Name of Action Description Expected Increase in Recycled Water Use (AF)
Education and Outreach Educate residents and businesses on recycled water benefits through outreach campaigns, environmental
fairs, and partnerships with local organizations.
2,146
Technical Assistance
Provide technical support for system design, retrofits, landscaping, and regulatory permitting to facilitate
recycled water adoption.
0 Regulatory Requirements
Require the use of recycled water for irrigation and
other non-potable uses where available, feasible, and
compliant with standards.
0 Water Quality & Reliability
Improvements
Supply high-quality, consistent recycled water to
reduce costs and improve performance for industrial
and landscape applications.
0 Regional Planning &
Partnerships
Participate in regional water reuse planning to expand
recycled water use, enhance system reliability, and
promote potable reuse initiatives.
0 2,146
2,146
Total (AF)
NOTES: The expected increase in recycled water for the first action represents the total projected increase from current to future recycled water use. This increase is attributable to all the actions listed above and other applicable actions and is difficult to allocate among them individually.
Check the box if the Supplier does not plan to expand recycled water use in the future. Supplier will not complete the table below but will provide narrative explanation.
Provide page location of narrative in the UWMP
Unit Conversion to AF
Planned Implementation Year
2026
2026
2026
2026
2026
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City code requires new development to utilize recycled water for approved uses where recycled water is available. Recycled water is also required for construction water use when a project site is within 3 miles of a recycled water fill station. In addition, the City offers technical assistance for the design of retrofits, horticultural and landscaping problems, and for the permit process through the State Water Board – Division of Drinking Water for each recycled water use location.
The City Code, Section 13.15.160(a), states that the City Council intends to prohibit the use of potable water for landscape irrigation where recycled water is made available and meets all applicable standards. Section 13.15.160(b) states that the City Council also intends to require the use of recycled water for all other non-potable uses where recycled water is made available and meets all applicable standards for those uses and is determined to be suitable and economically feasible therefore. The goals of City Council are sustainability and to offset potable water use by using recycled water.
Valley Water and the RWF completed construction of an Advanced Water Treatment Facility adjacent to the RWF in 2014. The Silicon Valley Advanced Water Purification Center (SVAWPC) was constructed to enhance the quality of the recycled water currently produced by the RWF for potable reuse in the augmentation of groundwater or surface water supplies. The SVAWPC produces up to 8.0 MG of highly purified recycled water per day. The facility has been designed so that it can be expanded in the future to four times its initial size.
Water that has undergone two levels of treatment at the adjacent RWF can undergo three additional advanced treatment stages: microfiltration, reverse osmosis, and ultra -violet disinfection. The SVAWPC produces water that is as pure as, or purer than, many potable water sources. The water that is produced is blended with recycled water from the SBWR program. The enhanced blend of water will help industrial users reduce operating costs, and it can be used on a wider variety of landscapes, due to a much lower level of salinity.
In areas of the City served by groundwater, industrial customers will find the quality of treated recycled water to be more consistent than groundwater for cooling towers. Those cooling towers that receive groundwater could also receive a blend of multiple water sources based on system demand (e.g., groundwater blended with imported surface water) with slight variations in water quality, whereas those that receive recycled water would receive one consistent water source.
Valley Water completed the Countywide Water Reuse Master Plan (CWRMP) in 2021 to integrate and expand the use of recycled water for non -potable and potable reuse. The goals of the CWRMP are, but not limited to , identification of feasible opportunities to expand water reuse; development of partnerships with other recycled water producers/supplier to promote potable reuse through the development of purified water systems; and evaluating potential regional integration to improve system reliability and flexibility and optimize use of supply and infrastructure.
6.5 DESALINATED WATER
Desalination is the process of removing dissolved minerals from brackish or saltwater to produce potable water that can be used for municipal needs such as drinking water and
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industrial uses. It is one of several elements that may be included in a community’s water supply portfolio.
The opportunities for the City to use desalination as a potential source of water are limited.
These limitations are due to geographic location and logistics. The City is located inland from the San Francisco Bay and other sources of seawater or brackish water. In addition, the City lacks a practical means of brine disposal from a desalination process. The distance from a suitable location for an outfall is significant and the cost would be prohibitive. However, Valley Water is a partner in the Bay Area Regional Desalination Project. Under the project concept, Valley Water would receive 5,600 AF in critical dry years through exchanges with other agencies.
In 2017, Valley Water and participating agencies finalized the Bay Area Regional Reliability (BARR) Drought Contingency Plan to identify all the available opportunities to optimize water supply reliability through the sharing of water resources across the region.
This includes the use of existing supplies as well as new supply through desalination. By taking a more holistic and regional approach to water supply planning, the agencies hope to make the best use of existing resources to serve the future needs of the Bay Area.
The SFPUC is increasing and accelerating its efforts to acquire additional water supplies and explore other projects that would increase overall water supply resilience through the Alternative Water Supply Planning Program. The drivers for the program include: (1) the adoption of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment and the resulting potential limitations to RWS supply during dry years, (2) the net supply shortfall following the implementation of the Water System Improvement Program (WSIP), (3) San Francisco’s perpetual obligation to supply 184 mgd (206,107 AFY) to the Wholesale Customers, (4) adopted Level of Service Goals to limit rationing to no more than 20 percent system-wide during droughts, and (5) the potential need to identify water supplies that would be required to offer permanent status to interruptible customers. Developing additional supplies through this program would reduce water supply shortfalls and reduce rationing associated with such shortfalls.
Capital projects under consideration to develop additional water supplies include surface water storage expansion, recycled water expansion, water transfers, desalination, and potable reuse. A more detailed list and descriptions of these efforts are provided in Chapter 7.
6.6 WATER EXCHANGES AND TRANSFERS
The July 2009 Water Supply Agreement, between the City and County of San Francisco and wholesale customers in Alameda County, San Mateo County and Santa Clara County outlines the ability for permanent transfers of ISGs. Currently, the City does not have an ISG since it is not a permanent customer of SFPUC . SFPUC provides them with an interruptible supply. However, the City is still eligible to receive transfers per the agreement which specifies that a wholesale customer that has an ISG may transfer a portion of it to one or more other wholesale customers. Such a transfer must be a permanent transfer and no less than 1/10th of 1.0 mgd (1,120 AFY).
Amendments to the Water Supply Agreement which was approved in 2025 establish ed mechanisms that allow wholesale customers with Minimum Annual Purchase (MAP)
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requirements and those with ISGs to permanently transfer a portion of their contractual supply allocations to other eligible wholesale customers, subject to specific conditions and approvals. These amendments create a contractual framework that allows the transfer of MAP allocations among wholesale customers and provide additional flexibility for regional water supply management. While the City currently does not hold an ISG or MAP allocation, these provisions may facilitate potential future transfers from other SFPUC wholesale customers, which could improve the City’s supply reliability during extended drought conditions.
The City currently has eleven interties that exist for emergency transfers of water with neighboring agencies including City of Sunnyvale, San Jose Municipal Water, San Jose Water, and California Water Service. The interties are only intended for use during emergency scenarios, rather than long -term water transfers and allow the City to either receive or provide supply. Seven of the interties have normally open isolation valves, which allow bi-directional flow based on pressure settings, so that they only activate in an emergency scenario that substantially reduces pressure. The remaining four interties have normally closed isolation valves that are required to be manually opened before operating.
6.7 FUTURE WATER PROJECTS
According to the findings in City’s 2025 WSMP, the City is expected to have sufficient potable and non-potable water supplies to meet projected demands through 2050, even during normal, single dry, and multiple dry years. However, the City must remain strategic in its water supply and system planning and operations to ensure a safe and reliable water supply for the future. The two future planned local water supply projects include:
• Water System Optimization: Maximize the use and efficiency of existing water system facilities by leveraging current infrastructure to meet future water demands, such as rehabilitating existing wells to restore lost capacity north of Highway 101.
• Recycled Water System Expansion: Expand the recycled water distribution system to provide a drought-proof supply and serve more customers and promote its use across the City for diverse non-potable applications, such as landscape irrigation, dual-plumbed buildings, and industrial processes, to reduce reliance on potable water sources.
Table 6-9 summarizes the future water supply projects to increase water supply as described above.
Table 6-9. Expected Future Water Supply Projects or Programs (DWR Table 6-7 Retail)
Section 6.7 in Page 6-18
and 6-19
Check the box if some or all of the supplier's future water supply projects or programs are not compatible with this table and are described in a narrative format.
Check the box if there are no expected future water supply projects or programs that provide a quantifiable increase to the agency's water supply.
Proceed to the next table.
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6.8 SUMMARY OF EXISTING AND PLANNED SOURCES OF WATER
In years of normal precipitation, the City estimates that all four of its supply sources will have a total average yield of about 38,700 AFY. This assumes the following yields for each supply source:
• Up to 5,041 AFY from the SFPUC. The supply from SFPUC is assumed to be terminated starting in 2040 due to contract termination in 2028, and this assumption was applied to the Scenario 1 evaluated in Chapter 7.3 • Up to 4,560 AFY from Valley Water
• Up to 23,048 AFY from the City’s groundwater wells
• Up to 6,017 AFY from recycled water
The City’s existing water supplies and future projected normal year water supplies are summarized in Table 6-10 and Table 6-11, respectively.
Table 6-10. Water Supplies – Actual (DWR Table 6-8 Retail)
3 As described further in Chapter 7, a second scenario (Scenario 2) is included in the Chapter 7 supply and demand assessment which assumes that the City’s contract with SFPUC is extended, providing SFPUC supplies to the City beyond 2040.
Water Supply
Drop down list
May use each category multiple times.
These are the only water supply
categories that will be recognized by
the WUEdata online submittal tool
Potable or Non-Potable
(after treatment if treated)
(OPTIONAL)
Drop Down list
Actual Volume
(AF)
Total Entitlement
(OPTIONAL)
See 'DWR Notes' below
(AF)
Purchased or Imported Water SFPUC Potable 3,229
Purchased or Imported Water Valley Water Potable 2,590
Groundwater (not desalinated) Potable 11,038
Recycled Water Non-Potable 3,871
16,857
3,871
20,728
2025
Total
Subtotal Potable
Subtotal Non-Potable
Additional Description
(as needed)
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Table 6-11. Water Supplies – Projected (DWR Table 6-9 Retail)
Water Supply
Reasonably
Available
Volume (AF)
Total Entitlement
(OPTIONAL)
See 'DWR Notes'
below (AF)
Reasonably
Available
Volume (AF)
Total Entitlement
(OPTIONAL)
See 'DWR Notes'
below (AF)
Reasonably
Available
Volume (AF)
Total Entitlement
(OPTIONAL)
See 'DWR Notes'
below (AF)
Reasonably
Available
Volume (AF)
Total Entitlement
(OPTIONAL)
See 'DWR Notes'
below (AF)
Reasonably
Available
Volume (AF)
Total Entitlement
(OPTIONAL)
See 'DWR Notes'
below (AF)
Purchased or Imported Water SFPUC Potable 5,041 5,041 0 0 0 Purchased or Imported Water Valley Water Potable 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Groundwater (not desalinated) Wells Potable 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 Recycled Water SBWR Non-Potable 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 32,649 32,649 27,608 27,608 27,608
4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
36,949 37,378 32,767 33,196 33,625
2050 (opt)
Total
NOTES: The supply from SFPUC is assumed to be terminated beginning in 2040 due to contract termination in 2028. 2030 2035 2040 2045
Subtotal Non-Potable
Subtotal Potable
DWR NOTES:
Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3.
Total Entitlement: e.g. Water Right, Groundwater Allocation, Contracted Amount.
Projected Water Supply (Report to the Extent Practicable) Drop down list
May use each category multiple times.
These are the only water supply categories
that will be recognized by the WUEdata
online submittal tool
Additional
Detail on
Water Supply
Potable or Non-Potable
(after treatment if treated)
(OPTIONAL)
Drop Down list
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6.9 CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS TO SUPPLY
Climate change has become an important factor in water resources planning in California and is frequently considered in urban water management planning, although the extent and precise effects of climate change remain uncertain. Increasing concentrations o f greenhouse gases have caused and will likely continue to cause a rise in temperatures around the world, which will result in a wide range of changes in climate patterns.
Moreover, observational data show that a warming trend occurred during the latter pa rt of the 20th century, the first quarter of the 21st century, and will likely continue through the end of the 21st century. Numerous studies have been conducted to determine the potential impacts of climate change on water resources. These climate change impacts are likely to affect both the Tuolumne River watershed and local watersheds in the Bay Area and include the following:
• Reductions in the average Sierra Nevada annual snowpack due to a rise in the snowline elevation and a shallower snowpack at lower elevations, and a shift in snowmelt runoff to earlier in the year;
• Changes in the timing, annual average, intensity, and variability of precipitation, and an increased amount of precipitation falling as rain instead of as snow;
• Long-term changes in watershed vegetation and increased incidence of wildfires that could affect water quality and quantity; • Sea level rise and an increase in saltwater intrusion; • Increase water temperatures with accompanying potential adverse effects on some fisheries and water quality;
• Increases in evaporation and concomitant increase in irrigation need; and • Changes in urban and agricultural water demand.
The SFPUC views assessment of the effects of climate change as an ongoing need that requires regular updating to reflect improvements in climate science, atmospheric/ocean modeling, observations, and human response to the threat of greenhouse gas emissions.
Climate change research by the SFPUC began in 2009 and continues to be refined.
The SFPUC conducted a Long -Term Vulnerability Assessment (LTVA) which assessed the potential effects of climate change on water supply using a wide range of plausible increases in temperature and changes in precipitation to address the wide uncertainty in climate projections over the planning horizon 2020 to 2070. There are many uncertain factors such as climate change, changing regulations, water quality, growth and economic cycles that may create vulnerabilities for the RWS’s ability to meet levels of ser vice. The uncertainties associated with the degree to which these factors will occur and how much risk they present to the water system are difficult to predict but were considered in this study. To address this planning challenge, the LTVA used a vulnerability-based planning approach to explore a range of future conditions to identify vulnerabilities, and to assess the risks associated with these vulnerabilities, that could lead to developing an adaptation
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plan that is flexible and robust to a wide range of future outcomes. SFPUC completed the LTVA in 2021 and amended it in 2024.
The key findings of the LTVA are:
• Climate change exacerbates impacts from other external drivers of change and is not the single most important driver of vulnerability for the RWS; • The RWS at a baseline demand of 227 mgd is resilient to changes in climate and other external drivers;
• The RWS water supply performance declines with reductions in mean precipitation but is mostly insensitive to increases in temperature; • The RWS is more vulnerable to changes in demand and regulatory instream flow requirements than changes in mean annual temperature and precipitation; and
• The RWS is vulnerable to changes to mean climate when demand or regulatory instream flow requirements increase.
6.10 REGULATORY CONDITIONS AND PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
Emerging regulatory conditions (e.g., issues surrounding the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento -San Joaquin Delta Estuary [Bay -Delta Plan]) may affect planned future projects and the characterization of future water supply availability and analysis. A detailed description of the potential impacts of Bay -Delta Plan implementation on RWS supply reliability is included in Chapter 7. If the City moves forward with any plans to develop supply projects, emerging regulatory conditions will be considered, and the associated water supply reliability impacts will be assessed in future UWMP updates.
6.11 OTHER LOCALLY APPLICABLE CRITERIA
Other locally applicable criteria may affect the characterization and availability of an identified water supply (e.g., changes in regional water transfer rules may alter the availability of a water supply that had historically been readily available). Reliability of the RWS supply is further discussed in Chapter 7. If the City moves forward with any plans to develop supply projects, locally applicable criteria will be considered, and the associated water supply reliability impacts will be assessed in future UWMP updates.
6.12 ENERGY INTENSITY
In accordance with CWC §10631.2(a), the energy intensity to provide water service to the City’s customers over a one-year period is presented in this section to the extent that the information is available. The amount of energy to receive, treat, pump, and d eliver the City’s water supply within the system it owns and operates is included.
Water energy intensity is the total amount of energy, calculated on a whole-system basis, used to deliver water to the City’s customers for use. Energy intensity is the total amount of energy in kilowatt hour s (kWh) expended on a per million gallon basis to take water
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from the City’s source to its point of delivery. Understanding the whole -system energy intensity would allow the City to make informed strategies in managing its water supplies and operating its system as follows:
• Identifying energy saving opportunities as energy consumption is often a large portion of the cost of delivering water
• Calculating energy savings and GHG emissions reductions associated with water conservation programs
• Potential opportunities for receiving energy efficiency funding for water conservation programs
• Informing climate change mitigation strategies
• Benchmarking of energy use at each water acquisition and delivery step and the ability to compare energy use among similar agencies In Table 6 -12 below, the energy intensity of the City’s water service is calculated for FY 2024/25. The total energy intensity for the City’s water service is 685 kWh/MG.
Table 6-12. Recommended Energy Reporting – Single Delivery Product - Total Utility Approach (DWR Table O-1B)
Water Delivery Product
drop down list
(If delivering more than one type of product recommend
using Table O-1C)
Retail Potable
Deliveries
Start Date of Reporting Period 1/1/2025
End Date of Reporting Period 12/31/2025
Is upstream embedded energy in the values reported? No
Units of Measure for Water AF Total Utility
See DWR NOTES Hydropower Net Utility
16,857 16,857 3,762,798 3,762,798
685 - 685 Quantity of Self-Generated Renewable Energy
0 kWh
Data Quality (Estimate, Metered Data, Combination of Estimates and Metered Data) Metered Data
Data Quality Narrative:
Narrative:
Metered Data
Only for Water Delivery Products Under the Urban Water Supplier's Operational Control
Sum of All Water Management
Processes Non-Consequential Hydropower
DWR NOTES:
Total Utility:The volume of water entered in the “Total Utility” column should equal the volume of water entering the distribution system (excluding recycled water); in most cases, this is the total volume calculated in UWMP Table 4-1: 2025 Actual Total Uses for Potable and Non-Potable Water. Note if recycled water is included in your Submittal Table 4-1, you must exclude it from your volume in this table.
Power at the well and tank pump stations
Volume of Water Entering Process
Energy Consumed (kWh)
Energy Intensity (kWh/vol. converted to MG)
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CHAPTER 7
Water Service Reliability and Drought Risk Assessment
This chapter discusses the City’s water supply reliability under varying conditions through 2050. Factors impacting long-term reliability of water supplies are discussed. In assessing the City’s water supply reliability, a comparison of projected water supplies and projected water demand in normal, single dry, and five consecutive dry years is provided for the City’s water service area. This chapter also includes the City’s DRA for the next five years.
Findings show that the City’s water supplies are sufficient to meet the existing and projected water demands during normal and dry conditions.
