FEATURE ARTICLE
California Governor Brown’s Unprecedented April 1, 2015 Drought Executive Order Is No Joke by Derek Hoffman, Esq. and Michael Duane Davis, Esq., Gresham Savage Nolan 215
CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS
L.A. Department of Water and Power Water System Seismic Resilience and Sustainability Program Estimated to Cost Roughly $15 Billion over
20 Years . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Merced County Adopts Historic Groundwater Management Ordinance222
LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS
One Billion Dollars in Emergency Funds for Drought Relief Approved by California Legislature and Signed by Governor Brown224
Bill Providing for Public Access to Well Reports Makes Its Way through the California Legislature225
REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS
State Water Resources Control Board Adopts Nation’s First Statewide Plan to Address Trash in All Water Bodies in California227
Department of Water Resources Releases Draft Strategic Plan for Sustainable Groundwater Management Act Implementation229
California DFW Report Finds Surface Water Diversions from Marijuana Cultivation Could Significantly Impact Aquatic Species in Northern
California232
RECENT FEDERAL DECISIONS
Supreme Court:
U.S. Supreme Court Declines Review of Army Corps’ Wetlands Determination234
Kent Recycling Services, LLC v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Case No. 14-493 (Mar. 23, 2015).
Circuit Court of Appeals:
Eighth Circuit Finds U.S. Army Corps’ Jurisdictional Determination Is Reviewable, Creating a Conflict with the Fifth Circuit236
Hawkes Co., Inc. v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ___F.3d___, Case No. 13-3067 (8th Cir. Apr. 10, 2015).
District Court:
District Court Rules California Tribe Possesses Federally Reserved Right to Groundwater in the Coachella Valley238
Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians v. Coachella Valley Water District, ___F.Supp.3d___, Case No. CV-13-00883 (C.D. Cal. Mar. 24, 2015).
RECENT STATE DECISIONS
District Court of Appeal:
Separate Court of Appeal Decisions Create Uncertainty about the Applicability of Proposition 218 to Groundwater Extraction Fees241
Great Oaks Water Co. v. Santa Clara Valley Water District, ___Cal.App.4th___, Case No. H035260 (6th Dist. Mar. 2015); City of San Buenaventura v. United Water Conservation District, ___Cal.App.4th___, Case No. B251810 (2nd Dist. Mar. 2015).
