Groundwater.

Existing law, the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014, approved by the voters as Proposition 1 at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $7,545,000,000 to finance a water quality, supply, and infrastructure improvement program. The bond act provides that the sum of $900,000,000 is to be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for expenditures on, and competitive grants and loans for, projects to prevent or clean up the contamination of groundwater that serves or has served as a source of drinking water. The bond act authorizes the use of $100,000,000 of those funds for competitive grants for projects that develop and implement groundwater planning requirements. This bill, in implementing the competitive grants for those projects that develop and implement groundwater planning requirements, would require special consideration be given to those projects that would create groundwater recharge basins in areas of fallow farmland. This bill would appropriate $50,000,000 from the proceeds of the bond act for the purpose of that competitive grant program.