Tulare County Water Commission hears state legislative roundup; several groundwater bills remain unresolved

Tulare County Water Commission members received a legislative subcommittee update on Oct. 31 summarizing the status of multiple state bills that could affect groundwater management and groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs).

Subcommittee staff reported that the Legislature has moved through year one of the two‑year session and that key calendar dates for the 2026 session include Jan. 31 as the last day for bills introduced this year to pass out of the house of origin, and Feb. 20 as the last day to introduce new bills, subject to the Legislature’s adopted calendar.

The update listed specific bills and their statuses as of the prior week, with the caveat that some measures may have changed since that snapshot. Items mentioned included:

• AB 293 — would require GSAs to publish their board of directors on a website; reported as on the governor’s desk and the commission had adopted a watch position.

• AB 362 — would add tribal water use to the definition of beneficial use; reported as placed in suspense and the commission had a watch position.

• AB 1044 — proposal for a new GSA in the Tule Subbasin (Macedo); did not advance out of committee.

• AB 568 — described as a gut‑and‑amend related measure; converted to a two‑year bill and did not reach the governor.

• AB 1413 and AB 1466 — provisions related to groundwater adjudication; AB 1413 reported inactive, AB 1466 reported sent to the governor and the commission had a watch position.

• SB 224 — would require the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to adopt additional forecasting models; reported vetoed by the governor.

• SB 454 — relating to a PFAS mitigation fund; reported vetoed by the governor.

• SB 599 — described as similar to SB 224 and listed as inactive.

The subcommittee also discussed a proposed budget trailer bill related to delta conveyance acceleration and CEQA exemptions; staff reported that the trailer bill language was rejected as part of the final budget.

Commissioners did not ask for changes to the commission’s prior watch positions during the report and there was no formal vote or new position taken at the Oct. 31 meeting.