(1)(a) Beginning with water system plans initiated after June 30, 2025, the department shall ensure water system plans for group A community public water systems serving 1,000 or more connections include a climate resilience element at the time of approval.

(b) The department must update its water system planning guidebook to assist water systems in implementing the climate resilience element, including guidance on any available technical and financial resources.

(c) The department shall provide technical assistance to public water systems based on their system size, location, and water source, by providing references to existing state or federal risk management, climate resiliency, or emergency management and response tools that may be used to satisfy the climate resilience element.

(d) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the University of Washington climate impacts group shall assist the department in the development of tools for the technical assistance to be provided in (c) of this subsection.

(2) To fulfill the requirements of the climate resilience element, water systems must:

(a) Determine which extreme weather events pose significant challenges to their system and build scenarios to identify potential impacts;

(b) Assess critical assets and the actions necessary to protect the system from the consequences of extreme weather events on system operations; and

(c) Generate reports describing the costs and benefits of the system's risk reduction strategies and capital project needs.

(3) Climate readiness projects, including planning to meet the requirements of this section and actions to protect a water system from extreme weather events, including infrastructure and design projects, are eligible for financial assistance under RCW 70A.125.180. The department must develop grant and loan eligibility criteria and consider applications from water systems that identify climate readiness projects.