SECTIONS 116760.20-116760.45 - California Statutes

HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE

SECTION 116760.20-116760.45

116760.20. Unless the context otherwise requires, the following
definitions govern the construction of this chapter:
(a) "Cost-effective project" means a project that achieves an
acceptable result at the most reasonable cost.
(b) "Department" means the State Department of Public Health.
(c) "Federal Safe Drinking Water Act" or "federal act" means the
federal Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 300f et seq.) and
acts amendatory thereof or supplemental thereto.
(d) "Fund" means the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
created by Section 116760.30.
(e) "Funding" means a loan or grant, or both, awarded under this
chapter.
(f) "Matching funds" means state money that equals that percentage
of federal contributions required by the federal act to be matched
with state funds.
(g) "Project" means proposed facilities for the construction,
improvement, or rehabilitation of a public water system, and may
include all items set forth in Section 116761 as necessary to carry
out the purposes of this chapter. It also may include refinancing
loans, annexation or consolidation of water systems, source water
assessments, source water protection, and other activities specified
under the federal act.
(h) "Public agency" means any city, county, city and county,
whether general law or chartered, district, joint powers authority,
or other political subdivision of the state, that owns or operates a
public water system.
(i) "Public water system" or "public water supply system" means a
system for the provision to the public of water for human
consumption, as defined in Chapter 4 (commencing with Section
116270), as it may be amended from time to time.
(j) "Reasonable amount of growth" means an increase in growth not
to exceed 10 percent of the design capacity needed, based on peak
flow, to serve the water and fire flow demand in existence at the
time plans and specifications for the project are approved by the
department, over the 20-year useful life of a project. For projects
other than the construction of treatment plants including, but not
limited to, storage facilities, pipes, pumps, and similar equipment,
where the 10-percent allowable growth cannot be adhered to due to the
sizes of equipment or materials available, the project shall be
limited to the next available larger size.
(k) "Safe drinking water standards" means those standards
established pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 116270),
as they may now or hereafter be amended.
(l) "Supplier" means any person, partnership, corporation,
association, public agency, or other entity that owns or operates a
public water system.

116760.30. (a) There is hereby created in the State Treasury the
Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund for the purpose of
implementing this chapter, and, notwithstanding Section 13340 of the
Government Code, the fund is hereby continuously appropriated,
without regard to fiscal years, to the department to provide, from
moneys available for this purpose, grants or revolving fund loans for
the design and construction of projects for public water systems
that will enable suppliers to meet safe drinking water standards. The
department shall be responsible for administering the fund.
(b) The department shall report at least once every two years to
the policy and budget committees of the Legislature on the
implementation of this chapter and expenditures from the fund. The
report shall describe the numbers and types of projects funded, the
reduction in risks to public health from contaminants in drinking
water provided through the funding of the projects, and the criteria
used by the department to determine funding priorities.
(c) Notwithstanding any other law, the Controller may use the
moneys in the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund for loans to
the General Fund as provided in Sections 16310 and 16381 of the
Government Code. However, interest shall be paid on all moneys loaned
to the General Fund from the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving
Fund. Interest payable shall be computed at a rate determined by the
Pooled Money Investment Board to be the current earning rate of the
fund from which loaned. This subdivision does not authorize any
transfer that will interfere with the carrying out of the object for
which the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund was created.

