Jan 08, 2026 GSA Meeting

[1. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL]

[00:00:04]

OKAY. I'M GOING TO CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER OF THE JANUARY 8TH.

MERCED SUBBASIN GSA MEETING. CAN WE CALL THE ROLL, PLEASE? BOARD MEMBER GIAMPAOLI. HERE. BOARD MEMBER KELLEY.

HERE. BOARD MEMBER PARK. HERE. BOARD MEMBER GALLO.

HERE. VICE CHAIRMAN MARCHINI. HERE. YOU HAVE A QUORUM.

THANK YOU. AND, CHAIRMAN PAREIRA WILL BE HERE LATER.

IS IT EXCUSE OR UNEXCUSED? TARDY. EXCUSE TARDY.

EXCUSE TARDY. OKAY, I'M GOING TO ADJOURN TO CLOSED. OH, YEAH.

[2. CLOSED SESSION]

WELCOME TO THE JANUARY 8TH MEETING OF THE MERCED SUBBASIN GSA.

WE HAD A CLOSED SESSION, AND STAFF WAS GIVEN DIRECTION.

NOW WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM ONE, WHICH IS ROLL CALL.

BOARD MEMBER GALLO. HERE. BOARD MEMBER PARK. HERE.

BOARD MEMBER GIAMPAOLI. HERE. BOARD MEMBER KELLEY.

HERE. VICE CHAIRMAN MARCHINI. PRESENT. CHAIRMAN PAREIRA.

PRESENT. MR. CHAIR, YOU HAVE A QUORUM. THANK YOU.

OKAY. WE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT CLOSED SESSION, MOVE TO ITEM THREE. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.

MIKE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO LEAD US IN THAT? READY? PLEDGE. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS.

ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.

THANK YOU. MIKE. I WILL MOVE TO ITEM FOUR, WHICH IS OUR PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.

THIS IS THE PUBLIC'S OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK ON ANY MATTER OF PUBLIC INTEREST WITHIN THE BOARD'S JURISDICTION, INCLUDING ITEMS ON THE BOARD'S AGENDA. TESTIMONY IS LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES PER PERSON.

DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT? OKAY. THANKS FOR NO WISECRACKS, EITHER.

THERE. ALL RIGHT, I'LL CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM FIVE, WHICH IS THE CONSENT CALENDAR.

[5. CONSENT CALENDAR]

PAGE 25. AMAZON ORDER A SORRY ADMISSION TO SOME SORT OF EVENT THAT HAPPENED DOWN IN MADERA. YES. THAT'S ALL.

BACKUP INVOICES TO THE SEEDS INVOICE. SO THAT'S ALL THROUGH MLRP AND THOSE ARE THE SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION TO THE CHARGES THAT ARE ON THE SEEDS INVOICE OKAY.

SO THEY HOLD WORKSHOPS, PUBLIC WORKSHOPS. AND SO THAT'S WHAT THE AMAZON INVOICE IS. THE AIR FILTERS ARE FOR THE AIR QUALITY PUBLIC WORKSHOPS THAT THEY HOLD RELATED TO MLRP.

THE REGISTRATION FOR THE SALT OF THE EARTH WAS A CONFERENCE DOWN IN MADERA THAT THEY ATTENDED ADVOCATING FOR THE MERCED MLRP AT THAT CONFERENCE AND NETWORKING, TALKING TO FOLKS.

AND THEN THE LAST INVOICE I SEE ARE THE LAST IS FOOD.

AND THAT'S RELATED TO A WORKSHOP. THAT SEATS HELD.

OKAY. YEAH. YOU SEE AN AMAZON BILL AND YOU'RE WONDERING.

YEAH. YEAH, YEAH. OKAY. WHAT'S THE PLEASURE OF THE BOARD? MOVE TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. IS THAT GIAMPAOLI? OKAY. WE HAVE A ANY OTHER COMMENTS? ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION BY DIRECTOR GALLO.

SECOND BY DIRECTOR GIAMPAOLI. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.

AYE. ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES SIX ZERO. OKAY, WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM

[6. MULTIBENEFIT LAND REPURPOSING PROGRAM]

AND DO WE HAVE KARINA ONLINE? HI EVERYONE. KARINA MUDD WITH VALLEY ECO.

I'LL BE GIVING THE MULTI-BENEFIT LAND REPURPOSING PROGRAM UPDATE TODAY.

[00:05:04]

SO I'LL GIVE A BRIEF REMINDER ON THOSE PROJECTS AND THEN AN UPDATE ON EACH.

AND THEN THERE IS ONE BOARD ACTION ASSOCIATED WITH ONE OF THE PROJECTS.

SO OUR FIRST PROJECT, BEAR CREEK RANCH TRANSITIONAL SEEDING PROJECT IS ON A LITTLE OVER A THOUSAND ACRES, AND IT'S A COVER CROPPING ACTION AS A SORT OF TRANSITIONAL PHASE, PART OF A LARGER RECHARGE AND RESTORATION PROJECT.

SO FOR THAT PROJECT, SEED HAS BEEN ORDERED AND THEY'RE CURRENTLY FOCUSED ON WEED MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING TO SEED IN THE SPRING.

THEN WE HAVE THE AMSTERDAM JOHNSON RECHARGE PROJECT, WHICH WILL TRANSITION 15 ACRES OF ALMOND TREES TO A RECHARGE BASIN.

THIS PROJECT IS CURRENTLY ANALYZING ALTERNATIVE SITING OPTIONS FOR THE SAME PARCEL, BUT JUST WHICH PORTION OF THE PARCEL BASED ON COST AND ALSO SOILS ANALYSIS THAT WE'VE HAD DONE. SO WE'LL PROVIDE SOME UPDATES ONCE WE HAVE FINAL SORT OF SITING DECISION THERE.

THEN WE HAVE THE LA GRANDE COMMUNITY PROJECT, WHICH TRANSITIONS 20 ACRES OF FARMLAND JUST ADJACENT TO THE LA GRANDE HIGH SCHOOL, TO A RECREATIONAL SPACE WITH NATIVE HABITAT AND WALKING TRAILS.

THE UPDATE FOR THIS PROJECT IS THAT THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF MERCED COUNTY IS WORKING WITH THE LANDOWNER TO LEASE THE PROPERTY WITH AN OPTION TO PURCHASE, WHICH WILL ALLOW TIME FOR BOTH ACQUISITION AND CONSERVATION EASEMENT TRANSACTIONS, WHICH IS ARE BOTH ELEMENTS OF THIS PROJECT.

THEY ARE ALSO MEETING WITH THE COUNTY AND OTHER CONSULTANTS REGARDING A LEGAL LOT, LINE ADJUSTMENT AND ENTITLEMENT.

SO THERE'S SOME SORT OF TECHNICAL ITEMS TO GET THROUGH ON THIS PROJECT BEFORE MOVING INTO CEQA AND PERMITTING, ETC.. THE LAST PROJECT IS NEVADA RANCH, SO THIS IS 150 ACRES TRANSITIONING ALMOND TREES TO RANGELAND FOR GRAZING.

THEY ARE CURRENTLY PULLING THE ORCHARDS OUT AND SHIPPING THEM, AND THEY'RE EXPECTING TO SEED NEXT FALL.

THIS IS THE PROJECT THAT YOU HAVE A BOARD ACTION FOR TODAY.

WHICH IS A NOTICE OF EXEMPTION FOR CEQA. IT'S A CLASS FOUR EXEMPTION BECAUSE IT'S JUST MINOR ALTERATIONS TO THE LAND.

I WILL BE HAPPY TO TO PASS THIS TO JEANNE HERE, BUT YOUR BOARD ACTION IS A DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO APPROVE THE NEVADA RANCH PROJECT AND RELATED NOTICE OF EXEMPTION. JUST AS A REMINDER, THE PROJECT ITSELF HAS BEEN APPROVED AT THE NOVEMBER BOARD MEETING AND THE CONTRACT IS EXECUTED, BUT AS SORT OF A TECHNICALITY IN ORDER TO ADOPT, TO ADOPT THE NOTICE OF EXEMPTION, YOU ALSO HAVE TO APPROVE THE PROJECT IN THE SAME MOTION.

SO JANNE OR LACEY, I'M HAPPY TO PASS IT TO YOU, BUT THAT IS THE BOARD ACTION FOR TODAY, AND I'LL WRAP UP WITH A COUPLE MORE UPDATES AT THE END. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? ON THE NEVADA RANCH PROJECT? WELL, ACTUALLY, OR IN ANY OF THEM? ANY QUESTIONS OR ANYTHING? OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. KARINA. WE'LL I GUESS WE'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE DAIS.

WHAT'S THE PLEASURE OF THE BOARD? AND WE NEED A MOTION TO APPROVE THE EXEMPTION FOR THE CEQA. I'LL MOVE TO APPROVE THE NOTICE OF EXEMPTION.

OKAY, I'LL SECOND IT. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION BY DIRECTOR PARK AND A SECOND BY DIRECTOR MARCHINI.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE.

ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES SIX ZERO. WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM EIGHT.

OH, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. CAN I IS IT OKAY IF I WRAP UP WITH JUST ONE MORE UPDATE FOR THE PROGRAM? OH, LET ME CHECK. OKAY. GO AHEAD. THANK YOU. SO JUST THERE IS A FIFTH PROJECT THAT WE HAVE SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION FOR APPROVAL. WE'RE WORKING THROUGH SOME RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS THAT THEY HAD.

