State Water Board and DWR outline next steps as SGMA moves from planning to implementation

State Water Resources Control Board Chair Joaquin Esquivel and officials from the State Water Board and the Department of Water Resources updated the board on implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), reporting that the program is shifting from plan review to active implementation and enforcement.

The update summarized DWR and board reviews of groundwater sustainability plans (GSPs), the status of six critically overdrafted basins referred to the State Water Board, activation of reporting and fee tools for extractors in probationary basins, and planned guidance on subsidence and depletion of interconnected surface water.

Board staff and DWR officials said the agencies have reviewed dozens of GSPs, held public workshops and are now focusing on whether on-the-ground management actions are being implemented and achieving measurable improvements. Natalie Stork, director of the Office of Sustainable Groundwater Management at the State Water Board, briefed the board on basin status and staff engagement with groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs). "If local management is not successful, the state needs to step in to protect groundwater resources until those GSAs are able to manage the basin," Stork said during the presentation.

Why it matters: the board said local plans must both address the six statutory "undesirable results" (including groundwater level decline and land subsidence) and follow through with projects, monitoring and mitigation. If GSAs do not correct identified deficiencies, the board can place a basin on probation, require extractors to report extractions and pay fees, and, if needed, develop an interim plan to temporarily manage pumping.

Board staff described the status of the referred basins: Tulare Lake and Tule subbasins are on probation (actions in Tulare Lake are currently paused due to litigation); Kern County probationary hearings will continue in September 2025; Chowchilla and Kaweah basins show substantial progress and may prompt board recommendations later in 2025. Pleasant Valley (Fresno County) was added to the board's caseload after a recent DWR determination and was not discussed in depth at this meeting.

The board demonstrated new tools for probationary extractors. Amanda Howery, an engineering geologist with the board, described the Groundwater Extraction Annual Reporting System (GEERS) and a Quick Reporting Wizard intended to help extractors determine reporting status and to identify de minimis extractors (those pumping less than 2 acre-feet per year for domestic use). Board staff said GEERS will allow extractors to register wells, report monthly extractions in acre-feet, receive confirmations and invoices, and that the system will be translated into additional languages and expanded to allow some GSA reporting on behalf of extractors.

Board staff outlined current fee levels for probationary basins: $300 per well plus $20 per acre-foot in volumetric fees, with specified exceptions for households using less than 2 acre-feet for domestic purposes. Staff said fees are typically collected more than a year after a probationary designation to give extractors time to register and report; for example, fees for the Tule Subbasin are not due until April 1, 2026.

A central theme of the briefing was subsidence. Paul Gosselin, director of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Office at DWR, said subsidence remains a major challenge and said DWR plans to release best management practice guidance and related regulations in the months ahead. "This is no longer a linear process," Gosselin said, adding that the agencies are shifting from compliance reviews toward implementation oversight and technical assistance. He and board staff said subsidence guidance will emphasize coordination with local infrastructure owners and broaden outreach to entities such as county public works and Caltrans.

Board members and public commenters stressed mitigation for drinking water impacts, especially for domestic wells and disadvantaged communities. Staff noted well mitigation programs in several basins (for example, Kaweah's program with a $5.8 million annual mitigation budget) and said mitigation plans should advertise assistance, simplify applications and include multilingual outreach.

The board also described it will use periodic evaluations and annual reports to measure real progress, and that plans will evolve over time as new scientific guidance and monitoring data emerge. DWR and the State Water Board emphasized continued interagency coordination, technical assistance to GSAs, and attention to impacts on small growers and communities with limited internet access.

Looking ahead: staff said the agencies will release subsidence and interconnected surface-water depletion guidance in the coming months and continue work on fee waivers, GEERS enhancements and outreach to underrepresented groundwater users.