Bill That Would Have Banned Some New Groundwater Wells Fails to Pass Out of Senate Committee by ACWA Staff Jun 12, 2024 Water News AB 2079 (Bennett), which would have banned local agencies from permitting some new groundwater wells, failed to pass out of the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee on Tuesday, effectively stopping the bill. ACWA’s State Legislative Committee adopted an oppose-unless-amended position due to concerns over the moratorium on new wells throughout much of the state and the potential legal liability it created for local agencies. The bill would have prohibited well-permitting agencies from approving applications for agricultural and industrial wells in basins that experienced more than half a foot of subsidence since 2015, or if the well was within a quarter-mile of a domestic well. ACWA participated in a large coalition of associations, water agencies, business and agricultural interests in opposing the bill, and ACWA Senior State Relations Advocate Kristopher Anderson testified Tuesday, encouraging the committee to vote against the bill.