7.1 CONSTRAINTS ON WATER SOURCES
The City’s existing water supplies are described in Chapter 6 of this UWMP and consist of the following:
• Treated surface water purchased from the SFPUC and Valley Water • Groundwater pumped by the City from the Santa Clara Subbasin • Recycled water from SBWR
The City relies on three sources of potable water and one source of recycled water. Each supply has some risk of interruption and varying levels of reliability. A major seismic event could disrupt deliveries from the SFPUC RWS for several months. The completion of WSIP has improved system reliability, although some risk remains.
Similarly, Valley Water supplies could be interrupted for an extended period due to earthquakes or infrastructure failures. Valley Water continues to implement capital improvements to enhance system reliability. Imported supplies from the California SWP and CVP are also subject to risks in the Sacramento –San Joaquin Delta, which could result in temporary supply interruptions.
Power outages are another potential risk; however, the City has backup power to operate key groundwater wells and storage facilities. Local groundwater provides a reliable backup supply and can meet the City’s demand for a limited period during emergencies.
The recycled water system serves irrigation and industrial uses. Short-term interruptions are not considered critical, as some users have backup potable connections and landscaping can typically tolerate temporary outages.
The City completed a Risk and Resilience Assessment in 2020 in compliance with the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 , and an update was completed in 2025 . The assessment found that the City’s system benefits from flexibility, redundancy, local groundwater resources, and interconnections with neighboring agencies, all of which enhance overall reliability.
Climate change could constrain the City’s long-term sustainability of water supplies by increasing variability in floods and droughts. Over the past several decades, the California water community has focused their attention on determining the effects of climate change, but there is no clear scientific consensus on exactly how climate change will quantitatively affect the State’s water supplies. Therefore, being prepared for a wet water year, a critical
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water year, or somewhere in between, will give the City a better sense of the degree to which they may need to conserve or expand existing water supplies.
7.1.1 Constraints of RWS Supplies
The amount of imported water available to SFPUC’s retail and wholesale customers, including the City, is constrained by legal, environmental, water quality, climatic, and other factors potentially resulting in inconsistent supply.
There may be shortfalls of RWS supplies in dry years as a result of several factors, including required instream flow releases (further discussed in Section 7.2.1.2 Bay-Delta Plan Amendment Updates) as well as climate change (see Chapter 6 Section 6.9 Climate Change Impacts to Supply).
The 2018 adoption of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment may significantly impact the supply available from the RWS. The SFPUC recognizes that the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment has been adopted and that, given that it is now state law, the SFPUC must plan for a future in which it is fully implemented. The SFPUC also acknowledges that the plan is not self-implementing and therefore does not automatically go into effect. Similarly, there is active litigation at the appellate level regarding the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment. The SFPUC is also pursuing a voluntary agreement, known as the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes Program (HRL). The HRL is currently undergoing evaluation at the SWRCB.
In fall of 2025, the SWRCB released a Scientific Basis Report evaluating the biological benefits of the Tuolumne River component of the HRL. The next step is for SWRCB to finalize this report including scientific peer review. At the same time, the SWRCB is undergoing CEQA evaluation of the Tuolumne HRL. No timeline has been provided for when the HRL will be considered for adoption by the SWRCB.
Because of the uncertainty surrounding implementation of the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment, the following water supply reliability assessment includes a set of tables for two future supply scenarios: (1) a scenario in which the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment is implemented and (2) a scenario that considers the SFPUC system’s current conditions without implementation of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment. The two scenarios provide a bookend for the possible future scenarios regarding RWS supplies. The Bay -Delta Plan Amendment implementation start date is unknown, for the purposes of the supply reliability analysis, it is included in the 2030 modeling scenarios. The standardized tables associated with this UWMP contain the future scenario that assumes implementation of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment.
Additional factors could affect the availability of water supply regarding the SWRCB curtailments and agreements with Turlock and Modesto Irrigation Districts pertaining to instream flow obligations on the Tuolumne River. The following describes these and how they were incorporated into the water supply reliability analysis:
• During the last two drought periods, 2013-2016 and 2021-2023, the SWRCB implemented curtailments through emergency regulations and curtailment orders that attempted to limit diversions from Central Valley watersheds including the Tuolumne River at certain times. Due to the uncertain legality of
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the SWRCB’s curtailment actions as well as the uncertainties regarding any potential future curtailment actions against San Francisco, the SFPUC’s RWS supply reliability analyses do not assume curtailments are in effect. • Through a 1966 agreement with the Modesto and Turlock Irrigation Districts (Districts), who are more senior downstream appropriative water rights holders on the Tuolumne River, San Francisco may become responsible for up to approximately 51.7 percent of any flow releases the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) may require through issuance of a new license for the Districts’ Don Pedro Hydropower Project. The exact flow contribution for which San Francisco may become responsible is highly uncertain and may depend on multiple currently unknown factors, including an anticipated Endangered Species Act biological opinion from the National Marine Fisheries Service and a Clean Water Act Section 401 water quality certification from the SWRCB. San Francisco’s potential responsibility for FERC-ordered flows may further depend on San Francisco’s ability to enter into a new or extended agreement with the Districts to offset a portion of San Francisco’s flow contributions in exchange for payment. Due to the high levels of uncertainty surrounding the Districts’ FERC-relicensing process, as well as the unknown timing for license issuance, the SFPUC’s RWS water supply reliability analyses do not assume additional water supply losses from any potential new FERC-ordered flow releases.
• The simulation of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment scenario assumes that a 1996 agreement between San Francisco and the Districts (the Side Agreement), which allows San Francisco to pay the Districts in lieu of contributing a portion of current FERC-ordered flow releases, remains in effect, and that the San Francisco share of flows in excess of and not covered by the Side Agreement is approximately 51.7 percent. These assumptions were made for the purpose of completing the modeling for the UWMP update, and they do not represent a commitment by San Francisco or the Districts to any future agreement or of San Francisco accepting responsibility for any future FERC-ordered flow releases.
7.1.2 Water Quality of RWS Supplies
Surface water supplies available to the RWS include the Tuolumne River and local Bay Area reservoirs. Most of the water supply originates in the upper Tuolumne River watershed high in the Sierra Nevada, where the watershed is protected from development and pollution. Water from Hetch Hetchy Reservoir is conveyed to the Bay Area through a system of pipes and tunnels and requires only primary disinfection, ultraviolet light disinfection at the Tesla Treatment Facility, and pH adjustment for corrosion control.
The USEPA and SWRCB Division of Drinking Water have approved the use of this drinking water source without filtration. In contrast, water from the SFPUC’s local watersheds requires filtration to meet drinking water quality standards. The SFPUC blends filtered and treated local water with water from Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, and most customers receive this blended supply. The SFPUC continuously monitors and tests both raw and treated water to ensure that water delivered to customers meets or exceeds
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federal and state drinking water and public health requirements. The SFPUC expects to continue relying on these high -quality water sources and does not anticipate future degradation of water quality.
Each spring, the SFPUC publishes an annual water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report), available at : https://www.sfpuc.gov/accounts-services/water-quality/annual-triennial- water-quality-reports.
7.2 WATER SERVICE RELIABILITY ASSESSMENT
This section presents the constraints on the City’s existing and planned water sources and describes the historical basis for projecting available supplies in various hydrologic conditions (i.e., normal year, single dry year, and five consecutive dry years). The City’s water service reliability is then presented in five-year increments through 2050 based on earlier analysis of water use (discussed in Chapter 4) and supply (Chapter 6). Finally, this section discusses the City’s water management tools and opt ions to promote regional supply reliability and minimize the need to import water from other regions.
7.2.1 Purchased Water from SFPUC
Approximately 14 to 18 percent of the City’s water supply was purchased from the SFPUC from 2021 through 2025. The reliability of SFPUC’s water supplies and the management strategies for addressing these reliabilities are discussed below based on information provided by SFPUC and BAWSCA (provided in Appendix F of this plan).
7.2.1.1 SFPUC Regional Water System
Initiated in 2008, SFPUC’s WSIP is a $4.8 billion, multi -year capital program to upgrade the RWS as well as the SFPUC’s local water system. The program is delivering capital improvements that enhance the SFPUC’s ability to provide reliable, affordable, hig h quality drinking water in an environmentally sustainable manner to its Retail and Wholesale Customers. The SFPUC structured the WSIP to cost -effectively meet water quality requirements, improve seismic and delivery reliability goals through the Year 2030, and fulfill water supply objectives through the Year 2018. The SFPUC completed the San Francisco portion of WSIP in October 2020. As of June 30, 2025, the regional portion of WSIP was 99.3 percent complete, having repaired, replaced, and seismically upgraded crucial portions of the RWS; only two regional projects remain in planning and construction, while 49 regional projects have been completed or are in close -out. The SFPUC forecasts that the overall WSIP will be completed in June 2032.
The SFPUC undertook the WSIP to ensure the ability of the RWS to meet Level of Service (LOS) Goals and Objectives for water quality, seismic reliability, delivery reliability, and water supply. The Water Supply LOS goal, stated in the WSIP and adopted in 2008, is to meet customer water needs in non -drought and drought periods. The SFPUC amended and updated the LOS Goals and Objectives in November 2023. SFPUC’s current LOS Goals and Objectives related to water supply include the following:
• Meet an average annual water demand of 265 MGD from the SFPUC watersheds for Retail and Wholesale Customers during non-drought years
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consistent with the Water Supply Agreement between San Francisco and its Wholesale Customers in Alameda, San Mateo, and Santa Clara Counties. • Meet dry-year delivery needs while limiting rationing to a maximum 20 percent system-wide reduction in water service during extended droughts. • Diversify and improve use of new water sources and drought management, including groundwater, recycled water, conservation, transfers, storage expansion, purified water, desalinated water, and technological innovations that can increase supply and/or water use efficiency.
• Maintain San Francisco retail residential potable water use below 45 GPCD. • Realize annual Real Water Losses of less than 10 percent of water supplied to San Francisco.
• Meet 80 percent of San Francisco’s Recreation and Parks Department irrigation demands with recycled water by December 31, 2025.
7.2.1.2 Bay-Delta Plan Amendment Updates
In December 2018, the SWRCB adopted amendments to the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento -San Joaquin Delta Estuary (Bay -Delta Plan Amendment) to establish water quality objectives for the San Francisco Bay -Delta watershed. The SWRCB is required by law to regularly review this plan. The adopted Bay-Delta Plan Amendment was developed with the stated goal of increasing salmonid populations in three San Joaquin River tributaries (the Stanislaus, Merced, and Tuolumne Rivers) and the San Francisco Bay-Delta.
The Bay -Delta Plan Amendment requires the release of 30 to 50 percent of the “unimpaired flow”1 on the three tributaries from February through June in every year type.
In SFPUC modeling of the new flow standard, the required release is assumed to be 40 percent of unimpaired flow. If the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment is implemented, the SFPUC will be able to meet the projected water demands presented in this 2025 UWMP in normal years but is expected to experience supply shortages in single dry years or multiple dry years. Implementation of the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment could require rationing in all single dry years and multiple dry years.
Implementation of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment remains uncertain for multiple reasons. • Over a dozen lawsuits have been filed in both state and federal courts challenging the SWRCB’s adoption of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, including a legal challenge filed by the federal government at the request of the U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation. This litigation is currently at the appellate level
1 "Unimpaired flow represents the natural water production of a river basin, unaltered by upstream diversions, storage, or by export or import of water to or from other watersheds." (Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary (Dec. 12, 2018) p.17, fn. 14, available at https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/plans_policies/docs/2018wqcp.pdf.)
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• The Bay-Delta Plan Amendment is not self-implementing and does not automatically allocate responsibility for meeting its new flow requirements to San Francisco or any other water rights holders. Rather, the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment merely provides a regulatory framework for implementing water quality objectives, which must be accomplished by other regulatory and/or adjudicatory proceedings, such as a comprehensive water rights adjudication or, in the case of the Tuolumne River, may be implemented through the water quality certification process set forth in Section 401 of the Clean Water Act as part of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s licensing proceedings for the Don Pedro and La Grange hydroelectric projects. It is currently unclear when the license amendment process is expected to be completed. This process and the other regulatory and/or adjudicatory proceedings may face legal challenges and have lengthy timelines, and quite possibly could result in a different assignment of flow responsibility (and therefore a different water supply impact on the RWS).
In recognition of the obstacles to implementation of the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment, the SWRCB Resolution No. 2018 -0059 adopting the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment directed staff to help complete a “Delta watershed -wide agreement, including potential flow measures for the Tuolumne River,” and to incorporate such agreements as an “alternative” for a future amendment to the Bay-Delta Plan to be presented to the SWRCB “as early as possible after December 1, 2019.” On March 26, 2019, the SFPUC adopted Resolution No. 19-0057 to support the SFPUC’s participation in the Voluntary Agreement negotiation process. To date, those negotiations are ongoing under the California Natural Resources Agency and the leadership of the Newsom administration. 2 On November 10, 2022, the SFPUC along with the Modesto and Turlock Irrigation Districts signed a Memorandum of Understanding Advancing the Term Sheet for the Voluntary Agreements to Update and Implement the Bay -Delta Water Quality Control Plan and Other Actions. Voluntary Agreements are now referred to as the Agreements to Support Healthy Rivers and Landscapes and negotiations remain ongoing.
Because of the uncertainty surrounding implementation of the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment, the water service reliability assessment in the 2025 UWMP looks at two future supply scenarios:
1. Implementation of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment.
2. SFPUC system’s current conditions without implementation of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment.
2 California Natural Resources Agency, “Voluntary Agreements to Improve Habitat and Flow in the Delta and its Watersheds,” available at https://files.resources.ca.gov/voluntary-agreements/.
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7.2.1.3 WSIP Dry Year Water Supply Projects
With WSIP, the SFPUC has undertaken several water supply projects to meet dry -year demands. Those projects include the following:
• Calaveras Dam Replacement Project. Calaveras Dam is in the East Bay near a seismically active fault zone, and following the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989, it was determined to be seismically vulnerable. To address the dam’s vulnerability, the SFPUC constructed a new dam of equal height downstream of the existing dam. This project was completed in 2022. Calaveras Reservoir was completely refilled in 2023 and is now operating at full capacity. • Alameda Creek Recapture Project. The Alameda Creek Recapture Project includes new facilities in and around an existing quarry pit in Sunol Valley to recover the loss of water supply associated with instream flow release and bypass requirements related to the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project. The project is anticipated to be completed in 2032.
• Lower Crystal Springs Dam Improvements. The Lower Crystal Springs Dam Improvements Project was completed in May 2012. The related joint San Mateo County/SFPUC Bridge Replacement Project to replace the bridge across the Lower Crystal Springs Dam was completed in January 2019. • Regional Groundwater Storage and Recovery Project. The Regional Groundwater Storage and Recovery (Regional GSR) Project is a strategic partnership between the SFPUC and three Wholesale Customers in San Mateo County: the California Water Service (serving South San Francisco and Colma), the City of Daly City, and the City of San Bruno.
The project sustainably manages groundwater and surface water resources to provide the RWS with additional supplies during times of drought. During years of normal or heavy rainfall, the SFPUC provides additional surface water from the RWS to the three agencies in northern San Mateo County, allowing them to reduce the amount of groundwater that they pump from the southern Westside Groundwater Basin. Over time, the reduced pumping allows the aquifer to naturally recharge and result in increased groundwater storage of up to 61,000 acre-feet of new water supply available during dry years. As of December 2025, the SFPUC had accumulated approximately 14 billion gallons of groundwater storage credits (about 43,093 AF) through the project.
The Regional GSR project has two phases. Phase 1, which included building thirteen production wells and treatment facilities, is complete. Phase 2 design began in early 2020 and covers rehabilitating and reinstalling well pumps, installing two new variable frequency drivers, and conducting start-up testing and well disinfection. Pumps at the Hickey, Southwood Drive, and Mission wells were rehabilitated, packed, and stored due to staff shortages, operational challenges, and elevated ammonia levels at the Southwood Drive well; they may be reinstalled later. Construction on Phase 2B began in 2024 and would transport groundwater from the SFPUC South San Francisco Main
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Well to the California Water Service Treatment Station in South San Francisco. The project will make improvements at the existing well site which includes mechanical, electrical, structural, and corrosion protection upgrades. The SFPUC also prepared a conceptual engineering report and initiated design work for additional treatment to address the high ammonia levels at the South Spruce Lane Well and Treatment Facility. Minor amounts of groundwater pumping from RGSR wells have occurred during start-up testing and monthly maintenance.
• Regional Groundwater Treatment Improvements Project. The SFPUC approved this new project in the 10-Year Water Enterprise Capital Improvement Program for FY 2021-2030. The project includes treatment facilities for several of the Regional GSR project wells to address groundwater quality issues that have emerged since the wells were constructed. • Water Transfers. During the planning and implementation of the WSIP, the SFPUC pursued a long-term agreement to transfer 2 MGD from Modesto irrigation District to the SFPUC in drought years. Negotiations with Modesto Irrigation District ended in 2012 when an agreement could not be reached. The dry-year transfer project is now being included as part of the new SFPUC Alternative Water Supply Program and is described in further detail below.
7.2.1.4 Alternative Water Supply Program
In 2019, the SFPUC established the Alternative Water Supply (AWS) Program to identify and plan water supply and storage projects and actions that increase the dry -year reliability of the RWS. Based on the 2045 planning horizon that the SFPUC applied in its February 2024 AWS Plan, the SFPUC anticipates a water supply gap will occur in future dry years. The AWS Program aims to help fill the gap through local and regional capital projects. The February 2024 AWS Plan identified six regional projects that might partially address the future water supply gap and the priorities for this planning effort.
Since the development of that plan, three projects have been deferred (Daly City Recycled Water Expansion, Alameda County Water District -Union Sanitary District Purified Water, and Calaveras Reservoir Expansion) and one project has been canceled (Los Vaqueros Reservoir Expansion). The AWS Program is continuing to pursue the following two projects:
• PureWater Peninsula. PureWater Peninsula (formerly known as the Crystal Springs Purified Water Project) is a purified water project that could provide 6 MGD of additional potable water supply to the RWS through surface water augmentation at SFPUC’s Crystal Springs Reservoir. The currently proposed project involves treating wastewater effluent from Silicon Valley Clean Water at a new advanced purified water facility located on the Peninsula and transmitting that purified water to Crystal Springs Reservoir, where it would blend with RWS surface water supplies before the SFPUC treats it again at Harry Tracy Water Treatment Plant. A future phase could provide an additional 6 MGD of additional potable water supply to the RWS. Project partners include the SFPUC, Silicon Valley Clean Water, BAWSCA,
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Mid-Peninsula Water District, California Water Service, City of Redwood City, City of Foster City, and City of San Mateo.
• Pure Water Silicon Valley. In 2023, the SFPUC, the City of San Jose, and the City of Santa Clara completed an initial feasibility study for the South Bay Purified Water project, envisioned as a 10 MGD purified water project that would serve the local demands of San Jose and Santa Clara during all types of water years and deliver an additional volume of water supply to the RWS in dry years. Currently, Valley Water is working with San Jose and Santa Clara to design a larger project to meet broader regional needs. SFPUC’s participation in this project will be based on the regional benefits to the RWS customers.
