Topic: Legislation — California and Federal

Overview

Legislation — California and Federal

Today Californians face increased risks from flooding, water shortages, unhealthy water quality, ecosystem decline and infrastructure degradation. Many federal and state legislative acts address ways to improve water resource management, ecosystem restoration, as well as water rights settlements and strategies to oversee groundwater and surface water.

Aquafornia news Mitchell Williams Law Firm

Blog: California appellate court addresses whether captured flood waters constitute personal property

A California Court of Appeal (Fifth District) (“Court”) addressed in a March 14th Opinion whether water in an aquifer could be personal property. … The land and attached improvements were appraised in 2019 at $14,985,000. The appraisal excluded any subsurface water or mineral rights. In addition, the appraisal indicated that due to two perpetual United States Fish and Wildlife conservation easements, that the land was limited to its current use as an irrigated and dry pasture ranch with some lower intensity farming uses. The trial court had held, and this Court agreed that: Water was not personal property owned by 4-S; and, Rights to use of the water ran with the land and therefore the lender acquired those rights at the foreclosure sale.

Aquafornia news E&E News by Politico

NOAA employees offered financial incentive to quit before layoffs

The Trump administration is giving thousands of NOAA employees another chance to quit their jobs before the Department of Government Efficiency’s ax blade falls again at the nation’s climate, weather and oceans agency. In a Commerce Department notice to employees, which include NOAA’s roughly 10,500 remaining staff, officials said “all employees, in all positions, at all grade/band level, in every geographic location” could file for what’s known as “voluntary early retirement” or a “voluntary separation incentive payment” with a one-time payout of up to $25,000. The offer excludes positions in immigration enforcement, national security, marine vessel operations, patent and trademark examining, and public safety, according to the Commerce memo, a copy of which was reviewed by POLITICO’s E&E News.

Other federal environmental and weather agency news:

Aquafornia news Financial Times (London)

Trump backlash adds to challenges for California water policymakers

As firefighters in Los Angeles finally contained the flames from the devastating fires in January, the Trump administration made the curious decision to order the sudden release of billions of gallons of fresh water from two dams about 360km north of the city. … Now California’s environmental policy­makers are braced for four years of possible interventions from Trump as the state faces many water management challenges, including declining surface and groundwater — not to mention the impact of a changing climate.

Aquafornia news Stormwater Solutions

Blog: Outlook on President Trump’s second term and stormwater

… A review of the section on water nested within the environmental chapter (of Project 2025) reveals topics and actions to be anticipated within Trump’s second term that could be directly tied to stormwater. … Project 2025 refers to the Clean Watersheds Needs Survey (CWNS) as an “underfunded” program that should be targeted for increased fiscal support. … Lastly, the Project 2025 document points out a need to focus on water workforce issues, flood control districts, and utilities is continuing drain institutional experience and knowledge. The 2022 WEF MS4 Needs Assessment Survey found that workforce resources is one of the top three needs and challenges for MS4s across the country.

Aquafornia news The Daily Journal (San Mateo, Calif.)

Diane Papan introduces legislation to prevent politically motivated water releases in state

Legislation to prevent the unnecessary and harmful discharge of California water from reservoirs under false pretenses was introduced by Assemblymember Diane Papan, D-San Mateo. Assembly Bill 1146 would prohibit the release of California’s stored water if it is carried out under knowingly false or fraudulent representations regarding the purpose or intended use of the water. … In January 2025, the ordered release of more than 2 billion gallons of California water from reservoirs was widely criticized as unnecessary and disruptive to the state’s delicate water storage system. Experts have warned that such politically motivated decisions could have devastating consequences, including increased flood risks and water shortages during critical dry periods.

Aquafornia news E&E News by Politico

California water agencies oppose Trump-proofing bill

The leading trade group representing California’s public water agencies came out Monday against a bill meant to protect the state from Trump administration rollbacks. The Association of California Water Agencies adopted an “oppose” position to Sen. Ben Allen’s SB 601, which would clarify state law to reclassify all waters that were previously defined as “waters of the state” prior to the Supreme Court’s 2023 Sackett v. EPA decision. ACWA senior policy advocate Soren Nelson said in an email the group has “serious concerns with SB 601, as it would needlessly complicate the state’s regulatory framework for protecting water quality, lead to frivolous litigation, and almost certainly translate into higher water bills for Californians.”

Aquafornia news Nossaman LLP

Blog: The Making Conservation a California Way of Life Framework – what it is and what it means

In 2024, after years of deliberation, California water officials adopted landmark rules that will guide future water use and conservation in the state. The “Making Conservation a California Way of Life” framework went into effect at the beginning of 2025 and requires compliance by 2027. The framework is intended to help preserve water supplies as climate change drives hotter, drier conditions and droughts become more frequent and longer lasting, and is expected to help save 500,000 acre-feet of water annually by 2040. That is enough to supply more than 1.4 million households for a year. 

Other water conservation news:

Aquafornia news AP News

Staff cuts at federal agencies overseeing US dams could put public safety at risk, critics warn

Trump administration workforce cuts at federal agencies overseeing U.S. dams are threatening their ability to provide reliable electricity, supply farmers with water and protect communities from floods, employees and industry experts warn. The Bureau of Reclamation provides water and hydropower to the public in 17 western states. Nearly 400 agency workers have been cut through the Trump reduction plan, an administration official said. “Reductions-in-force” memos have also been sent to current workers, and more layoffs are expected. 