AND IF APPROVED, THAT CONTRACT FOR THE PROJECT WILL COME BACK TO THE BOARD AT A FUTURE BOARD MEETING.

SO THAT'S JUST A REMINDER AND A HEADS UP. AND IF YOU GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, THIS IS MY LAST UPDATE.

IT'S JUST A REMINDER WE HAVE FUNDING AVAILABLE.

AND THIS IS KIND OF THE LAST PUSH. THE FUNDING IS AVAILABLE THROUGH JANUARY 30TH.

AND THIS IS FOR PLANNING MONEY TO COVER PLANNING, PERMITTING, DESIGN OF PROJECTS UP TO $150,000 PER PROJECT.

WE ARE OFFERING TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, BUT WE DO HAVE A DEADLINE.

TOMORROW, BY THE END OF THE DAY, TOMORROW. IF FOLKS ARE INTERESTED IN THAT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, MAKE SURE YOU REQUEST IT. YOU CAN JUST SUBMIT A FORM ONLINE OR EMAIL US.

I'LL PUT THAT IN THE CHAT AS WELL. JUST TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE A COUPLE OF WEEKS TO WORK WITH FOLKS TO HELP BUILD OUT SOME PROJECT APPLICATIONS IF THEY'RE INTERESTED.

[00:10:06]

THE PROJECT WOULD NOT BE IMPLEMENTED WITHIN THE GRANT TERM. THIS IS JUST TO GET THE PLANS AND DESIGNS IN PLACE.

AND THAT IS MY LAST UPDATE. SO PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD AND I'LL PUT A COUPLE LINKS IN THE CHAT AS WELL.

CHECK OUT MERCED FOR ANY RESOURCES, INCLUDING THE FORM TO REQUEST TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

THANKS SO MUCH HERE FOR ANY QUESTIONS. OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS.

IF NOT, I'LL TAKE A MOMENT TO JUST GIVE A QUICK SHOUT OUT, YOU KNOW, GROUNDWATER RECHARGE.

YOU KNOW, PLANNING DOLLARS ARE AVAILABLE. SO IF YOU KNOW, YOU'RE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO FARM ALL YOUR GROUND OR, OR YOUR SMALL PLACE AND FIGURE, I'M NOT GOING TO FARM AT ALL.

YOU KNOW, THIS MAY BE A WAY WHERE YOU CAN TRY TO FIGURE OUT IF YOU HAVE ACCESS TO SURFACE WATER A WAY TO BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING PRODUCTIVE WITH YOUR LAND.

THANK YOU KARINA. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. NOW WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM EIGHT, A FLOW METER CALIBRATION REQUIREMENTS. WE GOT A PRESENTATION FROM GREG YOUNG OF ZANJERO.

ITEM SEVEN. ITEM SEVEN. OH, NO. I MADE MY NOTES ON ITEM SEVEN INSTEAD OF SIX, I APOLOGIZE.

FINE. WILL DO. SEVEN. GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM, PHASE TWO.

[7. GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM PHASE 2 PILOT]

DURING THIS TIME, WE WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE INPUT INTO THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS, WORK WITH THE TEAM TO CUSTOMIZE A PLATFORM THAT WORKED WITH YOUR POLICIES, AND TO TEST THE DIFFERENT FUNCTIONS THAT THE PLATFORM DEVELOPMENT TEAM WAS WORKING ON.

IN NOVEMBER 2025, THE GRANT FUNDING FOR THE FIRST PHASE OF THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM ENDED, AND SINCE THEN, WE'RE CONTINUING TO WORK WITH THE PLATFORM TEAM THROUGH A CONTRACT WITH ESA TO CUSTOMIZE DIFFERENT FUNCTIONS THAT THE MSGSA NEEDS AND TO HOST AND SUPPORT THE USE OF THE PLATFORM. HOWEVER, THE CALIFORNIA WATER DATA CONSORTIUM HAS JUST ENTERED INTO ANOTHER FIVE YEAR GRANT AGREEMENT WITH DWR TO FUND PHASE TWO OF THE PLATFORM DEVELOPMENT, AND PHASE TWO WILL START WITH A FOCUS ON GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING UNDER EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS AND ON RECHARGE AND FLOOD-MAR. AND SO THE CONSORTIUM HAS APPROACHED THE MERCED SUBBASIN GSA WITH AN INVITATION TO CONTINUE BEING A PILOT GSA FOR PHASE TWO OF THE GRANT FUNDED PLATFORM DEVELOPMENT. THE MERCED BASIN IS CURRENTLY WRAPPING UP COMPLETION OF THE GRAT, THE GROUNDWATER RECHARGE ASSESSMENT TOOL THAT WAS ALSO FUNDED BY A GRANT THAT THE BASIN RECEIVED A FEW YEARS AGO.

AND SO OH, THIS BOARD WILL LEARN MORE ABOUT GRAT AT THE MARCH MEETING.

WE ARE PLANNING ON THAT. BUT THIS NEXT PHASE OF THE PLATFORM WILL LOOK AT USING THESE TWO TOOLS THAT MSGSA HAS AVAILABLE TO TRACK RECHARGE AND WATER ACCOUNTING. SO AS A PILOT GSA, THE GRANT WOULD ALSO HAVE FUNDING AVAILABLE TO COVER COSTS OF OUR TECHNICAL EXPERTS OF THEIR PARTICIPATION IN THE PHASE TWO GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM DEVELOPMENT.

SO PARTICIPATION BY OUR EXPERTS AT ZANJERO ON BEHALF OF THE MSGSA WOULD NOT BE A COST BURDEN TO THE GSA.

[INAUDIBLE] HAS BEEN INVITED TO CONTINUE THEIR PARTICIPATION AS A PILOT GSA AS WELL, WHICH MAKES MERCED A GOOD TEST BASIN FOR THESE NEW FUNCTIONS.

AND SO AS WITH OUR PARTICIPATION AS A PILOT GSA IN THE PAST, THERE'S NO CONTRACT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS, BUT JUST AN ACTION BY THE BOARD THAT WOULD APPROVE JOINING OR CONTINUING TO BE A PILOT FOR PHASE TWO.

AND I DID WANT TO NOTE THAT HANNAH IKE WITH THE CALIFORNIA WATER DATA CONSORTIUM HAS JOINED US VIRTUALLY, AND SHE IS AVAILABLE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROJECT.

IF YOU HAVE SOME SPECIFIC QUESTIONS. OKAY. QUESTIONS.

I HAVE A QUESTION. THIS, THE PRESENTATION BY THE CALIFORNIA WATER CONSORTIUM THAT I'M READING IT, IT DESCRIBES GROUNDWATER RECHARGE. I'M TRYING TO FIND THE LANGUAGE HERE.

DURING EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS, QUANTUM CAPTURE AND QUANTIFY RECHARGE DURING EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS.

IT DOESN'T DO ANYTHING ELSE UNDER NORMAL RECHARGE.

IT HAS TO BE EXTREME. I DON'T QUITE UNDERSTAND.

NO, THANKS FOR THAT CLARIFICATION. IT DOES NOT NEED TO BE UNDER EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS.

I THINK DWR'S GOAL WITH THIS FUNDING IS TO PREPARE FOR EXTREMES BUT THAT DOES NOT LIMIT US IN THE SCOPE

[00:15:05]

OKAY. YEAH. ANYBODY ELSE? QUESTIONS? NOW, I GUESS, EXACTLY, WHAT ARE WE GOING TO FIND OUT IN IN IN FEBRUARY.

OH IN IN MARCH WITH THE MARCH. SO THAT WE RECEIVED A SUSTAINABLE GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT GRANT AWARD BACK IN 2022 THAT FUNDED WHAT WE CALL THE MERCED MAR PROJECT, WHICH IS CONTINUING TO DEVELOP THE GRAT AND ALSO CONNECT THE GROUNDWATER RECHARGE ASSESSMENT TOOL WITH UPDATES TO THE MERCED MODEL, OUR THE MERCED WATER RESOURCES MODEL.

AND SO YOU WILL RECEIVE A PRESENTATION IN MARCH THAT SHOWS YOU THE TOOL, WHAT IT'S AVAILABLE, HOW YOU CAN AS A GSA WILL BE ABLE TO RUN SCENARIOS LOOKING AT RECHARGING DIFFERENT AREAS, DIFFERENT RECHARGE SCENARIOS THROUGH OUR MODEL AS WELL. AND SO I THINK YOU'LL FIND IT REALLY INTERESTING IN MARCH THAT MERCED MAR PROJECT.

AND AT THAT TIME THERE WILL ALSO BE EXPLAINING WHAT THEIR WHAT THE GRANT THEY RECEIVED AND HOW HOW MUCH THAT'S GOING TO DO, WHAT'S GOING TO COST, WHAT IT'S GOING TO DO. SO YEAH, THERE ARE TWO SEPARATE GRANTS.

SO THE SUSTAINABLE GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT GRANT THAT THE MERCED BASIN RECEIVED TO CREATE GRAT HAS ALREADY BEEN COMPLETED.

AND THEY ARE WRAPPING UP THAT GRANT, THAT FUNDING RIGHT NOW BECAUSE WE RECEIVE THAT FUNDING BACK IN, I BELIEVE, 2022. THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM, PHASE TWO IS A SEPARATE GRANT THAT THE CALIFORNIA WATER DATA CONSORTIUM RECEIVED TO CONTINUE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLATFORM WHICH IS AVAILABLE TO USE, YOU KNOW, STATEWIDE, OUR MERCED GRAT IS SPECIFIC TO MERCED.