This project may also assist the SFPUC with its decision regarding San Jose and Santa Clara’s status as RWS customers, discussed above.
If both AWS projects that SFPUC staff has identified through the current planning process can be implemented, there would still be a supply shortfall to meet projected needs associated with implementation of the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment. Furthermore, both alternative water supply options are in the planning phase and are subject to changes in institutional structure and design. Given the limited availability of water supply alternatives, unless the supply risks are significantly reduced, the SFPUC will continue to plan, develop, and implement all potential projects that can help bridge the anticipated water supply gap during droughts.
Outside of the AWS Program, the following additional regional projects are included in the Agreements to Support Healthy Rivers and Landscapes discussed in the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment section above. Progress on these water supply options will be guided by scientific monitoring and collaborative decision making. • Groundwater Banking. Groundwater banking projects in the Modesto Irrigation District and Turlock Irrigation District service areas could provide the SFPUC with some additional water supply to meet instream flow releases in dry years, reducing water supply impacts on the RWS. A feasibility study of this option is included in the Agreements to Support Healthy Rivers and Landscapes.
• Inter-Basin Collaborations. Inter-Basin Collaborations could include establishing a partnership between interests on the Tuolumne River (such as the SFPUC) and those on the Stanislaus River, which would allow responsibility for streamflow to be assigned variably based on the annual hydrology. The Tuolumne system tends to spill more excess flow in wetter years than the Stanislaus system, and this excess flow could be shaped and credited to meet Stanislaus system requirements, while New Melones Reservoir in the Stanislaus system is refilling. Then the stored water could be partially used to provide required streamflow to meet Stanislaus and Tuolumne requirements in future dry years.
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• Dry-Year Transfers. The SFPUC initiated discussions with irrigation districts under WSIP to secure a dry-year transfer (see WSIP Dry-Year Water Supply Projects section above). While no transfer was secured, the SFPUC continues to engage in discussions with irrigation districts to explore potential transfer opportunities.
SFPUC’s AWS Plan published in February 2024 included a planning framework for SFPUC t o consider water supply needs and related tradeoffs; guide the decisions to proceed with environmental review; and continue the development of projects that can best meet anticipated water supply needs. In June 2025, SFPUC prepared a progress report that provided status updates on the AWS projects. In 2027, SFPUC plans to review and revise its Alternative Water Supply Plan based on updated information.
7.2.1.5 SFPUC Supply Allocations
Two drought allocation frameworks govern how supplies from the RWS are distributed during SFPUC-declared water shortages, and both are described in the sections below.
The Water Shortage Allocation Plan (Tier 1) establishes how available supplies are allocated between SFPUC’s Retail Customers and the Wholesale Customers collectively.
The Wholesale Customers’ Tier 2 Drought Response Implementation Plan (Tier 2) then allocates the Wholesale share among the individual agencies using a defined, data-based methodology. Together, these frameworks guide regional drought allocation procedures and support coordinated implementation during shortage conditions.
7.2.1.5.1 Tier One Drought Allocations
The WSA between the SFPUC and the Wholesale Customers, discussed above, includes as “Attachment H” a Water Shortage Allocation Plan (WSAP), also known as the Tier 1 Shortage Plan. This plan describes the method for allocating water from the RWS between the SFPUC’s Retail Customers, on the one hand, and the Wholesale Customers collectively, on the other, during system -wide shortages caused by drought. The Tier 1 Shortage Plan applies only when the SFPUC determines that a system -wide water shortage due to drought exists, as set forth in a declaration of water shortage emergency by the SFPUC Commission; in the absence of such a declaration, the SFPUC also may opt to request voluntary cutbacks from its Retail and Wholesale Customers to achieve water use reductions. The SFPUC and the Wholesale Customers most recently amended the Tier 1 Shortage Plan in 2025.
The SFPUC allocates water under the Tier 1 Shortage Plan when it determines that the projected available water supply is less than projected system -wide water purchases for the upcoming Supply Year, defined as the period from July 1 through June 30. Table 7-1 shows the Retail Customers’ share and the Wholesale Customers’ share of the annual water supply available during shortages depending on the level of system-wide reduction in water use that is required. If the SFPUC determines that the level of system -wide reduction required during a shortage is greater than 20 percent, the SFPUC and the Wholesale Customers will meet to discuss the appropriate Retail and Wholesale Customers’ shares of available water. The Retail and Wholesale Customers’ shares of available water are also known as the Retail and Wholesale Customers’ Tier 1
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Allocations. The Wholesale Customers’ Tier 1 Allocation will be apportioned among the individual Wholesale Customers based on a separate methodology, known as the Tier 2 Drought Response Implementation Plan (Tier 2 Plan), which is separately adopted by all the Wholesale Customers without the SFPUC’s involvement as discussed further below.
Table 7-1. Share of Available SFPUC Supplies Under Various Shortages Level of System-Wide Reduction
in Water Use Required
Share of Available Water
SFPUC Share % Wholesale Customers Share%
5% or less 35.5 64.5
6% through 10% 36.0 64.0
11% through 15% 37.0 63.0
16% through 20% 37.5 62.5
Source: SFPUC Common Language for BAWSCA Member Agencies’ 2025 UWMPs, February 13, 2026.
The Tier 1 Shortage Plan allows for voluntary transfers of shortage allocations between the SFPUC and any Wholesale Customer as well as between Wholesale Customers themselves. In addition, voluntary transfers of water “banked” by the SFPUC or a Wholesale Customer, through reductions in usage greater than required, may occur.
Under the Tier 1 Shortage Plan, as amended in 2018, if the Retail Customers’ Tier 1 Allocation results in the Retail Customers receiving a “positive allocation” (i.e., a supply of additional water rather than a required reduction in water use), then the ex cess percentage for Retail is re -allocated to the Wholesale Customers’ Tier 1 Allocation. The Retail Customers are also required to conserve a minimum of 5 percent for any level of reduction in system-wide water use. The additional water conserved by Retail Customers up to the minimum 5 percent level is deemed as remaining in RWS storage for inclusion in the calculation of projected available water in future successive dry years.
The Tier 1 Shortage Plan will expire at the end of the term of the WSA in 2034, unless the SFPUC and the Wholesale Customers mutually agree to revise or terminate it prior to that date.
7.2.1.5.2 Tier Two Drought Allocations
The Wholesale Customers have negotiated and adopted a Tier 2 Plan that allocates the Wholesale Customer Tier 1 Allocation from the Tier 1 Shortage Plan among each of the 26 Wholesale Customers. These Tier 2 Allocations are based on a formula that takes into account multiple factors for each Wholesale Customer including:
• Residential population;
• Non-residential “base” (i.e., indoor) use;
• Seasonal uses;
• Total RWS purchases in recent non-drought years; and
• Individual Supply Guarantee.
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The Tier 2 Plan employs a structured, sequential, five -step method to allocate water to each Wholesale Customer. The allocations are constrained by minimum and maximum cutbacks, which establish the maximum final allocation and minimum guaranteed final allocation, respectively. No agency's final allocation can fall outside of these bounds. The allocation then proceeds by prioritizing indoor uses.
The subsequent steps systematically allocate the remaining available water based on different customer demands. First focusing on indoor demand, water is allocated based on an agency’s residential population and the State residential efficient indoor stand ard (47 GPCD in 2025), followed by an allocation based on non-residential “base” (i.e., indoor) use. A limited amount of water is allocated based on seasonal use (e.g., cooling towers and irrigation). Finally, the remaining supply is allocated based on a weighted share of two- thirds RWS purchases in the recent non-drought years and one-third ISG.
The result of the Tier 2 Plan is each Wholesale Customers’ proportion, expressed as a percentage, of the available Tier 1 Allocation (Allocation Factor).
The Tier 2 Plan requires that the Allocation Factors be calculated by BAWSCA each year in preparation for a potential water shortage emergency. As the Wholesale Customers change their water use characteristics (e.g., increases or decreases in RWS purchases and use of other water sources, changes in monthly water use patterns, or changes in population), the Allocation Factor for each Wholesale Customer will also change.
However, for long -term planning purposes, each Wholesale Customer may use as its Allocation Factor, the value identified in the Tier 2 Plan when adopted.
The Tier 2 Plan was renegotiated and adopted by all Wholesale Customers in 2025.
7.2.1.5.3 Allocations for Supply Shortages Greater than 20 Percent Per the WSA, the Tier One and Tier Two Plans will be used to allocate water from the Regional Water System between Retail and Wholesale Customers during system -wide shortages of 20 percent or less.
For purposes of the 2025 UWMPs, for RWS shortages in excess of 20 percent, the allocations among the Wholesale Customers are assumed to be equivalent among them and to equal the drought cutback to Wholesale Customer by the SFPUC.
7.2.1.6 Projected Supplies from SFPUC Regional Water System The SFPUC has a Level of Service objective of meeting average annual water demand of 265 MGD from the SFPUC watersheds for retail and wholesale customers during non- drought years, as well as a contractual obligation to supply 184 MGD to the wholesale customers. These projected supplies are summarized in Table 7-2.
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Table 7-2. SFPUC Regional Water System Supply Capacity(a) 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
SFPUC Retail Supply, mgd 81 81 81 81 81
SFPUC Wholesale Supply, mgd 184 184 184 184 184
Total Regional Water System Supply, mgd 265 265 265 265 265 (a) From SFPUC Level of Service goals.
For SFPUC’s water supply reliability evaluation for its 2025 UWMP, demand is assumed to be equivalent to the sum of the projected retail demands on the Regional Water System and wholesale customer purchase request projections provided to SFPUC by BAWSCA in March 2026. These projected water demands are summarized in Table 7-3.
Table 7-3. Projected Retail and Wholesale Demand Assumptions for the SFPUC Regional Water System(a)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
SFPUC Retail Customers, mgd 62.7 61.2 61.9 64.0 66.7
SFPUC Wholesale Customers, mgd(b) 133.9 136.3 140.6 144.1 148.4 Total, mgd 196.6 197.5 202.5 208.1 215.2
(a) From SFPUC 2025 UWMP Supply Reliability Memo, Table 1: Retail and Wholesale RWS Demand Assumptions used for Supply Reliability Modeling, provided by SFPUC on March 11, 2026. (b) 2030 through 2050 Wholesale Customer purchase projections were provided to the SFPUC by BAWSCA on March 4, 2026, and include demands for the cities of San Jose and Santa Clara.
The City’s water supply from the SFPUC Regional Water System under normal, single dry and multiple dry year conditions is described further in the sections below. Because the water demands vary over the period evaluated, in addition to supply conditions with and without the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment, the estimated availability of SFPUC Regional Water System supplies varies by year and by assumed dry year condition. This variation in Regional Water System supply availability is shown in Table 7 -4 with the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment and Table 7 -5 without the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment. As shown in Table 7-4, with the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment, supply availability is reduced to as low as 57 percent of projected purchases in some multiple dry years. As shown in Table 7-5, without the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, supply availability is projected to be 100 percent of projected purchases in all years.
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Table 7-4. Projected Regional Water System Supply Availability in Years 2030 to 2050 with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment(a,b)
2030(c) 2035(c) 2040(c) 2045(c) 2050(c)
Average Year 100 100 100 100 100
Single Dry Year 75 74 72 70 68
Consecutive 1st Dry Year 75 74 72 70 68
Consecutive 2nd Dry Year 63 63 61 59 57
Consecutive 3rd Dry Year 63 63 61 59 57
Consecutive 4th Dry Year 63 63 61 59 57
Consecutive 5th Dry Year 63 63 61 59 57
(a) From SFPUC 2025 UWMP Supply Reliability Memo, Table 4g: Projected RWS Supply Availability, Years 2030-2050, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by SFPUC on March 11, 2026. (b) RWS includes both SFPUC Retail and SFPUC Wholesale customers. (c) Values shown in percentage.
Table 7-5. Projected Regional Water System Supply Availability in Years 2030 to 2050 without Bay-Delta Plan Amendment(a)
2030(c) 2035(c) 2040(c) 2045(c) 2050(c)
Average Year 100 100 100 100 100
Single Dry Year 100 100 100 100 100
Consecutive 1st Dry Year 100 100 100 100 100
Consecutive 2nd Dry Year 100 100 100 100 100
Consecutive 3rd Dry Year 100 100 100 100 100
Consecutive 4th Dry Year 100 100 100 100 100
Consecutive 5th Dry Year 100 100 100 100 100
(a) From SFPUC 2025 UWMP Supply Reliability Memo, Table 5g: Projected RWS Supply Availability, Years 2030-2050, without Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by SFPUC on March 11, 2026. (b) RWS includes both SFPUC Retail and SFPUC Wholesale customers. (c) Values shown in percentage.
The projected Regional Water System supply availability during dry years differ s slightly from those applicable to wholesale customers. Therefore, the City’s dry -year supply percentages from SFPUC (described in Section 7.3.1) are slightly different from those shown in Table 7-4.
7.2.2 Purchased Water from Valley Water
Valley Water manages a highly integrated and diversified water supply system consisting of local surface water, groundwater, imported water (SWP and CVP), recycled water, and conservation programs. This diversified portfolio enhances overall system reliabi lity and resilience to drought and supply interruptions.
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Valley Water continues to prioritize groundwater storage and conjunctive use. During normal and wet years, excess supplies are stored through managed aquifer recharge, groundwater banking (e.g., Semitropic Groundwater Bank), and carryover storage in San Luis Reservoir. These stored supplies provide a critical buffer during dry periods and help delay or reduce the need for demand reductions. In extended droughts, Valley Water supplements its supplies through water transfers, exchanges, and regional agreements, though availability remains dependent on hydrologic conditions, regulatory constraints, and regional demand.
Infrastructure reliability remains guided by Valley Water’s Infrastructure Reliability Plan (IRP), which evaluates major outage scenarios such as earthquakes, delta disruptions, extreme storms, and power outages. The system is designed to restore treated water deliveries to minimum winter demand levels within approximately 30 days following a major event. While severe events (e.g., a major earthquake) could result in significant short-term outages, Valley Water maintains operational strategies, such as groundwater reliance and system reconfiguration, to sustain essential service levels during emergencies.
As a retailer in Santa Clara County that uses groundwater and treated surface water, the City relies on Valley Water activities to maintain sustainable supplies, including managed groundwater recharge and in -lieu groundwater recharge (e.g., treated surface water deliveries, demand management programs, and SFPUC supply).
Imported water from the Sacramento –San Joaquin Delta continues to be a major component of Valley Water’s supply portfolio, though it remains vulnerable to risks including climate change, sea level rise, regulatory restrictions, and potential levee failures. Planning efforts at the state and regional level continue to address these risks, but Delta supply uncertainty remains a key long-term vulnerability.
Valley Water’s conjunctive management of groundwater and surface water makes it very difficult to demonstrate reduced Delta reliance at a retailer level:
• Valley Water uses water from the SWP, CVP, and local watershed runoff to meet groundwater recharge and water treatment plant needs, which in turn produce water for use by retailers and other users. The interconnected nature of the groundwater basins and blended use of sources in Valley Water infrastructure like reservoirs and pipelines make it infeasible to quantify imported water use at the retailer level.
• Valley Water manages most of the water conservation programs for the County with the support of retailers. Retailers support the conservation programs through water rates and cost share agreements. • Valley Water and local retailers have recycled and purified water goals for the future. Future potable reuse would be added to surface supplies and may also augment groundwater supplies.
• Valley Water projects an increased use of supplies captured locally, which can contribute to reduced reliance on the Delta. But given Valley Water’s conjunctive water management, these reductions cannot be allocated to individual retailers.
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To improve long -term reliability and reduce dependence on imported supplies, Valley Water has continued to expand and invest in:
• Water conservation and demand management, with ongoing efficiency improvements and updated state conservation requirements; • Recycled and purified water, including advancement of potable reuse projects and implementation of the Countywide Water Reuse Program; • Stormwater capture and groundwater recharge, including green infrastructure and Flood-MAR initiatives;
• Seismic retrofits and dam improvements, with several reservoir upgrades ongoing or nearing completion to restore full operational capacity; • Regional collaboration efforts (e.g., Bay Area Regional Reliability partnerships) to enhance interconnections, facilitate water transfers, and improve climate resilience.
Recent planning efforts, including updates to Valley Water’s 2050 WSMP, continue to indicate that projected demands through the planning horizon (2045 and beyond) can be met under normal and multi-dry year conditions with implementation of planned projects and programs. However, uncertainties related to climate change, regulatory constraints, and delta reliability remain key considerations.
Overall, Valley Water’s conjunctive use strategy, combined with continued investment in local supplies, infrastructure improvements, and regional coordination, supports a resilient and adaptable water supply system while progressively reducing reliance on imported Delta water.
7.2.3 Groundwater
7.2.3.1 Groundwater Supply
Groundwater supply is largely constrained by hydrologic variability and the estimated 548,000 AF of total operational storage capacity within the subbasins. Valley Water has about 144,000 AFY of managed recharge capacity, including more than 90 miles of in-stream recharge and 102 off -stream recharge ponds. Maintaining Valley Water’s managed recharge program requires ongoing operational planning for the distribution of local and imported water to recharge facilities; maintenance and operation of reservoirs, diversion facilities, distribution systems, and recharge ponds; and the maintenance of water supply contracts, water rights, and relevant environm ental clearance. Valley Water’s managed recharge program is critical to maintain groundwater supply because natural recharge is insufficient to meet groundwater demands. However, protecting natural recharge capacity is also important. Valley Water’s District Act and Board policy help preserve open space that supports agriculture and natural recharge capacity.
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Additional details about constraints on groundwater supply and quality and Valley Water’s comprehensive groundwater management strategies are described in the 2021 Groundwater Management Plan3.
7.2.3.2 Groundwater Quality
The City has historically relied on groundwater for most of the City’s water supply.
Therefore, any contamination of those supplies poses a significant risk to the City’s overall water supply reliability. The City’s production wells consistently meet all State and Federal applicable water quality criteria. In contrast to other areas adjacent to San Francisco Bay where saltwater intrusion has been an issue, total dissolved solids (TDS) is not a concern for the City. While the City’s wells continue to provide excellent quality water, future State or Federal regulations could be imposed that may mandate additional treatment. Public water supply wells throughout the City deliver high quality water to consumers, almost always without the need for treatment.
Valley Water monitors groundwater quality in the Santa Clara Subbasin to support its objective of protecting groundwater from contamination, maintaining long-term reliability, and minimizing risks such as land subsidence and saltwater intrusion. The most r ecent groundwater quality information is presented in Valley Water’s annual groundwater reporting Water Year 2024 Groundwater Report 4, which provides a comprehensive evaluation of groundwater conditions, including water quality, groundwater levels, and basin sustainability.