Other environmental and public resource agency job cut news:

Aquafornia news CyberScoop

Water utilities would get cybersecurity boost under bipartisan Senate bill

Small water and wastewater utilities would get a boost to their cybersecurity defenses under a bipartisan Senate bill that a pair of lawmakers re-introduced Thursday. Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., and Mike Rounds, R-S.D., are taking another swing at the Cybersecurity for Rural Water Systems Act after the legislation stalled out in the 118th Congress. The bill would update and expand the Department of Agriculture’s Circuit Rider Program, which provides technical assistance to rural water systems. The lawmakers’ legislation calls on the program to develop protocols to bolster water systems’ cyber defenses and provide additional aid to improve protections. 

Aquafornia news CalMatters

California considers protecting wetlands from Trump order

… The Trump administration’s plan to alter the Clean Water Act’s definition of wetlands to exclude (seasonal streams, ponds and pools) could render vast areas of California essentially unprotected from developers and growers. … (A) new bill introduced last month, (state) Senate Bill 601, would build in more protection, amending the state Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act to copy existing federal protections. It would, among other provisions, require new permitting rules for pollutants from business operations or construction.

Other federal and Calif. environmental regulation news:

Aquafornia news News From The States

Strategic Water Supply slides over to Senate

A formerly controversial bill aimed at addressing a future in which New Mexico’s limited water supplies become even more strained will soon have its first (New Mexico State) Senate committee hearing following House passage last week. That passage came with no debate, following a significant overhaul in the face of considerable environmental opposition to the so-called Strategic Water Supply. In a nutshell, the bill proposes a a $40 million program for removing the salt from less drinkable aquifers and $19 million to map how much water is available beneath the ground.

Aquafornia news Politico

Western water districts warn of critical disruptions with Reclamation cuts

Farmers and others reliant on water provided by the Bureau of Reclamation are warning that staffing cuts at the agency could threaten access to supplies — and in one case are offering to step into the breach to help keep flows moving. Reclamation, like other federal agencies operating under a directive from the White House and so-called Department of Government Efficiency, has been actively reducing its staff across the 17 states where it manages canals, reservoirs, dams and hydropower facilities. That leaves open concerns that the agency won’t merely be short-staffed, but lack employees who are literally responsible for turning on pumps and releasing water to irrigators, said Shane Leonard, who serves as secretary and district manager for the Kennewick Irrigation District.

Other Bureau of Reclamation and water agency news:

Aquafornia news The New York Times

More NOAA employees may be let go, making 20% of staff cut

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the nation’s premier agency for weather and climate science, has been told by the Trump administration to prepare to lose another 1,000 workers, raising concerns that NOAA’s lifesaving forecasts might be hindered as hurricane and disaster season approaches. The new dismissals would come in addition to the roughly 1,300 NOAA staff members who have already resigned or been laid off in recent weeks. … Some activities, including the launching of weather balloons, have already been suspended because of staffing shortages. Together, the reductions would represent nearly 20 percent of NOAA’s approximately 13,000-member work force.

Other weather and natural resource agency layoff news:

Aquafornia news SFGate

Fired Calif. NOAA scientists warn of dire global consequences

The Trump administration’s layoffs continue to careen down a path of destruction through federal agencies — last week touching down on a critical National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration office on the Monterey Peninsula that is on the front lines of tracking and helping to mitigate the effects of climate change. … The cuts didn’t just affect Monterey-based NOAA employees. Last week’s culling, which was an estimated 5% of the agency’s workforce, included a scientist who specialized in tsunami alerts, a flight director who tracked hurricanes and a researcher who studied communities that are most likely to flood during storm surges. 

Other water and natural resource funding and job news:

Aquafornia news FOX 26 (Sacramento, Calif.)

California water agencies urge against Bureau of Reclamation staff cuts

Fourteen California water agencies have appealed to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, urging him not to proceed with planned staff reductions at the Bureau of Reclamation. The agencies argue that terminating 100 employees will not benefit taxpayers. The Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees water infrastructure projects such as Millerton Lake and the Friant Kern Canal, is set to reduce its workforce through terminations and buyouts. … A letter signed by representatives from irrigation districts, water, and canal companies in California was sent to Secretary Burgum.

Other water and natural resources agency news:

Aquafornia news Los Angeles Times

Tuesday Top of the Scroll: Major staff cuts at federal water agency spark worries in California

The Trump administration has ordered firings and buyouts at the federal agency that operates water infrastructure in California, potentially jeopardizing the agency’s ability to manage dams and deliver water, according to Central Valley water officials. … The bureau, which employs about 1,000 people, is set to lose about 100 employees in California through terminations and buyouts, eliminating about 10% of its regional staff, one of the employees said. But larger workforce reductions are slated, and the bureau has been ordered to prepare plans to cut its staff by 40%, this person said. … Internal documents reviewed by The Times show that the positions being eliminated include maintenance mechanics, engineers, fish biology specialists and others.

Other water and natural resource jobs and funding news across the West:

Aquafornia news The Hill

Senate Democrats urge Trump administration to end Colorado River funding freeze

Senate Democrats from the U.S. West on Monday urged the Department of the Interior to end a funding freeze that could endanger the flow of the Colorado River. The lawmakers, from California, Nevada and Arizona, slammed the Trump administration’s day-one executive order that halted disbursements from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act — including $4 billion that Congress had earmarked for water management and conservation in the West. Among the projects that were supposed to benefit from those funds was the Lower Colorado River System Conservation and Efficiency Program, which had aimed to raise the elevation of Lake Mead — the basin’s largest reservoir — by 9 feet this year, the senators wrote in a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

Other Colorado River Basin news:

Aquafornia news E&E News by Politico

California Blue Dog seeks GOP allies, pushes water issues

Freshman Rep. Adam Gray is challenging 10 Republicans to show up at his office. But the moderate Blue Dog from California isn’t luring Republicans to bark at them. It’s so he can convince them that there’s power to be had in a House with a razor-thin margin and to work together on subjects like water issues crucial to his Central Valley district. “Imagine if 10 Republicans and 10 Democrats could get together in a Congress where there’s a margin of three or four votes and say, ‘You know what? We’re gonna sit down, and we’re gonna craft bipartisan solutions to some of these big topics,’” Gray said.

