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Oroville steering committee moves to use draft $200,000 advance for NOFA, votes to split funds 50/50
Summary
The Supplemental Benefits Fund steering committee agreed unanimously to proceed toward a notice of funds available (NOFA) tied to a draft Department of Water Resources (DWR) advance of $200,000 per year and voted to allocate any initial advance split 50%/50% between two funding categories.
The Oroville Supplemental Benefits Fund steering committee voted unanimously to proceed with plans for a notice of funds available tied to a draft Department of Water Resources funding advance and approved a motion to divide any initial advance 50% and 50% between the agenda’s item 3 and item 4 funding categories.
Committee members were responding to a draft agreement provided by DWR that, in the committee’s words, would provide the steering committee about $200,000 per year “until the new FERC license is signed.” Andy (DWR representative) told the committee the amount in the draft is an advance against funds owed under the future license and would be repaid from future license payments once the license is issued. He said the draft wording shows the advance would be repaid on a mirrored schedule (for example, a $600,000 advance would be repaid at $200,000 per year after license signing).
The draft status of the DWR document was emphasized repeatedly; committee members and staff described the contract language they had on hand as marked “draft” and not finalized. The steering committee said it expects a letter of agreement to be circulated in the coming weeks and the full contract to follow later.
Why this matters
Those draft funds would allow the SPF to issue a NOFA and make new grants while the long-term FERC licensing and settlement work continues. Staff advised that if the $200,000 advance is available, roughly $40,000 would remain after anticipated administration costs and set-asides; staff said the facilitator’s annual fee is $9,600, leaving roughly $30,400 for small projects or administration in the short term.
Details and committee direction
Staff presented a proposed NOFA worksheet that assumes $200,000 is available. The facilitator and staff recommended issuing the NOFA in November to give applicants time for workshops and a 30–45 day application window; the committee agreed that November would be preferable. At a later point in the meeting a committee member moved—and the committee unanimously approved—a motion “that we put 50% toward item 3, 50% toward item 4,” using percentages so the allocation would automatically scale to the final available amount.
No final contract or funding disbursement has occurred; DWR’s document and the proposed timeline remain drafts, the committee noted. Committee members also emphasized caution about funding projects that will be required by the FERC license settlement — several members said they did not want to use SPF money to supplant work already guaranteed under the license and recommended prioritizing projects outside the license obligations.
Next steps
Staff said it will publish the NOFA tentatively in November if the contract materials arrive; otherwise the NOFA would move forward in December. Andy said a letter of agreement between SPF members, state water contractors and DWR is likely within two weeks, with the full contract to follow later.
