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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-28 - Repealing Resolution No. 2016-87, Which Declared a Level Two Water Supply ShortageRESOLUTION NO. 2017-28 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH, CALIFORNIA, REPEALING RESOLUTION NO. 2016-87, WHICH DECLARED A LEVEL TWO WATER SUPPLY SHORTAGE WHEREAS, on January 17, 2014, following three dry or critically dry years in California, State Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. declared a drought state of emergency by issuing a Proclamation; WHEREAS, on April 25, 2014, Governor Brown issued an Executive Order calling on the State to redouble State drought actions. The Executive Order provides that the State Water Resources Control Board ('Board") shall direct urban water suppliers that are not already implementing drought response plans to limit outdoor irrigation and other wasteful water practices; WHEREAS, on July 15, 2014, the Board adopted an emergency regulation for Statewide urban water conservation (Resolution No. 2014-38) that requires water agencies to comply with Water code section 1058.5 which grants the Board the authority to adopt emergency regulations in certain drought years; WHEREAS, on September 9, 2014, the Newport Beach City Council ("City Council") adopted Resolution No. 2014-79 Declaring a Level One Water Supply Shortage in an effort to conserve water usage to one hundred percent (100%) of each customer's "Base Amount' (generally, the three-year moving average use) and limit outdoor irrigation; WHEREAS, on April 1, 2015, Governor Brown issued Executive Order B-29-15 directing that his January 17, 2014 Proclamation, April 25, 2014 Proclamation, and Executive Orders B-26-14 and B-28-14 remain in full force and effect, and that the Board shall impose restrictions to achieve a Statewide twenty-five percent (25%) reduction in potable urban water usage through February 28, 2016; WHEREAS, on May 5, 2015, the Board adopted Resolution No. 2015-32 and an Emergency Regulation to address specific provisions of Executive Order B-29-2015 that included a mandatory twenty-five percent (25%) Statewide reduction in potable urban water use between June 2015 and February 2016. To implement the Executive Order, the Emergency Regulation placed each urban water supplier in a conservation tier, ranging between eight (8) and thirty-six (36) percent, based residential per capita water use for the months of July through September 2014. Resolution No. 2015-32 also directed staff to work with stakeholders to further develop and consider a range of factors that contribute to water use, including but not limited to, climate, growth, investment in local, drought -resilient supplies, and others for adjustment to the current emergency regulation should it need to be extended into 2016; WHEREAS, on June 9, 2015, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2015-51 declaring a Level Three Water Supply Shortage, setting customer usage to seventy-five percent (75%) of their 2013 water use when compared to the same billing cycle; Resolution No. 2017-28 Page 2 of 4 WHEREAS, on November 13, 2015, Governor Brown issued Executive Order 8- 36-15 calling for an extension of urban water use restrictions until October 31, 2016, should drought conditions persist through January 2016. This Executive Order also directs the Board to consider modifying the restrictions to incorporate insights gained from the existing restrictions; WHEREAS, on February 2, 2016, the Board adopted Resolution No. 2016-7 and a revised, extended Emergency Regulation to address specific provisions of Executive Order B-36-15. The Emergency Regulation established adjustments to reduce the conservation standards of urban water suppliers in consideration of the differences in climate affecting different parts of the State, growth experienced by urban areas, and significant investments that have been made by some suppliers towards creating new, local, drought -resilient sources of potable water supply; WHEREAS, on May 9, 2016, Governor Brown issued Executive Order B-37-16 calling on the Board to adjust emergency water conservation regulations through the end of January 2017, in recognition of differing water supply conditions across the state; WHEREAS, on May 18, 2016, the Board adopted a Statewide water conservation approach that mandates urban water suppliers ensure they have a three- year supply of water, assuming three more dry years occur. Water agencies that would face a shortage under this scenario would be required to meet a conservation standard equal to the amount of the shortage; WHEREAS, Statewide precipitation in 2016 has been variable. Northern California received above-average rainfall, while much of Southern California continued to experience below-average rainfall and warm temperatures. February 2016 was amongst the warmest