IS THAT RIGHT, HANNAH? YES. THAT'S RIGHT. YEAH.

AND SO THIS THIS NEW CONTRACT, THIS NEW PHASE WITH DWR WOULD BE TAKING THE INSTANCE THAT MERCED SUBBASIN ALREADY HAS OF THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM AND ENSURING THAT THAT INTEGRATES WITH THAT GREAT WORK THAT YOU ALL JUST DID.

AND WE'LL BE HEARING ABOUT IN MARCH. THEY'RE SEPARATE AND WE'RE NOW CONNECTING THEM TOGETHER.

YEAH, NO GRAT INFO WILL GO INTO THIS PLATFORM.

THAT'S PART OF PHASE TWO. YEAH. THE DESCRIPTION JUST SOUNDS VERY COMPLICATED.

AND FROM MY POINT OF VIEW, I WOULD LIKE TO, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF EFFORT MADE FOR US AT THIS BOARD TO UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT WHAT WHAT'S GOING ON HERE? I, I'M FULLY OF THE OPINION WE NEED TO HAVE VERY GOOD, ASSESSMENT OF, OF RECHARGE AND OF AQUIFER IMPACTS IN GROUNDWATER CONSUMPTION. SO THAT THAT I'M VERY SUPPORTIVE OF.

BUT BUT THIS IS COMPLICATED OBVIOUSLY. AND WE'RE NONE OF US OR VERY FEW OF US MAYBE ARE VERSED IN IT. SO WE'RE GOING TO NEED HELP TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WHAT'S GOING ON? YEAH, YEAH. AND AS PART OF THE PILOT, WE'LL GET INFORMATION ALONG THE WAY.

SO BY THE END, WE'LL KNOW. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ANY ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM? GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M CURIOUS IF IT IS QUANTIFYING RECHARGE WITH REMOTE SENSING OR IS IT LIKE A METER NUMBER THAT THEN GOES INTO THE PLATFORM? OR MAYBE THAT'S MORE BECOME THAT. BOB'S TALKING ABOUT MORE EXPLANATION IN FUTURE MEETINGS.

HANNAH, DO YOU HAVE A DID YOU HEAR THE QUESTION? HEY, COULD SOMEBODY REPEAT THE QUESTION, PLEASE? YEAH. YES. I'M CURIOUS IF THE QUANTIFICATION OF RECHARGE IS THROUGH REMOTE SENSING, OR IS THAT LIKE A METER NUMBER THAT THEN IS TELEMETRY INTO THE PLATFORM? YEAH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. SO MSGSA HAS THEIR OWN POLICIES FOR ACCOUNTING FOR USE IN MERCED

[00:20:10]

WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO WITH THIS NEXT PHASE OF WORK IS WORK WITH YOU ALL AND WORK ON INTEGRATING GRAT AND THAT MODELING FUNCTIONALITY THAT YOU ALL ARE GOING TO LEARN ABOUT LATER ON INTO THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM SO THAT ALL IS DISPLAYED IN ONE PLACE FOR YOU ALL TO UNDERSTAND AND SEE A BIT MORE CLEARLY. BUT THEN PART OF THIS WORK IS ALSO GOING TO BE WORKING IN THESE PILOT BASINS TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHAT ACCOUNTING FRAMEWORKS AND DATA WE NEED TO BETTER ACCOUNT FOR RECHARGE IN THOSE SPECIFIC AREAS TO BETTER UNDERSTAND INTERCONNECTED SURFACE WATER, THINGS LIKE THAT.

SO A LOT OF IT WILL BE EXPLORATORY AND TRYING TO DEVELOP THOSE ACCOUNTING FRAMEWORKS THAT WE MIGHT NOT HAVE CLEAR ANSWERS FOR RIGHT NOW. THANK YOU.

I THINK I LEAN MORE WITH DIRECTOR KELLY. SO IF WE HAVE A NINE INCHES OF RAINWATER.

THIS IS ACCOUNTING FOR EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS IN IN THE SEASON.

IT SAYS WE GOT 12IN. ARE WE CREDITED THE DIFFERENCE OR IS IT STILL AT NINE? SO WE WOULDN'T BE DETERMINING THAT ON BEHALF OF THE GSA.

THAT IS STILL UP TO THE GSA TO DECIDE WHAT CREDITS AND RECHARGE POLICIES THEY WANT TO ADOPT.

WHAT THIS PROJECT WOULD HELP TO DO IS VISUALIZE THOSE ACCOUNTING FRAMEWORKS AND POLICIES IN THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM FOR USERS IN THE BASIN TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHAT THOSE POLICIES ARE AND WHAT THOSE ACCOUNTING FRAMEWORKS ARE.

SO THE EXTRA RAINWATER WOULD BE A CREDIT TOWARDS YOUR USAGE.

DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? RIGHT. OKAY. ALL RIGHT.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR PUBLIC COMMENT? JUST A QUESTION WITH THAT STATEMENT.

WHEN YOU SAY VISUALIZE, IT'S THROUGH A MODELING.

OR IS THERE IS THERE, AS GREG POINTED OUT, SOME KIND OF TELEMETRY WHERE YOU'VE GOT MONITORING WELLS THAT ARE REAL TIME AND YOU'RE SEEING RECHARGE OCCURRING ON A, ON A REAL TIME BASIS? OR IS THIS JUST A MODEL THAT IS WITH A NUMBER OF ASSUMPTIONS? YEAH, YEAH. SO THAT'S PART OF THE WORK THAT I BELIEVE YOU ALL HAVE BEEN UNDERTAKING WITH GRAT AT THE BASIN SCALE.

AND SO WHAT WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO DO IS TAKE SOME OF THE WORK YOU'VE DONE, ALL DONE WITH GRAT, AND INTEGRATE THAT INTO THE PLATFORM SO THAT IT CAN BE REFLECTED IN WATER BUDGETS FOR USERS IN THE GSA.

AND SO THAT VISUALIZATION MIGHT LOOK LIKE CREDITS.

IT MIGHT LOOK LIKE QUICK LIKE SCENARIO PLANNING FUNCTIONALITY FOR WATER MANAGERS IN THE BASIN TO BE ABLE TO SAY, IF I ADD A RECHARGE SITE HERE, WHAT WILL BE THE EFFECT OF THE THAT RECHARGE SITE ON THE WATER BUDGET? THINGS LIKE THAT. GIVEN THE MODEL AND THE MODELING WORK THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE IN THE BASIN AND WHAT YOU'VE DONE WITH GRAT.

AND JUST AS A KIND OF, I GUESS, A SCENARIO IF SOMEBODY HAS IF SOMEBODY HAS LAND THAT'S FLAT AND SANDY, THE RAIN CREDIT MAY BE DIFFERENT THAN IF SOMEBODY IS ON SLOPED CLAY, RIGHT? SO THAT WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS THAT.

RIGHT? WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE? TRYING TO QUANTIFY IT SO THAT WE CAN MAKE THE MODEL MORE ACCURATE.

JEFF. ADDITIONAL INFO. YEAH, MAYBE I CAN ADD ON.

HERE WE GO. YOU GUYS HAVE DEVELOPED A SET OF POLICIES AND RULES RIGHT NOW.

WE'RE ALWAYS GOING TO BE CONTINUING TO LEARN THE MATERIALS THAT HANNA'S TEAM IS GOING TO WORK TO HELP INTEGRATE THE STUDIES THAT HAVE BEEN DONE ON THE THE GRANT SO FAR, WHICH MIT HAS BEEN HEAVILY INVOLVED WITH, ALSO WILL HELP US UNDERSTAND WHETHER WE WANT TO MODIFY ANY OF OUR RULES.

THEY AREN'T NECESSARILY GOING TO SAY, HEY, YOU GOT A PIECE OF SANDY GROUND, THEREFORE YOU GET MORE RAIN CREDIT.

BUT THEY MIGHT SAY, HEY, THIS WOULD BE A GREAT PLACE TO PUT RECHARGE AND LET'S GET A FACILITY CONSTRUCTED OR HELP GET A FACILITY CONSTRUCTED.

AND THEN THAT HAS THIS KIND OF BENEFIT. AND HERE'S HOW WE MIGHT WANT TO ADDRESS THAT.

SO LOOK AT IT AS A PLANNING TOOL, NOT AS IT'S GOING TO RESULT IN US GIVING DIFFERENT ANSWERS AND STARTING WITH MODIFICATIONS.

[00:25:08]

AND I WOULD REALLY HESITATE I KNOW, AND HANNAH KIND OF SAID THIS EXTREME IS A DWR TERM THAT HELPS GET GRANT MONEY.

SO WE'RE GOING TO DEAL WITH EXTREME WEATHER. BUT IT'S REALLY ABOUT MODELING LOCATION, AQUIFER CHARACTERISTICS WHERE WATER MIGHT MOVE WHEN YOU PUT WATER IN UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES AND IN CERTAIN WAYS, AND HELPING UNDERSTAND THAT BETTER IS THAT HELP CLARIFY A LITTLE BIT.

AND HANNAH, I DON'T THINK MUCH BETTER BECAUSE JUST JUST READING THIS, I'M JUST IT'S JUST ALL OVER MY HEAD BECAUSE IT DOES.

