Legislation

Governor Jerry Brown signed two pieces of legislation on Thursday calling for better preparation for droughts and climate change by establishing statewide water efficiency standards. The bills have been anticipated for some time as the state strengthens its water resiliency in the face of future droughts and climate change. In …

Assembly Bill 142 in 2015 by California Assemblyman Frank Bigelow (R-5th District-Madera) directed the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) to evaluate the suitability of five segments of the upper Mokelumne River’s main stem and North Fork for inclusion in the California Wild and Scenic Rivers System. That initiative took a …

Senate Bill 955, introduced in January by Senator Jim Nielsen (R-4th District-Red Bluff) to create a citizens advisory commission for the Oroville Dam, has been amended and referred on to the Senate Rules Committee. The bill aims to form a commission of 27 members to serve in an advisory role …

California Assemblyman Bill Quirk (D-District 20-Hayward), and Chair of the Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee, has introduced a bill to ban the use of lead fishing weight under 50g in weight with a cross section in any direction under 2cm. “Small lead fishing weights, like splitshot, are killing California …

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has called upon the Trump administration for an increase in funding along the U.S.-Mexico border for additional wastewater and sewage treatment. Feinstein’s request for the additional funding stems from the increase in the number of border agents that were sickened in 2017, the frequent closure of …

The California State Water Resources Control Board has been sued by a coalition of river defenders for the state’s alleged failure to meet key Clean Water Act and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requirements. Combined, the two acts are meant to protect the ecological well-being of the state’s waterways. Three …