Bill
Number: S.B. 1740
Otondo Floor Amendment
Reference
to: printed bill
Amendment
drafted by: Leg Council
FLOOR
AMENDMENT EXPLANATION
Water
Conservation Grant Fund (Fund) Establishment
1. Establishes the Fund, administered
by the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA), to be maintained in
perpetuity consisting of:
a)
legislative
appropriations;
b)
monies
received for water conservation purposes from the U.S. Government;
c)
interest
and other income received from investing monies in the Fund;
d)
gifts,
grants and donations received for water conservation purposes from any public
or private source; and
e)
any
other monies received by WIFA.
2.
Requires Fund monies to facilitate voluntary water
conservation programs or projects expected to result in at least:
a) long-term,
sustainable reductions in water use; and
b)
improvements
in water use efficiency and reliability.
3.
Allows Fund monies to be used, and only used, for:
a) education
and research programs on how to reduce water consumption, increase water
efficiency or increase water reuse;
b) programs
and projects:
i.
for rainwater harvesting, gray water systems, efficiency
upgrades,
drought-resistant landscaping, turf removal and other practices to reduce water
use;
ii.
reduce structural water overuse issues;
iii.
to promote groundwater recharge and improved aquifer
health; or
iv.
to improve groundwater conservation and surface water
flows;
c) landscape
watershed protection, restoration and rehabilitation, including through green
infrastructure and low-impact development to conserve or augment water
supplies;
d) projects
facilitating coordinated water management, including groundwater storage and
recovery; and
e)
implementation
and administration costs for eligible programs.
4.
Allows WIFA to determine the order and priority of water
conservation programs and projects proposed to be funded in whole or in part
with Fund monies based on, as applicable:
a) the
extent to which the program or project achieves one or more of the required
Fund results;
b) the
costs and benefits of the program or project, including environmental costs and
benefits;
c) if the
program or project is eligible, but the nature of the program or project makes
funding impractical, for Long-Term Water Augmentation Fund or Water Supply
Development Revolving Fund monies;
d) the
ability to provide multiple benefits;
e) the
degree to which the program or project will maximize or leverage multiple
available funding sources, including federal funding;
f) the
qualifications and capacity of an applicant;
g) program
or project feasibility; and
h)
public
comments.
5. Allows the State
Treasurer, on notice from WIFA, to invest and divest Fund monies and requires
monies earned from investment to be credited to the Fund.
6. Requires all Fund
monies to be held in trust.
7. Requires WIFA to
establish as many other accounts and subaccounts necessary to administer the
Fund.
8. Prohibits Fund monies
from being appropriated or transferred by the Legislature to fund state general
operations or otherwise meet the obligations of the state General Fund unless
approved by a 75 percent vote of the members of each house of the Legislature.
9. Exempts, from the
prohibition on legislative transference of monies, any taxes or other levies.
10. Specifies that Fund
monies are continuously appropriated and exempt from lapsing.
Fund Application
11. Allows a city, town,
county, district, commission, authority or other public entity that is
organized and exists under statute or under a voter-approved charter or
initiative to apply to WIFA for and accept grants from the water conservation
grant fund for a water conservation program or project that complies with Fund
requirements.
12. Allows a nongovernment
organization that focuses on water conservation or environmental protection to
apply to WIFA for and accept grants from the Fund for a water conservation
program or project if it partners with a public entity organized and existing
under statute or a voter-approved charter or initiative.
13. Requires
WIFA to:
a) prescribe
a simplified form and procedure to apply for and approve assistance;
b) establish
by rule criteria consistent with Fund procedures;
c) determine
the order and priority of water conservation programs or projects assisted
based on the merits of the application in respect to established criteria and
Fund purposes; and
d) provide
that:
i.
a single water conservation program grant may not exceed
$3,000,000;
ii.
a single water conservation project grant may not exceed
$250,000; and
iii. at least a 25 percent
match is required for each water conservation program or project.
14. Allows monies from any
other source to satisfy the match requirement.
