(a) (1) In furtherance of implementing and achieving the goals of the “California Plan,” the sum of two hundred million dollars ($200,000,000) in the account shall be used by the director to finance and arrange for lining portions of the All American Canal and the Coachella Branch of the All American Canal.
(2) The canal lining projects shall be completed not later than December 31, 2008, or such later date as may be required by extraordinary circumstances.
(3) The allocation of the water conserved from the canal lining projects and to be made available to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California shall be consistent with federal law and shall be determined by an agreement among the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the Imperial Irrigation District, the Palo Verde Irrigation District, the Coachella Valley Water District, and the San Luis Rey settlement parties, reached after consultation with the director and the United States Secretary of the Interior.
(b) (1) The sum of thirty-five million dollars ($35,000,000) from the account shall be used by the director to finance the installation of recharge, extraction, and distribution facilities for groundwater conjunctive use programs necessary to implement the “California Plan.”
(2) Water stored in connection with the groundwater conjunctive use programs described in paragraph (1) shall be for the benefit of the member public agencies of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.
(3) Nothing in this subdivision limits the ability of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California to enter into agreements regarding the sharing of any water made available under this subdivision.
(c) The Legislature finds that the extension of the date from December 31, 2006, to December 31, 2008, for completing the canal project linings under paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) during the 2003 portion of the 2003–04 Regular Session is required due to extraordinary circumstances. The Legislature finds that there have been unforeseen construction delays, contract award delays, and changed conditions requiring design modifications for lining the All American Canal and the Coachella Branch of the All American Canal, and that these circumstances are extraordinary.
(Amended by Stats. 2003, Ch. 613, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2004.)