1,2,3-Trichloropropane (1,2,3-TCP)
In 2017, 1,2,3-Trichloropropane (1,2,3-TCP) became a State regulated contaminant with a maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 0.005 ug/L. Per the Water Year 2024 Groundwater Report, 1,2,3-TCP is currently not detected in the Santa Clara Subbasin. All compliance monitoring conducted at City wells has confirmed no detection of 1,2,3-TCP.
Nitrate
Nitrate in groundwater originates from both natural and anthropogenic sources.
Concentrations below 10 mg/L (as nitrogen) are typical, while higher concentrations are generally associated with fertilizers, septic systems, and animal waste. Although groundwater quality in the Santa Clara and Llagas Subbasins remains high overall, elevated nitrate concentrations have been observed in localized areas, including portions of the Coyote Valley and Llagas Subbasin.
Recent monitoring indicates that nitrate concentrations are generally stable or declining in many areas due to ongoing groundwater protection efforts. The drinking water MCL for nitrate is 10 mg/L as nitrogen. The City continues to monitor all wells for nitrate on a regular
3 2021 Groundwater Management Plan Valley Water. https://assets.valleywater.org/files/2021_GWMP.pdf 4 Water Year 2024 Groundwater Report Valley Water.
https://assets.valleywater.org/files/WY_2024%20Report%20for%20Santa%20Clara%20and%20Llagas%20Subbasin s.pdf
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basis. Some wells exhibit nitrate concentrations approaching one -half of the MCL, likely associated with historical agricultural practices and legacy septic system impacts. Nitrate does not currently pose a significant threat to groundwater supply availability; however, the City will continue monitoring and implement additional management actions if necessary.
Manganese
Manganese is a naturally occurring constituent in groundwater and is regulated under a secondary MCL of 50 µg/L due to aesthetic concerns such as staining. While manganese does not generally pose a health risk at typical concentrations, elevated levels can affect water quality acceptability.
Consistent with historical observations and recent monitoring, manganese is present at low concentrations in some City wells. One standby well has historically exhibited concentrations above the secondary MCL and is equipped with treatment but is not currently in regular operation. Active wells generally remain below regulatory thresholds, and recent data indicate no widespread exceedances. Manganese may affect groundwater availability due to the potential need for treatment, which can increase operational costs. The City will continue to evaluate treatment needs as part of its long - term groundwater management strategy.
7.2.4 Recycled Water
Recycled water supplies are generally less vulnerable to seasonal and climatic variability than surface water supplies because they are derived from wastewater flows, which remain relatively stable during drought conditions. The influent to the RWF exceeds current recycled water delivery capacity, and recycled water production continues to be constrained primarily by distribution infrastructure and demand rather than source availability. Although influent flows may decrease slightly during extended dry peri ods, available supply is expected to remain sufficient to meet projected recycled water demands. Therefore, recycled water is considered a highly reliable and drought -resilient supply, though not entirely drought -proof due to potential operational, regulat ory, and demand-related constraints.
7.2.5 Bay Area Water Conservation and Supply Agency Strategy 2050 The City is a member of the BAWSCA. BAWSCA provides regional water reliability planning and conservation programming for the benefit of its 26 member agencies that purchase wholesale water supplies from the SFPUC. Collectively, the BAWSCA member agencies deliver water to over 1.8 million residents and nearly 40,000 commercial, industrial, and institutional accounts in Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties.
BAWSCA also represents the collective interests of these wholesale water customers on all significant technical, financial and policy matters related to the operation and improvement of SFPUC’s RWS.
The City is supporting BAWSCA in the development of its Long -Term Reliable Water Supply Strategy 2050 (Strategy 2050), a regional assessment of Member Agencies’ water supply needs . Strategy 2050 will identify the water supply and demand management
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needs and opportunities for the BAWSCA region and establish a framework to collectively support water reliability and resilience. The main objectives of Strategy 2050 include:
• Providing a comprehensive picture of the region's supply and demand management needs and options;
• Establishing a framework for collectively maintaining and improving regional water supply reliability and resilience;
• Elevating awareness of and supporting the region’s interests in new and emerging regulations that impact water supply and demand management; • Expanding regional dialogue and collaboration to collectively address common needs;
• Closing the gap on funding needed for water supply resilience and reliability; and • Supporting availability of affordable water supplies and demand management strategies to all customers.
Strategy 2050 is actively evaluating opportunities to enhance water supply reliability in the BAWSCA region, including projects involving physical infrastructure and actions involving non-infrastructure interventions, such as policies, programs, and/or contractual agreements. A total of 70 local and regional projects and actions will be considered, including stormwater capture projects, technical assistance programs for onsite reuse, groundwater banking partnerships, new and replacement well projects, and i nterties development and optimization, among others. Strategy 2050 will evaluate these the water reliability of under the range of potential future conditions and make recommendations on priorities and next steps for implementation.
Strategy 2050 plan is anticipated to be completed by 2027. From 2027 onward, the Strategy 2050 effort is anticipated to involve implementing the actions identified in the plan, tracking and reporting on the progress, and incorporating the findings from the implementation activities into BAWSCA’s following fiscal year Work Plan.
7.3 BASIS OF WATER SUPPLY DATA
As described above, the quantity of supply available from different water supply sources can vary from one year to the next depending on hydrologic conditions. Historical data, where available, were therefore used to develop a projected yield for each wate r supply source under three conditions: (1) normal water year, (2) single dry year, and (3) multiple dry years. In accordance with the DWR Guidebook, each condition was defined as follows:
• Normal Water Year: This condition represents the water supplies a Supplier considers available during normal conditions. This could be a single year or averaged range of years that most closely represents the average water supply available to the Supplier. In the DWR Guidebook, DWR uses the terms ‘average’ and ‘normal’ interchangeably when addressing the water year type. • Single Dry Year: The single dry year is recommended to be the year that represents the lowest water supply available to the Supplier.
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• Five-Consecutive Year Drought: The five-consecutive year drought for the DRA would be the driest five-year historical sequence for the Supplier (Water Code § 10612). Suppliers are encouraged to use the same historical five-year sequence for their DRA and Water Service Reliability Assessment. However, they may choose to use a different five-consecutive year dry period such as the lowest average water supply available to the Supplier for five years in a row. Suppliers are encouraged to characterize the five-consecutive year drought in a manner that is best suited for understanding and managing their water service reliability. The basis for the water supply data and selected drought years is presented in Sections 7.3.1 and 7.3.2. In addition, the drought risk assessment for the next five consecutive years (2026–2030) is presented in Section 7.5.
7.3.1 Basis of Water Supply Data for SFPUC Supplies
Based on SFPUC’s estimated availability of wholesale RWS supplies, Table 7-6 shows the basis of water supply data for the City’s purchased supplies from the SFPUC with the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment. As shown, with the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment, reductions in available SFPUC supplies are significant and are as high as a 48 percent reduction from projected purchases. These values are used for the remainder of the analysis in this 2025 UWMP as the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment has been adopted by the SWRCB as described above. However, this data is not compatible with DWR Table 7-1; as such, DWR Table 7 -1 has not been completed for the City’s purchased supplies from the SFPUC.
Table 7-6. Basis of Water Supply Data for the City’s Purchased Supplies from SFPUC with the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment(a)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Purchases, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041
Single Dry Year, AFY 3,471 3,376 3,267 3,183 3,106
Consecutive 1st Dry Year, AFY 3,471 3,376 3,267 3,183 3,106 Consecutive 2nd Dry Year, AFY 2,913 2,877 2,769 2,683 2,603 Consecutive 3rd Dry Year, AFY 2,913 2,877 2,769 2,683 2,603 Consecutive 4th Dry Year, AFY 2,913 2,877 2,769 2,683 2,603 Consecutive 5th Dry Year, AFY 2,913 2,877 2,769 2,683 2,603 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026.
For comparison purposes, Table 7 -7 shows the basis of water supply data for the City’s purchased supplies from the SFPUC without the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment. As shown, without the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, no reduction from projected purchases is projected.
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Table 7-7. Basis of Water Supply Data for the City’s Purchased Supplies from SFPUC without the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment(a)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Purchases, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041
Single Dry Year, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041
Consecutive 1st Dry Year, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 Consecutive 2nd Dry Year, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 Consecutive 3rd Dry Year, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 Consecutive 4th Dry Year, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 Consecutive 5th Dry Year, AFY 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, without Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026.
Because the scenario with the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment assumes reduction s in SFPUC supplies , which represents a more conservative planning condition , the City applies the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment conditions in the supply and demand assessment presented in Section 7.4.
7.3.2 Basis of Water Supply Data for Valley Water Supplies As shown in the Valley Water supply reliability tables included in Appendix F, water supply shortfalls are projected during the 4th and 5th dry years in 2030, 2045, and 2050. Based on guidance from Valley Water staff, after accounting for supply augmentation of 15,000 AF in 2030 and 10,000 AF in 2045 and 2050 under drought conditions, residual shortfalls of up to approximately 5 percent remain.
Based on the current contract with Valley Water, which specifies a maximum delivery rate of 4.1 mgd, the available supply under normal conditions is 4,560 AFY. To reflect the projected shortfalls during drought years, a 5 percent reduction is applied during the 4th and 5th dry years in 2030, 2045, and 2050, resulting in an available Valley Water supply of 4,332 AFY.
Table 7-8 presents the City’s basis of water supply data for its supplies from Valley Water.
Table 7-8. Basis of Water Supply Data for the City’s Purchased Supplies from Valley Water(a)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Purchases, AFY 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560
Single Dry Year, AFY 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560
Consecutive 1st Dry Year, AFY 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Consecutive 2nd Dry Year, AFY 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Consecutive 3rd Dry Year, AFY 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Consecutive 4th Dry Year, AFY 4,332 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332 Consecutive 5th Dry Year, AFY 4,332 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332 (a) Valley Water supply reliability tables provided by Valley Water on March 19, 2026 indicate up to 5 percent supply shortfalls during the 4th and 5th dry years in 2030, 2045, and 2050 after assuming the supply augmentation of 15,000 AF in 2030 and 10,000 AF in 2045 and 2050. Accordingly, a 5 percent supply reduction to 4,332 AFY is applied for these shortfall years; no reduction is assumed for all other years, with available supply of 4,560 AFY.
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7.3.3 Basis of Water Supply Data for City’s Local Supplies The City’s local supplies, including groundwater and recycled water, are assumed to remain constant within each year under normal year, single dry year, and consecutive five-year drought conditions. Groundwater supplies are assumed to remain constant from 2030 through 2050 at 23,048 AFY. Recycled water supplies vary by year based on projected recycled water demands.
The estimated availability of the City’s groundwater and recycled water supplies is summarized in Tables 7-9 and Table 7-10, respectively. Recycled water supply data are not compatible with the format of DWR Table 7-1; therefore, DWR Table 7-1 has not been completed for recycled water.
Table 7-9. Basis of Water Year Data for City’s Groundwater Supplies (DWR Table 7-1 Retail)
Optional Submittal Table 7-1 Retail: Basis of Water Year Data (Reliability Assessment) Year Type
Ave rage Year
Single-Dry Year
Consecutive Dry Years 1st Year
Consecutive Dry Years 2nd Year
Consecutive Dry Years 3rd Year
Consecutiv e Dry Years 4th Year
Consecutive Dry Years 5th Year
Base Year
If not us ing a
calenda r yea r, type
in th e last yea r of
t hefi scal, w at er
yea r, o r range of
yea rs, fo r ex ample,
w at er yea r 20 24-
202 5, use 202 5
Available Supplies if
Year Type Repeats
Check th e box if q uantifi cat ion of avail able supplies D is not compat ible w ith th is t able and is provided elsewh ere in th e lJWMP.
Location: [i ns.ert locat ion from UWMP )
Quant ificat ion of avail able supp li es is provided in t his t able as eit her volum e only, percent only, or bot h.
Volume Available (AF) % of Average Supply
23,048 100%
23,048 100%
23,048 100%
23,048 100%
23,048 100%
23,048 100%
23,048 100%
DWR NOTES: Supplier may use multi ple versi ons of Submittal Table 7-1 R if different w ater sources have different base yea rs. and the supplier chooses t o repo rt the base years. for each water source separately. If a Supplier uses mult i ple vers i ons of Subm ittal Table 7-1 R, in t he "Note" sect ion of eac h subm ittal t able, st ate t hat mult iple versions of Submittal Table 7-1 R are bei ng used and identify the particular w ater source t hat is being reported i n each subm ittal t able.
Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remai n consistent t hroughout t he UW MP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3. This t able reports t he units of measure re ported i n Submittal Table 2-3.
NOTES: ProJecte d grmrn dw arte r c!>uppli.es are ba.sed o n the Ciity':s hiist,orica] raaaic:imurn annua grou ndwat er prod uctfo n in FiSica Year ,(FYI 1986/8 7 . The val:ue:s shown in the t a Me onl¥ reffect tlhe Citv'·:s grou ndw art er sup:ptie:s and t he Ciity':s other ,supplies are d isc:m,sed in Secti on 7.3 of the UJWM P.
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Table 7-10. Basis of Water Supply Data for the City’s Recycled Water Supplies(a) 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Supplies, AFY 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
Single Dry Year, AFY 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
Consecutive 1st Dry Year, AFY 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 Consecutive 2nd Dry Year, AFY 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 Consecutive 3rd Dry Year, AFY 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 Consecutive 4th Dry Year, AFY 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 Consecutive 5th Dry Year, AFY 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 (a) Projected recycled water supplies for 2030–2050 are assumed to match the projected recycled water demands (see Table 4-3).
7.4 SUPPLY AND DEMAND ASSESSMENT
The supply reliability analysis evaluates the reliability of the City’s two wholesale water sources (Valley Water and the SFPUC), as well as local groundwater and recycled water supplies. As summarized in Section 7.3.1, the SFPUC has evaluated the reliability of its RWS under conditions both with and without the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment. With the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, reductions in available SFPUC supplies are significant, reaching up to 48 percent of projected purchases. To be conservative, the City assumes the SFPUC supply reduction s with the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment for the supply and demand assessment scenarios.
Due to the uncertainty associated with the interruptible SFPUC supply, the City analyzed supply reliability under two primary scenarios:
• Scenario 1: Supply interruption due to contract termination in 2028. Assuming a 10-year advance notice of termination, SFPUC supplies are assumed to cease beginning in 2040.
• Scenario 2: Assumes the City’s contract with SFPUC is renewed, providing continued SFPUC supplies beyond 2040.
The City’s projected supply and demand under Normal Years, Single Dry Years, and Multiple Dry Years (five-year droughts) are quantified and discussed below.
7.4.1 Normal Year
The City’s normal year supplies are anticipated to be as follows:
• Up to 5,041 AFY from the SFPUC
• Up to 4,560 AFY from Valley Water
• Up to 23,048 AFY from the City’s groundwater wells
• Up to 6,017 AFY from recycled water
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Table 7 -11A represents normal year supplies under Scenario 1, which assumes termination of SFPUC suppl ies beginning in 2040 and under the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment conditions.
Table 7 -11B represents normal year supplies under Scenario 2, which assumes continued suppl ies from the SFPUC beyond 2040 and under the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment conditions. Implementation of the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment is not projected to affect SFPUC’s normal year supplies; therefore, existing contract allocation amounts from SFPUC are assumed to remain unchanged from 2030 to 2050.
Table 7-11A. Projected Normal Year Supplies from All Supply Sources (Scenario 1)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 5,041 5,041 0 0 0 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water, AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
Total Normal Year Supplies, AFY 36,949 37,378 32,767 33,196 33,625 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026. Assumed termination of SFPUC supplies beginning in 2040. (b) See Table 7-8, Table 7-9, and Table 7-10.
Table 7-11B. Projected Normal Year Supplies from All Supply Sources (Scenario 2)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 5,041 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water, AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
Total Normal Year Supplies, AFY 36,949 37,378 37,808 38,237 38,666 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026. Assumed continued SFPUC supplies beyond 2040. (b) See Table 7-8, Table 7-9, and Table 7-10.
The City’s normal year demands are summarized in Table 7 -12, based on demand projections presented in Chapter 4.
Table 7-12. Projected Normal Year Demands
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Normal Year Demand, AFY(a) 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533 (a) From Table 4-4 (DWR Table 4-2 Retail).
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As shown in Table 7-13A and Table 7-13B, the City’s normal year supplies are adequate to meet projected normal year demands under both scenarios, regardless of whether the City continues to receive SFPUC supplies following contract negotiations.
Table 7-13A. Normal Year Supply and Demand Comparison (Scenario 1) (DWR Table 7-2 Retail)
Table 7-13B. Normal Year Supply and Demand Comparison (Scenario 2) (DWR Table 7-2 Retail)
7.4.2 Single Dry Year
The City’s Single Dry Year supplies are anticipated to be as follows:
• Up to 5,041 AFY of purchased supplies from the SFPUC (varies by year based on projected cutback in wholesale supply available from the RWS with the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment; the City’s SFPUC projected cutback ranges from 31 to 38 percent from normal year projected purchases) • Up to 4,560 AFY of purchased supplies from Valley Water (assumed to remain the same as normal year supplies)
• Up to 23,048 AFY of groundwater from the City’s wells (assumed to remain the same as normal year supplies).
2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF) 2050 (AF)
Supply totals
(autofill from Submittal Table
6-9 R)
36,949 37,378 32,767 33,196 33,625
Use totals
(autofill from Submittal Table
4-2 R)
22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 14,261 12,728 6,156 4,623 3,092
2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF) 2050 (AF)
Supply totals
(autofill from Submittal Table
6-9 R)
36,949 37,378 37,808 38,237 38,666
Use totals
(autofill from Submittal Table
4-2 R)
22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 14,261 12,728 11,197 9,664 8,133
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• Up to 6,017 AFY of recycled water (assumed to remain the same as normal year supplies within the same year)
Table 7 -14A represents single dry year supplies under Scenario 1, which assumes termination of SFPUC suppl ies beginning in 2040 and under the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment conditions.
Table 7 -14B represents single dry year supplies under Scenario 2, which assumes continued suppl ies from the SFPUC beyond 2040 and under the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment conditions.
Table 7-14A. Projected Single Dry Year Supplies from All Supply Sources (Scenario 1)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,471 3,376 0 0 0 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water, AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
Total Single Dry Year Supplies, AFY 35,379 35,713 32,767 33,196 33,625 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026. Assumed termination of SFPUC supplies beginning in 2040. (b) See Table 7-8, Table 7-9, and Table 7-10.
Table 7-14B. Projected Single Dry Year Supplies from All Supply Sources (Scenario 2)
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,471 3,376 3,267 3,183 3,106 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water, AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
Total Single Dry Year Supplies, AFY 35,379 35,713 36,034 36,379 36,731 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026. Assumed continued SFPUC supplies beyond 2040. (b) See Table 7-8, Table 7-9, and Table 7-10.
The City’s single dry year demands are assumed to be the same as the City’s normal year demands and are summarized in Table 7 -15, based on demand projections presented in Chapter 4.
