New Legislative Water Package Unveiled
By Paul McIntosh, Executive Director
pmcintosh@counties.org
Activity surrounding a 2009 legislative water package picked up momentum this week with the unveiling of new bills and joint informational hearings in the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee and the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee.
On Monday, October 26, Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg provided the joint committee with a general overview of his SBX7 1, which addresses the Delta, water conservation, groundwater reporting, and water rights enforcements, and sets the stage for major decisions on Delta conveyance. The committees also heard from supporters of the package and from those who continue to have serious concerns with various policy elements of the package.
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Administration of Justice
The Assembly Accountability and Administrative Review Committee, chaired by Assembly Member Hector De La Torre, convened a hearing on October 28 to examine accountability and transparency of the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC).
The hearing focused on three primary areas:
- Judicial branch budget information and transparency;
- Staffing growth at the AOC; and
- Information technology.
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Agriculture and Natural Resources
SBX7 1, introduced by Senator Steinberg on October 23, has been replaced by SBX7 4 (Steinberg) as the Democratic policy vehicle for water reform. SBX7 4, in many ways identical to its predecessor, addresses the management of the Delta, water conservation, water rights enforcements, governance of the Delta, and includes a new groundwater monitoring program. Specifically, SBX7 4 would assign counties with new responsibilities regarding groundwater monitoring in the event that no other entity in a groundwater basin or sub-basin expresses an interest in developing a groundwater management plan, integrated regional water management plan, or a voluntary groundwater monitoring association. In addition, the bill provides that counties and specified entities within the county would be ineligible for grants and loans if the county does not comply with the Department of Water Resources (DWR) direction to conduct monitoring.
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Health and Human Services
County officials testifying before a joint meeting of Assembly Budget Committee and Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee No. 3 expressed grave concerns with the state’s handling of the implementation of budget cuts to the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program. The hearing lasted for over two hours on October 28.
A looming deadline to implement changes to the IHSS program will leave up to 450,000 elderly and disabled people vulnerable because the state has not provided accurate and complete instructions on the changes. The state has failed to provide adequate material and funding to counties to make the changes scheduled to be implemented by November 1.
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