Aquafornia news The Associated Press

Hundreds of weather forecasters and NOAA staff fired in DOGE cuts

Hundreds of weather forecasters and other federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration employees on probationary status were fired Thursday, lawmakers and weather experts said. Federal workers who were not let go said the afternoon layoffs included meteorologists who do crucial local forecasts in National Weather Service offices across the country. Cuts at NOAA appeared to be happening in two rounds, one of 500 and one of 800, said Craig McLean, a former NOAA chief scientist who said he got the information from someone with first-hand knowledge. That’s about 10% of NOAA’s workforce.

Other weather and natural resource agency layoff and resignation news:

Aquafornia news Politico

Forest Service chief retires after thousands of layoffs at the agency

Forest Service Chief Randy Moore will retire effective March 3, according to an email sent to agency staff Wednesday and viewed by POLITICO.  … Moore, who has led the agency that manages 193 million acres of national forests and grasslands since 2021 and became the first African American to serve as chief, is capping off a 45-year career with the Forest Service. … Lawmakers and officials from Western states have warned that President Donald Trump’s cuts to agencies like the Forest Service and funding freezes will threaten critical prevention and mitigation work, leaving the region woefully unprepared for the coming wildfire season.

Other natural resource agency resignation and layoff news:

Aquafornia news Vox

Trump, Musk come for the national weather service and NOAA

… The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) employs about 12,000 staffers around the world, more than half of which are scientists and engineers. NOAA operates 18 satellites and 15 ships and has a budget of $6.8 billion. Their job is to study the skies, the seas, the fish, tracking how they’re changing and predicting what will happen to them. NOAA’s work is essential for aviation, fishing, climate research, and offshore oil and gas exploration, particularly when it comes to modeling weather.

Other natural resources, water and weather layoff news:

Aquafornia news Food Safety magazine

California bill would set state drinking water limits for PFAS in case EPA standards are weakened

Citing concerns that the Trump Administration could roll back or weaken drinking water standards for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Biden Administration, California Asseblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-46) has introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 794, which would set state-level drinking water standards for PFAS. In April 2024, EPA issued the first-ever national, legally enforceable drinking water standard for PFAS, setting legally enforceable limits for five PFAS of concern (PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, PFHxS, and HFPO-DA). Exposure to these “forever chemicals” has been linked to cancer, impacts to the liver and heart, and immune and developmental damage to infants and children.

Other PFAS news:

Aquafornia news E&E News by Politico

Meet Trump’s nominee to lead EPA’s water office

As the Trump administration continues to freeze federal funds for environmental projects, some in the water sector see an ally for their funding needs in the president’s nominee to lead EPA’s Office of Water. As a GOP aide on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Jessica Kramer helped craft the water funding provisions included in the infrastructure law. Enacted in 2021, the law set aside roughly $50 billion to fix aging water pipes and treatment plants and remove toxic pollutants. Funding from the law is now in question under President Donald Trump. … Still, Kramer’s nomination suggests that federal dollars for water projects could be spared from the defunding blitz. 

Other federal agency and funding freeze news:

Aquafornia news E&E News by Politico

Monday Top of the Scroll: California lawmaker proposes boosting water protections to counter Trump

A California state lawmaker introduced legislation Thursday to enshrine federal water quality rules in state law following President Donald Trump’s inauguration and a 2023 Supreme Court decision rolling back wetlands protections. State Sen. Ben Allen’s (D) SB 601 would significantly boost the State Water Resources Control Board’s authority to adopt and enforce water rules at least as stringent as the federal rules at a time when Trump has promised to roll back regulations. “The challenges presented by ever-changing federal policy requires California to step up and fill the void that is left when priorities become misaligned,” said Allen in a press release.

Other state legislation news:

Aquafornia news Water Finance & Management

Water Week 2025 to bring water utility leaders to Washington

Water Week is returning to Washington, D.C. the week of April 6 as drinking and clean water sector leaders from across the country will convene for a week of policy discussion and Congressional office visits. The anchor event of Water Week is the National Water Policy Fly-In, being held April 8-9, presented by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), which spearheads the event, in partnership with the American Water Works Association (AWWA), the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA), the Water Research Foundation (WRF), the Water Environment Federation (WEF), and the WateReuse Association. 

Aquafornia news Water Finance & Management

Nominee named to lead EPA’s Office of Water

Jessica Kramer has been nominated by President Donald Trump to serve as the next assistant administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Water. Kramer worked in the Office of Water during the first Trump administration and has recently been working for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as deputy secretary of regulatory programs. Kramer will now await Senate confirmation for her new post at EPA, although no date has been set for a hearing or vote.

Other federal agency news:

Aquafornia news Public Policy Institute of California

Blog: How Prop 4 will impact California’s climate and natural resources investments

In November, voters passed Proposition 4, a general obligation bond that will yield $10 billion for a variety of climate resilience, water, and natural resource management programs—the largest climate and water bond to date. Proposition 4 is the first successful ballot measure in 10 years to fund such programs. The previous large-scale water and climate measure on the ballot, Proposition 3 ($8.9 billion), failed by 0.7% in 2018. The last successful measure that funded such projects was Proposition 1 of 2014 ($7.1 billion), which has only $33 million in remaining balance.

