The board approved Superior AG’s $175,748.52 bid plus a 10% contingency for a temporary recharge basin to receive water during heavy flows. Staff forecast nearly 2 inches of rain in mid-November, with high snow levels. The district has 1,288 acre-feet of Class 1 water remaining; it may carry that water into next year if conditions stay dry, subject to Bureau of Reclamation authorization.
The Stakeholder Committee recommended certified meters for all wells by the end of the 2026–27 water year and a penalty of up to $10,000 per well, subject to board action. Staff proposed mailing local extraction bills around December 1, 2026, due at the end of January 2027. State GEARS fees were estimated at $300 per well and $20 per acre-foot, pending confirmation. Staff is drafting a Friant-Kern Canal subsidence plan; no allocation change was adopted.
The Porterville Irrigation District board directed staff to keep recharge water available for purchase through December 31; about 1,500 of 17,000 acre-feet credited to accounts had been claimed. The board voted to open water banks for remaining CVP supply, with irrigation first. Service Area 3’s first-phase pipeline could go to bid after easement sign-off, and the redesigned P1 and Porter Slough Ditch project is expected to bid in November.
Staff plans to bring PID GSA’s draft groundwater plan to its Board, but the committee did not recommend adoption; a member sought water-budget clarification. State officials may propose Friant-Kern Canal-area pumping restrictions for possible implementation in April 2027; no moratorium was adopted. Mandatory well metering remains under discussion. Staff reported replacing a 34-year rolling-average precipitation allocation with actual monthly credits going forward.
Staff reported that the Tule Subbasin is prioritizing a local alternative to a potential state pumping moratorium, with a technical meeting set for September 30. Allocation figures discussed included 0.27 AF/acre for metered pumping extraction and 0.15 AF/acre native sustainable yield under ET-based accounting. Starting October 2026, accounting shifts from an allocated precipitation amount to actual precipitation received. The PID GSP draft is posted for review ahead of an October 1 stakeholder meeting.