NOTHING SINKS IN. YEAH, IT'LL HELP US. AND THEN WE MIGHT HAVE INDIVIDUAL RECHARGE PROJECTS THAT WE CAN SAY, OKAY, WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU MORE CREDIT OR SOMETHING BECAUSE THIS TOOL HAS HELPED US UNDERSTAND BETTER RATHER THAN OUR CURRENT RULE THAT SAYS, HERE'S YOUR CREDIT. AND THERE'S, YOU KNOW, VARIOUS RULES THAT WE'VE BUILT AROUND THAT WE MAY CONTINUE TO REFINE THAT BASED ON WHAT THIS HELPS US UNDERSTAND.

I MEAN, BECAUSE THE ORIGINAL ASSUMPTION IS THAT WE DON'T KNOW WHERE WATER GOES UNDERGROUND ACCURATELY.

AND SO WE'RE JUST CONTINUALLY TRYING TO BUILD THE CASE FOR WHAT'S HAPPENING AND HOW THAT'S GOING TO AFFECT PEOPLE.

RIGHT. LACEY YOU HAD SOMETHING YOU WANTED TO MENTION? I JUST WANTED TO REITERATE WHAT GREG SAID, THAT PARTICIPATING AS A PILOT IN NO WAY DICTATES WHAT YOUR POLICY IS GOING TO BE.

YOU ALWAYS DETERMINE WHAT YOUR POLICY IS. AND THEN WE USE THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM AND THE GRAT, BOTH AS TOOLS TO SUPPORT THE POLICY DECISIONS THAT YOU GUYS MADE.

SO I DON'T, I DON'T WANT YOU TO FEEL LIKE BEING A PILOT IS IS GOING TO TAKE AWAY ANY OF YOUR DECISION MAKING ON YOUR POLICIES.

IT DOESN'T. IT'S JUST GOING TO PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION AND HELP SUPPORT THE POLICIES THAT YOU PUT IN PLACE.

PUBLIC COMMENT ACTUALLY IS STILL OPEN. OKAY, WELL THAT'S GOOD.

YEAH. I WAS JUST GOING TO ADD THAT I THINK AT LEAST THE CONFUSION FOR ME IS THAT TITLE BEING GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING AND PLATFORM.

I ASSOCIATE THAT WITH WHERE THE LANDOWNERS LOG IN AND THEY LOOK AT THEIR ACCOUNTS AND THEY KNOW HOW MANY CREDITS THEY HAVE AND HOW FAST THEY'RE EXPIRING.

WHERE WHAT WE'RE REALLY TALKING ABOUT IS A PLANNING TOOL TO HELP YOU GUYS MAKE DECISIONS IN THE FUTURE.

LATER IN THE FUTURE. ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENT? CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. ANY QUESTIONS UP HERE? SO WE'RE AT THE POINT TO THE CHAIR WOULD ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO JOIN THE PILOT PROGRAM.

SO MOVED. THE PRICE IS RIGHT. YEAH. I'LL SECOND THAT.

OKAY. WE HAVE A MOTION BY DIRECTOR PARK, A SECOND BY DIRECTOR MARCHINI.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE.

ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES SIX ZERO. ALL RIGHT.

[8. FLOW METER CALIBRATION REQUIREMENTS]

GREG YOUNG FROM ZANJERO. GOOD AFTERNOON BOARD.

THIS IS A CONTINUATION OF DISCUSSIONS WE'VE HAD IN THE PAST FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.

AND SO I BELIEVE THERE'S AN ACTION ITEM AT THIS, THIS PARTICULAR MEETING.

SO WE'VE HEARD THIS LAST MEETING. WE DISCUSSED IT SOME.

IT'S JUST HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO NOW SEE IF THERE'S ANY MORE COMMENTS OR ANY, ANY OTHER INTERESTS OR CHANGES.

SO WHAT WE WERE ADDRESSING IS LOOKING TO GET RULES FOR THE ALLOCATION AND ACCOUNTING PROCESS, WHICH SAYS IF YOU CHOOSE TO NOT USE THE REMOTE SENSING METHODOLOGY FOR THE ALLOCATION PROGRAM AND YOU WANT TO USE A METER THAT THAT METER MUST BE CALIBRATED BEFORE JANUARY 1ST, 2030, UNLESS OTHERWISE REQUESTED BY THE MSGSA BECAUSE WE MAY IN TRUST BUT VERIFY FORM.

WE MAY SAY SOMETHING SEEMS A LITTLE FUNKY HERE ON NUMBERS.

WE WANT TO HAVE A FURTHER CONVERSATION THAT MIGHT TRIGGER A NEED TO CALIBRATE PRIOR, BUT WE ARE TRYING TO GET FOLKS TO HAVE METER CALIBRATIONS ON A MORE ROUTINE SCHEDULE AND CONCURRENT WITH UPDATES AND OTHER CONSIDERATIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE FOR YOUR ALLOCATION PROGRAMS THAT TIE TO GSA AND GSP UPDATES THAT HAPPEN ON THOSE FIVE YEAR WINDOWS, INCLUDING 2030. SO THIS WOULD ADDRESS ANY EXISTING, WELL, ANY EXISTING METERS THAT SOMEBODY WANTS TO BEGIN TO USE, WHETHER IT'S FOR IRRIGATED AG OR WHETHER IT'S FOR A NON AG OPERATION THAT'S ALSO UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE ALLOCATION RULES RIGHT NOW,

[00:30:03]

NOW RECOGNIZE THAT ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE SAYING WITH CALIBRATION IS IT CAN BE FIELD CALIBRATION.

WE TALKED LAST TIME ABOUT PROGRAMS THAT WE WOULD PUT OUT THERE THAT MAY POINT TO VARIOUS VENDORS THAT COULD PROVIDE THESE KIND OF SERVICES AND MAKE SURE IT'S SOMETHING THAT JUST BUILDS CONFIDENCE THAT THE METER, IF SOMEBODY IS USING METER DATA, THAT IT IS THAT THE GSA FEELS IT IS ACCURATELY REPRESENTING WHAT ACTUALLY WOULD BE OTHERWISE QUANTIFIED THROUGH REMOTE SENSING.

SO I THINK THERE'S JUST AN ACTION ITEM IN FRONT OF YOU NOW TO GO AHEAD AND ACCEPT THIS CALIBRATION REQUIREMENT.

OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? YEAH, I HAVE A QUESTION.

I WASN'T PRIVY TO THE CONVERSATION AT THE LAST MEETING SINCE I WASN'T HERE.

BUT WHY ARE WE WAITING TILL 2030? WHY DO WE HAVE SUCH A LONG LEAD TIME? WELL, BECAUSE THAT WAS MY QUESTION AS WELL. RIGHT.

BECAUSE I THINK, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE MAY TRY TO GAME THE SYSTEM, BUT INSTEAD OF REQUIRING EVERYBODY THAT WANTS TO DO METERS TO SPEND EXTRA MONEY, AS LONG AS THE DATA THAT THEY'RE GIVING US FITS IN THE REALM OF THE PARAMETERS COMPARED TO ET OR WHATEVER, THAT WE'RE GOING TO GIVE THEM THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT. IF WE NOTICE AN ANOMALY, THEN WE REQUIRE IT AND THEY'VE GOT TO SPEND THE MONEY.

OKAY. OKAY. SO WE ARE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO BE COMPARING THE TWO. YEAH.

YEAH. GSA STAFF WILL BE MONITORING ANYBODY THAT'S GOING TO BE REQUESTING TO BE MEASURED UNDER THE PROGRAM BASED ON A METER.

WE'LL ALSO BE CHECKING AND TRUST BUT VERIFY. OKAY.

AND IF IT SEEMS OFF BY SOME PERCENTAGE THAT DOESN'T SEEM CORRECT.

LET'S START A CONVERSATION. THERE MAY BE A SIMPLE REASON, OR THERE MAY BE SOMETHING MORE COMPLEX THAT WILL LEAD TO CHANGE.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. YEAH, I HAD THE SAME EXACT THOUGHT.

ANYWAYS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT. I'LL OPEN UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT.

EXCUSE ME, GENTLEMEN. I LEFT MY EARS AT HOME, SO I'M, LIKE, IN THE OTHER ROOM.

WHY DO WE WANT TO WAIT SO LONG TO HAVE THEM CALIBRATED FLOW METERS? YEAH. SO THE THOUGHT PROCESS IS THIS INSTEAD OF REQUIRING BECAUSE THEY SHOULD BE CALIBRATED RIGHT WHEN THEY START WE'RE NOT GOING TO REQUIRE THAT AS LONG AS THE NUMBERS THAT ARE BEING REPORTED FIT WITHIN THE PARAMETERS OF WHAT WE WOULD EXPECT OR IN COMPARISON TO OPENET. YOU KNOW, THE THE EVAPOTRANSPIRATION DATA.

THEN THEN WE'RE GOING TO YOU KNOW, WE DON'T KNOW WHETHER WE'RE GOING TO HAVE FIVE METERS. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE 500. AND INSTEAD OF REQUIRING EVERYBODY TO GO SPEND MONEY, WE'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO START THE SYSTEM.

AS LONG AS IT'S ALL WITHIN THE NORMS, YOU'RE GOOD UP UNTIL 2030.

THEN YOU HAVE TO RECALIBRATE. BUT BASICALLY WE'LL READ OUR METERS AND YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE THE SATELLITE IMAGERY TO READ THE EVAPORATION WITH THE ACTUAL USE. AND THEN WE'LL.