116760.40. The department may undertake any of the following
actions to implement the Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund:
(a) Enter into agreements with the federal government for federal
contributions to the fund.
(b) Accept federal contributions to the fund.
(c) Use moneys in the fund for the purposes permitted by the
federal act.
(d) Provide for the deposit of matching funds and other available
and necessary moneys into the fund.
(e) Make requests, on behalf of the state, for deposit into the
fund of available federal moneys under the federal act.
(f) Determine, on behalf of the state, that public water systems
that receive financial assistance from the fund will meet the
requirements of, and otherwise be treated as required by, the federal
act.
(g) Provide for appropriate audit, accounting, and fiscal
management services, plans, and reports relative to the fund.
(h) Take additional incidental action as may be appropriate for
adequate administration and operation of the fund.
(i) Enter into an agreement with, and accept matching funds from,
a public water system. A public water system that seeks to enter into
an agreement with the department and provide matching funds pursuant
to this subdivision shall provide to the department evidence of the
availability of those funds in the form of a written resolution, or
equivalent document, from the public water system before it requests
a preliminary loan commitment.
(j) Charge public water systems that elect to provide matching
funds a fee to cover the actual cost of obtaining the federal funds
pursuant to Section 1452(e) of the federal act (42 U.S.C. Sec.
300j-12) and to process the loan application. The fee shall be waived
by the department if sufficient funds to cover those costs are
available from other sources.
(k) Use money returned to the fund under Section 116761.85 and any
other source of matching funds, if not prohibited by statute, as
matching funds for the federal administrative allowance under Section
1452(g) of the federal act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 300j-12).
(l) Establish separate accounts or subaccounts as required or
allowed in the federal act and related guidance, for funds to be used
for administration of the fund and other purposes. Within the fund
the department shall establish the following accounts, including, but
not limited to:
(1) A fund administration account for state expenses related to
administration of the fund pursuant to Section 1452(g)(2) of the
federal act.
(2) A water system reliability account for department expenses
pursuant to Section 1452(g)(2)(A), (B), (C), or (D) of the federal
act.
(3) A source protection account for state expenses pursuant to
Section 1452(k) of the federal act.
(4) A small system technical assistance account for department
expenses pursuant to Section 1452(g)(2) of the federal act.
(5) A state revolving loan account pursuant to Section 1452(a)(2)
of the federal act.
(6) A wellhead protection account established pursuant to Section
1452(a)(2) of the federal act.
(m) Deposit federal funds for administration and other purposes
into separate accounts or subaccounts as allowed by the federal act.
(n) Determine, on behalf of the state, whether sufficient progress
is being made toward compliance with the enforceable deadlines,
goals, and requirements of the federal act and the California Safe
Drinking Water Act, Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 116270).

116760.41. Moneys in the fund and the special accounts may be
expended for additional purposes provided in the federal act.

116760.42. (a) The department may enter into an agreement with the
federal government for federal contributions to the fund only if both
of the following apply:
(1) The state has obtained or appropriated any required state
matching funds.
(2) The department is prepared to commit to expenditure of any
minimum amount in the fund in the manner required by the federal act.
(b) Any agreement between the department and the federal
government shall contain those provisions, terms, and conditions
required by the federal act, and any implementing federal rules,
regulations, guidelines, and policies, including, but not limited to,
agreement to the following:
(1) Moneys in the fund shall be expended in an expeditious and
timely manner.
(2) All moneys in the fund as a result of federal capitalization
grants shall be expended to ensure sufficient progress is being made
toward compliance with the enforceable deadlines, goals, and
requirements of the federal act, including any applicable compliance
deadlines.
(3) Federal funds deposited in the special accounts are
continuously appropriated for use by the department as allowed by
federal law. Any unexpended funds in the special accounts shall be
carried over into subsequent years for use by the department.

116760.43. (a) The department may adopt emergency regulations
pursuant to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code necessary or convenient
to implement this chapter and to meet requirements pursuant to the
federal act.
(b) The adoption of any emergency regulations that are filed with
the Office of Administrative Law within 18 months of the effective
date of this act shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary for
the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety,
or general welfare.

116760.44. The department may deposit administrative fees and
charges paid by public water systems and other available and
necessary money into the administrative account of the fund.

116760.45. (a) For purposes of this section "act" means the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or any
regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter, the department may
expend moneys in the fund, received from the federal government
pursuant to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
(Public Law 111-5), in accordance with the provisions of the act and
federal guidelines implementing the act. To the extent that any law
or regulation of the state is in conflict with the provisions and
requirements of the act, to the extent that the conflict impairs the
expenditure of federal moneys received, the provisions and
requirements of the act shall prevail.
(c) The department may develop criteria necessary to implement the
act. These criteria shall not be subject to the Administrative
Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1
of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code). The department
shall publish the criteria on its Internet Web site and shall provide
opportunity for public review and comment, to include at least one
public hearing conducted upon not less than 20 days' notice.
(d) For the implementation of the act, the maximum amount of a
grant to an applicant under this chapter is ten million dollars
($10,000,000) per project.