---
type: "Bill"
title: "Groundwater: adjudication."
description: "(1) Existing law establishes various methods and procedures for a comprehensive adjudication of groundwater rights in civil court."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20232024"
identifier: "AB 779"
citation: "California AB 779 (20232024)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Groundwater", "adjudication"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Wilson"]
version_count: 10
action_count: 31
vote_count: 10
first_action: "2023-02-13"
last_action: "2023-10-10"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/125e2fa7-44a6-43c9-85e5-db83efcdd6cf"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779"
source_hash: "c0a4a510ea851f8b25130a773f55e35b92e41679cf33f4a0fc9fffc4c8284920"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ca"]
---

# California AB 779 (20232024) — Groundwater: adjudication.

(1) Existing law establishes various methods and procedures for a comprehensive adjudication of groundwater rights in civil court.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **02/13/23 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77999INT)
2. **05/26/23 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77998AMD)
3. **06/19/23 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77997AMD)
4. **06/28/23 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77996AMD)
5. **07/03/23 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77995AMD)
6. **08/14/23 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77994AMD)
7. **09/08/23 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77993AMD)
8. **10/10/23 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77991CHP)
9. **AB779** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779)
10. **09/18/23 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB779&version=20230AB77992ENR)

## Votes

- Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **8–3** (pass) · upper
- AB 779 Wilson Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **59–16** (pass) · lower
- Do pass. — **11–3** (pass) · lower
- Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **8–3** (pass) · lower
- 3rd Reading AB779 Wilson By Laird — **28–8** (pass) · upper
- Placed on suspense file — **7–0** (pass) · upper
- Do pass as amended, but first amend, and re-refer to the Committee on [Judiciary] — **7–3** (pass) · upper
- AB 779 Wilson Assembly Third Reading — **59–17** (pass) · lower
- Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Judiciary] — **11–3** (pass) · lower
- Do pass — **5–2** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Wilson — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-02-13** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`
- **2023-02-14** From printer. May be heard in committee March 16.
- **2023-02-23** Referred to Coms. on W., P., & W. and JUD. `referral-committee`
- **2023-03-28** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 11. Noes 3.) (March 28). Re-referred to Com. on JUD. `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable, referral-committee`
- **2023-04-11** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 8. Noes 3.) (April 11). Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable, referral-committee`
- **2023-04-26** In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
- **2023-05-03** In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file. `referral-committee`
- **2023-05-18** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 11. Noes 3.) (May 18). `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-05-18** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-1, reading-2`
- **2023-05-26** Read third time and amended. Ordered to third reading. (Page 1849.) `amendment-passage, reading-1, reading-3`
- **2023-05-31** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 59. Noes 17. Page 2070.) `passage, reading-1, reading-3`
- **2023-06-01** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2023-06-14** Referred to Coms. on N.R. & W. and JUD. `referral-committee`
- **2023-06-19** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on N.R. & W. `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-1, reading-2, referral-committee`
- **2023-06-27** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 7. Noes 3.) (June 27). `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, committee-passage, referral-committee`
- **2023-06-28** Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD. `amendment-passage, reading-1, reading-2, referral-committee`
- **2023-07-03** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on JUD. `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-1, reading-2, referral-committee`
- **2023-07-12** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 8. Noes 3.) (July 11). Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable, referral-committee`
- **2023-08-09** In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
- **2023-08-14** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on APPR. `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-1, reading-2, referral-committee`
- **2023-08-21** In committee: Referred to APPR suspense file. `referral-committee`
- **2023-09-01** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 5. Noes 2.) (September 1). `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-09-05** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-1, reading-2`
- **2023-09-08** Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `amendment-passage, reading-1, reading-3`
- **2023-09-11** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-1, reading-2`
- **2023-09-12** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 28. Noes 8. Page 2652.). `passage, reading-1, reading-3`
- **2023-09-12** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
- **2023-09-13** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 59. Noes 16. Page 3441.). `amendment-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-09-20** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.
- **2023-10-10** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2023-10-10** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 665, Statutes of 2023. `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/125e2fa7-44a6-43c9-85e5-db83efcdd6cf`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).