OKAY. SO YOU'LL INVOICE US WITH THAT OR HOW DO WE GET ALL THIS INFORMATION.

YEAH. SO THE SO YOUR YOUR ACCOUNT WILL WILL ALLOW YOU TO INPUT THE DATA.

AND THEN AND THEN STAFF WILL TAKE ALL THAT IN AND AND AND GO FROM THERE.

RIGHT. IF IT, YOU KNOW, THE WAY WE'VE KIND OF SET THIS UP IS IF IS IF SOMETHING DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT.

LIKE WHEN WE DID THE LAND REPURPOSING, THERE WAS SOME ORCHARDS THAT STILL WERE USING WATER.

SO THEN LACEY WENT OUT AND LOOKED WELL, THEY HADN'T PULLED THE TREES, WHICH WASN'T A REQUIREMENT OF THE LAND REPURPOSING.

SO BECAUSE IT HAD RAINED AND THERE WAS DEEP MOISTURE, THE TREES WERE BRINGING IT UP AND USING IT.

BUT WE WENT OUT AND THEY'RE NOT APPLYING WATER, RIGHT? WAS WHAT WE WERE LOOKING FOR. AND SO THEY MET THE REQUIREMENTS OF THEIR CONTRACT.

SO HERE SAME THING. RIGHT. WE'RE TRUST BUT VERIFY.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION? YES. ALL RIGHT. GREG OR LACEY, WOULD YOU ADD ANYTHING TO THAT? NOPE. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WE'LL I, I. LET ME CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT.

OH. EXCUSE ME. OTHERWISE, BRAD WILL BE BACK UP HERE. YEAH. I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY. NO. GO AHEAD, GO AHEAD. BOB, I'M JUST TEASING.

WE'RE PRETTY LOOSE HERE BECAUSE NOBODY ABUSES THE.

THERE, THERE. YEAH. I'M SORRY. DO. DOES THE PUBLIC KNOW IF THEY'RE GOING TO BE USING METERS TO ESTABLISH THEIR CONSUMPTIVE USE, THAT THEY NEED TO BE DOING THAT NOW BEFORE, BEFORE, TOO FAR INTO THE YEAR,

[00:35:10]

BETTER START LOOKING AT THEIR METERS AND FIND OUT WHETHER THEY'RE ACCURATE OR NOT. SO IF SOMEBODY DOES NOT WANT TO USE OPENET AND THEY WANT TO REPORT THEIR FLOW METER READINGS ONCE A MONTH, THEY'RE THEY CAN DO THAT ACCORDING TO YOUR POLICY.

AND THE DEADLINE FOR DOING THAT IS TO REGISTER THEIR WELL BY JANUARY 31ST.

AND THEN THEY'LL START REPORTING THEIR METER READS AT THE NEXT MONTH, IN FEBRUARY FOR THE JANUARY.

AND I'M LETTING THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG A LITTLE BIT, BUT THE WELL, REGISTRATION IS NOW LIVE AS OF YESTERDAY IN THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM. SO THEY'LL BE ABLE TO GO IN AND DO THAT RIGHT NOW.

OKAY. I JUST WANTED TO ASK THAT BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT POINT THAT NEEDS TO BE POINTED OUT IN THE PUBLIC.

YEAH, YOU'RE 100% RIGHT. WHAT I THINK IS GOING TO HAPPEN IS PEOPLE DON'T KNOW AND MAYBE DON'T EVEN CARE UNTIL, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE OPENING. IT DOESN'T MATCH WHAT THEY THINK IS HAPPENING.

AND THEN THEN THEY'RE GOING TO START REPORTING, YOU KNOW, IN JULY OR AUGUST OR YOU KNOW, WE CAN ONLY WE CAN ONLY SHARE THE INFORMATION SO MUCH. AND IF THEY'RE NOT INTERESTED IN BEING ENGAGED YOU KNOW, I THINK THERE'S GOING TO BE SOME RECS COMING AND PEOPLE ARE GOING TO BE UNHAPPY.

BUT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN LEAD THE HORSE TO WATER.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? YOU'VE BEEN KIND OF QUIET, NICK.

YOU SURE HAVE BEEN QUIET. ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT.

WHAT'S WHAT'S PLEASURE OF THE BOARD? DID YOU HAVE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, GREG, THAT YOU WERE THINKING? I WAS I WAS SIMPLY JUST GOING TO REITERATE THAT AGAIN.

THE ASSUMPTION IS THAT THE INSTALLATION OF THE METER IS FOLLOWING MANUFACTURER RECOMMENDATIONS.

SO THIS GOES AGAIN TO ANYBODY THAT IS GOING TO REGISTER WITH THAT METER.

WE'LL START LOOKING AT IT. IF IT SEEMS OFF WE'RE GOING TO MAKE A VISIT. AND MAYBE THAT'S BEEN INSTALLED IMPROPERLY.

SO IT MIGHT NOT BE A CALIBRATION. IT MIGHT BE AN INSTALLATION. AND WE'LL HELP GET THAT RESOLVED.

THAT'S IT. OKAY. THANKS. BUT NOW I'M GOING TO GET.

NOW I'LL START TALKING. SO IF THE CERTIFICATION HAS TAKEN PLACE, DOES THAT MEAN THAT METER IS GOOD? BECAUSE I MEAN, WHAT IF IT BREAKS SOMETIME LATER? I KNOW IT NEEDS A CERTIFICATION, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, THE CSA IS GOING TO RELY ON ITS EBT DATA, RIGHT? EVEN IF IT'S OFF, IT HAS A CERTIFICATION.

IT'S MET EVERY CRITERIA. BUT SOMETHING IS STILL OFF.

WHAT'S THE FALLBACK? YOUR APPROACH WILL ALWAYS BE VERIFICATION OF THOSE.

SO IF THERE'S CALIBRATION, LET'S SAY WE'RE IN 2033, AND THEY WERE THEY SUBMITTED ALL THEIR CALIBRATION, EVERYTHING LOOKS REALLY GOOD, THE NUMBER JUST SEEMS REALLY OFF, WE'LL STILL BE CHECKING ANYBODY THAT'S METERED AGAINST THAT.

BUT IT SHOULD BE A PRETTY QUICK CHECK. AND IF SOMETHING'S OFF BY AN AMOUNT, WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO HAVE A CONVERSATION.

REACH OUT. THERE MIGHT BE MAYBE A MISSED SUBMITTAL.

SO WE MIGHT HAVE MISSED A MONTH OF DATA THAT WASN'T GETTING WASN'T SUBMITTED BY THE THE ACCOUNT HOLDER OR SOMETHING ELSE MAY HAVE HAPPENED NORMALLY.

YEAH. GOOD. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR WHAT'S THE PLEASURE OF THE BOARD? I'LL MOVE TO APPROVE THE FLOW METER CALIBRATION REQUIREMENTS FOR GROUNDWATER USERS USING METERS.

OKAY. IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND. GO AHEAD.

OKAY. BOB. BOB. GIAMPAOLI. YEAH, I GOT IT. EXCUSE ME.

OKAY, WE HAVE A MOTION BY DIRECTOR GALLO. SECOND BY DIRECTOR GIAMPAOLI.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE.

ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES SIX ZERO. OKAY, WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM NINE, WHICH IS OUR PHASE TWO FEE UPDATE.

[9. PHASE 2 FEE UPDATE]

THANK YOU AGAIN. AND MOVING ON TO THE PHASE TWO FEE UPDATE.

THIS IS A BRIEF PRESENTATION TO TALK ABOUT SOME ELEMENTS AND GIVE ME POWER.

IF I MIGHT INTERRUPT FOR A SECOND. WOULD IT BE HELPFUL IF THE LIGHTS WERE DIMMED TO SEE THIS? YOU'RE ALL GOOD. OKAY. WOULD YOU MIND? DANIELLE? I WON'T BE ABLE TO READ ANYMORE, BUT THAT'S ALRIGHT. WE'RE ONLY TURNING OFF US. YOU'RE STILL BE ON.

AS A QUICK UPDATE. THE PHASE TWO FEE IS BEING CONSIDERED BECAUSE BACK IN 21, I BELIEVE IT WAS,

[00:40:04]

THE PHASE ONE FEE, WHICH WAS DESIGNED TO SUNSET THIS YEAR, AND A PHASE TWO FEE THAT WOULD BE CONSIDERED AND DEVELOPED TO REPLACE IT.

SO THIS IS THAT PHASE TWO FEE CONSIDERATION AND THE PROCESS ASSOCIATED WITH IT.

SO AS PART OF THE PHASE TWO UPDATE, WE ARE SUBJECT TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF PROPOSITION 218, WHICH IS A PROCESS PUT FORWARD BY THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THAT SAYS YOU MUST PREPARE, AMONG OTHER THINGS, AN ENGINEER'S REPORT TO DEMONSTRATE THE BASIS FOR THE FEE AND THOSE PARTIES THAT WOULD BE SUBJECT TO THE FEE.

SO THE ENGINEER'S REPORT, AS WE STAYED STATE HERE, WILL BE IDENTIFYING THE MAXIMUM BUDGET.

DID WE START? SORRY. NO, I'M IN THE RIGHT SPOT.

MY BAD. I THOUGHT THERE WAS THE I THOUGHT WE HAD THE CATEGORIES.