Other climate policy news:

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to Water Recycling
Updated 2024

Layperson's Guide to Water Recycling

Cities across California and the Southwest are significantly increasing and diversifying their use of recycled wastewater as traditional water supplies grow tighter.

The 5th edition of our Layperson’s Guide to Water Recycling covers the latest trends and statistics on water reuse as a strategic defense against prolonged drought and climate change.

Aquafornia news Ag Alert

Agencies race to fix plans to sustain groundwater levels

Seeking to prevent the California State Water Resources Control Board from stepping in to regulate groundwater in critically overdrafted subbasins, local agencies are working to correct deficiencies in their plans to protect groundwater. With groundwater sustainability agencies formed and groundwater sustainability plans evaluated, the state water board has moved to implement the 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, or SGMA. … Under probation, groundwater extractors in the Tulare Lake subbasin face annual fees of $300 per well and $20 per acre-foot pumped, plus a late reporting fee of 25%. SGMA also requires well owners to file annual groundwater extraction reports.

Aquafornia news Los Angeles Times

Monday Top of the Scroll: California wants to harness more than half its land to combat climate change by 2045. Here’s how

California has unveiled an ambitious plan to help combat the worsening climate crisis with one of its invaluable assets: its land. Over the next 20 years, the state will work to transform more than half of its 100 million acres into multi-benefit landscapes that can absorb more carbon than they release, officials announced Monday. … The plan also calls for 11.9 million acres of forestland to be managed for biodiversity protection, carbon storage and water supply protection by 2045, and 2.7 million acres of shrublands and chaparral to be managed for carbon storage, resilience and habitat connectivity, among other efforts.

Related articles: 

Aquafornia news Congresswoman Norma Torres' Office

News release: Congresswoman Torres and Congressman Valadao introduce bipartisan “Removing Nitrate and Arsenic in Drinking Water Act”

Today, Congresswoman Norma Torres and Congressman David Valadao – members of the House Appropriations Committee – announced the introduction of the bipartisan Removing Nitrate and Arsenic in Drinking Water Act. This bill would amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to provide grants for nitrate and arsenic reduction, by providing $15 million for FY25 and every fiscal year thereafter. The bill also directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to take into consideration the needs of economically disadvantaged populations impacted by drinking water contamination. The California State Water Resources Control Board found the Inland Empire to have the highest levels of contamination of nitrate throughout the state including 82 sources in San Bernardino, 67 sources in Riverside County, and 123 sources in Los Angeles County.

Aquafornia news The Salt Lake Tribune

Utah looks to other states for more water under new bill

A much-anticipated water bill brought by one of the most powerful lawmakers on Capitol Hill became public Thursday. Senate President Stuart Adams’s SB 211, titled “Generational Water Infrastructure Amendments,” seeks to secure a water supply for decades to come. It forms a new council comprised of leadership from the state’s biggest water districts that will figure out Utah’s water needs for the next 50 to 75 years. It also creates a new governor-appointed “Utah Water Agent” with a $1 million annual budget that will “coordinate with the council to ensure Utah’s generational water needs are met,” according to a news release. But combing through the text of the bill reveals the water agent’s main job will be finding an out-of-state water supply. … The bill also notes the water agent won’t meddle with existing water compacts with other states on the Bear and Colorado rivers.

Related article: 

Aquafornia news Office of Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria

News release: Assemblywoman Soria introduces bill to boost groundwater recharge

Last week, Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria introduced AB 2060 to help divert local floodwater into regional groundwater basins. AB 2060 seeks to streamline the permitting process to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife in support of Flood-MAR activities when a stream or river has reached flood-monitor or flood stage as determined by the California Nevada River Forecast Center or the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB). This expedited approval process would be temporary during storm events with qualifying flows under the SWRCB permit.

Related article: 

Aquafornia news Western Water

California to uncloak water rights as it moves records online

… In California, just figuring out who holds a water right requires a trip to a downtown Sacramento storage room crammed with millions of paper and microfilmed records dating to the mid-1800s. Even the state’s water rights enforcers struggle to determine who is using what. … Come next year, however, the board expects to have all records electronically accessible to the public. Officials recently started scanning records tied to an estimated 45,000 water rights into an online database. They’re also designing a system that will give real-time data on how much water is being diverted from rivers and streams across the state. … Proponents say the information technology upgrade will help the state and water users better manage droughts, establish robust water trading markets and ensure water for fish and the environment.

Related article: 

JD Supra: Water regulation in the Western states: California’s 2023 legislative proposal highlights

Aquafornia news Ag Alert

Commentary: Can California reject a ’scarcity mindset’ on water?

… Without more investment and regulatory relief, Californians face a future of chronic water scarcity. Our system of water storage and distribution is in trouble. We have depleted aquifers, nearly empty reservoirs on the Colorado River, and a precarious network of century-old levees that are one big earthquake away from catastrophic failure. Then there’s always the next severe drought. Even if the governor aggressively pushes for more investment in water supply infrastructure and more regulatory relief so projects can go forward, the state is again staring down a budget deficit. Bonds to fund water infrastructure projects are going to have a hard time getting approval from voters already overburdened with among the highest taxes in America.
- Written by Edward Ring, senior fellow with the California Policy Center.

