By Don A. Wright
The Tulare Irrigation District held its Tuesday, October 13, 2026 board of directors meeting at its headquarters west of town, the town being Tulare. It was also available online with Zoom. Under the guidance of Chairman Dave Bixler they went ahead and started on time. That left me at a disadvantage because I wasn’t sitting at my computer and they motored through the preliminaries such as calling the meeting to order, approving the minutes and BAM right into the water ops report.
Water Report
Marco Crenshaw reported on water. Millerton Lake is about half full or 250,000 a/f of storage. He said TID has about a week to shut down any connection to the Friant Kern Canal. Fukuda commented on the dewatering of the Friant Kern Canal this season. This happens about every five-years to give the Friant Water Authority a chance to do repairs and maintenance. This also allows contractors to do the work they need to do such as turnout repairs. I understand there are three major tie-ins; Fresno ID has a turnout, Tea Pot Dome ID has a pumpstation and there’s one other but I don’t recall what it is.
General Manager Aaron Fukuda said the buzz words are Super El Nino. He showed a video of Chris Farley dressed like a big time wrestler shouting all other storms must bow to El Nino. The chances of this being a wet winter are only slightly improved by El Nino. He said either way TID is prepared for a wet year if we can get it.
O&M
Wayne Fox gave the Operations and Maintenance report saying they are going to spread some sand on the canal banks to cut down on dust. The weeds have been mowed and rip rap added to some canals to cut back on erosion. He said a lot of the busted concrete comes from dairies but there is more competition for it. It has some value when it’s ground up.
Fukuda said Fox did an incredible job at the McKay Point Reservoir site’s material testing for a slurry wall. He said it was like a blind science project without a list of needed supplies or procedures. He said the West Coast Sand & Gravel’s processing actually produces a fine silt/sludge that works as a slurry wall stabilizing the banks – if I understood correctly.
Of course, crews had to remove the debris and detritus of the unhoused nomads who prefer waterfront living. The list of other deeds and adventures of the TID O&M crew would be very long to list here. Fukuda again praised Fox saying when he went through the bills Fox and crew didn’t have one outside bill this past month. All the maintenance on district equipment was conducted in house. That’s pretty impressive. There was a long sidebar on retaining employees and TID would be a better place to work than most.
Treasurers Report
Next Kathi Artis gave the financial reports. If you’re familiar with the quality of Miss Artis’ work you won’t be surprised to learn the board accepted her report in full and unanimously. In fact in all the years I’ve been covering TID I don’t remember any of Artis’ reports not being fully and unanimously approved.
Still most boards are comprised of farmers and true to form when the bills payable list was presented the room became quiet. The board went under for a deep dive into what was being spent. You would too if your livelihood taught you there’s no choice but to avoid risk and spend thriftly. I believe this is one reason there are so very few financial scandals and fiduciary crimes taking place at irrigation and water districts.
Engineering Report
Somewhere in between the financial report and the engineering report was an update on Highway 99 construction. South of Tulare it’s a four lane road but opens up to six lanes in town. 99 is one of the most heavily traveled stretch of road in California. For the most part it flows well through Tulare – until the World Ag Expo comes to town. The powers there are finally creating a special exit and hopefully someday the entire length of Highway 99 through the Valley will be increased to a minimum of six lanes. Where does all the Caltrans money go?
Fukuda reported on engineering activities which included pipeline problem that has been plaguing TID and the Tulare Unified School District. The School District wanted to increase a parking lot by paving over an ancient cast in place concrete pipe. About 500 feet of pipe is being replaced.
Management Reports
Fukuda reported the Groundwater Sustainability Agencies in the Kaweah Subbasin: Mid Kaweah, Greater Kaweah and East Kaweah GSA – is looking for a solution to eliminating overdraft allocations and open transfer of native safe yield. Fukuda said he didn’t have a Mid Kaweah GSA report (the GSA TID is in.)
Friant
Fukuda said there’s been a pumpstation groundbreaking, the FWA budget has been passed and there will be a board offsite November 17-19th in Bakersfield.
McKay Point & Seaborn Reservoirs
Mark Limas reported on the McKay Point negotiations with West Coast Sand & Gravel that operates a gravel quarry on this site. The main issue is the cost share on power and ownership. WCSG and TID will require a large electrical panel and it costs more than $200,000. Right now TID doesn’t need the power but it will. Limas said they’ve already spent $133,000 on clearing easements and installing conduit and vaults. Fukuda said WCSG have been extra easy to work with and have a very fast response to get things done.
The related Seaborn Reservoir is undergoing a watershed plan and environmental assessment. TID is meeting monthly with the NRCS. These plans are slated for completion by May of 2028. Your friends at the US Bureau of Reclamation awarded the project $10 million for construction costs.
