California State Senator Steve Padilla announces new bills to rein in companies contributing to South Bay sewage [Video]

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) — A pair of new state bills are looking to crack down on some of the polluters fueling the cross-border sewage crisis that has hobbled access to San Diego County’s southernmost beaches for decades.

Senate Bill 1178 and Senate Bill 1208, introduced on Monday by State Sen. Steve Padilla, add regulations to water discharges for large corporations, as well as prevent water authorities from issuing additional permits for waste releases into areas in the Tijuana River system.

“Our communities have had enough of companies polluting at will and escaping the consequences,” Padilla said in a release. “If you’re going to do business in California, you’re going to answer to the public when you pollute and poison our water.”

The new bills come amid intensifying pleas to address the crisis by state leaders due to health concerns and other local impacts from the pollution’s forced closure of the southernmost coastline in the region for over 800 consecutive days.

State lawmakers’ recent efforts …