Prop 218
Prop 218 Documents
Public Workshops
I am a Grower
I am a Community Resident
Public Hearing
Driving Local Groundwater Management Solutions
The Kings River East GSA formed in 2017 to implement the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), a California law passed in 2014 that requires critically overdrafted groundwater basins, like ours, to achieve groundwater sustainability by 2040.
But SGMA is an unfunded State mandate, and therefore local efforts to manage groundwater sustainably lean primarily on local funding.
The Proposition 218 process seeks landowner approval to establish a property-related fee up to $9.93 per acre to fund the cost-of-services being provided to landowners to sustainably manage groundwater and maintain compliance with SGMA. The proposed fee consists of two components, a base fee of $4.73 per acre and a domestic well mitigation fee of $5.70 per acre.
SGMA was designed to keep groundwater management in local hands by allowing communities to develop and implement their own plans for achieving sustainability. However, the State serves as the regulatory backstop and will intervene if local agencies like ours fail to meet the law’s requirements or do not demonstrate adequate progress toward sustainability targets.
What Would the Prop 218 Fund?
Local Autonomy
Funding helps keep local autonomy in balance with State oversight. We regularly prepare and submit Annual Reports, Periodic Evaluations, and Groundwater Sustainability Plan updates to the State showing our progress on SGMA. This keeps local decision-making intact and allows the community to understand how we are measuring up to our sustainability targets.
Coordinated Regional Strategies
Close coordination through regular meetings with stakeholders and neighboring groundwater agencies in the Kings Subbasin helps minimize conflicts and duplicated efforts, reducing costs for everyone.
Proactive Decision-Making Tools
Better groundwater data leads to better management decisions. By improving groundwater monitoring and data collection tools, we can make more proactive and informed decisions that help support sustainable groundwater management and local control.
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I’m a
Community Resident
Groundwater stored in the aquifer beneath our feet is a shared resource. Cities, small communities, and agricultural producers across the region all rely on it to meet their needs.
Many residential parcels would pay less than $1 per month to fund efforts to achieve a sustainable groundwater supply.
Fee Breakdown by Property Size
| Acres | Square Feet | Annually | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.15 | 6,534 | $1.49 | $0.12 |
| 0.50 | 21,780 | $4.97 | $0.41 |
| 1.00 | 43,560 | $9.93 | $0.83 |
| 2 | 87,120 | $19.86 | $1.66 |
Kings River East GSA Member Agencies
Orosi
Public Utility District
East Orosi
Community Services District
Sultana
Community Service District
London
Community Service District
Tri-Valley
Water District
Hills Valley
Irrigation District
Kings River
Water District
Yettem-Seville
Community Service District
Community Workshops
Spanish interpretation provided
I’m a
Grower
The Value of Local Management
The Kings Subbasin is one of 15 critically overdrafted subbasins to have made it through the first major SGMA hurdle – an approved Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP).
In basins without an approved GSP:
- Pumpers are required to report their pumping data to the State Board,
- Pay fees directly into the State’s bank accounts,
- and experience a high degree of uncertainty regarding State-directed pumping restrictions and requirements.
Passing the Prop 218 will fund the work necessary to maintain our local autonomy and reduce the risk of direct State intervention.
Groundwater Conditions
+8,600 AF AVERAGE ANNUAL GROUNDWATER STORAGE INCREASE IN KINGS RIVER EAST GSA, 2015 – 2025
Recharge, rainfall, irrigation return flow, and expanded surface water diversions into Alta Irrigation District have improved groundwater storage by enough water to fill nearly 2,200 forty-acre fields one foot deep, equivalent to nearly 80% of Alta Irrigation District’s cropped acreage.
This data is promising, but it doesn’t mean we can sit back.
When we remove the record-crushing 2023 wet water year from the picture, the cumulative groundwater storage change number for the period from 2015 to 2025 dips far into the negative at -197,000 acre-feet.
What does this mean? Large swings between dry and wet hydrologic conditions significantly affect our ability to achieve sustainable conditions. We need to remain prepared to address the impacts of drought periods on our sustainability targets while planning effectively to maximize water use in wet years.
Kings River East GSA Groundwater Storage Change by Water Year
Leading Strategy: Capture More Surface Water
Alta Irrigation District Recharge Basins
+120 acres of basins anticipated to start construction in 2026, over a 60% increase in Alta ID owned basins.
+80 acres planned for purchase.
Upper Kings River Districts Pursue Basins Together
+3,300 acres of recharge planned by Alta, Fresno, and Consolidated Irrigation Districts to maximize Kings River wet year water supplies.
Alta’s “FARM” Program
+170,000+ acre-feet of additional supplies captured since 2017 through Alta’s Functional Aquifer Recharge Management “FARM” program.
Grower Workshops
Spanish interpretation provided
