On September 22, 2018, Governor Brown announced that he signed into law Assembly Bill (“AB”) 747. The law establishes an Administrative Hearings Office within the State Water Resources Control Board (the “Board”). The new office will provide an impartial review process for matters currently brought, heard, and decided by the Board. AB 747 is the California Legislature’s second attempt at establishing a new water rights hearings process. A similar bill was vetoed by Governor Brown in 2017. Current Approach to the Adjudication of Water Rights All water within the state is the property of the people of California and existing law provides the state with the authority to protect its water resources. The Board is tasked with setting statewide water policy by balancing uses, regulating pollutants and activities, and supporting the Regional Water Quality Control Boards activities. The Board’s Executive Director may issue complaints to people who violate certain water regulations, subjecting them to civil liability. The Board may also order actors to cease and desist from behavior that violates, or threatens to violate, the state’s water laws and regulations. Actions brought against alleged violators are prosecuted and adjudicated by the Board. Water users can seek review of the Board’s decisions in state court. However, state court judges follow a doctrine of granting deference to agency decisions, making those decisions extremely difficult to overcome. As a result, defendants often feel compelled to settle with the agency, rather than to assert a defense. The Board’s adjudicative procedure is in contrast to other administrative actions by state agencies. Most agencies delegate adjudicative review to the state’s Office of Administrative Hearings, where an unbiased third-party judge hears and decides the matter. In the interest of fairness to water users, the Legislature sought to implement a similar administrative hearing process within the Board. New Adjudicative Procedures Beginning on July 1, 2019, a new Administrative Hearings Office (the “Office”), housed within the Board, will act as independent hearing officer in water rights adjudicative proceedings for a specific subset of orders the Water Board may issue. The Office will be staffed by attorneys who are experts in water law and who have qualifications equivalent to those of administrative law judges. AB 747, thus provides an impartial review process for water users charged with violating state law. Specifically, AB 747 requires the Office to hear: (1) complaints that would impose civil liability for the diversion and use of water under Water Code section 1055, related to the unauthorized taking of water; (2) proposed cease and desist orders for violating, or threatening to violate, requirements for the use of water under a permit, license, certificate, registration or order; and (3) revocations of permits or licenses to appropriate water. The Legislature especially intends the Office to hear water-related cannabis enforcement matters. Hearings must observe state law regarding administrative adjudication. We will continue to keep you updated on the state’s actions regarding water regulation. If you have any questions regarding the new procedures, please contact Barbara A. Brenner at barbara@whitebrennerllp.com, Kerry Fuller at kerry@whitebrennerllp.com, or Churchwell White LLP at (916) 468-0950.