Office Remodel
Limas reported construction began in August and drywall, paint and texture is complete. Electrical, window and doors and furniture have been ordered and he expects completion by November of this year. The annex construction has begun and should be ready for occupancy by March 2027.
Legislation/CEO Report
Next Fukuda reported he is lobbying for more ASO and diversion criteria for early forecasting. That was that for legislation.
Fukuda spoke at the Floodplain Management Association panel on groundwater recharge for flood protection. Congressman David Valadao visited TID and that was appreciated. The Blueprint Strategic Plan was tinkered with. Fukuda gave a presentation to the California Water Commission on groundwater recharge.
There is also a career counselor outreach about water put on by ACWA. He said it was geared for high school counselors. Come to find out water professionals starting pay is about the same as lawyers. There is a quiet salary, meaning benefits that are also often on par or exceeding that of attorneys. Fukuda said he told the Association of Appraisers be happy you’re not a wine grape grower. They are losing money left and right. He told them about recharge and SGMA.
He also participated in a DWR recharge working group – a subgroup of the California Water Plan. He gave a presentation to the UC Davis School of Law on SGMA from governance to implementing Groundwater Sustainability Plans and met with Congressmen Valadao and Vince Fong and other members of the Western Caucus. They gathered at Schaefer Dam and met with the Army Corps of Engineers. I don’t care who you are, that is a busy month.
Action Items
The board considered Resolution No. 2026-08 approving the 2027 assessment rate. Fukuda laid out the figures and led the board through them. He said expenses are about the same from a wet year to a dry year but revenue is higher in a wet year. Instead of describing a play by play of a rather detailed spread sheet this material is available as a public document. The board voted for a $100 per acre assessment and the resolution passed.
Limas reported there were nine bidders for installing the modular annex building. They ranged from $449,000 high bid to $289,499 low bid by JTS Construction. Somehow that discussion morphed into the inflation we’ve been experiencing and how that impacts cherry trees. The board went with JTS.
Next was a closer to home item for me. WaterOne.ai, whose SGMA reports are reprinted in WaterWrights.net, has proposed entering into a software development pilot project with TID. Fukuda said Ryo Takahashi of WaterOne will develop and test software for board agendas, reports, meeting packets and meeting notes. TID will provide staff input, testing and feedback and participate in approved testimonials and demonstrations if necessary. There is no money involved but staff time will be unreimbursed. The benefits will be a one year free pilot, 50-percent off the annual subscription rate, no purchase obligation and this is a non-binding agreement. Closed session would not be included. Drum roll – the board approved. Good for them.
ACWA has asked TID for help with its Vision for Our Water Future. This is designed to educate elected officials and implement a cabinet level water policy executive. Bonds are not proving stable. Texas has a model that funds its water projects with a separate fund dedicated to water. Getting infrastructure modernized and streamlining water management regulatory by improving permitting and a host of other improvements. The board agreed to pass Resolution No. 2026-09 so TID will officially be a part of this project.
Board Member Reports/Closed Session
The members gave reports of meetings they attended and other news germane to the subject. The meeting went into closed session for five listed items; a mix of labor negotiations, claims against the district and some legal court case wrangling. That was it for this month’s TID board. Go be good to yourselves and others.
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TULARE IRRIGATION DISTRICT
6826 Ave 240, Tulare, CA 93274 Office: 559/686-3425
Board: David G. Bixler- President, Richard S. Borges, Jr.-Vice President, Scott Rogers, Dave Martin & Michael Thomas
Staff: Aaron Fukuda-General Manager, Kathi Artis–District Controller, Wayne Fox–Superintendent, Marco Crenshaw–District Watermaster, George Munoz-Assistant Engineer & Alex Peltzer-Attorney.
About: The Tulare Irrigation District was organized September 21, 1889. The original proposal for the formation of an irrigation district covering 219,000 acres, extending from the Sierra Nevada foothills to Tulare Lake, was eventually reduced to 32,500 acres. The District continued in this status until January of 1948 when the so-called Kaweah Lands” (approximately 11,000 acres) were annexed. In October of 1948, approximately 31,000 acres, compromising the area served by the Packwood Canal Company were annexed to the District. A U.S. Bureau of Reclamation contract was signed in 1950 providing an annual supply of 30,000 acre-feet of Class 1 water, and up to 141,000 acre-feet of Class 2 water from the Friant-Kern Canal. The District and the Kaweah Delta Water Conservation District have coordinated efforts to enhance the recharge of groundwater within the Kaweah Basin. During high flow times KDWCD may use the recharge basins with the District for recharge purposes. Further, KDWCD has historically provided for a financial incentive program through which the District sustains the level of groundwater recharge from supply sources into the District. This historical program was recently reinstated by both districts in lieu of the District’s plans to concrete-line this canal to conserve the surface water. TID is a member of the Mid Kaweah GSA DWR#-5-022.11
