Water: County of Ventura: fire suppression.

Assembly Member Bennett, joined by principal coauthor Assembly Member Irwin, coauthor Assembly Member Harabedian, and Senator Limón, anchors a Ventura County–focused measure that would require water suppliers serving fire suppression needs in high- and very high-fire-hazard zones to ensure 24 hours of backup power or an equivalent alternative water source for critical firefighting infrastructure.

At the core, the proposal creates a jurisdiction-specific framework that (1) mandates backup energy or alternative water supplies to keep key wells and pumps operational for 24 hours, with time-based activation rules tied to power losses or water transfers; (2) requires early identification and ongoing reporting of critical fire suppression infrastructure and alternative water sources to the county’s Office of Emergency Services; (3) establishes minimum fire-safety standards for in-zone infrastructure, to be developed by the county fire department with input from water suppliers and local fire departments, plus annual inspections of in-zone and related out-of-zone facilities to verify compliance; (4) obliges water suppliers to implement an emergency preparedness plan for red-flag events and other emergencies, coordinate with county emergency services and fire departments, and incorporate the plan into applicable public utility commission processes; (5) imposes notification duties to the county emergency office for capacity reductions and during fire events, and (6) requires post-event reporting to the county board of supervisors when substantial dwelling damage occurs, evaluating tank levels, power-related disruptions, and adherence to fire-safety standards.

Key mechanisms and details include: by July 1, 2030, water suppliers must have access to sufficient backup energy to run critical firefighting wells and pumps for 24 hours in the designated zones, or secure an alternative water source from another supplier that can deliver the same service within 30 minutes and support the usual water output; if a backup energy source is not permanent, mobile backup power or mutual-aid energy may be used, with readiness within 12 hours of a red-flag alert and 24 hours of operation after power loss, and a 60-minute window after a loss of power; contractors who had backup energy on order before 2030 but have not received it by that date may still comply if access is in hand by 2033. By May 1, 2026, water suppliers must identify critical fire suppression infrastructure or alternative water sources and provide the information to the county’s emergency office, with updates within 120 days of any changes; the Office of Emergency Services must establish procedures for these identifications by March 1, 2026. By January 1, 2027, the county fire department, in consultation with water suppliers and local fire departments, shall develop minimum fire-safety standards for in-zone infrastructure, with annual inspections by the fire department and annual in-zone inspections by the water suppliers for compliance and, where applicable, coordination with local departments. An emergency preparedness plan must be reviewed annually, consider filling water tanks and stationing backup energy sources, and be incorporated into any emergency plan submitted to the public utilities commission when applicable; red-flag warnings trigger action under the plan. Water suppliers must notify the county emergency office within three business days of any reduction in water-delivery capacity that could hinder firefighting or reservoir replenishment, and must alert immediately upon becoming aware of such a reduction during a fire event. If a fire damages more than 10 residential dwellings, the county fire department, with the water supplier, must prepare a post-event report for the county board of supervisors, addressing tank-filling adequacy, disruption mitigation related to electricity, and compliance with fire-safety standards. Definitions establish “critical fire suppression infrastructure” as wells and pumps essential for fire suppression in the zones, “high or very high fire hazard severity zone” per state fire hazard criteria, and “water supplier” as a community water system serving more than 20 dwellings in the zones, excluding wholesalers that do not provide retail service; gravity-fed and nonpotable, recycled, irrigation, or agricultural water systems not used for fire suppression are exempt, and information shared with the county emergency services remains confidential.

The bill frames Ventura County as a special-statute context, citing a unique fire history as the rationale for a county-specific regime, and embeds a state-mandates framework for potential reimbursement if costs are deemed state-mandated. It delineates roles for water suppliers, the county Office of Emergency Services, the county Fire Department, local fire departments, the county Board of Supervisors, and the Public Utilities Commission where applicable, while noting no explicit general appropriation accompanies the new requirements. The geographic and regulatory scope is intentionally narrow, targeting only those community water systems serving fire suppression needs in Ventura County’s designated zones.