A training video produced by Summit Partners in partnership with the State Water Resources Control Board explains how legally responsible officials (LROs) should submit and certify Sewer System Management Plans (SSMPs) to the state's online portal under General Order 2020-21-103.

The presenter said systems serving populations greater than 100,000 are due May 2, 2025, and that due dates generally depend on the population reported in an enrollee's initial annual report, so subsequent population changes do not alter the assigned deadline. The presenter also said new enrollees or systems that did not continue coverage by June 5, 2023 must have the LRO upload an SSMP within 12 months of enrollment approval.

Why it matters: submitting an SSMP and certifying it in the state's system is a formal requirement under General Order 2020-21-103 and affects an agency's compliance timeline. The training walks LROs through portal credentials, required fields, and certification steps to reduce submission errors.

Key steps explained in the video include logging in to the California Integrated Water Quality System/CWIC portal with a user ID, password, WDID, account PIN and security answers; selecting the correct sanitary sewer system (agencies with multiple systems must upload one system at a time); and using the SSMP Upload and Submit/Certify functions to attach a Word or PDF file.

The presenter noted technical and metadata requirements: SSMP files must be 75 megabytes or smaller (files may be broken into smaller parts), zipped files are not accepted, and for files larger than 75 MB an active link to a posted SSMP on the agency's website may be entered in the plan URL field instead of uploading the full document. The document date field should reflect the governing entity's approval date for the SSMP, and the file description should be completed to explain the uploaded document. All fields marked with a red asterisk must be completed before the LRO can certify.

To certify, the LRO must read the certification statement, check the agreement box, enter the password, click the certify button and confirm the pop-up; the system then displays a confirmation that certification was successful. The video also shows how to view previously submitted SSMPs and the submission history page, which lists file name, document type, document date, upload date/time and a status indicator.

If an LRO needs to amend a certified SSMP, the presenter said the LRO must email sanitarysewer@waterboards.ca.gov requesting that State Water Resources Control Board staff return the certified SSMP to an editable status and include justification for the amendment.

The video ends by directing viewers to additional training resources on the State Water Resources Control Board website and credits partner organizations and the training developer.