Authored by Assembly Member Jackie Speier, Assembly Bill (AB) 733 was signed into law by Governor Pete Wilson in October 1995. The bill authorizes the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to require large water systems to fluoridate their public water supply. It also directs CDPH to seek funding for fluoridation.

The California Fluoridation Regulations adopted by the CDPH were added to the California Code of Regulations (CCR - Title 22, Section s 64433 and 64434) in April 1998. These regulations apply to large systems with at least 10,000 service connections. The regulations require that:

• Large systems with existing fluoridation practices continue fluoridating under more stringent regulatory requirements (i.e., concentration, control, monitoring, reporting and notification requirements)
• Large non-fluoridated systems start fluoridating when funding is made available.

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) delivers water to more than 10,000 service connections and has been fluoridating its water supply since the early 1950s. To stay in compliance with the California Fluoridation Regulations, the SFPUC is therefore required to continue fluoridating the San Francisco distribution system and meet all the requirements of these regulations.

The optimal fluoride levels and associated control ranges specified in the CCR Title 22 Section
64433.2 are based on the annual average of maximum daily air temperatures recorded during the previous five years. In the case of the SFPUC system, the annual average temperature falls in the 58.4 F to 63.8 F range. The optimal fluoride values prescribed for that temperature range are:
 
Optimal Fluoride Level: 1.0 mg/L
Control Range: 0.9 to 1.0 mg/L