On behalf of the County of Tulare, we write to respectfully inform you of our opposition to AB 460, AB 1337, and SB 389. These Bills constitute an overreach of authority by the State Water Resources Control Board and are harmful to Tulare County's economy.
Tulare County has many irrigation districts serving water from pre-1914 water rights on the Kings, Kaweah, and Tule Rivers in addition to contracts with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation for water from the Friant Division of the Central Valley Project. The County is a member of several joint power agencies formed to create Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSA) and implement Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSP) for compliance with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). Our districts and GSAs rely upon the water rights held by the districts to support the vibrant agricultural communities in the County through the world-class agricultural industry in the area. Many districts' water rights are also at the core of GSAs' GSPs, making it possible to achieve groundwater sustainability in our region by 2040.
AB 460 encompasses far more than illegal diversions of surface water or violations of State Water Board order. This bill proposes to authorize interim relief order and limit judicial review of numerous constitutional, statutory and common law doctrines that, by definition, require robust evidentiary records and full judicial
review. The bill gives the State Water Board plenary discretion to initiate and shape interim relief proceedings and limits or eliminates due process and access to judicial review.
AB 1337 would overhaul how California has managed and delivered water for more than a century. The bill's vision for future water management is little more than handing the State Water Board unfettered authority to control water use as it sees fit. Under this proposed system of water management, water managers would operate at the whims of the state. Reliability in water rights would be severely diminished, and many water agencies would struggle to meet the needs of homes and businesses throughout the state. AB 1337 threatens to undermine the basic foundation of water management and water delivery in California by proposing to authorize the State Water Board to reallocate water rights with little or no constitutional process.
SB 389 would undermine the reliability of any water right, and, in turn, interests that depend on these rights. The bill would authorize SWRCB to drag any water rights holder before the Board to defend its claim of right. Once SWRCB begins adjudicating a claim, the bill would stack the deck against all right holders forced into these proceedings by providing minimal due process protections and placing the burden of proof on the right holder. The Bill is not designated to create a fair and transparent process, nor is it narrowly tailored to investigate dubious claims to right. The risk with this bill is its potential to strip water rights holders of the rights that have been used to sustain communities for decades. Unfortunately, SB 389 provides none of the
safeguards that existing law recognizes as essential to making informed and defensible decisions on the validity and scope of water rights. Instead, SB 389 is designed to insulate SWRCB and would enable arbitrary outcomes.
These Bills would empower the SWRCB beyond its constitutional authority while creating severe and detrimental water reliability challenges for the people of Tulare County. While California's water rights system is not perfect, giving totalitarian power to a single state agency is irresponsible and egregious.
Sincerely,
Dennis Townsend, Chairman
Tulare County Board of Supervisors
cc: Tulare County State Delegation, Senator Allen, Assembly Member Bauer-Kahan, Assembly Member Wicks, Shaw Yoder Antwih Schmelzer & Lange