State Water Resources Control Board: appropriation: drought-related drinking water projects.

Existing law, the California Safe Drinking Water Act, requires the State Water Resources Control Board to administer provisions relating to the regulation of drinking water to protect public health, including, but not limited to, conducting research, studies, and demonstration programs relating to the provision of a dependable, safe supply of drinking water, enforcing the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, adoption of enforcement regulations, and conducting studies and investigations to assess the quality of water in domestic water supplies. Existing law requires the state board to ensure that all public water systems are operated in compliance with the act. This bill would appropriate $15,000,000 from the General Fund to the state board, for expenditure until June 30, 2016, for grants of up to $500,000 per project for public water systems to address drought-related drinking water emergencies or threatened emergencies in the state. The bill would require the state board to make every effort to use other funds available to address drinking water emergencies, including federal funds made available for the drought, prior to using the funds appropriated pursuant to these provisions.