Media Contact: Michelle.Sherwood@sen.ca.gov

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, Senator Angelique V. Ashby (D-Sacramento) released the following statement after her bill, SB 659, passed the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee.  SB 659, also known as the California Water Supply Solutions Act of 2023, will direct the Department of Water Resources to establish a goal for California to create an additional groundwater recharge capacity of 10 million acre-feet by 2035 without reducing the amount of water available for environmental purposes. The bill also requires the plan to protect safe drinking water and maintain a high level of water quality.

“California’s water supply is becoming alarmingly scarce due to changes brought on by climate change, and groundwater recharge is an essential tool to address these challenges,” said Senator Ashby. “Left unaddressed, the system as constructed will run out of water as our climate continues to change, because it will increasingly be asked to meet both flood control and water supply challenges simultaneously. The ability in wet times to store water underground to be used in dry years is central to the ability to conjunctively manage groundwater and surface water supplies. SB 659 sets realistic groundwater recharge and storage goals to put our state on track to ensure that we have a reliable supply of water for the environment, our communities and California industries.” 

Groundwater is a critical component of the state’s water storage, accounting for up to 60% of the state’s total water supply during a drought. During the recent series of storms across California, groundwater recharge has been taking place naturally as water seeps into the ground, greatly benefiting our unseen aquifers. However, current storage and conveyance infrastructure, as well as operational and regulatory practices, are not primed to take advantage of water available for recharge, especially during wet years.

“We know that groundwater recharge works to provide resilient water supplies in our new climate of extremes," said James Peifer, Executive Director of Regional Water Authority, one of the bill sponsors. "We know it is cost effective, and we know that there is tremendous capacity to expand its implementation. Simply put, the future of California water is under our feet and SB 659 charts a path toward achieving that future."

As Governor Newsom’s proposed 2023-24 budget summary states, groundwater recharge is “one of the core pillars of the Water Supply Strategy,” and by creating a tangible goal of 10 million acre-feet of groundwater recharge, SB 659 works directly in tandem with this core pillar to ensure California meets the moment.

The bill will next be heard in Senate Environmental Quality in the coming weeks.

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About Senator Angelique V. Ashby

Senator Angelique V. Ashby represents Elk Grove, Elverta, Rio Linda and Sacramento. She is the first woman elected to represent Sacramento in the State Senate in more than 20 years. She was elected to the Sacramento City Council in 2010. She was the sole woman for more than half of her 12 year tenure and the only member in city history to serve as Vice Mayor or Mayor pro Tem for 8 years. She is a graduate of McGeorge School of Law, and earned her baccalaureate at the University of California at Davis. #LightTheBeam

For more information, visit Senator Ashby’s Website here or find her on Twitter at @SenatorAshby