Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act of 2009.

Existing law, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act of 2009, establishes the Delta Stewardship Council and requires the council to develop, adopt, and commence implementation of a comprehensive management plan for the Delta, known as the Delta Plan. The Delta Plan is required to further the coequal goals of providing a more reliable water supply and protecting, restoring, and enhancing the Delta ecosystem. The act requires the council to consider the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP) for inclusion in the Delta Plan and requires the incorporation of the BDCP into the Delta Plan if the BDCP meets certain requirements. This bill would add a definition of the California Water Fix to the act. This bill would eliminate certain provisions applicable to the BDCP and would revise other provisions to instead refer to a new Delta water conveyance project for the purpose of exporting water. This bill would require new Delta water conveyance infrastructure to be considered as interdependent parts of a system and to be operated in a way that maximizes benefits for each of the coequal goals. The act requires a state or local public agency that proposes to undertake a covered action that will occur within the boundaries of the Delta or the Suisun Marsh to prepare, and submit to the council, a specified written certification of consistency with the Delta Plan prior to taking those actions. The act defines the term "covered action" to mean a plan, program, or project, as prescribed. This bill would delete certain exclusions relating to the BDCP from the definition of a covered action. This bill would prohibit any certification of consistency for a new Delta water conveyance project unless specified requirements are met. Under the act, until the State Water Resources Control Board issues an order approving a change in the point of diversion of the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project from the southern Delta to a certain point on the Sacramento River the Department of Water Resources is prohibited from commencing construction of any diversion, conveyance, or other facility necessary to divert and convey water pursuant to the change in point of diversion. This bill would apply the above prohibition to a new point of diversion as well as a change in the point of diversion. This bill would prohibit the board from granting final approval of the requested change in or new point of diversion until the board has completed its update of a specified water quality control plan. The act prohibits construction of a new Delta conveyance facility from being initiated until the persons or entities that contract to receive water from the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project or a joint powers authority representing those entities have made arrangements or entered into contracts to pay for certain costs required for the construction, operation, and maintenance of the facility and full mitigation of property tax or assessments levied for land use in the construction, location, mitigation, or operation of the facility. This bill would instead prohibit the construction until legally binding financial agreements or contracts are signed by each of the state and federal water contractors that will receive water supplies that commit them to pay for the costs required for the federal Central Valley Project, State Water Project, and any new Delta water conveyance facility, as specified, and full mitigation of property tax or assessments levied for land use in the construction, location, mitigation, operation, or maintenance of the facility.