Table 7-15. Projected Single Dry Year Demands
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Single Dry Year Demand, AFY(a) 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533 (a) From Table 4-4 (DWR Table 4-2 Retail), assumed to be the same as the City’s normal year demands.
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As shown in Table 7-16A and Table 7 -16B, the City’s single dry year supplies are adequate to meet projected single dry year demands under both scenarios, regardless of whether the City continues to receive SFPUC supplies following contract negotiations.
Table 7-16A. Single Dry Year Supply and Demand Comparison (Scenario 1) (DWR Table 7-3 Retail)
Table 7-16B. Single Dry Year Supply and Demand Comparison (Scenario 2) (DWR Table 7-3 Retail)
Supply totals 35,379 35,713 32,767 33,196 33,625
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,691 11,063 6,156 4,623 3,092
2050 (AF) 2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF)
Supply totals 35,379 35,713 36,034 36,379 36,731
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,691 11,063 9,423 7,806 6,198
2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF) 2050 (AF)
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7.4.3 Multiple Dry Years (Five-Year Droughts)
The City’s multiple dry dry year supplies are anticipated to be as follows:
• Up to 5,041 AFY of purchased supplies from SFPUC (varies by year based on projected cutback in wholesale supply available from the Regional Water System with the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment; the City’s SFPUC projected cutback ranges from 31 to 48 percent from normal year projected purchases). • Up to 4,560 AFY of purchased supplies from Valley Water. To reflect the projected shortfalls during drought years, a 5 percent reduction was assumed during the 4th and 5th dry years in 2030, 2045, and 2050, resulting in an available Valley Water supply of 4,332 AFY.
• Up to 23,048 AFY of groundwater from the City’s wells (assumed to remain the same as normal year supplies).
• Up to 6,017 AFY of recycled water (assumed to remain the same as normal year supplies within the same year)
Table 7 -17A represents multiple dry year supplies under Scenario 1, which assumes termination of SFPUC suppl ies beginning in 2040 and under the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment conditions.
Table 7 -17B represents multiple dry year supplies under Scenario 2, which assumes continued supply from the SFPUC beyond 2040 and under the Bay -Delta Plan Amendment conditions.
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Table 7-17A. Projected Multiple Dry Year Supplies from All Supply Sources (Scenario 1)
1st Year 2nd Year 3rd Year 4th Year 5th Year
Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2030
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,471 2,913 2,913 2,913 2,913 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,300 4,300 4,300 4,300 4,300
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 35,379 34,821 34,821 34,593 34,593 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2035
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,376 2,877 2,877 2,877 2,877 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,729 4,729 4,729 4,729 4,729
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 35,713 35,214 35,214 35,214 35,214 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2040
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 0 0 0 0 0
Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 5,159 5,159 5,159 5,159 5,159
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 32,767 32,767 32,767 32,767 32,767 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2045
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 0 0 0 0 0
Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 5,588 5,588 5,588 5,588 5,588
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 33,196 33,196 33,196 32,968 32,968 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2050
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 0 0 0 0 0
Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 6,017 6,017 6,017 6,017 6,017
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 33,625 33,625 33,625 33,397 33,397 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026. Assumed termination of SFPUC supplies beginning in 2040. (b) See Table 7-8, Table 7-9, and Table 7-10.
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Table 7-17B. Projected Multiple Dry Year Supplies from All Supply Sources (Scenario 2)
1st Year 2nd Year 3rd Year 4th Year 5th Year
Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2030
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,471 2,913 2,913 2,913 2,913 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,300 4,300 4,300 4,300 4,300
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 35,379 34,821 34,821 34,593 34,593 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2035
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,376 2,877 2,877 2,877 2,877 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 4,729 4,729 4,729 4,729 4,729
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 35,713 35,214 35,214 35,214 35,214 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2040
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,267 2,769 2,769 2,769 2,769 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,560
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 5,159 5,159 5,159 5,159 5,159
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 36,034 35,536 35,536 35,536 35,536 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2045
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,183 2,683 2,683 2,683 2,683 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 5,588 5,588 5,588 5,588 5,588
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 36,379 35,879 35,879 35,651 35,651 Multiple Dry Years Starting in 2050
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,106 2,603 2,603 2,603 2,603 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 6,017 6,017 6,017 6,017 6,017
Total Multiple Dry Year Supplies, AFY 36,731 36,228 36,228 36,000 36,000 (a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, with Bay-Delta Plan Amendment, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026. Assumed continued SFPUC supplies beyond 2040. (b) See Table 7-8, Table 7-9, and Table 7-10.
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The City’s multiple dry year demands are assumed to be the same as the City’s normal year demands and are summarized in Table 7 -18, based on demand projections presented in Chapter 4.
Table 7-18. Projected Multiple Dry Year Demands
2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Multiple Dry Year Demand, AFY(a) 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533 (a) From Table 4-4 (DWR Table 4-2 Retail), assumed to be the same as the City’s normal year demands. Demands for each year of the five-year multiple dry year periods are assumed to be the same as the first year of the multiple dry year period.
As shown in Table 7-19A and Table 7 -19B, the City’s multiple dry year supplies are adequate to meet projected multiple dry year demands under both scenarios, regardless of whether the City continues to receive SFPUC supplies following contract negotiations.
Table 7-19A. Multiple Dry Year Supply and Demand Comparison (Scenario 1) (DWR Table 7-4 Retail)
2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF) 2050 (AF)
Supply totals 35,379 35,713 32,767 33,196 33,625
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,691 11,063 6,156 4,623 3,092
Supply totals 34,821 35,214 32,767 33,196 33,625
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,133 10,564 6,156 4,623 3,092
Supply totals 34,821 35,214 32,767 33,196 33,625
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,133 10,564 6,156 4,623 3,092
Supply totals 34,593 35,214 32,767 32,968 33,397
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 11,905 10,564 6,156 4,395 2,864
Supply totals 34,593 35,214 32,767 32,968 33,397
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 11,905 10,564 6,156 4,395 2,864
Second year
Third year
Fifth year
Fourth year
First year
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Table 7-19B. Multiple Dry Year Supply and Demand Comparison (Scenario 2) (DWR Table 7-4 Retail)
7.5 DROUGHT RISK ASSESSMENT
In accordance with CWC Section 10612, urban water suppliers must conduct a DRA, which evaluates the risk of a severe drought occurring for the next five consecutive years (2026-2030). Supply conditions for the DRA are based on the five driest consecutive years on record, with adjustments to consider plausible changes in climate, regulations , and other locally applicable criteria.
This section reviews the data and methods used to define the DRA water shortage condition and evaluates each water source’s reliability under the proposed drought condition. Finally, total water supplies during the five -year drought are compared to projected demands, accounting for any applicable supply augmentation or demand reduction measures available to the City.
7.5.1 Data, Methods, and Basis for Water Shortage Condition The water shortage condition for the DRA is the same as the five-year drought described in Section 7.5.3. Since the DRA can be updated outside of the UWMP five -year plan cycle, the narrative description of the data and basis for the water shortage conditio n is repeated in this section.
2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF) 2050 (AF)
Supply totals 35,379 35,713 36,034 36,379 36,731
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,691 11,063 9,423 7,806 6,198
Supply totals 34,821 35,214 35,536 35,879 36,228
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,133 10,564 8,925 7,306 5,695
Supply totals 34,821 35,214 35,536 35,879 36,228
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 12,133 10,564 8,925 7,306 5,695
Supply totals 34,593 35,214 35,536 35,651 36,000
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 11,905 10,564 8,925 7,078 5,467
Supply totals 34,593 35,214 35,536 35,651 36,000
Use totals 22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Surplus/(shortfall) 11,905 10,564 8,925 7,078 5,467
Fourth year
Fifth year
Second year
Third year
First year
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7.5.2 Drought Risk Assessment of Water Source Reliability Table 7-20 summarizes the City’s available supplies for each year of the DRA.
Table 7-20. Projected Water Supplies for Drought Risk Assessment Supply Source 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030
Purchased Supplies from SFPUC, AFY(a) 3,256 3,256 3,256 3,256 3,256 Purchased Supplies from Valley Water,
AFY(b) 4,560 4,560 4,560 4,332 4,332
Groundwater, AFY(b) 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048 23,048
Recycled Water, AFY(b) 3,957 4,043 4,128 4,214 4,300
Total 34,821 34,906 34,992 34,850 34,936
(a) From BAWSCA 2025 UWMP Wholesale Customer Dry Year Allocations, provided by BAWSCA on March 12, 2026. The SFPUC supply projections for 2026 to 2030 do not assume implementation of the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment because the start of implementation remains uncertain.
(b) See Table 7-8, Table 7-9 and Table 7-10. A 5 percent reduction from Valley Water supplies is assumed for the fourth and fifth dry years, corresponding to 2029 and 2030. Recycled water supplies for 2026–2029 are interpolated between the 2025 and 2030 recycled water supply values.
Table 7-21 summarizes the City’s projected water demand for each year of the DRA , as discussed in Section 4.2.4.
Table 7-21. Projected Water Demand for 2026 to 2030
2026 2027 2028 2029 2030
Projected Water Demand, AFY(a) 21,120 21,512 21,905 22,297 22,689 (a) From Table 4-4.
7.5.3 Total Water Supply and Use Comparison
As shown in Table 7-22, during a five-year drought beginning in 2026, the City’s supplies are projected to be adequate to meet projected demands. ----
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Table 7-22. Five-Year Drought Risk Assessment (DWR Table 7-5 Retail)
2026 Total
Total Water Use (AF) 21,120
Total Supplies (AF) 34,821
Surplus/Shortfall w/o WSCP Action 13,701
2027 Total
Total Water Use (AF) 21,512
Total Supplies (AF) 34,906
Surplus/Shortfall w/o WSCP Action 13,394
2028 Total
Total Water Use (AF) 21,905
Total Supplies (AF) 34,992
Surplus/Shortfall w/o WSCP Action 13,087
2029 Total
Total Water Use (AF) 22,297
Total Supplies (AF) 34,850
Surplus/Shortfall w/o WSCP Action 12,553
2030 Total
Total Water Use (AF) 22,689
Total Supplies (AF) 34,936
Surplus/Shortfall w/o WSCP Action 12,247
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CHAPTER 8
Water Shortage Contingency Plan
This chapter discusses the City’s WSCP, seismic risk to City facilities, and WSCP adoption procedures. To allow for WSCP updates to be made outside of the UWMP preparation process, the City’s WSCP is included in this plan as Appendix G.
8.1 BACKGROUND
Water shortages occur whenever the available water supply cannot meet the normally expected customer water use. These shortages can be due to several reasons, including climate change, drought, and catastrophic events. Drought, regulatory action constraints, and natural and manmade disasters may occur at any time. A WSCP presents how an urban water supplier plans to respond to a water shortage condition and helps prevent catastrophic service disruptions.
In 2018, the California State Legislature enacted two policy bills, (SB 606 (Hertzberg) and AB 1668 (Friedman)) (2018 Water Conservation Legislation), to establish a new foundation for long-term improvements in water conservation and drought planning to adapt to climate change and the resulting longer and more intense droughts in California. The 2018 Water Conservation Legislation set new requirements for water shortage contingency planning.
The City’s WSCP has been prepared to be consistent with these requirements.
8.2 CITY WATER SHORTAGE CONTINGENCY PLAN
The City’s WSCP was developed to provide a strategic plan for preparing and responding to water shortages. The WSCP includes water shortage levels and associated shortage response actions, as well as the City’s legal authorities, communication protocols, compliance and enforcement, and monitoring and reporting.
The City intends for its WSCP to be an adaptive management plan so that it may assess response action effectiveness and adapt to foreseeable and unforeseeable events.
Therefore, the City’s WSCP is included in this plan as Appendix G to allow for updates to be made outside of the UWMP update preparation process. When an update to the WSCP is proposed, the revised WSCP will undergo the process described in Section 8.5.
8.3 WATER SUPPLY RELIABILITY ANALYSIS
This section provides a summary of the water supply planning analysis and reliability findings from this UWMP. Additional information about the City’s existing and projected water use is presented in Chapter 4 of this UWMP, existing and planned water supplies by source are presented in Chapter 6, and the water supply reliability assessment and the drought risk assessment are presented in Chapter 7.
Findings indicate that during normal years, single dry years, and multiple consecutive dry years, the City’s supplies are adequate to meet projected demands through 2050. No water supply shortfalls are anticipated. If a supply shortfall were to occur, the City may declare a water shortage condition as described in the City’s WSCP presented in Appendix G.
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Statewide water supply conditions, changes in groundwater levels, and actions by other agencies may impact the City’s available water supply. A water shortage condition occurs when the available supply of potable water cannot meet ordinary water demands for human consumption, sanitation, fire protection, and other beneficial uses. In some cases, the City may foresee a water shortage, but the water shortage may also be caused by an unforeseen sudden or emergency event. In general, the City’s water supply con ditions may be affected by the following:
• Climatic variability and drought conditions;
• Water quality;
• Supply restrictions from SFPUC’s RWS (including supply reductions associated with the Bay-Delta Plan Amendment);
• Supply restrictions imposed by Valley Water;
• Recycled water supply limitations;
• Groundwater pumping limitations or unforeseen SGMA restrictions to available groundwater supply in the future; and
• Water supply facility failures (loss of turnouts, groundwater wells, pumps or tanks).
The City plans for potential drought events annually. The City conducts an annual water supply and demand assessment in accordance with its WSCP to determine its water supply conditions for the current year and a potential subsequent dry year. The analysis conducted is in the context of the City’s water supply sources and reliability.
8.4 SEISMIC RISK ASSESSMENT AND MITIGATION PLAN
CWC § 10632.5(a) requires that UWMPs include a seismic risk assessment and mitigation plan to assess and mitigate a water system’s seismic vulnerabilities. A Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP) can be incorporated in the 2025 UWMPs to meet this requirement if it addresses seismic risk. The County of Santa Clara 2024 Multijurisdictional Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (2024 LHMP) is available at the following link , and incorporated herein by reference :
https://oem.santaclaracounty.gov/partners/operational-area-hazard-mitigation-program/multi- jurisdictional-hazard-mitigation-plan. The hazard identification and profiling in the hazard mitigation plan addresses the following hazards of concern within the planning area: dam failure, drought, earthquake, flood, landslide, severe weather, tsunami , wildfire, and climate change. The 2024 LHMP addresses seismic risk and is incorporated into this UWMP by reference. The 2024 LHMP was approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in February 2024.
Earthquakes are common, relatively well tracked and studied in California. Santa Clara County is exposed to three major regional faults: Hayward, Calaveras, and San Andreas. The Hayward and Calaveras faults are in the central portion of Santa Clara County and present the greatest earthquake threat to the Santa Clara Operational Area (OA). The San Andreas Fault is on the northwestern boundary of the OA and runs through hills separating Santa Clara County from Santa Cruz County. The
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primary seismic hazard for the OA is potential ground shaking from these three large faults. According to the 2024 LHMP, the Hayward Fault has a 14.3 percent chance of generating a magnitude 6.7 or greater earthquake in the next 30 years.
The 50-year probabilistic peak ground acceleration (PGA) was examined for the County.
This event is expected to cause severe shaking and heavy damage to structures (VIII on the modified Mercalli intensity scale) in the City’s service area for the 50 -year PGA. The 2024 LHMP specified that water infrastructure would likely suffer considerable damage in the event of an earthquake.
Section 17 of the 2024 LHMP identifies the following earthquake hazard mitigation alternatives that are potentially applicable to the City’s water system:
• Locate or relocate mission critical functions outside hazard area where possible;
• Build redundancy for critical functions and facilities; • Retrofit critical areas (e.g., install earthquake resistant connections for pipelines); • Keep cash reserves for reconstruction;
• Develop a continuity of operations plan.
The City has implemented efforts in addressing seismic vulnerabilities in its water system facilities. In accordance with America’s Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA), the City completed a Risk and Resilience Assessment (RRA) of its water system in FY 2019/20 and updated the RRA and Emergency Response Plan (ERP) in FY2025/26 . The RRA systematically evaluated the City’s assets, threats, and risks, as well as countermeasures that might be implemented to minimize overall risk to the system. The ERP documents proc edures to respond to various threats and risks including seismic events. To ensure the security of its water system, the RRA and ERP are retained by the City as confidential document s.
8.5 PLAN ADOPTION, SUBMITTAL, AND AVAILABILITY
The City’s WSCP (Appendix G) is adopted concurrently with this 202 5 UWMP, by separate resolution. Prior to adoption, a duly noticed public hearing was conducted. An electronic copy of the WSCP will be submitted to DWR within 30 days of adoption.
No later than 30 days after adoption, an electronic copy of the WSCP will be available for public review at the City’s offices. An electronic copy of the WSCP will also be available for review and download on the City’s website.
The City’s WSCP is an adaptive management plan and is subject to refinements as needed to ensure that the City’s shortage response actions and mitigation strategies are effective and produce the desired results. When a revised WSCP is proposed, the revised WSCP will undergo the process described above for adoption by City Council and distribution to Santa Clara County, the City’s water customers, and the general public.
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CHAPTER 9
Demand Management Measures
The City implements demand management measures to sustainably manage its water resources. If water demands are not managed, water service reliability may be reduced due to increases in water demand, and/or changes in water supplies associated with climate change and other factors. The implementation of demand management measures can help improve water service reliability and help meet City and State water conservation goals. This chapter describes the City’s historical and existing Water Conservation Program, statu s of implementation of demand management measures (DMMs), and projected future conservation implementation.
9.1 DEMAND MANAGEMENT MEASURES
Since the 2020 UWMP reporting cycle, the City continued to implement DMMs within its service area as part of its standard practice and in collaboration with BAWSCA and Santa Clara Valley Water District (Valley Water). The following DMMs are discussed in this section:
• Water waste prevention ordinances
• Metering
• Conservation pricing
• Public education and outreach
• Programs to assess and manage distribution system real loss • Water conservation program coordination and staffing support Other DMMs being implemented by the City individually and in partnership with Valley Water are also discussed. For each DMM, the current program is described, followed by a description of how the DMM was implemented over the previous five years and the City’s plans for continued implementation.
9.1.1 Water Waste Prevention Ordinances
The City discourages water waste and promotes the use of water saving methods and devices to preserve water resources. Reasonable and beneficial water use maximizes water supply reliability for all customers in both normal and dry years. Under the Code of the City of Santa Clara, California (SCCC), Title 12, Chapter 13.15, Article III,1 the City has included water waste prevention regulations to help reduce water waste. The City also has Potable and Recycled Water System Rules and Regulations 2, which was most recently updated and approved by City Council on November 19, 2024.
1 https://www.santaclaraca.gov/our-city/government/governance/ordinances, (Governance/City Code/Charter), last accessed April 15, 2026.
2 Potable and Recycled Water System Rules and Regulations City of Santa Clara, November 2024, https://www.santaclaraca.gov/our-city/departments-g-z/water-sewer-utilities, last accessed April 15, 2026.