Aquafornia news Ag Alert

Summit tackles water challenges facing California

Below-average precipitation and snowpack during 2020-22 and depleted surface and groundwater supplies pushed California into a drought emergency that brought curtailment orders and calls for modernizing water rights. At the Water Education Foundation annual water summit last week in Sacramento, Eric Oppenheimer, chief deputy director of the California State Water Resources Control Board, discussed what he described as the state’s “antiquated” water rights system. He spoke before some 150 water managers, government officials, farmers, environmentalists and others as part of the event where interests come together to collaborate on some of the state’s most challenging water issues.

Related articles: 

Tour Nick Gray

San Joaquin River Restoration Tour 2022
Field Trip - November 2-3

This tour traveled along the San Joaquin River to learn firsthand about one of the nation’s largest and most expensive river restoration projects.

The San Joaquin River was the focus of one of the most contentious legal battles in California water history, ending in a 2006 settlement between the federal government, Friant Water Users Authority and a coalition of environmental groups.

Hampton Inn & Suites Fresno
327 E Fir Ave
Fresno, CA 93720

New EPA Regional Administrator Tackles Water Needs with a Wealth of Experience and $1 Billion in Federal Funding
WESTERN WATER Q&A: Martha Guzman says surge of federal dollars offers 'greatest opportunity' to address longstanding water needs, including for tribes & disadvantaged communities in EPA Region 9

EPA Region 9 Administrator Martha Guzman.Martha Guzman recalls those awful days working on water and other issues as a deputy legislative secretary for then-Gov. Jerry Brown. California was mired in a recession and the state’s finances were deep in the red. Parks were cut, schools were cut, programs were cut to try to balance a troubled state budget in what she remembers as “that terrible time.”

She now finds herself in a strikingly different position: As administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 9, she has a mandate to address water challenges across California, Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii and $1 billion to help pay for it. It is the kind of funding, she said, that is usually spread out over a decade. Guzman called it the “absolutely greatest opportunity.”

Western Water By Gary Pitzer

Explainer: The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act: The Law, The Judge And The Enforcer

The Resource

A groundwater pump in the San Joaquin Valley. Groundwater provides about 40 percent of the water in California for urban, rural and agricultural needs in typical years, and as much as 60 percent in dry years when surface water supplies are low. But in many areas of the state, groundwater is being extracted faster than it can be replenished through natural or artificial means.

Western Water California Groundwater Map Layperson's Guide to Groundwater Gary Pitzer

With Sustainability Plans Filed, Groundwater Agencies Now Must Figure Out How To Pay For Them
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: California's Prop. 218 taxpayer law and local politics could complicate efforts to finance groundwater improvement projects

A groundwater monitoring well in Colusa County, north of Sacramento. The bill is coming due, literally, to protect and restore groundwater in California.

Local agencies in the most depleted groundwater basins in California spent months putting together plans to show how they will achieve balance in about 20 years.

Western Water California Water Map Gary Pitzer

Understanding Streamflow Is Vital to Water Management in California, But Gaps In Data Exist
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: A new law aims to reactivate dormant stream gauges to aid in flood protection, water forecasting

Stream gauges gather important metrics such as  depth, flow (described as cubic feet per second) and temperature.  This gauge near downtown Sacramento measures water depth.California is chock full of rivers and creeks, yet the state’s network of stream gauges has significant gaps that limit real-time tracking of how much water is flowing downstream, information that is vital for flood protection, forecasting water supplies and knowing what the future might bring.

That network of stream gauges got a big boost Sept. 30 with the signing of SB 19. Authored by Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa), the law requires the state to develop a stream gauge deployment plan, focusing on reactivating existing gauges that have been offline for lack of funding and other reasons. Nearly half of California’s stream gauges are dormant.

Western Water Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Map Gary Pitzer

Bruce Babbitt Urges Creation of Bay-Delta Compact as Way to End ‘Culture of Conflict’ in California’s Key Water Hub
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Former Interior secretary says Colorado River Compact is a model for achieving peace and addressing environmental and water needs in the Delta

Former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt gives the Anne J. Schneider Lecture April 3 at Sacramento's Crocker Art Museum.  Bruce Babbitt, the former Arizona governor and secretary of the Interior, has been a thoughtful, provocative and sometimes forceful voice in some of the most high-profile water conflicts over the last 40 years, including groundwater management in Arizona and the reduction of California’s take of the Colorado River. In 2016, former California Gov. Jerry Brown named Babbitt as a special adviser to work on matters relating to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and the Delta tunnels plan.

Western Water California Groundwater Map Layperson's Guide to Groundwater Gary Pitzer

As Deadline Looms for California’s Badly Overdrafted Groundwater Basins, Kern County Seeks a Balance to Keep Farms Thriving
WESTERN WATER SPOTLIGHT: Sustainability plans required by the state’s groundwater law could cap Kern County pumping, alter what's grown and how land is used

Water sprinklers irrigate a field in the southern region of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County.Groundwater helped make Kern County the king of California agricultural production, with a $7 billion annual array of crops that help feed the nation. That success has come at a price, however. Decades of unchecked groundwater pumping in the county and elsewhere across the state have left some aquifers severely depleted. Now, the county’s water managers have less than a year left to devise a plan that manages and protects groundwater for the long term, yet ensures that Kern County’s economy can continue to thrive, even with less water.

Western Water Gary Pitzer

California Officials Draft a $600M Plan To Help Low-Income Households Absorb Rising Water Bills
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: State Water Board report proposes new taxes on personal and business income or fees on bottled water and booze to fund rate relief program

Filling a glass with clean water from the kitchen tap.Low-income Californians can get help with their phone bills, their natural gas bills and their electric bills. But there’s only limited help available when it comes to water bills.

