ITEM:		PUBLIC HEARING
12.	CONSIDER FIRST READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 151 -- AMENDING DEFINITIONS, THE RESIDENTIAL FIXTURE UNIT COUNT, HIGH EFFICIENCY APPLIANCE CREDITS, THE VARIANCE PROCESS, WATER EFFICIENCY STANDARDS AND THE LANDSCAPE WATER AUDITS RULE
Meeting Date:			August 20, 2012	Budgeted:	N/A
From:			David J. Stoldt	Program/		N/A
			General Manager	Line Item No.:
Prepared By:			Stephanie Pintar	Cost Estimate:	N/A
General Counsel Review: Yes
Committee Recommendation: Water Demand Committee recommended approval (July 23, 2012)
CEQA Compliance: A Negative Declaration will be considered prior to adoption.

SUMMARY: Draft Ordinance No. 151 (Exhibit 12-A), amends rules and regulations related to fixture unit values, High Efficiency Appliance Credits, water efficiency standards, variances and Landscape Water Audits. The ordinance was originally slated for first reading at the April 16, 2012 board meeting and was postponed due to a lengthy schedule. The following summary reviews the actions proposed by Ordinance No. 151:

1. Section Three: Definitions (Rule 11)

“Alternative Water Sources” and “Open Space” are defined.

2. Section Four: Amendment of Rule 24, Table 1, Residential Fixture Unit Count

A. The table is amended to delete Ultra-Low Flush Toilets (ULF) and 1 gallon per flush (gpf) Urinals, consistent with amendments to Rules 142 and 143. The Residential fixture unit value for one gallon per flush Urinals is deleted for consistency with existing Non-Residential standards. Staff estimates there have been less than five Urinals installed in Residential projects over the past twenty years.

B. The table is amended to add a fixture unit value of 0.8 fixture unit for Ultra High Efficiency Toilets (UHET). There are already fixture unit values for High Efficiency and Zero Water Consumption Urinals.

3. Section Five: Amendment of Rule 24-B-1-c (Non-Residential Calculation of Water Use Capacity)

A. Rule 24-B-1-c is amended to correct an oversight during the adoption of Ordinance No. 144 when the use of Estimated Total Water Use (ETWU) was added to the rule for consistency with the State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance. This edit makes the calculation of outdoor water use for Non-Residential use consistent with the Residential calculation.

4. Section Six: Amendment of Rule 25.5, Table 4: High Efficiency Appliance Credits

A. The table is amended to delete the 0.4 fixture unit credit for High Efficiency Toilets (HET) and add a 0.5 fixture unit credit for UHET.

B. The table is amended to clarify that credit for Instant-Access Hot Water Systems (IAHWS) is available for more than one Dwelling Unit on a Site on a Multi-Family Residential Site (i.e., condominiums, apartments, duplexes, etc.). Single Family Residential Sites with plumbed ancillary buildings that have hot water are required to install IAHWS in those structures as well as in the primary Dwelling Unit to receive this credit. Note that this amendment affects only the availability of a High Efficiency Appliance Credit. It does not change the requirement for IAHWS in New Construction.

C. The term “washing machine” is replaced with “Clothes Washer,” consistent with terminology used throughout the rules.

5. Section Seven: Amendment of Rule 90, Variance

A. Rule 90 is amended to clarify that a variance to Regulation II, Permits, must be requested no later than 90 days after an appealable decision. This responds to Board direction from August 15, 2011, regarding a request for a variance from District Rule 23, 17 years after a Water Permit was issued.

B. Outdated language (the last sentence) in the first paragraph of Rule 90 is deleted.

6. Section Eight: Amendment of Rule 142-B, Water Efficiency Standards

A. The introductory paragraph to Rule 142 is amended to reflect changed implementation dates and “grandfathering” of requirements for Water Permits issued prior to the Ordinance No. 151 implementation date.

B. HET replaces ULF as the District’s toilet standard for Residential and Non-Residential New Structures, Changes of Ownership, Changes of Use, and Expansions of Use.

C. The rule is amended to clarify that Showerheads must be designed and manufactured to meet the District’s flow requirement of 2.0 gallons per minute. This is to avoid situations where the Showerhead is restricted to meet the requirement and then altered to allow a higher flow rate.

D. The requirement for three-minute timers on multiple Showerheads is deleted. High Efficiency Clothes Washers and High Efficiency Dishwashers are added as requirements in Residential New Construction of New Structures.

E. Utility Sinks and Bar Sinks are added to the 2.2 gallons per minute (gpm) flow requirement.

F. Alternative Water Sources for indoor toilet flushing and other uses allowed by a Jurisdiction is added as a practice to encourage on the list of Non-Residential Water Efficiency Standards.

