HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-04-27 - AGENDA REPORTS - STATE LEGISLATION: SB 520 (2)Agenda Item• 11
CITY OF SANTA CLARITA
AGENDA REPORT
CONSENT CALENDAR
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL: fAl AJ P43
DATE: April 27, 2021
SUBJECT: STATE LEGISLATION: SENATE BILL 520
DEPARTMENT: City Manager's Office
PRESENTER: Masis Hagobian
RECOMMENDED ACTION
City Council adopt the City Council Legislative Committee recommendation to support Senate
Bill 520 (Wilk) and transmit position statements to Senator Wilk, Santa Clarita's state legislative
delegation, appropriate legislative committees, Governor Newsom, League of California Cities,
and other stakeholder organizations.
BACKGROUND
Authored by Senator Scott Wilk (R-21-Santa Clarita), Senate Bill 520 requires the State Water
Resources Control Board (SWRCB or Board) to issue a new notice and provide an opportunity
for a public hearing on water appropriation applications that have been pending for more than 30
years.
Under existing law, SWRCB administers a water rights program where it grants permits and
licenses to appropriate water. This administrative process allows for a protest period and the
Board is required to hold a hearing as long as a protest remains unresolved or there is a disputed
material fact.
However, existing law does not require the Board to allow for additional public review on
applications it has not rendered a final determination, even if decades have passed since the
original filing date. This results in cases where long-standing water appropriation applications
lack the most current information and withhold any opportunity for public comment, in some
cases for several decades, limiting the Board's ability to fully vet an application with an
understanding of the current environmental circumstances and public engagement prior to a final
determination.
Senate Bill 520 would apply to the proposed Soledad Canyon mining project, should the
expiration of the contracts not be upheld. This bill will seek to guarantee that in the event the
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mining project goes forward, the public is afforded a full opportunity to ensure that the SWRCB
is in possession of the most current information prior to deciding whether to issue a water
appropriation permit.
The original water appropriation permit application for the proposed Soledad Canyon mining
project is nearing three decades old, having been filed in June 1991. If this bill passed, it would
be effective January 1, 2022, and would immediately apply to the proposed Soledad Canyon
mining project.
Senate Bill 520 will not extinguish any valid rights of an applicant or limit the authority of the
SWRCB to issue notices or take other actions related to consideration of an application. This
measure seeks to provide a fair opportunity for interested persons to file protests or otherwise be
heard by the SWRCB regarding aged applications.
In the case of the proposed Soledad Canyon mining project, significant changes have occurred in
the community within the past 30 years. For example, the SWRCB may wish to consider the
available and dependable water supply to the community as a result of the multi -year drought.
Santa Clarita's water supply is comprised of approximately 50% groundwater and 50% imported
water from the State Water Project. A review of the current role of the Santa Clara River, as it
relates to habitat of the protected unarmored three -spine stickleback found in portions of the river
near the proposed mining site and as a source of recharging the local aquifers, would appear
appropriate when considering the permit application.
Furthermore, since 1990, Santa Clarita's population has more than doubled from approximately
110,000 residents to the current population of approximately 225,000. As demonstrated in these
examples, a number of significant changes have occurred in the area over the past 30 years.
Therefore, it is appropriate for the SWRCB to fully consider present day dynamics and
circumstances rather than relying on information that is significantly out-of-date in making
decisions with long-term impacts.
The Santa Clarita City Council sponsored and supported a similar bill, Senate Bill 797 (Wilk) on
April 28, 2020, based on the recommendation of the City Council's Legislative Committee.
Senate Bill 797 did not advance in the Senate.
Senate Bill 520 unanimously passed the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee (9-0)
on March 16, 2021, and unanimously passed the Senate Appropriations Committee (7-0) on
April 5, 2021.
CEMEX Inc. was the only registered opposition and the City of Santa Clarita, through previous
actions taken by the City Council, was the only registered supporter at the time this report was
developed.
The City Council Legislative Committee met on April 8, 2021, and recommends that the City
Council adopt a "support" position on Senate Bill 520.
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ALTERNATIVE ACTION
1. Adopt an "oppose" position on Senate Bill 520
2. Adopt a "neutral" position on Senate Bill 520
3. Take no action on Senate Bill 520
4. Refer Senate Bill 520 back to the Legislative Committee
5. Other direction, as provided by the City Council
FISCAL IMPACT
The resources required to implement the recommended action are contained within the City of
Santa Clarita's adopted FY 2020-21 budget.
ATTACHMENTS
Senate Bill 520 - Bill Text
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AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 17, 2021
SENATE BILL No. 520
Introduced by Senator Wilk
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Valladares)
February 17, 2021
An act to add Section 1305 to the Water Code, relating to water
resources.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 520, as amended, Wilk. Water resources: permit to appropriate:
application-proee4uf-et procedure: mining use.
Under existing law, the State Water Resources Control Board
administers a water rights program pursuant to which the board grants
permits and licenses to appropriate water. Existing law requires an
application for a permit to appropriate water to include, among other
things, sufficient information to demonstrate a reasonable likelihood
that unappropriated water is available for the proposed appropriation.
Existing law requires the board to issue and deliver a notice of an
application as soon as practicable after the receipt of an application for
a permit to appropriate water that conforms to the law. Existing law
allows interested persons to file a written protest with regard to an
application to appropriate water and requires the protestant to set forth
the objections to the application. Existing law declares that no hearing
is necessary to issue a permit in connection with an unprotested
application, or if the undisputed facts support the issuance of the permit
and there is no disputed issue of material fact, unless the board elects
to hold a hearing.
This bill, if the board has not rendered a final determination on an
application for a permit to appropriate water for a beneficial use or uses
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SB 520
that include mining use within 30 years from the date the application
was filed, would require the board to issue a new notice and provide
an opportunity for protests before rendering a final determination, with
specified exceptions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State -mandated local program: no.
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The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 1305 is added to the Water Code, to read:
1305. (a) If the board has not rendered a final determination
on an application for a permit to appropriate water for a beneficial
use or uses that include mining use within 30 years from the date
the application was filed, the board shall issue a new notice and
provide an opportunity for protests under Chapter 4 (commencing
with Section 1330) before rendering a final determination.
(b) A notice and opportunity for protests pursuant to subdivision
(a) is not required if any of the following apply:
(1) The application is canceled or denied.
(2) A notice and opportunity for protests has been provided
within five years prior to the board rendering a final approval.
(3) The board holds a hearing or conducts proceedings under
Article 1.5 (commencing with Section 1345) of Chapter 5, after
public notice of the hearing or proceedings, and allows any person
requesting notice of the hearing or proceedings to participate as
a party in the hearing or proceedings, including the presentation
of evidence, without having to have filed protests. The board shall
provide not less than 45 days'written notice, in the same manner
as would be provided to an unresolved protestant, to any person
requesting the notice.
(4) The applicant is a public entity.
(c) This section is not a limitation on the authority of the board
to issue a notice or direct the applicant to issue a notice if, because
of changes in the project or other circumstances, the issuance of
a notice is necessary to provide a fair opportunity for interested
persons to file protests or is in the public interest.
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