That could change if the recommendations of a new report are implemented into law. Drafted by the State Water Resources Control Board, the report outlines the possible components of a program to assist low-income households facing rising water bills.

Western Water Douglas E. Beeman Douglas E. Beeman

What Would You Do About Water If You Were California’s Next Governor?
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Survey at Foundation’s Sept. 20 Water Summit elicits a long and wide-ranging potential to-do list

There’s going to be a new governor in California next year – and a host of challenges both old and new involving the state’s most vital natural resource, water.

So what should be the next governor’s water priorities?

That was one of the questions put to more than 150 participants during a wrap-up session at the end of the Water Education Foundation’s Sept. 20 Water Summit in Sacramento.

Western Water Layperson's Guide to Groundwater Gary Pitzer

Novel Effort to Aid Groundwater on California’s Central Coast Could Help Other Depleted Basins
WESTERN WATER Q&A: Michael Kiparsky, director of UC Berkeley's Wheeler Water Institute, explains Pajaro Valley groundwater recharge pilot project

Michael KiparskySpurred by drought and a major policy shift, groundwater management has assumed an unprecedented mantle of importance in California. Local agencies in the hardest-hit areas of groundwater depletion are drawing plans to halt overdraft and bring stressed aquifers to the road of recovery.

Along the way, an army of experts has been enlisted to help characterize the extent of the problem and how the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act of 2014 is implemented in a manner that reflects its original intent.

Western Water California Water Bundle Gary Pitzer

Statewide Water Bond Measures Could Have Californians Doing a Double-Take in 2018
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Two bond measures, worth $13B, would aid flood preparation, subsidence, Salton Sea and other water needs

San Joaquin Valley bridge rippled by subsidence  California voters may experience a sense of déjà vu this year when they are asked twice in the same year to consider water bonds — one in June, the other headed to the November ballot.

Both tackle a variety of water issues, from helping disadvantaged communities get clean drinking water to making flood management improvements. But they avoid more controversial proposals, such as new surface storage, and they propose to do some very different things to appeal to different constituencies.

Tour

San Joaquin River Restoration Tour 2018

Participants of this tour snaked along the San Joaquin River to learn firsthand about one of the nation’s largest and most expensive river restoration projects.

Fishery worker capturing a fish in the San Joaquin River.

The San Joaquin River was the focus of one of the most contentious legal battles in California water history, ending in a 2006 settlement between the federal government, Friant Water Users Authority and a coalition of environmental groups.

Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA)

A man watches as a groundwater pump pours water onto a field in Northern California.A new era of groundwater management began in 2014 with the passage of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), which aims for local and regional agencies to develop and implement sustainable groundwater management plans with the state as the backstop.

SGMA defines “sustainable groundwater management” as the “management and use of groundwater in a manner that can be maintained during the planning and implementation horizon without causing undesirable results.”

Publication

The 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act
A Handbook to Understanding and Implementing the Law

This handbook provides crucial background information on the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, signed into law in 2014 by Gov. Jerry Brown. The handbook also includes a section on options for new governance.

Water Conservation

Drought-tolerant landscaping reduces the amount of water used on traditional lawns

Water conservation has become a way of life throughout the West with a growing recognition that water supply is not unlimited.

Drought is the most common motivator of increased water conservation. However, the gradual drying of the West due to climate change means the amount of fresh water available for drinking, irrigation, industry and other uses must be used as efficiently as possible.

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Salton Sea

As part of the historic Colorado River Delta, the Salton Sea regularly filled and dried for thousands of years due to its elevation of 237 feet below sea level.

The most recent version of the Salton Sea was formed in 1905 when the Colorado River broke through a series of dikes and flooded the seabed for two years, creating California’s largest inland body of water. The Salton Sea, which is saltier than the Pacific Ocean, includes 130 miles of shoreline and is larger than Lake Tahoe

Aquapedia background California Water Map Layperson's Guide to California Water

Safe Drinking Water Act

The federal Safe Drinking Water Act sets standards for drinking water quality in the United States.

Launched in 1974 and administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Safe Drinking Water Act oversees states, communities, and water suppliers who implement the drinking water standards at the local level.

The act’s regulations apply to every public water system in the United States but do not include private wells serving less than 25 people.

According to the EPA, there are more than 160,000 public water systems in the United States.

Aquapedia background California Water Map Layperson's Guide to California Water

California Environmental Quality Act

The California Environmental Quality Act, commonly known as CEQA, is foundational to the state’s environmental protection efforts. The law requires proposed developments with the potential for “significant” impacts on the physical environment to undergo an environmental review. 

Since its passage in 1970, CEQA (based on the National Environmental Policy Act) has served as a model for similar legislation in other states.

Western Water Magazine

Changing the Status Quo: The 2009 Water Package
January/February 2010

This printed issue of Western Water looks at some of the pieces of the 2009 water legislation, including the Delta Stewardship Council, the new requirements for groundwater monitoring and the proposed water bond.

Western Water Magazine

Overdrawn at the Bank: Managing California’s Groundwater
January/February 2014

This printed issue of Western Water looks at California groundwater and whether its sustainability can be assured by local, regional and state management. For more background information on groundwater please refer to the Founda­tion’s Layperson’s Guide to Groundwater.

Western Water Magazine

Hydraulic Fracturing and Water Quality: A Cause for Concern?
September/October 2012

This printed issue of Western Water looks at hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” in California. Much of the information in the article was presented at a conference hosted by the Groundwater Resources Association of California.