THAT COMES NEXT. IT'S ACTUALLY NOT ON THIS. YEAH, IT'S NOT ON THIS VERSION, BUT IT WAS ON THE OTHER VERSION THAT WAS AVAILABLE IN THE HANDOUT, I BELIEVE. PARDON ME. WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU CLICK TO THE NEXT SLIDE.

IT'S JUST THE TIMELINE RIGHT. OH SO IN IN THE HANDOUT THAT WAS AVAILABLE AT THE FRONT.

THERE'S A NOT ON THERE EITHER THOUGH. SAME HANDOUT WE GOT.

OH IS IT THOUGH JUST. WE'LL CLARIFY. BEAR WITH US FOR A MOMENT.

WE CAN I CAN ALWAYS JUST TALK THROUGH THESE WHICH IS FINE. YEAH.

NO WORRIES. THERE'S A A SLIDE PHASE TWO FEED BUDGET CATEGORIES. THAT WAS IN THE ONE ON THE OUTSIDE.

YEAH. NO WORRIES. WE'LL WORK THROUGH THIS. SO THE IDEA OF THE PHASE TWO FEE IS TO CREATE THREE CATEGORIES, OR BUCKETS OF MONEY THAT WILL HAVE A VARIETY OF PIECES WITHIN THOSE THAT WILL BE FUNDED.

THE FIRST OF THOSE CATEGORIES IS AN ADMINISTRATIVE AND GOVERNANCE FUNCTIONS THAT WOULD INCLUDE THE HIRING OF EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, POTENTIAL STAFF THAT WILL HAVE TO BE EVALUATING, MR. MARCHINI, THE QUESTIONS AS YOU'VE BROUGHT UP THE WATCHING AND THE CHECKING AND THE VERIFICATIONS AND A VARIETY OF ACTIVITIES.

SO THERE IS AN ADMINISTRATIVE AND GOVERNANCE FUNCTION THAT WILL NEED TO BE CONTINUING FORWARD THROUGH THE LIFE OF THIS GSA TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS SIGMA NEEDS.

IT ALSO WILL ADDRESS THINGS LIKE FACILITATING GRANT WRITING, THE WEBSITE THAT'S AVAILABLE AND MAKING THAT COMPLIANT.

ALSO THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM SUBSCRIPTION.

SO THAT'S AN ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION TO MAINTAIN AND HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY FOR THE INTERFACE FOR THE GROWERS WITH THE GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM.

SO THAT CATEGORY IS KIND OF THIS ADMINISTRATIVE AND GOVERNANCE FUNCTIONS.

AND WE'LL BE ESTIMATING THE MAXIMUM BUDGET THAT YOU MIGHT NEED FOR THOSE FUNCTIONS THAT WILL BE REPRESENTED IN THE ENGINEER'S REPORT AND DISCUSSED AND DETAILED OUT.

THE IDEA IS THEN YOU'D SUM THESE ESTIMATES AND SAY THIS CATEGORY NEEDS AN AMOUNT OF MONEY FOR IT.

THE NEXT CATEGORY WOULD BE ASSOCIATED WITH MONITORING, DATA MANAGEMENT AND TECHNICAL STUDIES.

THERE ARE ONGOING NEEDS, INCLUDING THINGS IDENTIFIED IN THE GSA, FOR EXAMPLE, OR THE GSP THAT SAYS WE HAVE DATA GAPS.

WE NEED TO HAVE SOME MORE MONITORING WELLS IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO DEMONSTRATE COMPLIANCE TO THE STATE IN OUR ANNUAL REPORTS.

SO WE NEED TO ACTUALLY GET ADDITIONAL MONITORING WELLS INSTALLED AND EQUIPPED.

AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE ONGOING DATA ANALYSIS WITH THAT.

AND THERE'S GOING TO BE ONGOING TECHNICAL STUDIES AND OTHER SUPPORT FUNCTIONS.

SO THIS SECOND CATEGORY IS MONITORING DATA MANAGEMENT, TECHNICAL STUDIES A CATEGORY THAT WILL ALLOW AN AMOUNT OF DOLLARS TO BE GENERATED TO SUPPORT THOSE FUNCTIONS.

AGAIN, WITH THE FEE REPORT, WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THE MAXIMUM THAT MAY NEED TO BE ACHIEVED.

THE THIRD CATEGORY IS RELATED TO DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM, WHICH IS A SEPARATE CONVERSATION FOR YOU TODAY.

THAT WOULD BE A BUCKET OF DOLLARS THAT WOULD BE PROVIDED TO FUND THE DOMESTIC WELL PROGRAM.

AGAIN, ALL OF THIS IS REALLY ADDRESSING THE MAX.

AM I BACK IN CHARGE OF THIS ONE IF I WANT TO FLIP FORWARD? WELL.

WHERE'S THIS ONE? NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. GO AHEAD AND CLICK AGAIN.

SO AS WE WERE JUST DISCUSSING THIS ESTIMATE HERE IN THE PHASE TWO, WE'LL TAKE EACH OF THOSE COMPONENTS UNDER THOSE CATEGORIES,

[00:45:03]

SO THAT WE ARE THE BOARD IS ABLE TO HAVE AUTHORITY TO COLLECT UP TO THAT MAXIMUM IF IT'S NEEDED.

THE REALITY IS. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE, IS WE MAY NOT NEED THAT THAT FULL MAX EVERY YEAR, PARTLY BECAUSE THINGS WILL BE STAGED OVER TIME.

YOU MAY NOT NEED TO HIRE YOUR STAFF OR FULL STAFF OVER UNTIL PERIODS OF TIME FIVE YEARS OUT FURTHER.

WE MAY BE ABLE TO, WE MAY SEE DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION NEEDS EARLY IN THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS RATHER THAN LATER.

BECAUSE IF ALL OF THE ACTIONS THAT YOU'RE TAKING SERVE THE OBJECTIVES OF SUSTAINABILITY, THERE WILL BE LESS DEMANDS OR ANY OPPORTUNITIES FOR SOMEBODY TO MAKE A REQUEST FOR A DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION BECAUSE IT WILL NOT MEET THE STANDARD.

SO SOME OF THESE THINGS MIGHT BE MORE FRONT LOADED ON COSTS, SOME MIGHT BE MORE LATER IN TIME ON COSTS.

SO THE FORECAST THAT WE'D WANT TO LOOK AT, AS TALKED ABOUT IN THE ENGINEER'S REPORT AND DISCUSSED IN IN WORKSHOPS, WE'LL LOOK AT WHAT MIGHT ACTUALLY COME UP OUT OF THAT MAX.

SO WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO APPROVE THE MAX WHAT MIGHT BE THE ANNUAL BUDGETS.

WE'LL ALSO BE ABLE TO REFLECT PRIOR FUNDS. WE DID COLLECT DOLLARS FOR SOME OF THESE THINGS UNDER PHASE ONE.

THEY'RE SITTING IN AN ACCOUNT THAT WILL HELP INTO THE INITIAL YEARS, WHICH CAN HELP REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF FUNDING NECESSARY IN THOSE INITIAL YEARS.

SO NOW LET'S TALK ABOUT TIMING. SO NEXT SLIDE THIS GRAPHIC AGAIN IS IN YOUR YOUR, THE PRESENTATION MATERIAL AND KIND OF LAYS OUT THE GENERAL TIMING. THERE'S WELL, THE NEXT YOU CAN LOOK AT THIS ONE IN MORE DETAIL, BUT LET'S GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE BECAUSE IT HAS SOME SEVERAL DATES HERE.

AT YOUR NEXT MEETING ON FEBRUARY 11TH, THE INTENT WILL BE TO RELEASE THE PHASE TWO ENGINEERS REPORT, WHICH IS THE REQUIREMENT UNDER THE CALIFORNIA STATUTORY REQUIREMENT TO PREPARE A PHASE TWO ENGINEERING REPORT THAT WILL BE RELEASED AS A PUBLIC DRAFT.

THERE WOULD BE PLANNED WORKSHOPS LATTER PART OF FEBRUARY DATE AND TIME TO BE AND LOCATION TO BE DETERMINED.

THOSE WILL BE ANNOUNCED AT THE FEBRUARY 11TH MEETING.

THAT WILL GIVE TIME FOR PUBLIC WORKSHOPS AND CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THAT DRAFT.

YOU WILL LIKELY RELEASE ON THE 11TH. OBVIOUSLY, THAT'S A DISCRETIONARY ITEM IF YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE TO RELEASE IT ON THE 11TH AND THEN THE INTENT WOULD BE FOR YOU TO ADOPT THAT ENGINEER'S REPORT ON MARCH 12TH, WHICH WOULD THEN ALLOW THE NOTICING.

THAT'S ALSO A REQUIREMENT OF PROPOSITION 218 PROCESS.

THE NOTICING IS THEN SENT OUT TO EVERYBODY WHO WOULD BE SUBJECT TO THIS FEE, A MAILING THAT WOULD GIVE THEM THE REPRESENT ALL OF THEIR OPTIONS AND THE PROCESS TO VOTE AND POTENTIALLY HAVE A NEGATIVE VOTE.

THAT'S THE WAY THE 218 WORKS. SO WE'LL LAY OUT ALL THOSE THAT PROCESS IN A MAILING THAT WILL BE RECEIVED.

YOU HAVE CERTAIN TIMELINE. THAT MAILING HAS TO BE OUT IN ADVANCE OF A PUBLIC HEARING.