Water Conservation
Grant Committee
15. Establishes
the Water Conservation Grant Committee (Committee) to advise the WIFA Board
consisting of:
a) one
member who represents a public water system that serves 500 or more
connections;
b) one
member who represents a public water system that serves fewer than 500
connections;
c) one
member who represents a county with a population of 500,000 or more persons;
d) one
member who represents a county with a population of fewer than 500,000 persons;
e) one
member who represents an advocacy group with a primary focus on water
conservation;
f) one
member who represents an Arizona university and has significant knowledge in
water conservation;
g) one
member who represents a natural resource conservation district; and
h)
the
Director of the Department of Water Resources or a designee.
16. Specifies that
Committee members are appointed by the WIFA Board.
17. Requires
the Committee to:
a) review
applications for grant requests from the Fund; and
b)
make
recommendations to the WIFA Board regarding the applications.
18. Requires the Committee
to meet at least once a month to review applications, except that the Committee
does not need to meet if no applications are pending that month.
19. Allows the WIFA Board
to require the Committee to hold additional meetings to consider applications
that are or may become time sensitive.
20. Requires the Committee
to allow members of the public to provide comment on an application considered
by the Committee at a meeting.
21. Deems the Committee a
subcommittee of the WIFA Board for purposes of ethics requirements outlined for
all WIFA Board subcommittees.
WIFA Report
22. Requires
the annual WIFA report by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality to
include:
a) the expenditures
made from the Fund in the previous fiscal year;
b) whether
Fund programs or projects from the previous fiscal year met required Fund
project results; and
c)
the
environmental impacts of Fund programs or projects from the previous fiscal
year.
Page 19,
line 9, strike the first "AND" insert a comma; after the second
"FUND" insert "and the water conservation grant
fund"
Page 20,
line 32, after "assistance" insert "from the water conservation grant fund,"
Page 35, line 13, strike "article" insert
"articles"; after "4" insert "and 5"
Page 45, after line 43, insert:
"ARTICLE
5. WATER CONSERVATION GRANT FUND
START_STATUTE49-1331. Water
conservation grant fund; exemption; administration; report
A. The water conservation grant fund is established to be
maintained in perpetuity consisting of all the following:
1. Legislative
appropriations.
2. Monies
received for water conservation purposes from the United States government.
3. Interest
and other income received from investing monies in the fund.
4. Gifts,
grants and donations received for water conservation purposes from any public
or private source.
5. Any
other monies received by the authority in connection with the purpose of the
fund.
B. Monies
in the fund are continuously appropriated and exempt from the provisions of
section 35-190 relating to lapsing of appropriations. On
notice from the authority, the state treasurer shall invest and divest monies
in the fund as provided by section 35-313, and monies earned from investment
shall be credited to the fund.
C. All
monies deposited in the fund shall be held in trust. The monies in
the fund may not be appropriated or transferred by the legislature to fund the
general operations of this state or to otherwise meet the obligations of the
state general fund unless approved by a three-fourths vote of the members
of each house of the legislature. This subsection does not apply to
any taxes or other levies that are imposed pursuant to title 42 or 43.
D. The
authority shall administer the fund and establish as many other accounts and
subaccounts as required to administer the fund.
E. Monies
and other assets in the fund shall be used solely for the purposes authorized
by this article.
F. The
annual report required by section 49-1204 shall include:
1. The
expenditures made from the fund in the previous fiscal year.
2. Whether
programs or projects funded by the fund in the previous fiscal year did in
fact:
(a) Result
in long-term, sustainable reductions in water use.
(b) Improve
water use efficiency.
(c) Improve
water reliability.
3. The
environmental impacts of programs or projects funded by the fund in the
previous fiscal year. END_STATUTE
START_STATUTE49-1332. Water
conservation grant fund; purposes
A. Monies
in the water conservation grant fund must facilitate voluntary water
conservation programs or projects that are expected to result in at least one
of the following:
1. Long-term
reductions in water use.
2. Improvements
in water use efficiency.
3. Improvements
in water reliability.
B. Monies
in the water conservation grant fund may be used for the following:
1. Education
and research programs on how to reduce water consumption, increase water
efficiency or increase water reuse.
2. Programs
and projects for rainwater harvesting, Gray water systems, efficiency upgrades,
installing drought-resistant landscaping, turf removal and other practices
to reduce water use.