Western Water Magazine

Water Policy 2007: The View from Washington and Sacramento
March/April 2007

This issue of Western Water looks at the political landscape in Washington, D.C., and Sacramento as it relates to water issues in 2007. Several issues are under consideration, including the means to deal with impending climate change, the fate of the San Joaquin River, the prospects for new surface storage in California and the Delta.

Western Water Magazine

Are We Keeping Up With Water Infrastructure Needs?
January/February 2012

This printed issue of Western Water examines water infrastructure – its costs and the quest to augment traditional brick-and-mortar facilities with sleeker, “green” features.

Western Water Magazine

Dollars and Sense: How We Pay for Water
September/October 2009

This printed issue of Western Water examines the financing of water infrastructure, both at the local level and from the statewide perspective, and some of the factors that influence how people receive their water, the price they pay for it and how much they might have to pay in the future.

Western Water Magazine

Making the Connection: The Water/Energy Nexus
September/October 2010

This printed issue of Western Water looks at the energy requirements associated with water use and the means by which state and local agencies are working to increase their knowledge and improve the management of both resources.

Western Water Magazine

Mimicking the Natural Landscape: Low Impact Development and Stormwater Capture
September/October 2011

This printed issue of Western Water discusses low impact development and stormwater capture – two areas of emerging interest that are viewed as important components of California’s future water supply and management scenario.

Western Water Magazine

A Call to Action? The Colorado River Basin Supply and Demand Study
November/December 2012

This printed issue of Western Water examines the Colorado River Basin Water Supply and Demand Study and what its finding might mean for the future of the lifeblood of the Southwest.

Western Water Magazine

Nitrate and the Struggle for Clean Drinking Water
March/April 2013

This printed issue of Western Water discusses the problems of nitrate-contaminated water in small disadvantaged communities and possible solutions.

Video

The Klamath Basin: A Restoration for the Ages (20 min. DVD)

20-minute version of the 2012 documentary The Klamath Basin: A Restoration for the Ages. This DVD is ideal for showing at community forums and speaking engagements to help the public understand the complex issues related to complex water management disputes in the Klamath River Basin. Narrated by actress Frances Fisher.

Video

The Klamath Basin: A Restoration for the Ages (60 min. DVD)

For over a century, the Klamath River Basin along the Oregon and California border has faced complex water management disputes. As relayed in this 2012, 60-minute public television documentary narrated by actress Frances Fisher, the water interests range from the Tribes near the river, to energy producer PacifiCorp, farmers, municipalities, commercial fishermen, environmentalists – all bearing legitimate arguments for how to manage the water. After years of fighting, a groundbreaking compromise may soon settle the battles with two epic agreements that hold the promise of peace and fish for the watershed. View an excerpt from the documentary here.

Video

Shaping of the West: 100 Years of Reclamation

30-minute DVD that traces the history of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and its role in the development of the West. Includes extensive historic footage of farming and the construction of dams and other water projects, and discusses historic and modern day issues.

Maps & Posters

San Joaquin River Restoration Map
Published 2012

This beautiful 24×36 inch poster, suitable for framing, features a map of the San Joaquin River. The map text focuses on the San Joaquin River Restoration Program, which aims to restore flows and populations of Chinook salmon to the river below Friant Dam to its confluence with the Merced River. The text discusses the history of the program, its goals and ongoing challenges with implementation. 

Maps & Posters

Carson River Basin Map
Published 2006

A companion to the Truckee River Basin Map poster, this 24×36-inch poster, suitable for framing, explores the Carson River, and its link to the Truckee River. The map includes the Lahontan Dam and reservoir, the Carson Sink, and the farming areas in the basin. Map text discusses the region’s hydrology and geography, the Newlands Project, land and water use within the basin and wetlands. Development of the map was funded by a grant from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Mid-Pacific Region, Lahontan Basin Area Office.

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to Water Rights Law
Updated 2020

The 28-page Layperson’s Guide to Water Rights Law, recognized as the most thorough explanation of California water rights law available to non-lawyers, traces the authority for water flowing in a stream or reservoir, from a faucet or into an irrigation ditch through the complex web of California water rights.

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to Water Marketing
Updated 2005

The 20-page Layperson’s Guide to Water Marketing provides background information on water rights, types of transfers and critical policy issues surrounding this topic. First published in 1996, the 2005 version offers expanded information on groundwater banking and conjunctive use, Colorado River transfers and the role of private companies in California’s developing water market. 

Order in bulk (25 or more copies of the same guide) for a reduced fee. Contact the Foundation, 916-444-6240, for details.

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to the State Water Project
Updated 2013

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the State Water Project provides an overview of the California-funded and constructed State Water Project.

The State Water Project is best known for the 444-mile-long aqueduct that provides water from the Delta to San Joaquin Valley agriculture and southern California cities. The guide contains information about the project’s history and facilities.

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to the Klamath River Basin
Published 2023

The Water Education Foundation’s second edition of the Layperson’s Guide to The Klamath River Basin is hot off the press and available for purchase.

Updated and redesigned, the easy-to-read overview covers the history of the region’s tribal, agricultural and environmental relationships with one of the West’s largest rivers — and a vast watershed that hosts one of the nation’s oldest and largest reclamation projects.

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to Integrated Regional Water Management
Published 2013

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) is an in-depth, easy-to-understand publication that provides background information on the principles of IRWM, its funding history and how it differs from the traditional water management approach.