WE WOULD INTEND SOMEWHERE AROUND THE 20TH, 24TH OF APRIL, ACTUALLY HOLD A PROPOSITION 218 PUBLIC HEARING WHERE YOU WILL HEAR THE PUBLIC AND TALLY A VOTE AS TO WHETHER IT IS APPROVED. AND THEN YOU WOULD TALK AT YOUR MAY MEETING ABOUT THE POTENTIAL RATES YOU WOULD PRESENT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2627 OR ACTUALLY FISCAL YEAR 27, I GUESS. SO THOSE RATES THAT YOU WOULD PUT FORWARD FOR CONSIDERATION IN MAY WOULD BE NO MORE THAN WHAT THE ENGINEER'S REPORT SET UP AS A MAX.

RIGHT. SO YOU MAY CHOOSE TO SELECT SOMETHING LESS THAN THAT AT YOUR MAY MEETING.

BUT THE ENGINEER'S REPORT THAT WOULD BE RELEASED IN FEBRUARY AND DISCUSSED AND ADOPTED BY YOU, HOPEFULLY IN MARCH, WOULD SET THAT MAXIMUM NUMBER UNDER EACH OF THOSE CATEGORIES.

SO THAT'S WHAT WE WANTED TO PRESENT HERE TODAY.

ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. ANY QUESTIONS OF GREG? NO. OKAY. I'LL OPEN UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. PROBABLY SHOULD MAKE ONE POINT.

AS BRAD COMES UP HERE. THE ENGINEER'S REPORT WILL HAVE NUMBERS IN THERE, AND WE'LL BE REPRESENTING WHAT THAT MAX WOULD BE.

YEAH. SO THE DRAFT IS BEING RELEASED IN BASICALLY A MONTH.

HAVE YOU, HAVE YOU, ARE YOU WRITING THE ENGINEER'S REPORT? HAVE YOU ESTIMATED THE STAFF SIZE AND WHAT KIND OF BUDGET THAT IS YET? CURIOUS IF YOU COULD TALK ABOUT THAT YET. YEAH.

SO MAYBE JUST A BIT MORE DETAIL ON THE ENGINEER'S REPORT.

THE ENGINEER'S REPORT WILL GIVE THE BASIS FOR COST, AND THEN WE WILL TAKE THAT BASIS FOR COST IN EACH OF THOSE CATEGORIES DIVIDE BY THE ACRES.

[00:50:09]

SO ALL OF THOSE ACRES ROUGH NUMBER, IT'S ABOUT 180,000.

PLUS OR -10,000, MAYBE. I THINK WHERE WE'RE AT RIGHT NOW, WE HAVE TO SEE WHAT THE FINAL OPT IN ACRES ARE.

THAT WOULD BE SHARING EQUALLY IN THE PER ACRE COST OF WHAT'S PUT FORWARD INTO THE IN AND DOCUMENTED IN THAT ENGINEER'S REPORT.

AND THAT WILL GIVE A PER ACRE NUMBER THEN. OKAY.

ALL RIGHT. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENT? ALL RIGHT.

I'LL CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. OKAY. ANY LAST QUESTIONS? NOPE. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. GREG. WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM TEN, DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM.

[10. DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM]

SO AT THE NOVEMBER 2025 MEETING, WE PRESENTED THE DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM FRAMEWORK TO YOU.

AND SO THIS ITEM IS BRINGING BACK THE FULL LANGUAGE OF THE PROGRAM WITH A FEW UPDATES THAT HAVE BEEN MADE OVER THE PAST MONTH OR SO.

I DO WANT TO NOTE THE DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM, THE FULL LANGUAGE HAS BEEN POSTED ON THE WEBSITE AND IS AVAILABLE HERE IN THE ROOM IN THE BACK OF THE ROOM. AS A QUICK REVIEW.

DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION, WHILE NOT REQUIRED IN THE SUSTAINABLE GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT ACT, HAS BEEN REQUIRED BY DWR AS A CORRECTIVE ACTION ASSOCIATED WITH THE APPROVAL OF THE MERCED SUBBASIN 2022 GROUNDWATER SUSTAINABILITY PLAN. A SUBCOMMITTEE OF COORDINATION MEMBERS, INCLUDING BOARD MEMBERS MARCHINI, GALLO AND ALTERNATE MEMBER PEDRETTI, HAVE BEEN WORKING ON DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAMS SINCE 2024.

IN COORDINATION WITH ME AND TURNER ISLAND WATER DISTRICT, GSA UNDER THE PROGRAM, PRESENTED THE WELL ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA IS THAT THE WELL IS WITHIN THE MERCED SUBBASIN.

THE WELL EXISTED PRIOR TO THE ADOPTION OF THE DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM, OR IF IT WAS DRILLED AFTER THE ADOPTION OF THE DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM, IT'S DRILLED TO A GSA RECOMMENDED DEPTH.

THE CAUSE OF THE WELL FAILURE IS DECLINING GROUNDWATER LEVELS RESULTING FROM OVERDRAFT PUMPING THAT OCCURRED AFTER JANUARY 28TH, 2020. THIS IS ONE OF THE FIRST CHANGES THAT WAS MADE THAT I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT HERE.

AND THE WELL, FAILURE IS ATTRIBUTABLE TO SUSTAINABLE GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT UNDER THE MERCED GSP.

AND SO THE PREVIOUS DATE WAS THE DATE OF THE SECOND GSP ADOPTION, WHICH IS JULY 2022, AND THAT DATE HAS BEEN CHANGED TO BE THE DATE OF THE FIRST GSA ADOPTION, WHICH MAKES WELLS ELIGIBLE SINCE JANUARY 2028.

JANUARY 28TH, 2020. IF THEY HAD GONE DRY DUE TO GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT UNDER THE GSP.

THERE MUST BE EVIDENCE CONNECTING THE GSA'S MANAGEMENT ACTIONS TO THE WELL'S INABILITY TO PROVIDE POTABLE WATER.

THE WELL DOES NOT SUPPLY WATER FOR NON DOMESTIC USE AND THE WELL DOES NOT EXTRACT MORE THAN TWO ACRE FEET, AND THAT THE WELL HAS NOT BEEN PREVIOUSLY MITIGATED BY THIS PROGRAM OR ANY OTHER MITIGATION PROGRAM.

SO THAT'S WHAT MAKES A WELL A WELL ELIGIBLE IF ELIGIBLE FOR MITIGATION.

THE DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM WILL PROVIDE A MITIGATION AWARD, INCLUDING A COMBINATION OF LONG TERM MITIGATION MEASURES AND AN AMOUNT OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE. THE PROGRAM WILL ISSUE A REIMBURSEMENT IN THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF THE MITIGATION OF $30,000 AND WILL OFFER REIMBURSEMENT TO WELLS REPLACED AFTER JANUARY 28TH, 2020 AND BEFORE ADOPTION OF THE PROGRAM AS WELL.

AND SO DURING THE PROGRAM POST ADOPTION OF THE PROGRAM, ELIGIBLE WELLS WILL RECEIVE A MITIGATION AWARD OF $30,000.

AND THEN ALSO THE PROGRAM WILL REIMBURSE WELLS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN MITIGATED BEFORE ADOPTION OF THE PROGRAM.

MITIGATION MEASURES INCLUDE EMERGENCY WATER SUPPLY, WHICH IS BOTTLED DRINKING WATER OR A TANK SUPPLY, AND A LONG TERM SOLUTION WHICH MAY INCLUDE CONNECTION TO A PUBLIC WATER SYSTEM, MODIFICATIONS TO AN EXISTING WELL SYSTEM, WELL DEEPENING OR WELL REPLACEMENT, AND THERE IS AN APPEAL PROCESS TO BE FLEXIBLE FOR APPLICANTS THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE PROGRAM.

[00:55:05]

AND THIS WILL NOT COME FROM THE $30,000 CAP. AND SO THAT IS A NEW CHANGE THAT THE PROGRAM WILL SUPPORT APPLICANTS IN OBTAINING THEIR OWN TANKED WATER AND HAULED WATER, ESPECIALLY IF THEY CAN DO IT QUICKER THAN THE GSA CAN DO.

IN ORDER TO CONTROL COSTS AND TO ENSURE THAT AN APPLICANT DOES NOT REMAIN ON TANKED AND HOLD WATER FOR LONGER THAN NECESSARY, THE PROGRAM IS SETTING A LIMIT OF 180 DAYS AFTER THE MITIGATION AWARD IS APPROVED FOR THE APPLICANT TO COMPLETE THE MITIGATION MEASURES.

IF THE MITIGATION MEASURES CANNOT BE COMPLETED IN 180 DAYS, FOR EXAMPLE, IF DRILLERS ARE UNAVAILABLE TO ACTUALLY DRILL A NEW WELL, THEN THE APPLICANT HAS THE ABILITY TO GO THROUGH THE APPEAL PROCESS TO EXTEND THE TIME NEEDED.

AND THIS IS ALSO A NEW CHANGE. YOU ACTUALLY DO NOT SEE THAT 180 DAYS IN THE LANGUAGE THAT IS HERE TODAY.

BUT YOU WILL SEE THAT IN A DRAFT THAT'S GOING TO COME OUT IN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO.

AND SO I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT THAT WAS ACTUALLY A PRETTY RECENT CHANGE THAT WAS DISCUSSED AMONG THE GSA'S.

AND THE IDEA IS THAT TANKED WATER AND HAULED WATER CAN BECOME AN EXPENSE FOR THE GSA'S AND WE DON'T WANT TO CONTINUE THAT EXPENSE FOR LONGER THAN NECESSARY.

