California Assembly Bill AB1874 Latest Draft

 BILL NUMBER: AB 1874AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 23, 2014 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 26, 2014 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Gonzalez FEBRUARY 19, 2014 An act to add Sections 10534.5 and 10536.5 to, and to add Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 10551) to Part 2.2 of Division 6 of, the Water Code, relating to water. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1874, as amended, Gonzalez. Integrated regional water management plans: funding. Existing law, the Integrated Regional Water Management Planning Act of 2002, authorizes a regional water management group to prepare and adopt an integrated regional water management plan with specified components relating to water supply and water quality. Existing law authorizes the Department of Water Resources to award grants to eligible projects consistent with an adopted integrated regional water management plan. This bill would require the department to develop a streamlined application process for certain regional water management groups. The bill would require, in order to receive integrated regional water management  grant  funds through this streamlined application process, the specified regional water management group to file with the department a streamlined application form that includes information relating to projects to be funded by integrated regional water management grant funds. The bill would require the department, upon appropriation of integrated regional water management funds, to award integrated regional water management grant funds for approved applications, proportionately consistent with any applicable statutory formula  and that covers more than one planning region, with a required written agreement between the planning regions in the regional water management group  . The bill would require the recipient regional water management group, within 90 days, to provide the department with a list of integrated regional water management projects to be funded by the integrated regional water management grant funds, including a description, budget,  and schedule   schedule, and the entities that will receive funding  for each project, and would require the department, within 60 days of receiving the project information, to distribute the funding to the regional water management group. The bill would require a regional water management group to quarterly report expenditures and activities for each project to the department and would require the department, at least once every 2 years, to audit each funding area and regional water management group that receives integrated regional water management  grant  funds from the department. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 10534.5 is added to the Water Code, to read: 10534.5. "Funding area" means a hydrologic region, as identified by the California Water Plan, as updated. SEC. 2. Section 10536.5 is added to the Water Code, to read: 10536.5. "Planning region" means an integrated regional water management region, as  identified by the California Water Plan, as updated   accepted by the department  . SEC. 3. Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 10551) is added to Part 2.2 of Division 6 of the Water Code, to read: CHAPTER 7. STREAMLINED APPLICATIONS 10551. A streamlined application process, as specified under this chapter, for the funding of integrated regional water management plans shall be available to the following regional water management groups: (a) A regional water management group that represents a funding area that is made up of a single planning region. (b) If a funding area covers more than one planning region, a regional water management group that represents all planning regions within the funding area, if those regions have reached a written agreement concerning the proportional allocation of integrated regional water management  grant  funds to the individual planning regions within the funding area. 10552. To receive integrated regional water management  grant  funds through the streamlined application process, a regional water management group described in Section 10551 shall complete, and file with the department, a streamlined application form. The streamlined application form shall be developed by the department and shall require a regional water management group to do all of the following:  (a) Identify the member of the regional water management group submitting an application on behalf of the region.   (a)   (b)  Specify the amount of funding that the regional water management group is requesting. In instances where the funding area covers more than one planning region, the combined total of all the applications from within the funding area shall be consistent with the written agreement described in subdivision (b) of Section 10551.  (b)   (c)  Describe the types of projects to be funded by the integrated regional water management grant funds and demonstrate how the projects will provide multiple benefits.  (c)   (d)  Demonstrate how the projects comply with applicable statutory requirements governing the award of integrated regional water management grant funds.  (e) Demonstrate how the projects will comply with the criteria established in the adopted integrated regional water management plan for the planning region.   (d)   (f)  If more than one planning region is within the funding area, provide documentation showing that all planning regions within the funding area have reached a written agreement concerning the allocation of integrated regional water management  grant  funds within the funding area.  (e) Identify the recipient public agency that will receive the integrated regional water management grant funds.  10553. If the department approves a streamlined application pursuant to Section 10552 of a regional water management group described in Section 10551, the department, upon appropriation of integrated regional water management funds to the department, shall award integrated regional water management grant funds, proportionately consistent with any applicable  statutory formula   written agreement described in subdivision (b) of Section 10551 and any applicable statutory formula  , to the regional water management group. 10554. (a) Within 90 days of an integrated regional water management grant award pursuant to this chapter, the regional water management group shall provide the department with a list of projects to be funded by the integrated regional water management  grant  funds. The list shall specify how the projects are consistent with the adopted integrated regional water management plan and shall include all of the following information: (1) Descriptive information concerning each project identified.  (2) The names of the entities that will receive the funding for each project.   (2)   (3)  The budget of each project.  (3) Anticipated   (4)     The anticipated  schedule for each project. (b) Within 60 days of receiving the project information pursuant to subdivision (a), the department shall distribute the funding to the regional water management group. 10555. The regional water management group shall report expenditures and activities for each project to the department quarterly, in a format to be determined by the department. 10556. The department, at least once every two years, or more frequently at its own discretion, shall audit expenditures, invoices, and reimbursements for each funding area and regional water management group that receives integrated regional water management grant funds from the department.