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Board adopts updated SB 552 water shortage and contingency plan; advocates urge clearer outreach and consolidation steps
Summary
Tulare County supervisors approved an update to the county's SB 552 water shortage and contingency plan that incorporates Department of Water Resources tools and uses grant funds to improve a private well database; community advocates urged the county to add clearer outreach steps, identify consolidation projects and pursue local funding.
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors voted 4–0 on Sept. 9 to approve updates to the county's SB 552 water shortage and contingency plan, a drought-preparedness statute passed in 2021 that requires local governments to adopt plans describing actions during water shortages.
Denise England, grants and resources manager for the Resource Management Agency, told the board Tulare County was the first county in California to adopt a plan in 2023 and has since used a $125,000 Department of Water Resources grant to incorporate additional DWR tools and to update the county’s private domestic well database for improved predictive analysis of where wells may go dry.
Lorena Muñoz, a policy advocate with Community Water Center, thanked staff for the update but urged the county to attach a clear outreach plan to the drought plan, to identify potential water-system consolidation projects and to commit to proactive funding strategies rather than waiting until drought conditions are critical. Muñoz cited the 2012–2016 and 2021 droughts, when hundreds of Tulare County wells went dry, and said residents need clarity on how the county will coordinate with groundwater sustainability agencies and community organizations.
Staff noted one written public comment had been received for the record. Supervisor Amy Shuckley moved approval; Supervisor Larry Macari seconded. The motion passed 4–0, with Supervisor Dennis Townsend not voting because he was not present. Public hearings for related items were also set for 9:30 a.m., per the clerk’s instructions.
The approved update directs ongoing work to incorporate DWR tools, maintain and expand the private well database and to use grant funds for both planning and database improvements. Community advocates at the hearing recommended adding an outreach appendix, mapping candidate consolidation projects and pursuing local funding to expedite resiliency measures.
Votes at a glance: motion to adopt SB 552 water shortage and contingency plan update — mover Supervisor Amy Shuckley; second Supervisor Larry Macari; outcome: approved 4–0; Supervisor Dennis Townsend not voting (absent).
