Water is vital to California. Access to water and ecosystem information helps communities plan for the increasing demands caused by climate change, population growth, and other factors. This data assists in identifying areas and populations most at risk from drought, flooding, and water quality issues. To effectively manage California’s water resources amid significant changes, everyone – from the public to Tribes to local, state, and federal representatives – needs to have shared access to reliable, timely, and credible water and ecosystem data. So in 2016, the California Legislature passed the Open and Transparent Water Data Act, authored by Senator Dodd, which required state agencies to make water and ecosystem data available for widespread use.  The California Water Data Consortium (Consortium), established in 2019, is dedicated to supporting the implementation of the Act by state agencies.