, rights, and privileges useful or necessary to convey, supply, store, or make use of water for any purpose authorized by that law. Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal to identify areas in the state as moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones based on consistent statewide criteria and based on the severity of fire hazard that is expected to prevail in those areas.

This bill would require a water district that supplies water to more than 20 residential dwellings that is used for the suppression of fire in either a high or very high risk fire hazard severity zone in the County of Ventura to have a backup energy source with sufficient power to promptly operate wells and pumps servicing the high or very high risk hazard severity zone at normal capacity for at least 24 hours in the case of a power shutoff unless the relevant water delivery systems are gravity fed and do not need any backup power to continue to operate during a power shutoff. The bill would require the Ventura County Fire Department to annually inspect facilities that provide water, as specified. The bill would require a water district to take various actions, including alerting the Ventura County Office of Emergency Services whenever its water delivery capacity has been reduced due to equipment failure or maintenance. The bill would require, if any fire destroys more than 10 residential dwellings or causes more than $3,000,000 in damages to any residential dwelling in a specified water district, a report be made by the water district where the fire occurred and the Ventura County Fire Department that assesses the appropriateness of the water delivery system, as specified. By levying new requirements on a water district with respect to its power and water supply and the Ventura County Fire Department, this bill would create a state-mandated local program.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for County of Ventura.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.