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AB-1597 Water quality: California-Mexico cross-border watersheds.(2023-2024)



Current Version: 07/03/24 - Amended Senate

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AB1597:v95#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  July 03, 2024
Amended  IN  Senate  June 05, 2024
Amended  IN  Senate  June 22, 2023
Amended  IN  Assembly  May 18, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1597

Introduced by Assembly Member Alvarez
(Principal coauthor: Senator Jones)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Boerner, Garcia, and Ward)
(Coauthors: Senators Blakespear and Padilla)

February 17, 2023

An act to add Part 2.7 (commencing with Section 71108) to Division 34 of the Public Resources Code, relating to water.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1597, as amended, Alvarez. Water quality: California-Mexico cross-border watersheds.
Existing law establishes the California Border Environmental and Public Health Protection Fund in the State Treasury to receive funds appropriated in the annual Budget Act, including, but not limited to, proceeds of bonds sold as specified, and other sources, such as from the North American Development Bank (NADBank), and makes money in the fund available, upon appropriation, to the California-Mexico Border Relations Council, a state entity. Money in the fund is used to assist local governments in implementation of projects to identify and resolve environmental and public health problems that directly threaten the health or environmental quality of California residents or sensitive natural resources of the California border region, among other purposes.
This bill would authorize, upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute, funds to be made available to the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) for NADBank for loans, grants, and direct expenditures to address water quality problems arising in the California-Mexico cross-border watersheds. The bill would require the funding to be available for specified purposes, as provided, including water quality projects for the Tijuana River, and would make 10% of the funding available for the administrative costs of implementing these provisions. The bill would authorize funding provided for activities or projects in the State of Baja California to be provided through direct expenditures and for grants to an eligible funding recipient authorized to work in Mexico under a specified circumstance. The bill would require grant funding to be conditioned upon the enforceability and accountability requirements mutually agreed upon by CalEPA and NADBank, and would authorize CalEPA to withhold funding if the requirements of the applicable funding agreement are not met. The bill would also authorize grant funding to be conditioned on enforceability and accountability mechanisms agreed upon by CalEPA, NADBank, and the recipient. The bill would require CalEPA to notify the leadership office in each house of the Legislature on cross-border collaboration and the expenditure of the funding, as provided.
This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the North American Development Bank.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Part 2.7 (commencing with Section 71108) is added to Division 34 of the Public Resources Code, to read:

PART 2.7. WATER QUALITY IN CALIFORNIA-MEXICO CROSS-BORDER WATERSHEDS

71108.
 The Legislature finds and declares the following:
(a) California shares water and air basins with Baja California, Mexico, that require cooperative projects to preserve and maintain a healthy ecosystem.
(b) The health and safety of border area residents in California is dependent on the support and implementation of cost-effective environmental solutions that are located on both sides of the international border within the binational water and air basins.
(c) The North American Development Bank is an environmental infrastructure financing entity established in 1994 by the United States federal government and the Federal Government of Mexico to improve the quality of life for residents of the border region which includes up to 62 miles north of the international border in California, and up to 186 miles south of the international border in Mexico.
(d) For more than 30 years, the North American Development Bank has worked with border communities to improve access to drinking water, wastewater treatment, air quality, and renewable energy projects.

71109.
 (a) (1) Upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute, funds may be made available to the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) for the North American Development Bank (NADBank) for loans, grants, and direct expenditures to address water quality problems arising in the California-Mexico cross-border watersheds.
(2) Funding available pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be available for purposes consistent with the New River Water Quality, Public Health, and River Parkway Development Program, as described in Section 71103.6, and water quality projects for the Tijuana River.
(3) Of the funding available pursuant to paragraph (1), 5 percent shall be available for the administrative costs to NADBank, and 5 percent shall be available for the administrative costs to CalEPA in implementing this section.
(4) CalEPA, the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, or the State Water Resources Control Board, with approval of the Secretary for Environmental Protection, shall determine with NADBank, the terms of the funding agreement, including enforceability, transparency, and other requirements under which NADBank, in consultation with the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board, the Colorado River Basin Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the International Boundary and Water Commission Minute 320 Work Groups, shall administer the funding pursuant to paragraph (1), including developing grant guidelines to implement this section that establish a timeline for funding disbursement, project prioritization, and monitoring requirements. Those guidelines are not subject to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(b) Expenditures of the funding available pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be consistent with the work of the California Environmental Protection Agency Border Affairs Program. Priority for the funding available pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be given to projects that have funding committed by the United States, the Republic of Mexico, the State of Baja California, or the City of Tijuana or Mexicali.
(c) (1) Any funding provided under this section for activities or projects in the State of Baja California may be provided through direct expenditures and for grants to an eligible funding recipient authorized to work in Mexico. Projects eligible for funding shall comply with and be subject to enforcement under local, state, and federal laws, as applicable.
(2) For purposes of this subdivision, eligible funding recipients, including NADBank, are entities that are, or that consent to be, subject to the jurisdiction of the federal courts in California courts for the purpose of enforcement of the funding agreement.
(3) To the extent that a funding recipient, including NADBank, that is, or consents to be, subject to the jurisdiction of federal courts in California courts is eligible to undertake a project, expenditures of the funding available pursuant to subdivision (a) may be available for actions in California or in the State of Baja California provided the actions provide water quality benefits to the portions of the watersheds and coastal waters in California.
(4) Funds provided to NADBank pursuant to this part shall be conditioned on NADBank agreeing to do the following:
(A) Consent to be subject to the jurisdiction of federal courts in California courts for the purposes of the funding agreement with CalEPA.
(B) Consent to a designated agent for service of process.
(C) Waive any immunity it enjoys under international law or treaty, or the International Organizations Immunity Act with regard to the State of California or its designees for the purposes of implementing and enforcing the funding agreement.
(D) Require that subrecipients of funds accept their obligation, as applicable, to ensure that all workers employed on public works projects are paid the prevailing wage determined by the Director of Industrial Relations, according to the type of work and location of the project, as applicable.
(d) Grant funding shall be conditioned upon the enforceability and accountability requirements mutually agreed upon by CalEPA and NADBank, and CalEPA may withhold funding if the requirements of the applicable funding agreement are not met.
(e) Grant funding may also be conditioned on enforceability and accountability mechanisms agreed upon by CalEPA, NADBank, and the recipient, including, but not limited to, both of the following:
(1) Progress reports accompanying each disbursement request.
(2) An enforceable commitment to operate and maintain the funded project for the project’s useful life or 30 years, whichever is less.
(f) The authority to enforce the terms of funding agreements entered into pursuant to this section is hereby expressly reserved to NADBank, who, NADBank shall enforce the terms of funding agreements with subrecipients entered into pursuant to this section and shall, in accordance with the funding agreements agreed upon with CalEPA, shall inform the Office of the Attorney General should the need for legal action arise. The Attorney General may bring a civil action to enforce the terms of funding agreements, at the Attorney General’s discretion.
(g) Any cause of action that arises from implementation of this law shall be vested in favor of the State of California and no private right of action may be asserted by any party.
(h) CalEPA shall notify the leadership office in each house of the Legislature on cross-border collaboration and the expenditure of the funding available pursuant to subdivision (a).
(i) Direct expenditures under this section may be provided in a lump sum in advance of costs incurred.

SEC. 2.

 The Legislature finds and declares that a special statute is necessary and that a general statute cannot be made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution because of the unique expertise of the North American Development Bank in funding international projects that address cross-border issues.