G. The Non-Residential Water Efficiency Standards for New Structures is amended to add an increased flow rate (consistent with building code) for private Lavatory Sinks (e.g., hotel or motel guest rooms and hospital patient rooms). All other sinks are restricted to 2.2 gpm.

H. High Efficiency Urinals (or ones that uses less water) are added as a standard for Residential and Non-Residential New Construction, Changes of Ownership, Changes of Use, and Expansions of Use.

7. Section Nine: Amendment of Rule 143, Water Efficiency Standards for Existing Non-Residential Uses

A. Rule 143-A is amended to make Showerhead and faucet flow rates consistent with New Construction, Change of Ownership, Change of Use, and Expansion of Use requirements. These flow rates are required as of July 1, 2013.

B. The Rule is amended to require replacement of toilets within the MPWMD with HET or more efficient models. The State prohibits the sale or installation of higher flow toilets in California after January 1, 2014. However, by 2013, 85 percent of toilets for sale in California must be HET, and approximately 90 percent of the toilets currently available for purchase on the Peninsula meet this requirement.

C. Retrofit requirements for Non-Residential uses scheduled for implementation on December 31, 2012, are extended for six months to July 1, 2013. This extension is due to the delay in approval of the Rebate Program funding by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). Rebate funds will be available to achieve these requirements before the deadline. Subsections E and F of Section 9 of the draft ordinance also extend the retrofit deadlines for High Efficiency Clothes Washers and car washes by six months.

8. Section Ten: Amendment of Rule 161, Stage 1 Water Conservation

A. An obsolete date is deleted from Rule 161.

9. Section Eleven: Amendment of Rule 172, Landscape Water Audits^[1]

A. Irrigated public open space is added to the list of California American Water customers that are required to have a Landscape Water Audit and Landscape Water Budget and to comply with those budgets during Stages 2-4 of the Expanded Water Conservation and Standby Rationing Plan. This change is primarily to achieve Landscape Water Audits and Landscape Water Budgets for irrigated public parks and open space areas that do not meet the current definition of a Dedicated Irrigation Meter. In most cases, these Sites have been left out of the program because there is a public restroom on the same meter as the Irrigation System.

The rule is also amended to clarify that Landscape Water Budgets that are required for new Dedicated Irrigation Meters is based on the Estimated Applied Water Use as determined by the project’s Landscape and Irrigation System plans. Two other minor edits related to outdated information are made to Rule 172-B.

B. Rule 172-E, Landscape Irrigation Restrictions, is amended to clarify the location of a property in the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea.

DISCUSSION: A comparable ordinance to this version of Ordinance No. 151 was reviewed by various committees earlier this year. The Water Demand Committee reviewed draft Ordinance No. 151 on March 29, 2012 and July 23, 2012, and the ordinance was reviewed by the Policy and Technical Advisory Committees on April 3, 2012. The CPUC Division of Ratepayer Advocates (DRA) and California American Water were also provided with copies of the draft ordinance. DRA and California American Water staff supported the amendments. District staff also met with representatives of a number of local Non-Residential users (i.e. the Monterey County Hospitality Association and the Coalition of Monterey Peninsula Businesses which represents entities such as the Monterey Commercial Property Owners’ Association; Monterey County Association of Realtors; Chambers of Commerce of Carmel, Monterey Peninsula, and Pacific Grove, and Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula) to review and discuss the proposed amendments. The amendments to Rule 143 are acceptable to these groups.

An Initial Study for the April 2012 version of Ordinance No. 151 was prepared and distributed for comment. The comment period ended May 1, 2012, with no comments received. The current version of the ordinance is within the scope of the ordinance reviewed in the Initial Study. A Negative Declaration will be presented to the Board for consideration at second reading.

RECOMMENDATION: The Board should receive public comment and approve the first reading of Ordinance No. 151.

IMPACT ON STAFF/RESOURCES: The changes proposed in this ordinance have minimal impact on staff. Outreach with the Non-Residential users, plumbing suppliers, and others within our community is required prior to the implementation of existing user retrofit requirements. Communication is also needed with the local building industry and with the Jurisdictions. The ordinance will also require minor modifications to database programming and any costs will be refined prior to second reading. Funding for database programming was included in the Fiscal Year 2012-2013 budget.

EXHIBITS

12-A Draft Ordinance No. 151

U:\staff\Boardpacket\2012\20120820\PubHrng\12\item12.docx

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^[1] These amendments are acceptable to the Public Utilities Commission’s (PUC) Division of Ratepayer Advocates.