WE WANT FOLKS OFF OF TANK WATER AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AND BACK ON THEIR LONG TERM SOLUTION.

SO AGAIN, THIS LANGUAGE HAS BEEN POSTED ONLINE THIS WEEK AND MADE AVAILABLE TO THE BOARD.

WE'RE GOING TO BE UPDATING IT WITH THAT 180 DAY LIMIT SHORTLY.

AND SO YOU HAVE THE OPTION TO CONSIDER APPROVAL OF THE PROGRAM TODAY.

OR IF YOU WOULD LIKE MORE TIME, IT CAN BE BROUGHT BACK IN FEBRUARY OR A FUTURE BOARD MEETING FOR ACTION.

MIA IS PLANNING ON REVIEWING THE LANGUAGE AT THEIR JANUARY MEETING AND TAKING ACTION IN FEBRUARY ON THE SAME LANGUAGE.

THANK YOU. LACEY. ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING? LACEY, I HAVE ONE QUESTION.

PRESSURE. YEAH, I HAD ONE QUESTION. LACEY. AND IT'S JUST IT'S JUST IT'S JUST A GRAMMATICAL THING.

IS THAT NEED TO BE CORRECTED NOW IF THEY'RE GOING TO APPROVE IT OR DOES THAT CAN THAT BE.

I THINK WE CAN CORRECT A GRAMMATICAL ERROR. IF IT'S AN OMISSION, IT'S JUST UNCLEAR.

YEAH. IN THE ELIGIBILITY. YEAH. OKAY. WELL GO AHEAD.

TELL ME WHAT IT YEAH IT. IT'S AN ELIGIBILITY ON THE BULLET POINTS AND IT TALKS ABOUT WELL, IMPACTS MUST BEGIN TO OCCUR AFTER JANUARY 28TH, 2020.

AND IN THE SECOND LINE IT SAYS FOLLOWING SUBMISSION OF THE INITIAL MERCED AND I THINK, DON'T YOU NEED TO HAVE GSP THERE? YES. OKAY. GOOD CATCH. OKAY. THAT'S ALL. YEAH.

ANYBODY ELSE? GEORGE USED TO BE AN ENGLISH TEACHER [LAUGHS].

HE DOESN'T MISS ANYTHING. YEAH. ALL RIGHT. I'LL OPEN UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT.

OKAY. SEEING NONE, I'LL CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT, AND I'LL BRING IT BACK TO THE BOARD FOR POSSIBLE ACTION.

I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MERCED SUBBASIN DOMESTIC WELL MITIGATION PROGRAM.

I'LL SECOND THAT. THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR. OKAY.

I HAVE A MOTION BY DIRECTOR MARCHINI. A SECOND BY DIRECTOR PARK.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE.

ANY OPPOSED? SAME SIGN. MOTION CARRIES SIX ZERO.

ALL RIGHT. WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM. THANK YOU. GENTLEMEN.

WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM 11. STAFF REPORT. A COUPLE OF IMPORTANT UPDATES FOR

[11. STAFF REPORT]

NOW. THEY WERE JUST TURNED ON YESTERDAY. AND SO THESE NEW FUNCTIONS ARE AVAILABLE IN THE USERS ACTIVITY CENTER ON THE PLATFORM.

AND THEY WILL ALLOW GROWERS TO LOG IN TO THEIR ACCOUNT AND MARK A PARCEL EITHER AS INACTIVE ACCORDING TO THE GROUNDWATER ALLOCATION RULE OR DELINEATE THE NON-FIELD USES LIKE DAIRY FACILITIES OR POULTRY HOUSES.

OR THEY COULD EVEN DIVVY UP THEIR AGRICULTURAL PARCEL INTO DISTINCT FIELDS THAT ARE STILL REMOTE SENSED IF THEY CHOOSE.

THE WELL REGISTRATION FEATURE WILL ALLOW GROWERS WHO ARE CHOOSING OR REQUIRED TO REPORT FLOW METER READINGS MONTHLY TO REGISTER THOSE WELLS AND THEN START REPORTING IN FEBRUARY. WE WILL BE HOLDING A GROUNDWATER ACCOUNTING PLATFORM WORKSHOP ON JANUARY 21ST FROM 9 TO

[01:00:06]

THE WORKSHOP WILL BE HELD AT THE UCANR CLASSROOM AT 2145 WARDROBE AVENUE, AND A FLIER AND AN EMAIL WILL GO OUT TO THE DISTRIBUTION LIST AND WILL BE POSTED ON THE WEBSITE TOMORROW. THE SECOND ITEM I WANTED TO MENTION IS THE ACCOUNTING OR THE RECOGNITION OF ALTERNATIVE SOURCE CREDITS THAT WERE PRIOR TO 2026.

THAT DEADLINE PASSED ON DECEMBER 15TH. WE RECEIVED 72 FORMS CLAIMING CREDIT FOR PRIOR USE IN THE AMOUNT OF ALTERNATIVE SOURCE WATER CLAIMED IS APPROXIMATELY 200,000 ACRE FEET. WE'RE GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS NOW OF VERIFYING ALL THE FORMS, THE BACKUP DOCUMENTATION, THE REGISTRATION FORMS, AND THE BACKUP FOR THE REGISTRATION FORMS AS WELL.

AND SO REQUESTS ARE BEING MADE TO THE APPLICANTS TO PROVIDE ANY OF THE ADDITIONAL MATERIAL THAT HAD BEEN MISSING.

SO I THINK WE'VE GOT A LOT OF FOLKS WHO ARE GOING TO BE SENDING IN SOME OF THAT BACKUP DOCUMENTATION ONCE EVERYTHING'S SUBMITTED.

THE GSA WILL ISSUE CREDITS ACCORDING TO THE PROCESS THAT'S LAID OUT IN THE ALLOCATION RULE UNDER SECTION 2.5.1.

AND THEN THOSE CREDITS WILL BE UPLOADED INTO THE GROWER'S ALLOCATION MANAGEMENT ACCOUNT THAT THEY THAT THEY IDENTIFIED ON THE SUBMISSION FORM.

AND SO THOSE WILL BE THOSE CREDITS WILL BE UPLOADED INTO THE PLATFORM.

AND THAT'S WHERE THEY WILL SEE THOSE. AND THOSE ARE THE TWO UPDATES I HAVE FOR YOU.

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. WE'LL MOVE ON TO. I HAVE A QUESTION.

OF COURSE. ON THE GROUNDWATER COUNTY PLATFORM.

YOU YOU SAID THAT THERE'S NOW AN ABILITY TO DELINEATE THE PARCELS THAT ARE NOT ACTIVE.

CORRECT? YES. IS THERE ALSO A WAY TO GIS WITHIN PARCELS THAT ARE WETLANDS THAT ARE NOT AGRICULTURAL? YES. SO YOU'LL BE ABLE TO GO ON TO THE PLATFORM AND YOU WILL BE ABLE TO IF YOU GO INTO THAT PARCEL DELINEATION FEATURE, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO EITHER SELECT THE WHOLE PARCEL, OR YOU WILL BE ABLE TO DRAW YOUR OWN POLYGON AROUND THE PORTION OR THE FIELDS THAT ARE INACTIVE OR NATIVE OR HOWEVER YOU WANT TO TERM THAT.

OKAY, GREAT. THAT'S WHY I THINK PARTICIPATION IN THIS WORKSHOP WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL BECAUSE IT'S IT'S GOING TO BE COMPLICATED FOR FOR THOSE PEOPLE THAT HAVE PARCELS THAT ARE, YOU KNOW, SOME IS IS IRRIGATED, SOME IS NOT, SOME HAS A AGRICULTURAL NON-AG OPERATION ON IT. I MEAN, THERE'S THERE'S GOING TO BE PARCELS THAT YOU WANT TO YOU KNOW, OPT OUT FOR, FOR THAT FOR THAT YEAR IS NOT ACTIVE.

I MEAN, THERE'S QUITE A BIT TO DO, RIGHT? DANIEL.

OH. I'M SORRY, COULD YOU REPEAT THE DATE OF THAT WORKSHOP? THE DATE OF THE WORKSHOP IS JANUARY 21ST, 9 TO 12 AT THE UCANR CLASSROOM ON WARDROBE.

WE'LL SEND AN EMAIL. WE'LL POST IT ON THE WEBSITE.

AND JUST A REMINDER, THE DEADLINE TO MARK A PARCEL AS INACTIVE IS JANUARY 31ST AS WELL.

OKAY. DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING AS WELL? YOU'RE GOOD.

OKAY. ALL RIGHT. BOARD REPORT. START TO MY LEFT.

[12. BOARD REPORTS]

[01:05:04]

AT LEAST I GOT ABOUT TEN MINUTES IN THE MORNING THAT I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO DO, AND I COULD READ IT.

AND THEN, I MEAN, THAT'S A GREAT IDEA. AND THEN IF IF YOU RUN INTO SOMETHING, FORWARD IT TO LACEY AND THEN THAT, THAT AT LEAST SHOWS HER WHERE TO GO GET IT AND THEN SHE CAN.

YEAH. ALL RIGHT. GREAT POINT. BOB. BOB, GEORGE AND I HAVE NOTHING.

SO I'D LIKE TO MOVE TO ITEM 13. OUR NEXT BOARD MEETING IS WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11TH.

[13. FUTURE MEETINGS]

SO 2 P.M.. AND WITH THAT, WE WILL ADJOURN. THANK YOU.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.