State Water Board pauses decision on probation for Kern County subbasin, requires GSAs to bolster outreach and submit revisions

The State Water Resources Control Board on Feb. 20 continued a decision on whether to declare the Kern County Subbasin probationary under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), adopting an alternative resolution that requires local agencies to strengthen outreach and submit revised plan materials for board staff review.

The continuance follows a full-day hearing in which board staff summarized a final staff report identifying remaining deficiencies in the subbasin’s 2024 groundwater sustainability plans (GSPs) — in particular coordination across the 20 GSAs, groundwater-level monitoring and minimum thresholds, land subsidence attribution and mitigation, and groundwater-quality protections. Board staff and Department of Water Resources presenters described technical findings, then allowed panels from the subbasin’s GSAs, water banks, municipal purveyors and community groups to respond.

BOARD ACTION AND WHY IT MATTERS

Chair Joaquin Esquivel moved to adopt the alternative resolution continuing the probationary hearing; board member Sean Maguire seconded. The board recorded unanimous “aye” votes from board members Nicole Morgan, Sean Maguire, Laurel Firestone and Chair Esquivel. The motion carried and the board adopted additions to the staff resolution that require the GSAs to enhance community outreach and to submit outreach plans and technical updates to board staff for review.

The continuance preserves the staff’s option to bring the basin into probation later if the remaining deficiencies are not resolved. A probationary designation would trigger reporting and fee requirements for most extractors in the basin and could lead to further State Board action — including development of an interim plan with possible pumping limits — if deficiencies are not corrected.

WHAT STAFF FOUND

State Water Board staff summarized the final staff report (released 2025-01-21) and described five major categories of deficiencies identified in the GSPs: coordination across GSAs; groundwater-level sustainable management criteria (SMCs) and monitoring network gaps; land subsidence analysis and mitigation; groundwater-quality monitoring and response; and assessment of interconnected surface water. Staff noted that the December 2024 adopted plans address many earlier concerns but that key technical gaps remain and that some issues likely need more than the preliminary review to confirm whether they are fully resolved.

Staff presented two choices for the board: (1) designate the subbasin probationary at the hearing, or (2) continue the hearing to allow GSAs time to submit revised materials. Staff emphasized that probation is intended to be temporary and that SGMA requires the…