3. Programs
or projects to promote groundwater recharge and improved aquifer health.
4. Programs
or projects to improve groundwater conservation and surface water flows.
5. Landscape
watershed protection, restoration and rehabilitation, including through green
infrastructure and low-impact development to conserve or augment water
supplies.
6. Projects
facilitating coordinated water management, including groundwater storage and
recovery.
7. Programs
or projects to reduce structural water overuse issues.
8. Program
implementation and administration costs for eligible programs. END_STATUTE
START_STATUTE49-1333. Water
conservation grant fund; procedures
A. In
compliance with any applicable requirements, a city, town, county, district,
commission, authority or other public entity that is organized and that exists
under the statutory law of this state or under a voter-approved charter
or initiative of this state may apply to the authority for and accept grants
from the water conservation grant fund for a water conservation program or
project that complies with the requirements of sections 49-1332 and 49-1334.
A nongovernment organization that focuses on water conservation or
environmental protection may apply to the authority for and accept grants from
the water conservation grant fund for a water conservation program or project
if it partners with a city, town, county, district, commission, authority or
other public entity that is organized and that exists under the statutory law
of this state or under a voter-approved charter or initiative of this
state.
B. The
authority shall:
1. Prescribe
a simplified form and procedure to apply for and approve assistance.
2. Establish
by rule criteria that is consistent with this article by which assistance will
be awarded.
3. Determine
the order and priority of water conservation programs or projects assisted
under this section based on the merits of the application with respect to the
requirements of sections 49-1332 and 49-1334.
4. Provide
that a single water conservation program grant may not exceed $3,000,000, a
single water conservation project grant may not exceed $250,000 and at least a
twenty-five percent match is required for each water conservation program
or project. Monies from any other source may satisfy the match requirement. END_STATUTE
START_STATUTE49-1334. Evaluation
criteria for water conservation programs and projects from the water
conservation grant fund; procedures
The
authority shall determine the order and priority of water conservation programs
and projects proposed to be funded in whole or in part with monies from the
water conservation grant fund based on the following, as applicable:
1. The
extent to which the water conservation program or project achieves one or more
of the results prescribed by section 49-1332, subsection A.
2. The
costs and benefits of the water conservation program or project, including
environmental costs and benefits.
3. If
the water conservation program or project is eligible for funding from the long-term
water augmentation fund established by section 49-1302 or the water
supply development revolving fund established by section 49-1271 and if
the nature of the water conservation program or project makes funding from the
long-term water augmentation fund or the water supply development revolving
fund impractical.
4. The
ability to provide multiple benefits.
5. The
degree to which the water conservation program or project will maximize or
leverage multiple available funding sources, including federal funding.
6. The
qualifications and capacity of an applicant.
7. The
feasibility of the water conservation program or project.
8. Public
comments. END_STATUTE
START_STATUTE49-1335. Water
conservation grant committee; membership; recommendations
A. The
water conservation grant committee is established to advise the board and
consists of the following members who are appointed by the board:
1. One
member who represents a public water system that serves five hundred or more
connections.
2. One
member who represents a public water system that serves less than five hundred
connections.
3. One
member who represents a county with a population of five hundred thousand or
more persons.
4. One
member who represents a county with a population of less than five hundred
thousand persons.
5. One
member who represents an advocacy group with a primary focus on water
conservation.
6. One
member who represents a university in this state and who has significant
knowledge in water conservation.
7. One
member who represents a natural resource conservation district established
pursuant to title 37, chapter 6.
8. The
director of the department of water resources or the director's designee.
B. The
water conservation grant committee shall review applications for grant requests
from the water conservation grant fund and shall make recommendations to the
board regarding those applications.
C. The
water conservation grant committee shall meet at least once a month to review
grant applications, except that the committee need not meet in any month in
which no applications are pending before the committee. The board may require
the committee to hold additional meetings to consider applications that are or
may become time sensitive. The committee shall allow members of the
public to provide comment on an application considered by the committee at a
meeting.
D. The
water conservation grant committee is considered a subcommittee of the board
for the purposes of section 49-1206."
Amend title to conform