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Section 1.C of the Potable and Recycled Water System Rules and Regulations describes permanent water use restrictions and prohibitions in the City. A summary of the water use restrictions is provided below:
• Wasting water, which includes but is not limited to, the flooding or runoff on City sidewalks, gutters, and streets,
• Cleaning or washing of sidewalks, driveways, patios, parking lots, or other paved or hard-surfaced areas,
• Washing cars, buses, boats, trailers, or any vehicle by use of a hose unless that hose is fitted with an operating automatic shutoff valve, • Water waste due to broken or defective plumbing, fire system, irrigation system, or any Appurtenance thereto; or to open or to leave open any stopcock or faucet so as to permit water waste,
• Service of water by any restaurant unless requested by a patron, • Installation of a single-pass cooling system,
• Installation and/or use of a non-recirculating, decorative fountain, • Construction of a non-recirculating conveyor car wash, • Overhead spray irrigation using sprinkler heads, spray heads and/or rotors between the hours of 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.,
• Watering lawns during or within 48 hours of measurable precipitation, • Irrigating non-functional turf (decorative grass) on public street medians, • Applying potable water to non-functional turf at commercial, industrial or institutional (CII) sites, including common areas of homeowners’ associations (HOAs),
• Irrigation of landscapes outside of newly constructed homes and buildings in a manner inconsistent with regulations or other requirements established by California Building Standards Commission and the Department of Housing and Community Development,
• Street cleaning or construction site preparation, if recycled water is available.
In addition, non -functional turf can no longer be installed in new and existing non-residential or multifamily landscape projects. Also, in hotels and motels, guests must have the option to choose not to have towels and linens laundered daily, with notic es displayed prominently in each guestroom.
The restrictions are enforceable per Municipal Code §13.15.190 and are administered by the Director or the City Manager, or agents who they designate. Violations could result in administrative penalties in a sum not to exceed $1,000 per day, excluding inspection and cleanup costs.
The effectiveness of this DMM is evaluated based on the number of violations observed.
In 2025, the City did not issue violation notices. The City has not imposed monetary fines
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for violations, but instead focused on educating customers. The City plans to issue violation notices to repeat offenders in 2027.
Implementation of this DMM is ongoing. Although water savings from this program cannot be directly quantified, it is expected to help the City achieve its water use objectives by minimizing non-essential uses of water so that water is available for human consumption, sanitation, and fire protection.
9.1.2 Metering
Most City potable water customers are metered and billed monthly in compliance with State metering laws for urban water systems (CWC §527) based on a fixed monthly charge and a usage charge. Most Municipal accounts are billed for every two months of water use. Any new commercial, industrial, institutional or multi-family developments are required to have dedicated water meters and separate accounts and meters for landscape irrigation. All recycled water customers are also metered.
The City prescribes minimum water system design and O&M standards consistent with AWWA standards and best practices for water utilities . These standards include meter calibration, testing, and replacement activities to maintain the read accuracy of the City’s meter inventory.
The City plans to install an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system for all customers. At time of preparation of this UWMP, the City is conducting a pilot study for the project. Research of available grant funding to support that effort continues.
Implementation of this DMM is expected to help reduce overall water usage in the City by providing accurate and timely water use information to both customers and the City, with the added benefit of providing leak detection in real-time. AMI also helps customers make informed decisions about their water consumption.
9.1.3 Conservation Pricing
Aside from most municipal accounts which are billed every two months, a ll of the City’s water customers are billed with a monthly service charge based on the size of their water meter, plus a quantity charge for all metered water consumption. City Council periodically reviews and approves water rate increases when necessary to cover the costs of providing water service to the community. The latest water rate schedule was adopted in June 2025 and is available on the City’s website. 3 The quantity charge recovers the annual cost to operate the water utility other than groundwater charges, treated water purchased for resale, and energy. Recycled water is priced much lower than potable water to incentivize its use. Where available, the City requires non-potable use of recycled
3 Potable Water Rates: https://www.santaclaraca.gov/our-city/departments-g-z/water-sewer-utilities/water-sewer- and-recycled-water-rates/water-rates.
Recycled Water Rates: https://www.santaclaraca.gov/our-city/departments-g-z/water-sewer-utilities/water-sewer- and-recycled-water-rates/recycled-water-rates. Both websites were accessed on 12/18/25.
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water for uses such as irrigation, dual plumbed facilities, and industrial/commercial cooling applications.
Volumetric rates provide the City’s water customers financial incentive for water conservation to encourage participation in the City’s DMM programs. As discussed in the WSCP ( Chapter 8), the City has the authority to establish drought surcharges , if necessary, to finance the cost of prolonged demand reduction scenarios that significantly impact revenue recovery.
Implementation of this DMM is expected to help the City achieve its water use objectives by ensuring water customers pay the true cost of water to adequately fund water system O&M, including repair and replacement programs, and water conservation programs. The City will evaluate the effectiveness of its rates by tracking changes in unit water use resulting from rate increases.
9.1.4 Public Education and Outreach
To fulfill the public education and outreach requirements of CWC §10631(e)(1)(B) part (iv), the City implements a public information program . City customers also receive outreach and school education programs from Valley Water, as described in the following sections.
9.1.4.1 Santa Clara Public Information Program
The City has an ongoing public education and information program to promote participation in its DMMs . As part of these programs, marketing, outreach, and educational materials are provided to customers through a variety of methods, which are summarized below:
• The City provides bill inserts and information about water conservation on customer bills. Customer utility bills were designed to make the information concise and customer friendly. All utility bills include a water usage comparison to the previous year’s usage, as well as a chart showing the water usage over the previous 13 months
• The City uses education al displays which offer free literature and information about water conservation.
• The City includes educational articles in the following City-based publications:
Inside Santa Clara, City Hall News, Water & Sewer News, and City Manager’s Weekly Update. Articles cover a variety of topics, including water conservation.
• The City uses social media posts to reach customers.
• The City submits information to the local City newspaper, the Santa Clara Weekly.
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• The City’s websites4 provide information and resources to raise public awareness about water supply, water quality, water conservation, and other water-related issues. The City posts articles and information on dedicated webpages, which include water-wise gardening strategies, conservation tips and water rebate opportunities.
• The City’s Water & Sewer Utilities Department conducts annual public outreach at special events, which include the following: Fix a Leak Week, World Water Day, Arbor Day/Earth Day events, 4Th of July Celebration, Water Quality Month, Street Dance , Art & Wine Festival, State of the City, Parade of Champions, Public Works Week, Comic Con , Water Professionals Appreciation Week , Imagine a Day Without Water , and the Holiday Tree Lighting. At events, staff use educational games, displays and handouts to raise awareness around water conservation.
Through such public information program s, the City promotes water conservation by engaging the community about the City’s water conservation efforts and showing how customers can participate. The City reviews and updates water conservation public information and outreach program s annually, considering current water conditions, available water programs, and approved budgets.
Public education and outreach are ongoing and expected to help the City achieve water use objectives by educating water users about the value of water , the importance of improving water use efficiency and avoiding water waste.
9.1.4.2 BAWSCA Public Information Program
The City hosts water -wise landscape classes through their partnership with BAWSCA.
Each spring and fall, Water & Sewer Utilities presents class topics that are developed into online webinars presented by local industry professionals well -versed in the subj ect matter. Classes have included proper plant establishment, watering strategies, composting, lawn conversion, rain gardens and a wide array of topics related to gardening with locally native plants. Staff present introduction slides that include informat ion about City programs and available rebates before introducing the instructor and answering questions throughout. Presentations provide an open forum for exploring rebate possibilities in the context of the class material.
While BAWSCA provides many other informational programs, the City partners more closely with Valley Water for programs, rebates and public engagement.
9.1.4.3 Valley Water Public Information Program
The City purchases water from Valley Water, so City customers are included in Valley’s Water’s public outreach efforts. Valley Water’s outreach activities include multi -media marketing campaigns directed at the diverse county population, website development and
4 https://www.santaclaraca.gov/our-city/departments-g-z/water-sewer-utilities/water-conservation-15374, last accessed April 15, 2026.
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maintenance, social media, publications, public meetings, staff participation at community events, interagency partnerships, corporate environmental fairs, professional trade shows, water conservation workshops and seminars, and a speaker’s bureau. Outreac h efforts focus on supporting customers and key stakeholders to minimize adverse impacts resulting from drought conditions, as well as advancing community knowledge, awareness, and understanding of the conservation and water supply services provided by Valley Water.
Valley Water implements broad-based advertising programs, participates in community events, collaborates with water retailers to develop outreach materials, and provides many outreach materials in four languages to ensure residents are equitably informed about water issues. Valley Water’s multi -ethnic outreach expands beyond translating existing outreach materials to targeting media stories, coverage, and paid advertisements specific to their communities.
Valley Water’s public engagement also includes social media and regular updates to its water conservation program website.5 The website includes the latest program information, reports, studies, and workshops. In addition, Valley Water produces and distributes collateral material, including program flyers, free WaterSense labeled showerheads and other conservation devices, posters, yard signs, restaurant table tents for serving water only upon request, and hotel signs encouraging occupants to reuse linens.
Lawn converted from Fiscal Years 2016 -2018, during a severe drought, totaled 413,246 square feet (SF) (averaging 137,749 SF per fiscal year). While Valley Water’s social media campaign combined with Water & Sewer Utilities’ marketing efforts helped to bolster Landscape Conversion Rebates, Fiscal Years 2019 through 2025 totaled 559,419 SF of converted lawns, just 79,917 SF per fiscal year. Assessing Fiscal Years 2023 through 2025, at the heels of another severe drought, the average climbed to 137,187 SF per fiscal year, closer to the pre-campaign average.
The Graywater Laundry to Landscape Rebate had a single participant prior to Valley Water’s Spring 2018 campaign. The City saw eleven completed residential laundry to landscape projects in the seven years after the campaign.
Below is a summary of other public education and information programs led by Valley Water, which impact City water customers:
• Landscape Summit. Starting in 2016, Valley Water has annually held the Landscape Summit, an event developed through Valley Water’s Landscape Committee as a forum for landscape professionals to learn about water issues in the county and California as a whole, and how water relates to the landscaping industry. It is also an opportunity for Valley Water to get valuable feedback from landscape professionals, and for attendees to collaborate and exchange ideas.
5 https://www.valleywater.org/watersavingsorg, last accessed April 15, 2026.
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• Nursery Program. To increase the public’s awareness of water-efficient gardening techniques, Valley Water developed the Nursery Program in 1995.
This program distributes, at least quarterly, a series of educational materials to nurseries, irrigation supply stores, and box store retailers throughout the county. In March 2025, Valley Water developed nursery outreach pedestal signs to be placed in participating nurseries. These pedestals streamline program marketing to customers of relevant stores by displaying QR codes that redirect to conservation program resources and program applications. The Nursery Program literature is currently being distributed to and displayed at more than 30 participating nurseries and vendors.
• Sustainable Landscape Guidelines. In August 2021, Valley Water, in partnership with the Green Gardens Group, released Sustainable Landscape Guidelines, A Watershed Approach to Landscaping. Available in English, Spanish, and Chinese on Valley Water’s website, this comprehensive sustainable landscaping guide targets residential audiences, landscapers, and irrigation professionals new to sustainable landscape practices. It covers how-to and best practices for building healthy soil, capturing rainwater, reusing graywater, upgrading to high efficiency irrigation and selecting local, climate-appropriate, water-wise plants.
• Demonstration Gardens . Demonstration gardens inspire community members to incorporate sustainable, ecological, water -wise plants and techniques into their landscaping. Valley Water maintains a list of water-wise and California -native plant demonstration gardens to help guide community members in converting their own gardens to be more water - efficient. In 2017, Valley Water created a regularly maintainable interactive map that allows anyone to find demonstration gardens near their home or work by entering an address. Valley Water is currently in the process of designing a new 26,000 SF demonstration garden. Once complete, visitors will enjoy self -guided tours through a mixture of California native and non-native plants from the Landscape Rebate Program’s Qualifying Plant List with informational signage.
• Workshops. Valley Water promotes water conservation through workshops and trainings throughout the community, attending about 45 presentations and over a dozen events per year. Examples include Graywater Laundry to Landscape workshops and presentations to local schools, universities, industry association gatherings, nursery staff, community gardens, native plant society members, corporate events, Master Gardeners, and many more. “Office Hours,” started in April 2022, give customers drop-in opportunities to ask about program details. Valley Water also launched a webinar series to amplify awareness of its water conservation rebates and services. Webinars were live translated into Spanish, Vietnamese, and Mandarin and are uploaded to www.youtube.com/valleywater.
• Growing Native Garden Tour. To showcase exemplary native plant gardens, Valley Water has been a sponsor of the Growing Native Garden Tour every spring since 2003. Each year, thousands of participants visit several dozen
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gardens. These native plant gardens demonstrate the beauty and efficiency of properly maintained native gardens to residents of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. As an expanded community-based outreach opportunity, Valley Water produced eight Landscape Rebate Success Story testimonial videos featuring gardens on the tour to help promote Valley Water’s Landscape Rebate Program.
• Community Events. Each year, Valley Water staff participate in a variety of public events to engage with the community on water-related issues including water conservation, water recycling and purification, flood preparedness and community-specific projects. Valley Water collaborates with the City by hosting informational booths at many City-sponsored events.
9.1.4.4 Valley Water School Education Programs
Established in 1995, Valley Water’s Education Outreach (EO) program develop s and implements water education programs with a focus on water conservation, water supply, watershed stewardship, pollution reduction, flood preparedness, and careers in the water field, additionally providing free education materials to educators . EO provides free grade-level appropriate classroom presentations for pre-kindergarten through high school and beyond.
The City recognizes the value of educating the younger population about the importance of water conservation and supports Valley Water’s EO program.
9.1.5 Programs to Assess and Manage Distribution System Real Loss The City conducts annual system water audits to d etermine the quantity of water lost (i.e., non-revenue water) by comparing the City’s total water supplies with its metered water consumption. On a system -wide basis non-revenue water consists of real water losses from leaks and apparent losses from billing and meter errors. Non-revenue water for the City is further discussed in Chapter 4. This section discusses actions the City has taken to reduce real water losses from leaks.
The City actively tracks and quickly responds to typical water system activities associated with real water losses including water main breaks; valve, hydrant, or service leaks; water waste enforcement and private leaks. Leaks on the distribution system side are generally repaired within eight hours of being discovered.
To reduce apparent losses, the City plans to implement a policy that addresses unbilled water usage and improve billing and metering inaccuracies. Th is policy is anticipated to discourage unauthorized use of water. The policy will include compliance and enforcement provisions for violations for the unauthorized use of water, including interference, tampering, and theft of water. The City will continue to take actions to reduce apparent water losses by improving supply and demand metering accuracy, and enhancing the overall data quality throughout the system, including a goal of full implementation of AMI in the future.
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Implementation of this DMM is ongoing and expected to help the City achieve its water use objectives by quickly identifying sources of water loss so repairs can be completed in a timely manner and water losses are minimized. In compliance with the DWR requirement, the City will continue to evaluate distribution system losses annually via the AWWA Water Audit Software and report to DWR.
9.1.6 Water Conservation Program Coordination and Staffing Support Within the Compliance Division and the Water and Sewer Utilities Department, five positions perform water conservation program duties, as described below:
• Compliance Manager: The Compliance Manager position is responsible for managing the following programs: demand side management for the water utility; water quality; code enforcement and environmental, health, and safety. • Water Resources Specialist: The Water Resources Specialist is responsible for water resource planning, water conservation, regulatory requirements and financial analysis assignments related to potable water, recycled water and wastewater in compliance with general and environmental regulations. • Code Enforcement Officer: The Code Enforcement Officer conducts investigations related to storm water pollution, fats, oils and grease (FOG) source control and recycled water to determine violations and gain compliance. • Code Enforcement Technician: The Code Enforcement Technician’s responsibilities include promoting recycled water through program outreach, marketing, supporting FOG source control program and assisting with permitting sites for recycled water use and code enforcement. This staff member also investigates water waste complaints in the City. • Staff Aide: This position assists with administrative function and program of the Compliance division. The position provides administrative support and customer service.
Outside of the Compliance division, Water & Sewer Utilities introduced a Utility Conservation/Efficiency Coordinator position in 2023. This role develops or modifies and then implements, coordinates and manages programs for water conservation, efficiency and customer service for the department.
Implementation of this DMM is ongoing and expected to help the City achieve its water use objectives by making water conservation and implementation of the City’s Water Conservation Program a priority.
9.1.7 Other Demand Management Measures
The City continues to plan and implement DMM programs for its water system using collaborative regional programs with partners with similar interests and City-wide programs. The benefits of regional programs include shar ed administrative costs and responsibilities, promoti on of customer rebate programs, and expa nsion of outreach programs currently available to City customers into neighboring areas. The City will
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continue to support cost-effective regional activities and will focus on improving customer outreach and promoting awareness of available DMM programs.
Other DMM programs available to City water use customers that were not mentioned in previous sections are listed below. Details on these programs are available on Valley Water’s website: https://www.valleywater.org/watersavingsorg. • Water Wise Outdoor Surveys
• Residential and Commercial Landscapes
• Residential Water Leak Check
• Residential Plumbing Retrofits
• Large Landscapes
• Lawn Busters Program
• Landscape Maintenance Consultation Program
• Financial Incentives (Rebate Programs)
• Commercial, Industrial, and Institutional DMMs
Implementation of these programs are ongoing and expected to help the City achieve its water use objectives through increasing the water use efficiency of its customers. Funding for rebate programs are often limited; thus, rebate programs are available until the funding period ends or until funds are depleted.
9.2 MEMBER OF THE CALIFORNIA WATER EFFICIENCY PARTNERSHIP The City is a n active member of the CalWEP, establishing a firm commitment to the implementation of DMMs to conserve its water supplies . The City plans to continue implementation of the DMMs . The City is complying with the Making Conservation a California Way of Life Regulation to meet its Urban Water Use Objectives (UWUOs), and with SB 555 water loss performance standards as part of its Water Loss Control Program.
Other DMMs may be implemented by the City (subject to City Council approval) as deemed necessary based on customer participation, water savings, cost effectiveness, and other relevant factors.
9.3 CONTINUED IMPLEMENTATION OF DMMS
The City plans to continue implementing the DMMs described in this chapter and researching emerging technologies and strategies that may bolster existing DMMs. The City continually monitors and assesses the success of its water conservation programs to determine if additional measures are needed to meet its own water conservation goals and water use objectives.
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9.3.1 Meeting Urban Water Use Objectives
The Making Conservation a California Way of Life Legislation established a new framework for improvements in long -term urban water use efficiency. This Legislation builds on the statewide 2020 water conservation targets set under SB X7 -7 (CWC §10609.2(d)). Under the Legislation, the State Water Board, in coordination with DWR, was required to adopt urban water use efficiency standards, variances, and performance measures by June 30, 2022.
