BILL NUMBER: AB 1242 AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 19, 2015 AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 16, 2015 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 5, 2015 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Gray FEBRUARY 27, 2015 An act to add Section 13145.5 to the Water Code, relating to water quality. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1242, as amended, Gray. Water quality: groundwater impacts. Existing law establishes the State Water Resources Control Board and the 9 California regional water quality control boards as the principal state agencies with authority over matters relating to water quality. Existing law requires the state board to formulate and adopt state policy for water quality control. Existing law requires each regional board to formulate and adopt water quality control plans for all areas within the region and prohibits a water quality control plan, or a revision of the plan, adopted by a regional board, from becoming effective unless it is approved by the state board. Existing law, the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, requires all groundwater basins designated as high- or medium-priority basins by the Department of Water Resources that are designated as basins subject to critical conditions of overdraft to be managed under a groundwater sustainability plan or coordinated groundwater sustainability plans by January 31, 2020, and requires all other groundwater basins designated as high- or medium-priority basins to be managed under a groundwater sustainability plan or coordinated groundwater sustainability plans by January 31, 2022, except as specified. This bill would require the state board, in formulating state policy for water quality control and adopting or approving a water quality controlplan,plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, to take into consideration, consistent with the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act, any applicable groundwater sustainability plan or alternative and available information and data regarding the impacts of groundwater use and management on beneficial uses of surface waters. 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 13145.5 is added to the Water Code, to read: 13145.5. In formulating state policy for water quality control and adopting or approving a water quality controlplan,plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the state board shall take into consideration, consistent with the requirements of Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code, any applicable groundwater sustainability plan or alternative adopted or approved under Part 2.74 (commencing with Section 10720) of Division 6 and available information and data regarding the impacts of groundwater use and management on beneficial uses of surface waters.