The board discussed two penalty options for over-pumping violations to be voted on at the next meeting, and reviewed a draft five-year budget supporting a Prop 218 process to raise groundwater extraction fees to a ceiling of ~$50/acre-foot. Staff reported that all 2026 allocation confirmations were received by the April 15 deadline, with unclaimed acres redistributed to participating landowners.
A groundwater allocation policy became active January 1, 2026, setting a 28,000 acre-feet annual limit split between sustainable and transitional yield. About 23,000 acres were classified as irrigated using DWR/Land IQ data and grower surveys. The district will read meters and bill for 2025 use and future pumping, and landowners are asked to review allocation packets and submit corrections.
