PART 2.74. Sustainable Groundwater Management [10720. - 10738.]
Part 2.74 added by Stats. 2014, Ch. 346, Sec. 3.
§§ 10720–10738 · 73 sections
CHAPTER 1. General Provisions §§ 10720–10720.9 · 7 sections
- § 10720 This part shall be known, and may be cited, as the “Sustainable Groundwater Management Act.”
- § 10720.1 In enacting this part, it is the intent of the Legislature to do all of the following: (a) To provide for the sustainable management of groundwater basins. (b)…
- § 10720.3 (a) This part applies to all groundwater basins in the state. (b) To the extent authorized under federal or tribal law, this part applies to an Indian tribe…
- § 10720.5 (a) Groundwater management pursuant to this part shall be consistent with Section 2 of Article X of the California Constitution. Nothing in this part modifies…
- § 10720.7 (a) (1) By January 31, 2020, all basins designated as high- or medium-priority basins by the department that have been designated in Bulletin 118, as it may be…
- § 10720.8 (a) Except as provided in subdivision (e), this part does not apply to the following adjudicated areas or a local agency that conforms to the requirements of…
- § 10720.9 All relevant state agencies, including, but not limited to, the board, the regional water quality control boards, the department, and the Department of Fish…
CHAPTER 2. Definitions § 10721 · 1 section
- § 10721 Unless the context otherwise requires, the following definitions govern the construction of this part: (a) “Adjudication action” means an action filed in the…
CHAPTER 3. Basin Boundaries §§ 10722–10722.5 · 4 sections
- § 10722 Unless other basin boundaries are established pursuant to this chapter, a basin’s boundaries shall be as identified in Bulletin 118.
- § 10722.2 (a) A local agency or an entity directed by the court in an adjudication action to file the request may request that the department revise the boundaries of a…
- § 10722.4 (a) Pursuant to Section 10933, for the purposes of this part the department shall categorize each basin as one of the following priorities: (1) High priority.…
- § 10722.5 (a) The San Luis Rey Valley Groundwater Basin, identified as Basin 9-007 in Bulletin 118 (2016), shall be divided into an upper and lower subbasin at the east…
CHAPTER 4. Establishing Groundwater Sustainability Agencies §§ 10723–10724.2 · 7 sections
- § 10723 (a) Except as provided in subdivision (c), any local agency or combination of local agencies overlying a groundwater basin may decide to become a groundwater…
- § 10723.2 The groundwater sustainability agency shall consider the interests of all beneficial uses and users of groundwater, as well as those responsible for…
- § 10723.4 The groundwater sustainability agency shall establish and maintain a list of persons interested in receiving notices regarding plan preparation, meeting…
- § 10723.6 (a) A combination of local agencies may form a groundwater sustainability agency by using any of the following methods: (1) A joint powers agreement. (2) A…
- § 10723.8 (a) Within 30 days of deciding to become or form a groundwater sustainability agency, the local agency or combination of local agencies shall inform the…
- § 10724 (a) In the event that there is an area within a high- or medium-priority basin that is not within the management area of a groundwater sustainability agency,…
- § 10724.2 No later than January 1, 2026, each groundwater sustainability agency shall do both of the following: (a) Publish on its internet website or its local agency’s…
CHAPTER 5. Powers and Authorities §§ 10725–10726.9 · 12 sections
- § 10725 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency may exercise any of the powers described in this chapter in implementing this part, in addition to, and not as a…
- § 10725.2 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency may perform any act necessary or proper to carry out the purposes of this part. (b) A groundwater sustainability agency…
- § 10725.4 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency may conduct an investigation for the purposes of this part, including, but not limited to, investigations for the…
- § 10725.6 A groundwater sustainability agency may require registration of a groundwater extraction facility within the management area of the groundwater sustainability…
- § 10725.8 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency may require through its groundwater sustainability plan that the use of every groundwater extraction facility within…
- § 10726 An entity within the area of a groundwater sustainability plan shall report the diversion of surface water to underground storage to the groundwater…
- § 10726.2 A groundwater sustainability agency may do the following: (a) Acquire by grant, purchase, lease, gift, devise, contract, construction, or otherwise, and hold,…
- § 10726.4 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency shall have the following additional authority and may regulate groundwater extraction using that authority: (1) To…
- § 10726.5 In addition to any other authority granted to a groundwater sustainability agency by this part or other law, a groundwater sustainability agency may enter into…
- § 10726.6 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency that adopts a groundwater sustainability plan may file an action to determine the validity of the plan pursuant to…
- § 10726.8 (a) This part is in addition to, and not a limitation on, the authority granted to a local agency under any other law. The local agency may use the local…
- § 10726.9 A groundwater sustainability plan shall take into account the most recent planning assumptions stated in local general plans of jurisdictions overlying the…
CHAPTER 6. Groundwater Sustainability Plans §§ 10727–10728.6 · 9 sections
- § 10727 (a) A groundwater sustainability plan shall be developed and implemented for each medium- or high-priority basin by a groundwater sustainability agency to meet…
- § 10727.2 A groundwater sustainability plan shall include all of the following: (a) A description of the physical setting and characteristics of the aquifer system…
- § 10727.4 In addition to the requirements of Section 10727.2, a groundwater sustainability plan shall include, where appropriate and in collaboration with the…
- § 10727.6 Groundwater sustainability agencies intending to develop and implement multiple groundwater sustainability plans pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (b)…
- § 10727.8 (a) Prior to initiating the development of a groundwater sustainability plan, the groundwater sustainability agency shall make available to the public and the…
