AB 1755 Implementation Progress Report Released

Today, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and coordinating partner agencies released a progress report on the implementation of Assembly Bill 1755, the Open and Transparent Water Data Act. The Act directs DWR, in consultation with the State Water Resources Control Board, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the California Water Quality Monitoring Council to improve the accessibility and usability of water and ecological data.

Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. signed AB 1755 into law on September 23, 2016 directing DWR to create, operate, and maintain a statewide integrated water data platform accessible to water managers and others by September 2019.

“AB 1755 aspires to more effectively put data to work across political, disciplinary, and agency boundaries,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “The ultimate outcome will be accessible, transparent, and useable data that will enhance the management of water, California’s most precious resource.”

The implementation of AB 1755 takes a user-centered approach intended to build the relationships and investments necessary across State, federal, and Tribal agencies, and among stakeholders to ensure its near-term and long-term success.

This latest report incorporates comments from State and federal agencies and the public that were solicited in the January progress report. It also includes a summary of communication events, an updated strategic plan, updates on protocols, supplemental information about use cases and their development, discussion of long-term governance and funding options, news about upcoming data challenges and testbed activities, a high-level look at interagency implementation planning, an update on progress towards federated interoperable portals, discussion of the possible effects of AB 1755 on local agencies, and opportunities for engagement.

Visit the AB 1755 web page for additional resources, announcements, and other information: water.ca.gov/ab1755.