MAY 23, 1997, DRAFT

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

PROPOSITION 204

SAFE, CLEAN, RELIABLE WATER SUPPLY ACT

Delta Tributary Watershed Program

California Water Code, Division 24,

Chapter 5, Article 5

(Commencing with Section 78647)

July ___, 1997

The State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) is requesting proposals pursuant to Proposition 204, Delta Tributary Watershed Program (Delta Program). PROPOSALS MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE SWRCB NO LATER THAN CLOSE-OF-BUSINESS ON OCTOBER , 1997.

1. BACKGROUND

California voters approved the "Safe, Clean, Reliable Water Supply Act"--Proposition 204 (Act) at the November 6, 1996 General Election. The Act includes provisions under "Article 5. Delta Tributary Watershed Program" to implement and fund rehabilitation activities in watersheds draining to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Rivers Delta or the Trinity River. This Request for Proposals (RFP) provides information concerning project requirements, anticipated funding levels, the review process, and selection criteria.

2. FUNDING LEVELS AND CONDITIONS

a. Grants will be awarded on a one-time basis to address rehabilitation projects in watersheds tributary to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Rivers Delta or Trinity River as defined in Figure 1.

b. The total grant allocation for the Delta Program project funding is $14,550,000.

c. The maximum funding provided under this RFP for any single project is $1,000,000 (Water Code Section 78647.8).

d. The funding for the selected projects will be awarded through a contract with the SWRCB.

e. Contracts will be executed for a maximum duration of three (3) years. No reimbursement will be provided for work performed prior to the execution date or after the expiration date of any contract.

f. The Delta Program will reimburse each project sponsor (contractor) up to fifty (50) percent of the administrative costs incurred in carrying out the project (Water Code Section 78647.8).

3. ELIGIBILITY

a. Who Can Apply?

(1) Eligible applicants include (Water Code Section 78647.2):

(a) A county, or a joint powers authority in which a county is a participant, may submit an application to the board for an eligible project requesting financial or technical assistance for the purpose of developing a voluntary, incentive-based watershed rehabilitation project.

(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), if a county, or a joint powers authority in which a county is a participant, after a request to do so by a local public agency, declines to submit an application for an eligible project for a watershed that is all or in part within the boundaries of the county, a local public agency other than the county or that joint powers agency may submit an application in accordance with subdivision (a).

b. What Activities Qualify?

(1) Eligible project means a watershed rehabilitation project undertaken on lands owned or operated by the Federal, State, or a local government, or a private person or entity within the delta tributary watershed. For the purposes of this article, "delta tributary watershed" means a watershed which drains into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Rivers Delta or the Trinity River (Water Code Section 78647.4), as defined in Figure 1.

(2) Eligible projects shall include one or more of the following purposes (Water Code Section 78647.5):

(a) A reduction in the presence of contaminants in drinking water by addressing the origins of the contaminants, including, to the maximum extent practicable, the specific activities that affect the drinking water supply of a community or communities. A project with a purpose described in this subdivision shall address contaminants, including those that are pathogenic organisms, for which a national primary drinking water regulation has been established, and that are detected in the community water system for which the application is submitted at levels above the maximum contaminant level or that are detected by adequate monitoring methods at levels that are not reliably and consistently below the maximum contaminant level.

(b) An increase in yield of water available from, and water retention capabilities of, the watershed, including projects to reduce dense forest understory, restore upland meadows, and repair stream channels.

(c) The improvement, restoration, or enhancement of fisheries habitat, including riparian habitat, in and along streams and watercourses in the watershed. Projects may address factors which increase sedimentation in streams and watercourses in the watershed.

(d) The improvement of overall forest health, including the reduction of factors which may contribute to the severity of wildfires in the watershed.

c. What Activities Are Excluded?

(1) Activities related to compliance with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits, waste discharge requirements, and compliance/enforcement orders issued by Regional Water Quality Control Boards (RWQCBs) or the SWRCB.

(2) Underground Tank Cleanup Projects.

(3) Projects that are largely research or that demonstrate or develop Best Management Practices that are not associated directly with a watershed rehabilitation project in the eligible project area.

4. SELECTION PROCESS

a. What are the steps in the selection process?

(1) Proposals will be reviewed by SWRCB program staff to confirm applicant and project eligibility. All applicants will be advised of acceptance or rejection of application for consideration of funding within fifteen (15) working days of SWRCB receipt of proposal.

(2) Accepted proposals will be publicly noticed and copies will be referred to:

(a) The appropriate RWQCB (either the North Coast, San Francisco Bay, or Central Valley Region) for its review and submittal of funding recommendations to the SWRCB within 40 calendar days of receipt of the proposals, and to

(b) A Delta Tributary Watershed Advisory Committee (Committee) which will be invited by the SWRCB to review comment on the proposals. The Committee shall provide any comments to the SWRCB within 40 calendar days of receipt of the proposals. The Committee will consist of a single representative designated by the following invited organizations:

• Regional Council of Rural Counties

• Sierra Nevada Alliance

• Resource Conservation and Development Program

• California Association of Resource Conservation Districts

• Sacramento River Watershed Program

• Trinity River Task Force

• (San Joaquin River Group)

• Staffs of RWQCBs 1, 2, and 5, and SWRCB will be available for consultation

(3) The Secretary for Resources, in consultation with its Departments and associated programs, as appropriate, will provide written recommendations regarding each application to the SWRCB within 50 calendar days of receipt of the proposals from the SWRCB (Water Code Section 78647.10(a)).

(4) SWRCB will consider the recommendations from the Secretary for Resources, the Committee, the public, the RWQCBs, and the SWRCB staff in adopting the final priority list.

(5) Applicants will be notified of the SWRCB decision within fifteen (15) working days of the SWRCB action. Applicants in the fundable category will be advised that a detailed "scope of work" statement for each project is required to initiate the contract negotiation/execution process.

b. What considerations will be used in the selection process?

(1) Projects that meet the statutory purposes established in Water Code Section 78647.5 of the Safe, Clean, Reliable Water Supply Act.

(2) Projects with demonstrated past success in the project area or other similar hydrogeomorphic areas.

(3) Projects that demonstrate collaboration and coordination among multiple stakeholders (watershed groups, land owners/managers, and public agencies) and that include long term monitoring plans to determine their success and effectiveness in addressing watershed problems.

(4) Projects that are voluntary, incentive-based watershed rehabilitation efforts.

(5) Documentation that the project will include a monitoring/assessment plan to determine whether the project purposes are satisfied.

5. PROPOSAL PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS

Proposals must be submitted on the attached application form. The length of response to each question can be adjusted provided all relevant questions are answered and the adjusted application does not exceed ten (10) pages. Additional information may be provided as a supplement to the application. However, the additional information will be noted in the review materials and made available but will not be routinely circulated with the application. This RFP (with the forms) is available electronically on the Internet at the SWRCB's Internet Homepage at http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/pub/.

To expedite processing, you are requested, but not required, to include a digital copy of your application on either Wordperfect 5.2 or WORD 6.0 on a 3 1/2 inch floppy disk. However, please do not substitute the computer disk version for the "hard copy" submittal.

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