By Dusty Ference, Executive Director, Kings County Farm Bureau
Following the significant April 16, 2024, public hearing, where the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) placed the Tulare Lake Sub-basin (TLSB) on probation, the Mid-Kings River GSA (MKRGSA) conducted its own public hearing. This hearing, mandated by CA Proposition 218, was a crucial platform for the public to voice their opinions on the MKRGA’s proposed tax and fees. It was also the forum where votes and protests were
tallied. Notably, KCFB launched a campaign against this proposition, and we are pleased to announce that the landowners in the GSA rejected the proposal. The MKRGSA has yet to convene since this public hearing.
The Kings County Water District, County of Kings, and City of Hanford initially formed the Mid-Kings River GSA through a Joint Powers Agreement (JPA). A testament to their collaborative efforts, the JPA stipulated that the MKRGSA board of directors would be composed of three directors from the Kings County Water District, one from the City of Hanford, and one from the Stakeholder Advisory Committee (which was never formed), along with other provisions governing the agency. Notably, the JPA allows members to withdraw without dissolving the GSA.
At a Special Board Meeting on May 29, 2024, the Kings County Water District (KCWD) made the decision to withdraw from the JPA and the Mid-Kings River GSA. As per the JPA, KCWD is required to give a 60-day notice to the County of Kings and the City of Hanford before officially ending its participation.
KCWD’s decision came when the TLSB needed leadership, not more turmoil. More than 75 water users attended KCWD’s May 29 special meeting. Their message was clear: leadership and hard decisions are required; do not abandon the GSA and your fellow farmers. Unfortunately, that message was disregarded by the KCWD board of directors. Instead, they removed themselves from the conversation and simultaneously placed the rest of the sub-basin in harm’s way.
By withdrawing from the GSA, the KCWD did not immediately dissolve the agency, but it did jeopardize its future. On June 28, 2024, the GSA will have only one seated director, and since three seats were allocated to the KCWD, there is no immediate way to appoint directors. This leaves the GSA board without a quorum and unable to function. It is now incumbent upon the other member agencies to step in, engage, and steer the GSA back on course.
The way the MKRGSA JPA is written can be amended by the remaining agencies, which both seem eager to do. However, getting two governing bodies to approve a legally binding document is no small task, even when both parties agree to the spirit of the agreement.
Currently, KCFB is unsure of the details that the County or the City wishes to see in an amended contract. We will work closely with both agencies to ensure the MKRGSA is back on track soon.
The South Fork Kings GSA (SFKGSA) has been looking for its next General Manager for several months. In May, the agency interviewed applicants. If the agency is satisfied with an applicant, it could offer the position to a candidate at or shortly after its June board of directors meeting. KCFB looks forward to an announcement soon.
In late April, the SFKGSA created a Grower Advisory Committee of growers from around the GSA. Their first meeting focused on the background of SGMA, providing the committee and community members with a foundation of SGMA to date. Since that meeting, the committee has met one other time. The second meeting focused on potential ag and
domestic Well Registration and Domestic Well Mitigation policies that the board may consider.
In addition to the Grower Advisory Committee, the SFKGSA recently created a Policy Advisory Committee. The Policy Advisory Committee has considered neither the Domestic Well Mitigation nor the Well Registration policies.
The TLSB consists of five GSAs. The three not yet mentioned in this article have all decided and announced their intentions to submit individual Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSP) to the SWRCB. These decisions mean the subbasin will have three to five GSPs moving forward—one plan from each, the El Rico, Southwest Kings, and Tri-County Water Authority GSAs. The MKRGSA and SFKGSAs may submit one GSP for both agencies or two individual plans. Either way, the TLSB GSAs must agree to and write a coordination agreement as required under SGMA.
According to a document found at water.ca.gov, dated 4/18/2018, and titled RESPONSES TO FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: GSP INITIAL NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS, WHEN IS A COORDINATION AGREEMENT NECESSARY, AND WHAT IS A PLAN MANAGER, water code section 10721 (d) defines a coordination agreement as “a legal agreement adopted
between two or more GSAs that provides the basis for coordinating multiple agencies or GSPs within a basin.” The minimum content of a coordination agreement is found in Article 8, Section 357.4 of the GSP Regulations. The coordination agreement shall, among other items addressed in Section 357.4, describe a single point of contact for the basin; establish procedures for resolving conflicts between GSAs; ensure that the multiple GSAs developing multiple GSPs use the same data and methodologies for the assumptions described in Water Code Section 10727.6; and describe a coordinated data management system. Per Water Code Section 10727.6, the GSP elements, at minimum, that GSAs must be coordinated in a basin include the following:
- Groundwater elevation data
- Groundwater extraction data
- Surface water supply
- Total water use
- Change in groundwater storage
- Water budget
- Sustainable yield
Leading up to and during the April 16 hearing, the SWRCB applauded the TLSB for submitting a single GSP, eliminating the need for a coordination agreement despite never submitting an acceptable plan. However, when considering the requirements of a coordination agreement as described, it is easy to question whether it is achievable in the Tulare Lake Sub-basin.
SGMA in the Tulare Lake Sub-basin will remain the most important and impactful issue facing Kings County for the foreseeable future. KCFB is here to keep you informed of the quickly changing landscape of SGMA, and we will continue to fight for your right to farm.
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