On July 3, 2024, the State Water Board adopted the Making Conservation a California Way of Life Regulation. As part of this regulation, each urban water supplier is held to an annual Urban Water Use Objective (UWUO). The City is required to calculate its UWUO annually, which is a sum of water efficiency budgets for the following uses:
• Residential indoor water use
• Residential outdoor water use
• Real water loss
• CII landscapes with dedicated irrigation meters (DIMs) The City’s UWUO is calculated using statewide efficiency standards ; it considers the City’s water service area population, climate, and landscape area. Efficiency standards for the different components will progressively decrease from 2025 to 2040. Figure 9-1 summarizes the components that make up the UWUO.
Source: California Water Efficiency Partnership. May 2024. Making Conservation a California Way of Life Standards Framework Cut Sheet Figure 9-1. Urban Water Use Objective Components
In addition to calculating and complying with the UWUO, beginning in 2027, the City will need to classify its Commercial, Industrial and Institutional ( CII) properties, and begin deploying best management practices (BMPs) for indoor and outdoor CII water use.
These CII performance measures are intended to enable water -usage benchmarking per CII classification category, as well as establish BMPs for indoor and outdoor CII water use.
()
+ Indoor Residential
Water Budget
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Water loss
Budget
Adjust ments if
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Provisions, and/or
Bonus Incentive
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9.3.2 Annual Water Use Reporting
As of 2024, the City is required to calculate its UWUO, compare its actual water use to its UWUO, and provide an Annual Urban Water Use Objective and Water Use Report to the State by January 1 of each year. Reporting is based on fiscal year data. Each year the City will submit prior fiscal year data to meet its applicable UWUO for the year. If it does not meet its UWUO, the City will develop a plan to intensify or implement additional demand management actions to improve water use efficiency.
The City submitted its Fiscal Year 2024/2025 Annual Urban Water Use Objective and Water Use Report to the State on December 23, 2025. Reporting and compliance with UWUOs fall under the authority of State Water Board and is tracked separately from the UWMP. Thus, UWUO compliance reports are not included in the UWMP.
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CHAPTER 10
Plan Adoption, Submittal, and Implementation
This chapter provides information regarding the notification, public hearing, adoption, and submittal of the City’s 2025 UWMP and WSCP. It also includes discussion on plan implementation and the process of amending the UWMP and the WSCP.
10.1 INCLUSION OF ALL 2025 DATA
The 2025 UWMPs must contain data through the end of 2025. If a water supplier bases its accounting on a fiscal year (July through June) the data must be through the end of the 2025 fiscal year (June 2025). If the water supplier bases its accounting on a calendar year, the data must be through the end of the 2025 calendar year (December 2025).
As indicated in Section 2.3 of this plan, the City uses a calendar year for water supply and demand accounting, and therefore this plan includes data through December 2025.
10.2 NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
In accordance with the UWMP Act, the City must provide an opportunity for the public to provide input on this 2025 UWMP, including the WSCP. The City must consider all public input prior to its adoption. There are two audiences to be notified for the public hearing:
cities and counties, and the public.
10.2.1 Notices to Cities and Counties
As discussed in Section 2.4, the City provided greater than a 60-day notice regarding the preparation of its 2025 UWMP and WSCP to the County as well as neighboring cities and water agencies as listed below:
• City of Brisbane
• City of Burlingame
• City of Daly City
• City of Gilroy
• City of Hayward
• City of Menlo Park
• City of Milpitas
• City of Morgan Hill
• City of Mountain View
• City of Millbrae
• City of Palo Alto
• City of Redwood City
• City of San Bruno
• City of Sunnyvale
• City of East Palo Alto
• San Jose Municipal Water System
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• San Jose Water
• Town of Hillsborough
• Santa Clara County
• Alameda County Water District
• California Water Service
• BAWSCA
• Coastside County Water District
• Mid-Peninsula Water District
• Estero Municipal Improvement District
• North Coast County Water District
• Purissima Hills Water District
• Valley Water
• San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
• Stanford University
• Westborough Water District
The City coordinated the preparation of its UWMP internally, and with the above -listed agencies. Upon substantial completion of this 2025 UWMP and WSCP, the City coordinated internally and provided the County a notice of public hearing as shown in Table 10-1. Copies of the notices are included in Appendix D.
Table 10-1. Notification to Cities and Counties (DWR Table 10-1 Retail)
10.2.2 Notice to the Public
To allow ample time for the public to prepare comments, the City issued a notice of availability and public hearing to the public and provided a public review period following the notice and prior to adoption of the 202 5 UWMP and WSCP. A notice of availability and public hearing was issued in accordance with Government Code § 6066 and was published twice in the Santa Clara Weekly newspaper to notify all customers and local governments of the public hearing. The newspaper is in general circulation and distributed free of charge to all Santa Clara residents. In addition, the notice was posted on the City’s website. A copy of the published Notice of Public Hearing is included in Appendix D.
City Name 60 Day Notice
Drop Down (yes/no)
Notice of Public
Hearing
Drop Down (yes/no)
Santa Clara Yes Yes
County Name
Drop Down List
60 Day Notice
Drop Down (yes/no)
Notice of Public
Hearing
Drop Down (yes/no)
Santa Clara County Yes Yes
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10.3 PUBLIC HEARING AND ADOPTION
The City encouraged community participation in the development of this 2025 UWMP, including the WSCP, using public notices and web -based communication. The notice included the time and place of the public hearing, as well as the location where the plan is available for public inspection.
10.3.1 Public Hearing
A public hearing was held on MM DD, 2026. The public hearing provided an opportunity for City water users and the general public to become familiar with the 2025 UWMP and the associated WSCP and ask questions about the City’s water supply, its continuing plans for providing a reliable, safe, high-quality water supply, and plans to mitigate various potential water shortage conditions. Copies of the draft UWMP and WSCP were made available for public inspection on the City’s website.
10.3.2 Adoption
Subsequent to the public hearing, this 2025 UWMP and WSCP were adopted by the City Council on MM DD, 2026. The City adopted the updated WSCP separately so that it may be updated as necessary. Copies of the adoption resolutions are included in Appendix H.
10.4 PLAN SUBMITTAL
This 2025 UWMP will be submitted to DWR within 30 days of adoption and by July 1, 2026. The adopted 2025 UWMP will be submitted electronically to DWR using the Water Use Efficiency (WUE) data submittal tool. A CD or hard copy of the adopted 2025 UWMP will also be submitted to the California State Library.
No later than 30 days after adoption, a copy of the adopted 2025 UWMP, including the WSCP, was provided to the cities and counties in which the City provides water.
10.5 PUBLIC AVAILABILITY
No later than 30 days after submittal to DWR, copies of this plan, including the WSCP, were made available at the City’s offices for public review during normal business hours.
An electronic copy of this 2025 UWMP and WSCP was also made available for revie w and download on the City’s website.
10.6 PLAN IMPLEMENTATION
This 2025 UWMP will be the source document for any SB 610 Water Supply Assessments or SB 221 Water Supply Verifications required for any proposed projects between 20 26 and 2030 that are subject to the California Environmental Quality Act and would demand an amount of water equivalent or greater than the amount of water required by a 500-dwelling-unit project. Also, this 2025 UWMP will provide guidance and direction on development of new local supplies and implementation of water conservation programs.
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10.7 AMENDING AN ADOPTED UWMP OR WSCP
The City may amend its 2025 UWMP and WSCP jointly or separately. If the City amends one or both documents, the City will follow the notification, public hearing, adoption, and submittal process described in Sections 10.2 through 10.4 above. In addition to submitting amendments to DWR through the WUE data portal, copies of amendments or changes to the plans will be submitted to the California State Library, and any city or county within which the supplier provides water supplies within 30 days after adoption .
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Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water
Management Planning
This material is for informational purposes only and is not to be used in place of official California Water Code.
This appendix presents updated sections of California Water Code (Water Code) as of the publication of this Guidebook and as compiled by California Department of Water Resources (DWR) staff. The selection here focuses on the portions of Water Code directly relevant to preparation of an Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP), and sections of Water Code that are contextually relevant to urban water suppliers and DWR.
Water Code published here also concerns the Urban Water Management Planning Act, the Water Conservation Act of 2009 (SB X7-7), which covers sustainable water use and demand reduction, and more. Further legislative information is available on the California Legislative Information website.
Contents
Water Conservation Act of 2009 (SB X7‐7) ................................................. A-3 Chapter 1. General Declarations and Policy, Sections 10608– 10608.8 .................................................................................. A-3 Chapter 2. Definitions, Section 10608.12 ............................................. A-5 Chapter 2.5. Nonfunctional Turf .......................................................... A-9 Chapter 3. Urban Retail Water Suppliers, Sections 10608.16– 10608.44 ............................................................................... A-11 Chapter 5. Sustainable Water Management, Section 10608.50 .............. A-21 Chapter 6. Standardized Data Collection, Section 10608.52 .................. A-22 Chapter 7. Funding Provisions, Sections 10608.56–10608.60 .................. A-23 Chapter 9. Urban Water Use Objectives and Water Use Reporting, Sections 10609–10609.38 ........................................................ A-24 Urban Water Management Planning Act .................................................... A-39 Chapter 1. General Declaration and Policy, Sections 10610– 10610.4 ................................................................................. A-39 Chapter 2. Definitions, Sections 10611–10618 ..................................... A-40 Chapter 3. Urban Water Management Plans ........................................ A-42 Article 1. General Provisions, Sections 10620–10621 ................... A-42 Article 2. Contents of Plans, Sections 10630–10634 ..................... A-44 Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-2
Article 2.5. Water Service Reliability, Section 10635 .................... A-54 Article 3. Adoption and Implementation of Plans,
Sections 10640–10645 ................................................. A-55 Chapter 4. Miscellaneous Provisions, Sections 10650–10657 ................. A-58
Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-3
Water Conservation Act of 2009 (SB X7‐7)
This section contains information extracted from Water Code Division 6, Conservation, Development, and Utilization of State Water Resources, Part 2.55, Sustainable Water Use And Demand Reduction. Click on any section header below to read Water Code directly at the California Legislative Information website.
Chapter 1. General Declarations and Policy,
Sections 10608–10608.8
Section 10608.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Water is a public resource that the California Constitution protects against waste and unreasonable use.
(b) Growing population, climate change, and the need to protect and grow California’s economy while protecting and restoring our fish and wildlife habitats make it essential that the state manage its water resources as efficiently as possible.
(c) Diverse regional water supply portfolios will increase water supply reliability and reduce dependence on the Delta.
(d) Reduced water use through conservation provides significant energy and environmental benefits, and can help protect water quality, improve streamflows, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
(e) The success of state and local water conservation programs to increase efficiency of water use is best determined on the basis of measurable outcomes related to water use or efficiency.
(f) Improvements in technology and management practices offer the potential for increasing water efficiency in California over time, providing an essential water management tool to meet the need for water for urban, agricultural, and environmental uses.
(g) The Governor has called for a 20 percent per capita reduction in urban water use statewide by 2020.
(h) The factors used to formulate water use efficiency targets can vary significantly from location to location based on factors including weather, patterns of urban and suburban development, and past efforts to enhance water use efficiency.
(i) Per capita water use is a valid measure of a water provider’s efforts to reduce urban water use within its service area. However, per capita water use is less Appendix A
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useful for measuring relative water use efficiency between different water providers. Differences in weather, historical patterns of urban and suburban development, and density of housing in a particular location need to be considered when assessing per capita water use as a measure of efficiency.
Section 10608.4.
It is the intent of the Legislature, by the enactment of this part, to do all of the following:
(a) Require all water suppliers to increase the efficiency of use of this essential resource.
(b) Establish a framework to meet the state targets for urban water conservation identified in this part and called for by the Governor. (c) Measure increased efficiency of urban water use on a per capita basis. (d) Establish a method or methods for urban retail water suppliers to determine targets for achieving increased water use efficiency by the year 2020, in accordance with the Governor’s goal of a 20- percent reduction. (e) Establish consistent water use efficiency planning and implementation standards for urban water suppliers and agricultural water suppliers. (f) Promote urban water conservation standards that are consistent with the California Urban Water Conservation Council’s adopted best management practices and the requirements for demand management in Section 10631. (g) Establish standards that recognize and provide credit to water suppliers that made substantial capital investments in urban water conservation since the drought of the early 1990s.
(h) Recognize and account for the investment of urban retail water suppliers in providing recycled water for beneficial uses.
(i) Require implementation of specified efficient water management practices for agricultural water suppliers.
(k) Support the economic productivity of California’s agricultural, commercial, and industrial sectors.
(l) Advance regional water resources management.
Section 10608.8.
(a)
(1) Water use efficiency measures adopted and implemented pursuant to this part or Part 2.8 (commencing with Section 10800) are water conservation measures subject to the protections provided under Section 1011.
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(2) Because an urban agency is not required to meet its urban water use target until 2020 pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 10608.24, an urban retail water supplier’s failure to meet those targets shall not establish a violation of law for purposes of any state administrative or judicial proceeding prior to January 1, 2021. Nothing in this paragraph limits the use of data reported to the department or the board in litigation or an administrative proceeding. This paragraph shall become inoperative on January 1, 2021.
(3) To the extent feasible, the department and the board shall provide for the use of water conservation reports required under this part to meet the requirements of Section 1011 for water conservation reporting. (b) This part does not limit or otherwise affect the application of Chapter 3.5 commencing with Section 11340), Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 11370), Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 11400), and Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(c) This part does not require a reduction in the total water used in the agricultural or urban sectors, because other factors, including, but not limited to, changes in agricultural economics or population growth may have greater effects on water use. This part does not limit the economic productivity of California’s agricultural, commercial, or industrial sectors.
(d) The requirements of this part do not apply to an agricultural water supplier that is a party to the Quantification Settlement Agreement, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 1 of Chapter 617 of the Statutes of 2002, during the period within which the Quantification Settlement Agreement remains in effect.
After the expiration of the Quantification Settlement Agreement, to the extent conservation water projects implemented as part of the Quantification Settlement Agreement remain in effect, the conserved water created as part of those projects shall be credited against the obligations of the agricultural water supplier pursuant to this part.
Chapter 2. Definitions, Section 10608.12
Section 10608.12.
Unless the context otherwise requires, the following definitions govern the construction of this part:
(a) “ Affordable housing” has the same meaning as defined in Section 34191.30 of the Health and Safety Code.
(b) “ Agricultural water supplier” means a water supplier, either publicly or privately owned, providing water to 10,000 or more irrigated acres, excluding recycled water. “Agricultural water supplier” includes a supplier or contractor Appendix A
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for water, regardless of the basis of right, that distributes or sells water for ultimate resale to customers. “Agricultural water supplier” does not include the department.
(c) “ Base daily per capita water use” means any of the following:
(1) The urban retail water supplier’s estimate of its average gross water use, reported in gallons per capita per day and calculated over a continuous 10-year period ending no earlier than December 31, 2004, and no later than December 31, 2010.
(2) For an urban retail water supplier that meets at least 10 percent of its 2008 measured retail water demand through recycled water that is delivered within the service area of an urban retail water supplier or its urban wholesale water supplier, the urban retail water supplier may extend the
(3) calculation described in paragraph (1) up to an additional five years to a maximum of a continuous 15-year period ending no earlier than December 31, 2004, and no later than December 31, 2010. (4) For the purposes of Section 10608.22, the urban retail water supplier’s estimate of its average gross water use, reported in gallons per capita per day and calculated over a continuous five-year period ending no earlier than December 31, 2007, and no later than December 31, 2010. (d) Baseline commercial, industrial, and institutional water use” means an urban retail water supplier’s base daily per capita water use for commercial, industrial, and institutional users.
(e) “ CII water use” means water used by commercial water users, industrial water users, institutional water users, and large landscape water users. (f) “ Commercial water user” means a water user that provides or distributes a product or service.
(g) “ Common area” means that portion of a common interest development or of a property owned or managed by a homeowners’ association or a community service organization or similar entity that is not assigned or allocated to the exclusive use of the occupants of an individual dwelling unit within the property.
(h) “Common interest development” has the same meaning as in Section 4100 of the Civil Code.
(i) “ Community service organization or similar entity” has the same meaning as in Section 4110 of the Civil Code.
(j) “ Community space” means an area designated by a property owner or a governmental agency to accommodate human foot traffic for civic, ceremonial, or other community events or social gatherings
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(k) Compliance daily per capita water use” means the gross water use during the final year of the reporting period, reported in gallons per capita per day. (l) “ Disadvantaged community” means a community with an annual median household income that is less than 80 percent of the statewide annual median household income.
(m) “ Functional turf” means a ground cover surface of turf located in a recreational use area or community space. Turf enclosed by fencing or other barriers to permanently preclude human access for recreation or assembly is not functional turf.
(n) “ Gross water use” means the total volume of water, whether treated or untreated, entering the distribution system of an urban retail water supplier, excluding all of the following:
(1) Recycled water that is delivered within the service area of an urban retail water supplier or its urban wholesale water supplier.
(2) The net volume of water that the urban retail water supplier places into long-term storage.
(3) The volume of water the urban retail water supplier conveys for use by another urban water supplier.
(4) The volume of water delivered for agricultural use, except as otherwise provided in subdivision (f) of Section 10608.24.
(o) “ Homeowners’ association” means an “association” as defined in Section 4080 of the Civil Code.
(p) “Industrial water user” means a water user that is primarily a manufacturer or processor of materials as defined by the North American Industry Classification System code sectors 31 to 33, inclusive, or an entity that is a water user primarily engaged in research and development.
(q) “ Institutional water user” means a water user dedicated to public service. This type of user includes, among other users, higher education institutions, schools, courts, churches, hospitals, government facilities, and nonprofit research institutions.
(r) “Interim urban water use target” means the midpoint between the urban retail water supplier’s base daily per capita water use and the urban retail water supplier’s urban water use target for 2020.
(s) “Large landscape” means a nonresidential landscape as described in the performance measures for CII water use adopted pursuant to Section 10609.10.
(t) “ Locally cost effective” means that the present value of the local benefits of implementing an agricultural efficiency water management practice is greater Appendix A
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than or equal to the present value of the local cost of implementing that measure.
(u) “ Nonfunctional turf” means any turf that is not functional turf, and includes turf located within street rights-of-way and parking lots. (v) “ Performance measures” means actions to be taken by urban retail water suppliers that will result in increased water use efficiency by CII water users.
Performance measures may include, but are not limited to, educating CII water users on best management practices, conducting water use audits, and preparing water management plans. Performance measures do not include process water.
(w) “Potable reuse” means direct potable reuse, indirect potable reuse for groundwater recharge, and reservoir water augmentation as those terms are defined in Section 13561.
(x) “ Potable water” means water that is suitable for human consumption. (y) “ Process water” means water used by industrial water users for producing a product or product content or water used for research and development.
Process water includes, but is not limited to, continuous manufacturing processes, and water used for testing, cleaning, and maintaining equipment.