- § 10728 On the April 1 following the adoption of a groundwater sustainability plan and annually thereafter, a groundwater sustainability agency shall submit a report…
- § 10728.2 A groundwater sustainability agency shall periodically evaluate its groundwater sustainability plan, assess changing conditions in the basin that may warrant…
- § 10728.4 A groundwater sustainability agency may adopt or amend a groundwater sustainability plan after a public hearing, held at least 90 days after providing notice…
- § 10728.6 Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code does not apply to the preparation and adoption of plans pursuant to this chapter.…
CHAPTER 7. Technical Assistance §§ 10729–10729.2 · 2 sections
- § 10729 (a) The department or a groundwater sustainability agency may provide technical assistance to entities that extract or use groundwater to promote water…
- § 10729.2 With the exception of regulations required by Sections 10722.2 and 10733.2, a guideline, criterion, bulletin, or other technical or procedural analysis or…
CHAPTER 8. Financial Authority §§ 10730–10731 · 7 sections
- § 10730 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency may impose fees, including, but not limited to, permit fees and fees on groundwater extraction or other regulated…
- § 10730.1 A groundwater sustainability agency, before imposing or increasing a fee pursuant to Section 10730 or 10730.2 relating to a groundwater basin that includes a…
- § 10730.2 (a) A groundwater sustainability agency that adopts a groundwater sustainability plan pursuant to this part may impose fees on the extraction of groundwater…
- § 10730.4 A groundwater sustainability agency may fund activities pursuant to Part 2.75 (commencing with Section 10750) and may impose fees pursuant to Section 10730.2…
- § 10730.6 (a) A groundwater fee levied pursuant to this chapter shall be due and payable to the groundwater sustainability agency by each owner or operator on a day…
- § 10730.8 (a) Nothing in this chapter shall affect or interfere with the authority of a groundwater sustainability agency to levy and collect taxes, assessments,…
- § 10731 (a) Following an investigation pursuant to Section 10725.4, the governing body may make a determination fixing the amount of groundwater production from the…
CHAPTER 9. Groundwater Sustainability Agency Enforcement Powers §§ 10732–10732.2 · 2 sections
- § 10732 (a) (1) A person who extracts groundwater in excess of the amount that person is authorized to extract under a rule, regulation, ordinance, or resolution…
- § 10732.2 If a groundwater sustainability agency finds that a state entity is not working cooperatively regarding implementation of a groundwater sustainability plan,…
CHAPTER 10. State Evaluation and Assessment §§ 10733–10733.8 · 5 sections
- § 10733 (a) The department shall periodically review the groundwater sustainability plans developed by groundwater sustainability agencies pursuant to this part to…
- § 10733.2 (a) (1) By June 1, 2016, the department shall adopt regulations for evaluating groundwater sustainability plans, the implementation of groundwater…
- § 10733.4 (a) Upon adoption of a groundwater sustainability plan, a groundwater sustainability agency shall submit the groundwater sustainability plan to the department…
- § 10733.6 (a) If a local agency believes that an alternative described in subdivision (b) satisfies the objectives of this part, the local agency may submit the…
- § 10733.8 At least every five years after initial submission of a plan pursuant to Section 10733.4, the department shall review any available groundwater sustainability…
CHAPTER 11. State Intervention §§ 10735–10736.6 · 9 sections
- § 10735 As used in this chapter, the following terms have the following meanings: (a) “Condition of long-term overdraft” means the condition of a groundwater basin…
- § 10735.2 (a) The board, after notice and a public hearing, may designate a high- or medium-priority basin as a probationary basin, if the board finds one or more of the…
- § 10735.4 (a) If the board designates a basin as a probationary basin pursuant to paragraph (1), (2), or (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 10735.2, a local agency or…
- § 10735.6 (a) If the board designates a basin as a probationary basin pursuant to paragraph (3) or (5) of subdivision (a) of Section 10735.2, the board shall identify…
- § 10735.8 (a) The board, after notice and a public hearing, may adopt an interim plan for a probationary basin. (b) The interim plan shall include all of the following:…
- § 10736 (a) The board shall adopt or amend a determination or interim plan under Section 10735.2 or 10735.8 in accordance with procedures for quasi-legislative action.…
- § 10736.2 (a) Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code does not apply to either of the following: (1) An action by the board pursuant to…
- § 10736.4 The extraction or use of water extracted in violation of an interim plan under this part shall not be relied upon as a basis for establishing the extraction or…
- § 10736.6 (a) The board may order a person that extracts or uses water from a basin that is subject to an investigation or proceeding under this chapter to prepare and…
CHAPTER 12. Determination of Rights to Groundwater §§ 10737–10738 · 8 sections
- § 10737 Except as provided in this chapter, an adjudication action to determine rights to groundwater in a basin shall be conducted in accordance with the Code of…
- § 10737.2 In an adjudication action for a basin required to have a groundwater sustainability plan under this part, the court shall manage the proceedings in a manner…
- § 10737.3 (a) (1) Unless otherwise ordered by the court, all monitoring and reporting required under all groundwater sustainability plans approved by the department, or…
- § 10737.4 (a) Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 10735) shall not apply to a judgment approved by the court pursuant to Section 850 of the Code of Civil Procedure if…
- § 10737.6 If the department determines that a judgment satisfies the objectives of this part in accordance with paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 10737.4, the…
- § 10737.8 In addition to making any findings required by subdivision (a) of Section 850 of the Code of Civil Procedure or any other law, the court shall not approve…
- § 10737.9 (a) (1) Upon receiving notice that an adjudication has commenced in its basin, a groundwater sustainability agency shall host a public meeting to explain the…
- § 10738 The approval of a groundwater sustainability plan by the department shall not be construed to be a determination by or otherwise an opinion of the department…