Publication California Groundwater Map

Layperson’s Guide to Groundwater
Updated 2017

The 28-page Layperson’s Guide to Groundwater is an in-depth, easy-to-understand publication that provides background and perspective on groundwater. The guide explains what groundwater is – not an underground network of rivers and lakes! – and the history of its use in California.

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to Flood Management
Updated 2009

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to Flood Management explains the physical flood control system, including levees; discusses previous flood events (including the 1997 flooding); explores issues of floodplain management and development; provides an overview of flood forecasting; and outlines ongoing flood control projects. 

Publication

Layperson’s Guide to the Central Valley Project
Updated 2021

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the Central Valley Project explores the history and development of the federal Central Valley Project (CVP), California’s largest surface water delivery system. In addition to the project’s history, the guide describes the various CVP facilities, CVP operations, the benefits the CVP brought to the state and the CVP Improvement Act (CVPIA).

Publication Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Map

Layperson’s Guide to the Delta
Updated 2020

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the Delta explores the competing uses and demands on California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Included in the guide are sections on the history of the Delta, its role in the state’s water system, and its many complex issues with sections on water quality, levees, salinity and agricultural drainage, fish and wildlife, and water distribution.

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Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Litigation

For more than 30 years, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has been embroiled in continuing controversy over the struggle to restore the faltering ecosystem while maintaining its role as the hub of the state’s water supply.

Lawsuits and counter lawsuits have been filed, while environmentalists and water users continue to clash over  the amount of water that can be safely exported from the region.

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National Environmental Policy Act

Passed in 1970, the federal National Environmental Policy Act requires lead public agencies to prepare and submit for public review environmental impact reports and statements on major federal projects under their purview with potentially significant environmental effects.

According to the Department of Energy, administrator of NEPA:

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Judge Wanger Rulings

Federal Judge Oliver Wanger overturned a federal scientific study that aimed to protect Delta smelt in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

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Groundwater Legislation

California has considered, but not implemented, a comprehensive groundwater strategy many times over the last century.

One hundred years ago, the California Conservation Commission considered adding  groundwater regulation into the Water Commission Act of 1913.  After hearings were held, it was decided to leave groundwater rights out of the Water Code.

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Federal Reserved Rights

Federal reserved rights were created when the United States reserved land from the public domain for uses such as Indian reservations, military bases and national parks, forests and monuments.  [See also Pueblo Rights].

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Federal Endangered Species Act

Federal Endangered Species Act

The federal government passed the Endangered Species Act in 1973, following earlier legislation. The first, the  Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966, authorized land acquisition to conserve select species. The Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969 then expanded on the 1966 act, and authorized “the compilation of a list of animals “threatened with worldwide extinction” and prohibits their importation without a permit.”

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California Wild and Scenic Rivers Act

North Fork of the American River,  a section deemed wild and scenic. California’s Legislature passed the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act in 1972, following the passage of the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act by Congress in 1968. Under California law, “[c]ertain rivers which possess extraordinary scenic, recreational, fishery, or wildlife values shall be preserved in their free-flowing state, together with their immediate environments, for the benefit and enjoyment of the people of the state.”

Rivers are classified as:

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California Endangered Species Act

California was the first state in the nation to protect fish, flora and fauna with the enactment of the California Endangered Species Act in 1970. (Congress followed suit in 1973 by passing the federal Endangered Species Act. See also the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES.)

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Area-of-Origin and California Water

The legal term “area-of-origin” dates back to 1931 in California.

At that time, concerns over water transfers prompted enactment of four “area-of-origin” statutes. With water transfers from Yosemite’s Hetch Hetchy Valley to supply water for San Francisco and from Owens Valley to Los Angeles fresh in mind, the statutes were intended to protect local areas against export of water.

In particular, counties in Northern California had concerns about the state tapping their water to develop California’s supply.

Western Water Excerpt Gary PitzerRita Schmidt Sudman

Changing the Status Quo: The 2009 Water Package
January/February 2010

It would be a vast understatement to say the package of water bills approved by the California Legislature and signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last November was anything but a significant achievement. During a time of fierce partisan battles and the state’s long-standing political gridlock with virtually all water policy, pundits at the beginning of 2009 would have given little chance to lawmakers being able to reach com­promise on water legislation.

Western Water Excerpt Gary PitzerRita Schmidt Sudman

Thirty Years of the Clean Water Act
Nov/Dec 2002

This year marks the 30th anniversary of one of the most significant environmental laws in American history, the Clean Water Act (CWA). The law that emerged from the consensus and compromise that characterizes the legislative process has had remarkable success, reversing years of neglect and outright abuse of the nation’s waters.

Western Water Excerpt Rita Schmidt Sudman

The Davis Administration and California Water
Mar/Apr 1999

In January, Mary Nichols joined the cabinet of the new Davis administration. With her appointment by Gov. Gray Davis as Secretary for Resources, Ms. Nichols, 53, took on the role of overseeing the state of California’s activities for the management, preservation and enhancement of its natural resources, including land, wildlife, water and minerals. As head of the Resources Agency, she directs the activities of 19 departments, conservancies, boards and commissions, serving as the governor’s representative on these boards and commissions.

Western Water Excerpt Rita Schmidt Sudman

CVP Improvement Act Update
May/Jun 1997

Two days before our annual Executive Briefing, I picked up my phone to hear “The White House calling… .” Vice President Al Gore had accepted the foundation’s invitation to speak at our March 13 briefing on California water issues. That was the start of a new experience for us. For in addition to conducting a briefing for about 250 people, we were now dealing with Secret Service agents, bomb sniffing dogs and government sharpshooters, speech writers, print and TV reporters, school children and public relations people.