and driest recorded for parts of Southern California. Consequently, while major Northern California water reservoirs are near or above average water storage for this time of year, many Southern California reservoirs are significantly below average; WHEREAS, on July 12, 2016, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2016-87 declaring a Level Two Water Supply Shortage, setting customer usage to eighty-five percent (85%) of their 2013 water use when compared to the same billing cycle; WHEREAS, on February 8, 2017, the Board voted to extend the current drought regulations until May 2017. All current State regulations/reporting will remain in effect until May 2017 or, if the Governor rescinds the Drought State of Emergency, the Board will reconvene and consider lifting the restrictions; WHEREAS, on April 7, 2017, following unprecedented water conservation and plentiful winter rain and snow, Governor Brown ended the drought State of Emergency in most of California, while maintaining water reporting requirements and prohibitions on wasteful practices such as watering during or right after rainfall; WHEREAS, the Governor's Executive Order B-40-17 lifts the drought emergency in all California counties except Fresno, Kings, Tulare, and Tuolumne, where emergency drinking water projects will continue to help address diminished groundwater supplies. The Executive Order also rescinds two Emergency Proclamations from January and April 2014 and four drought -related Executive Orders issued in 2014 and 2015; Resolution No. 2017-28 Page 3 of 4 WHEREAS, the City of Newport Beach ("City") finds it appropriate to end the restrictions imposed by the Level Two Water Supply Shortage declared by Resolution No. 2016-87 by means of repealing Resolution No. 2016-87 in light of the Governor's Executive Order B-40-17; WHEREAS, Newport Beach Municipal Code Section 14.16.050 establishes procedures for declaration of water supply shortages by resolution. Mandatory conservation requirements shall remain in full force and effect until the resolution is repealed or a new resolution is established; WHEREAS, Newport Beach Municipal Code Section 14.16.040 establishes permanent mandatory water conservation requirements compliant with the Governor's Executive Order B-40-17 which will remain in full force: and WHEREAS, by adopting this resolution, the City Council intends to repeal Resolution No. 2016-87 and the Level Two Water Supply Shortage and related restrictions declared by Resolution No. 2016-87. NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Newport Beach resolves as follows: Section 1: The City Council does hereby repeal Resolution No. 2016-87, which declared a Level Two Water Supply Shortage pursuant to Newport Beach Municipal Code Section 14.16.050. Section 2: The recitals provided in this resolution are true and correct and are incorporated into the operative part of this resolution. Section 3: If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this resolution is, for any reason, held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this resolution. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this resolution, and each section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase hereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid or unconstitutional. Section 4: The City Council finds the adoption of this resolution is not subject to the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and 15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it has no potential for resulting in physical change to the environment, directly or indirectly. Section 5: This resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption by the City Council, and the City Clerk shall certify the vote adopting the resolution. I/ ADOPTED this 25th day of April, 2017. ATTEST: Leilani I. Brown City Clerk APPROVED AS TO FORM: City Attorney's Office Aaron C. Harp City Attorney Resolution No. 2017-28 Page 4 of 4 Kevin Muld Mayor STATE OF CALIFORNIA } COUNTY OF ORANGE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH 1 I, Leilani I. Brown, City Clerk of the City of Newport Beach, California, do hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council is seven; that the foregoing resolution, being Resolution No. 2017-28 was duly introduced before and adopted by the City Council of said City at a regular meeting of said Council held on the 25th day of April, 2017, and that the same was so passed and adopted by the following vote, to wit: AYES: Council Member Jeff Herdman, Council Member Brad Avery, Council Member Diane Dixon, Council Member Scott Peotter, Council Member Will O'Neill, Mayor Pro Tem Duffy Duffield, Mayor Kevin Muldoon NAYS: None IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed the official seal of said City this 261h day of April, 2017. �M,01& Leilani I. Brown City Clerk Newport Beach, California (Seal)