There are no sensible Republicans. They are all complicit. Even for the Democrats, it feels like Bernie, AOC, and Haskins are the only ones really fighting in Congress.

> [...] but he may be a little more convinced about physical ones.

He thought raking forests would prevent fires. His off-the-cuff solution to physical barriers would be long hoses and a bunch of water pumps.

Was there a period earlier in Californian history where it was the norm, or has it always been discouraged?

In South Australia which is similarly dry to parts of California, newly built houses are required to have rainwater tanks installed and plumbed to the house (e.g., to flush a toilet, for example).

Do you have a reference for the legislation that originally required a permit, or is the bill you reference just a clarification to make explicit that a permit is not required? Seems like this bill is just a clarification and grants explicit permission for landscaping contractors to install rainwater catchment systems which they already had permission for hot tubs, patios, pools, and all the other things listed.

This says:

> California's waters cannot be owned by individuals, groups, businesses, or governmental agencies.

A contrast with "Every drop belongs to someone"

Maybe this is an issue is loose language, but it feels like the state owns the water, not individuals? Perhaps the use of the word belongs means state-allocated?