A bill presented in California by state senators Anna Caballero and Alexandra Macedo, Democrat and RepublicanRespectively, would give the immunity of the water agencies of civil proceedings concerning the contamination by the Chrome-6 in their offer if they work actively on plans to solve the problem.
Caballero argued California Senate Bill 466 is necessary so that aquatic agencies can focus on the elimination of the contaminant potentially cancer of their supply, rather than spending their limited resources in the case of legal.
Nowsweek Contacted the senators of the Caballero and Macedo state to comment on Thursday by phone and voice message outside regular office hours.
Why it matters
Chrome-6 is a known carcinogen, which means that it can cause cancer in humans when inhaled or ingested in certain quantities.
During the 1990s, a case against Pacific gas and electricity on the contamination of its water in Hinkley, California, with Chromium-6 resulted in a regulation of 333 million dollars and formed the base of the 2000 film Erin Brockovich.
According to the Corporate banksA newspaper serving the city of 50,000 people in the center of California, water tests discovered the levels of Chrome-6 in the regulations higher than the legal limit of 10 parts per billion.
What to know
Senate bill 466 Protect water suppliers from civil lawsuits on Chrome-6 in California, provided they are implementing a state-approved compliance plan to reduce the chrome-6 levels of their water or wait to see if a proposed plan is approved. However, the powers of state regulators are not affected.
The legislation was approved by the city of Los Banos and adopted by the Senate of California, and is currently making its way through the Assembly of the State of California.
Stock photograph showing water from a tap.
Show999 / Getty
According to the Corporate bathrooms, City officials believe that the reduction in chromium-6 levels in the water provided to the city at the level regulated by the state will cost around $ 65 million, or about half of its annual budget.
Los Banos is expected to submit a compliance plan later in 2025 at the State Water Resources Control Board. If Bill 466 of the Senate is adopted, this would protect the city’s water suppliers against civil proceedings while they strive to reduce the levels of chrome-6.
In 2019, the environmental working group concluded that chromium-6 is in the drinking water consumed by more than 200 million Americans.
What people say
Addressing The Fresno bee, Caballero state senator said: “The objective of SB 466 is not to block the responsibility, but to ensure that resources go to the resolution of the problem – and not to fight against premature proceedings while a water system is actively working under state monitoring to comply with the standard.
“This bill establishes the balance between protecting public health and giving water suppliers the time and the tools they need to deliver safe water without diverting funds to disputes when they already do everything required by the State to comply.”
Addressing a calmatters’ non -profit website, the mayor of Los Banos Michael AMABILE said: “I really don’t want to descend as mayor who quads water prices, so I need state help.”
In a report, the staff of the judicial committee of the California State Senate wrote: “Immunity against responsibility tends to delete incentives to act with reasonable care by removing the consequences of having to pay the damage caused by doing otherwise.”
In an opinion article for publication The Fresno bee Tad Weber writer said: “A water service as important as Los Banos cannot be put in legal danger on an inability to pay for a new treatment system which must be put online in a few years. Cleaning chromium -6 will take some time – and money.
“Caballero’s bill seeks to be a stamp while ensuring that the State has no capacity for application. As strange as for a main democrat in the legislative assembly to practice the protection of aquatic agencies with contaminated supplies, in this case, that makes sense.”
What happens next
The California State Assembly should vote on the Senate bill 466 in August.