Water used to cool machinery or buildings used in the manufacturing process or necessary to maintain product quality or chemical characteristics for product manufacturing or control rooms, data centers, laboratories, clean rooms, and other industrial facility units that are integral to the manufacturing or research and development process is process water. Water used in the manufacturing process that is necessary for complying with local, state, and federal health and safety laws, and is not incidental water, is process water. Process water does not mean incidental water uses.
(z) “ Public water system” has the same meaning as defined in Section 116275 of the Health and Safety Code.
(aa) “Recreational use area” means an area designated by a property owner or a governmental agency to accommodate human foot traffic for recreation, including, but not limited to, sports fields, golf courses, playgrounds, picnic grounds, or pet exercise areas. This recreation may be either formal or informal.
(ab) “Recycled water” means recycled water, as defined in subdivision (n) of Section 13050.
(ac) “Regional water resources management” means sources of supply resulting from watershed-based planning for sustainable local water reliability or any of the following alternative sources of water:
(1) The capture and reuse of stormwater or rainwater.
(2) The use of recycled water.
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(3) The desalination of brackish groundwater.
(4) The conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater in a manner that is consistent with the safe yield of the groundwater basin. (ad) “Reporting period” means the years for which an urban retail water supplier reports compliance with the urban water use targets.
(ae) “Turf” has the same meaning as defined in Section 491 of Title 23 of the California Code of Regulations
(af) “ Urban retail water supplier” means a water supplier, either publicly or privately owned, that directly provides potable municipal water to more than 3,000 end users or that supplies more than 3,000 acre-feet of potable water annually at retail for municipal purposes.
(ag) “Urban water supplier” has the same meaning as defined in Section 10617. (ah) “Urban water use objective” means an estimate of aggregate efficient water use for the previous year based on adopted water use efficiency standards and local service area characteristics for that year, as described in Section 10609.20.
(ai) “Urban water use target” means the urban retail water supplier’s targeted future daily per capita water use.
(aj) “ Urban wholesale water supplier” means a water supplier, either publicly or privately owned, that provides more than 3,000 acre- feet of water annually at wholesale for potable municipal purposes.
Chapter 2.5. Nonfunctional Turf
Section 10608.14.
(a) The use of potable water for the irrigation of nonfunctional turf located on commercial, industrial, and institutional properties, other than a cemetery, and on properties of homeowners’ associations, common interest developments, and community service organizations or similar entities is prohibited as of the following dates:
(1) All properties owned by the Department of General Services, beginning January 1, 2027.
(2) All properties owned by local governments, local or regional public agencies, and public water systems, except those specified in paragraph (5), beginning January 1, 2027.
(3) All other institutional properties and all commercial and industrial properties, beginning January 1, 2028.
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(4) All common areas of properties of homeowners’ associations, common interest developments, and community service organizations or similar entities, beginning January 1, 2029.
(5) All properties owned by local governments, local public agencies, and public water systems in a disadvantaged community, beginning January 1, 2031, or the date upon which a state funding source is made available to fund conversion of nonfunctional turf on these properties to climate- appropriate landscapes, whichever is later.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the use of potable water is not prohibited by this section to the extent necessary to ensure the health of trees and other perennial nonturf plantings, or to the extent necessary to address an immediate health and safety need.
(c) The board may, upon a showing of good cause for reasons including economic hardship, critical business need, and potential impacts to human health or safety, postpone a compliance deadline in subdivision (a) by up to three years for certain persons, institutions, and businesses, and may create a form to be used for compliance certification to the board by property owners. (d) Public water systems shall, by no later than January 1, 2027, revise their regulations, ordinances, or policies governing water service to include the requirements of subdivisions (a) and (b), as revised by the board pursuant to subdivision (c), and shall communicate the requirements to their customers on or before that date.
(e)
(1) An owner of commercial, industrial, or institutional property with more than 5,000 square feet of irrigated area other than a cemetery shall certify to the board, commencing June 30, 2030, and every three years thereafter through 2039, that their property is in compliance with the requirements of this chapter.
(2) An owner of a property with more than 5,000 square feet of irrigated common area that is a homeowners’ association, common interest development, or community service organization or similar entity shall certify to the board, commencing June 30, 2031, and every three years thereafter through 2040, that their property is in compliance with the requirements of this chapter.
(f) Noncompliance by a person or entity with this chapter or regulations adopted thereunder shall be subject to civil liability and penalties set forth in Section 1846, or to civil liability and penalties imposed by an urban retail water supplier pursuant to a locally adopted ordinance or policy.
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(g)
(1) A public water system, city, county, or city and county may enforce the provisions of this chapter.
(2) To avoid duplication of enforcement, any entity identified in paragraph (1) that is not a retail public water system shall notify the retail public water system 30 days prior to enforcement of the provisions of this chapter against a property served by such system.
(3) Nothing in paragraph (2) shall preclude enforcement by any entity identified in paragraph (1) once adequate notice is given. (h) The department shall, when using funds appropriated for water conservation for turf replacement, prioritize financial assistance for nonfunctional turf replacement to public water systems serving disadvantaged communities and to owners of affordable housing.
(i) The department shall utilize the saveourwater.com internet website and outreach campaign to provide information and resources on converting nonfunctional turf to native vegetation.
(j) The Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development shall support small and minority-owned businesses that provide services that advance compliance with this chapter.
Chapter 3. Urban Retail Water Suppliers,
Sections 10608.16–10608.44
Section 10608.16.
(a) The state shall achieve a 20-percent reduction in urban per capita water use in California on or before December 31, 2020.
(1) The state shall make incremental progress towards the state target specified in subdivision (a) by reducing urban per capita water use by at least 10 percent on or before December 31, 2015.
Section 10608.20.
(a)
(1) Each urban retail water supplier shall develop urban water use targets and an interim urban water use target by July 1, 2011. Urban retail water suppliers may elect to determine and report progress toward achieving these targets on an individual or regional basis, as provided in subdivision (a) of Section 10608.28, and may determine the targets on a fiscal year or calendar year basis.
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(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that the urban water use targets described in paragraph (1) cumulatively result in a 20-percent reduction from the baseline daily per capita water use by December 31, 2020. (b) An urban retail water supplier shall adopt one of the following methods for determining its urban water use target pursuant to subdivision (a):
(1) Eighty percent of the urban retail water supplier’s baseline per capita daily water use.
(2) The per capita daily water use that is estimated using the sum of the following performance standards:
(A) For indoor residential water use, 55 gallons per capita daily water use as a provisional standard. Upon completion of the department’s 2017 report to the Legislature pursuant to Section 10608.42, this standard may be adjusted by the Legislature by statute. (B) For landscape irrigated through dedicated or residential meters or connections, water efficiency equivalent to the standards of the Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance set forth in Chapter 2.7 (commencing with Section 490) of Division 2 of Title 23 of the California Code of Regulations, as in effect the later of the year of the landscape’s installation or 1992. An urban retail water supplier using the approach specified in this subparagraph shall use satellite imagery, site visits, or other best available technology to develop an accurate estimate of landscaped areas.
(C) For commercial, industrial, and institutional uses, a 10- percent reduction in water use from the baseline commercial, industrial, and institutional water use by 2020.
(3) Ninety-five percent of the applicable state hydrologic region target, as set forth in the state’s draft 20x2020 Water Conservation Plan (dated April 30, 2009). If the service area of an urban water supplier includes more than one hydrologic region, the supplier shall apportion its service area to each region based on population or area.
(4) A method that shall be identified and developed by the department, through a public process, and reported to the Legislature no later than December 31, 2010. The method developed by the department shall identify per capita targets that cumulatively result in a statewide 20- percent reduction in urban daily per capita water use by December 31, 2020. In developing urban daily per capita water use targets, the department shall do all of the following:
(A) Consider climatic differences within the state.
(B) Consider population density differences within the state. (C) Provide flexibility to communities and regions in meeting the targets.
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(D) Consider different levels of per capita water use according to plant water needs in different regions.
(E) Consider different levels of commercial, industrial, and institutional water use in different regions of the state.
(F) Avoid placing an undue hardship on communities that have implemented conservation measures or taken actions to keep per capita water use low.
(c) If the department adopts a regulation pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) that results in a requirement that an urban retail water supplier achieve a reduction in daily per capita water use that is greater than 20 percent by December 31, 2020, an urban retail water supplier that adopted the method described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) may limit its urban water use target to a reduction of not more than 20 percent by December 31, 2020, by adopting the method described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b). (d) The department shall update the method described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) and report to the Legislature by December 31, 2014. An urban retail water supplier that adopted the method described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) may adopt a new urban daily per capita water use target pursuant to this updated method.
(e) An urban retail water supplier shall include in its urban water management plan due in 2010 pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 10610) the baseline daily per capita water use, urban water use target, interim urban water use target, and compliance daily per capita water use, along with the bases for determining those estimates, including references to supporting data.
(f) When calculating per capita values for the purposes of this chapter, an urban retail water supplier shall determine population using federal, state, and local population reports and projections.
(g) An urban retail water supplier may update its 2020 urban water use target in its 2015 urban water management plan required pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 10610).
(h)
(1) The department, through a public process and in consultation with the California Urban Water Conservation Council, shall develop technical methodologies and criteria for the consistent implementation of this part, including, but not limited to, both of the following:
(A) Methodologies for calculating base daily per capita water use, baseline commercial, industrial, and institutional water use, compliance daily per capita water use, gross water use, service area Appendix A
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population, indoor residential water use, and landscaped area water use.
(B) Criteria for adjustments pursuant to subdivisions (d) and (e) of Section 10608.24.
(2) The department shall post the methodologies and criteria developed pursuant to this subdivision on its internet website, and make written copies available, by October 1, 2010. An urban retail water supplier shall use the methods developed by the department in compliance with this part.
(h)
(1) The department shall adopt regulations for implementation of the provisions relating to process water in accordance with Section 10608.12, subdivision (e) of Section 10608.24, and subdivision (d) of Section 10608.26.
(2) The initial adoption of a regulation authorized by this subdivision is deemed to address an emergency, for purposes of Sections 11346.1 and 11349.6 of the Government Code, and the department is hereby exempted for that purpose from the requirements of subdivision (b) of Section 11346.1 of the Government Code. After the initial adoption of an emergency regulation pursuant to this subdivision, the department shall not request approval from the Office of Administrative Law to readopt the regulation as an emergency regulation pursuant to Section 11346.1 of the Government Code.
(j)
(1) An urban retail water supplier is granted an extension to July 1, 2011, for adoption of an urban water management plan pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 10610) due in 2010 to allow the use of technical methodologies developed by the department pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) and subdivision (h). An urban retail water supplier that adopts an urban water management plan due in 2010 that does not use the methodologies developed by the department pursuant to subdivision (h) shall amend the plan by July 1, 2011, to comply with this part.
(2) An urban wholesale water supplier whose urban water management plan prepared pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 10610) was due and not submitted in 2010 is granted an extension to July 1, 2011, to permit coordination between an urban wholesale water supplier and urban retail water suppliers.
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Section 10608.22.
Notwithstanding the method adopted by an urban retail water supplier pursuant to Section 10608.20, an urban retail water supplier’s per capita daily water use reduction shall be no less than 5 percent of base daily per capita water use as defined in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c) of Section 10608.12. This section does not apply to an urban retail water supplier with a base daily per capita water use at or below 100 gallons per capita per day.
Section 10608.24.
(a) Each urban retail water supplier shall meet its interim urban water use target by December 31, 2015.
(b) Each urban retail water supplier shall meet its urban water use target by December 31, 2020.
(c) An urban retail water supplier’s compliance daily per capita water use shall be the measure of progress toward achievement of its urban water use target. (d)
(1) When determining compliance daily per capita water use, an urban retail water supplier may consider the following factors:
(A) Differences in evapotranspiration and rainfall in the baseline period compared to the compliance reporting period.
(B) Substantial changes to commercial or industrial water use resulting from increased business output and economic development that have occurred during the reporting period.
(C) Substantial changes to institutional water use resulting from fire suppression services or other extraordinary events, or from new or expanded operations, that have occurred during the reporting period. (2) If the urban retail water supplier elects to adjust its estimate of compliance daily per capita water use due to one or more of the factors described in paragraph (1), it shall provide the basis for, and data supporting, the adjustment in the report required by Section 10608.40.
(e) When developing the urban water use target pursuant to Section 10608.20, an urban retail water supplier that has a substantial percentage of industrial water use in its service area may exclude process water from the calculation of gross water use to avoid a disproportionate burden on another customer sector. (f)
(1) An urban retail water supplier that includes agricultural water use in an urban water management plan pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 10610) may include the agricultural water use in determining Appendix A
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gross water use. An urban retail water supplier that includes agricultural water use in determining gross water use and develops its urban water use target pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 10608.20 shall use a water efficient standard for agricultural irrigation of 100 percent of reference evapotranspiration multiplied by the crop coefficient for irrigated acres.
(2) An urban retail water supplier, that is also an agricultural water supplier, is not subject to the requirements of Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 10608.48), if the agricultural water use is incorporated into its urban water use target pursuant to paragraph (1).
Section 10608.26.
(a) In complying with this part, an urban retail water supplier shall conduct at least one public hearing to accomplish all of the following:
(1) Allow community input regarding the urban retail water supplier’s implementation plan for complying with this part.
(2) Consider the economic impacts of the urban retail water supplier’s implementation plan for complying with this part.
(3) Adopt a method, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 10608.20, for determining its urban water use target.
(b) In complying with this part, an urban retail water supplier may meet its urban water use target through efficiency improvements in any combination among its customer sectors. An urban retail water supplier shall avoid placing a disproportionate burden on any customer sector.
(c) For an urban retail water supplier that supplies water to a United States Department of Defense military installation, the urban retail water supplier’s implementation plan for complying with this part shall consider the conservation of that military installation under federal Executive Order 13514. (d)
(1) Any ordinance or resolution adopted by an urban retail water supplier after the effective date of this section shall not require existing customers as of the effective date of this section, to undertake changes in product formulation, operations, or equipment that would reduce process water use, but may provide technical assistance and financial incentives to those customers to implement efficiency measures for process water. This section shall not limit an ordinance or resolution adopted pursuant to a declaration of drought emergency by an urban retail water supplier. (2) This part shall not be construed or enforced so as to interfere with the requirements of Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 113980) to Chapter 13 (commencing with Section 114380), inclusive, of Part 7 of Appendix A
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Division 104 of the Health and Safety Code, or any requirement or standard for the protection of public health, public safety, or worker safety established by federal, state, or local government or recommended by recognized standard setting organizations or trade associations.
Section 10608.28.
(a) An urban retail water supplier may meet its urban water use target within its retail service area, or through mutual agreement, by any of the following:
(1) Through an urban wholesale water supplier.
(2) Through a regional agency authorized to plan and implement water conservation, including, but not limited to, an agency established under the Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency Act (Division 31 (commencing with Section 81300)).
(3) Through a regional water management group as defined in Section 10537. (4) By an integrated regional water management funding area. (5) By hydrologic region.
(6) Through other appropriate geographic scales for which computation methods have been developed by the department.
(b) A regional water management group, with the written consent of its member agencies, may undertake any or all planning, reporting, and implementation functions under this chapter for the member agencies that consent to those activities. Any data or reports shall provide information both for the regional water management group and separately for each consenting urban retail water supplier and urban wholesale water supplier.
Section 10608.32.
All costs incurred pursuant to this part by a water utility regulated by the Public Utilities Commission may be recoverable in rates subject to review and approval by the Public Utilities Commission, and may be recorded in a memorandum account and reviewed for reasonableness by the Public Utilities Commission.
Section 10608.34.
(a)
(1) On or before January 1, 2017, the department shall adopt rules for all of the following:
(A) The conduct of standardized water loss audits by urban retail water suppliers in accordance with the method adopted by the American Water Works Association in the third edition of Water Audits and Loss Appendix A
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Control Programs, Manual M36 and in the Free Water Audit Software, version 5.0.
(B) The process for validating a water loss audit report prior to submitting the report to the department. For the purposes of this section, “validating” is a process whereby an urban retail water supplier uses a technical expert to confirm the basis of all data entries in the urban retail water supplier’s water loss audit report and to appropriately characterize the quality of the reported data. The validation process shall follow the principles and terminology laid out by the American Water Works Association in the third edition of Water Audits and Loss Control Programs, Manual M36 and in the Free Water Audit Software, version 5.0. A validated water loss audit report shall include the name and technical qualifications of the person engaged for validation.
(C) The technical qualifications required of a person to engage in validation, as described in subparagraph (B).
(D) The certification requirements for a person selected by an urban retail water supplier to provide validation of its own water loss audit report.
(E) The method of submitting a water loss audit report to the department.
(2) The department shall update rules adopted pursuant to paragraph (1) no later than six months after the release of subsequent editions of the American Water Works Association’s Water Audits and Loss Control Programs, Manual M36. Except as provided by the department, until the department adopts updated rules pursuant to this paragraph, an urban retail water supplier may rely upon a subsequent edition of the American Water Works Association’s Water Audits and Loss Control Programs, Manual M36 or the Free Water Audit Software.
(b)
(1) On or before October 1 of each year until October 1, 2023, each urban retail water supplier reporting on a calendar year basis shall submit a completed and validated water loss audit report for the previous calendar year or the previous fiscal year as prescribed by the department pursuant to subdivision (a).
(2) On or before January 1 of each year until January 1, 2024, each urban retail water supplier reporting on a fiscal year basis shall submit a completed and validated water loss audit report for the previous fiscal year as prescribed by the department pursuant to subdivision (a). (3) On or before January 1, 2024, and on or before January 1 of each year thereafter, each urban retail water supplier shall submit a completed and Appendix A
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validated water loss audit report for the previous calendar year or previous fiscal year as part of the report submitted to the department pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10609.24 and as prescribed by the department pursuant to subdivision (a).
(4) Water loss audit reports submitted on or before October 1, 2017, may be completed and validated with assistance as described in subdivision (c). (c) Using funds available for the 2016–17 fiscal year, the board shall contribute up to four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000) towards procuring water loss audit report validation assistance for urban retail water suppliers. (d) Each water loss audit report submitted to the department shall be accompanied by information, in a form specified by the department, identifying steps taken in the preceding year to increase the validity of data entered into the final audit, reduce the volume of apparent losses, and reduce the volume of real losses.
(e) At least one of the following employees of an urban retail water supplier shall attest to each water loss audit report submitted to the department:
(1) The chief financial officer.
(2) The chief engineer.
(3) The general manager.
(f) The department shall deem incomplete and return to the urban retail water supplier any final water loss audit report found by the department to be incomplete, not validated, unattested, or incongruent with known characteristics of water system operations. A water supplier shall resubmit a completed water loss audit report within 90 days of an audit being returned by the department.
(g) The department shall post all validated water loss audit reports on its internet website in a manner that allows for comparisons across water suppliers. The department shall make the validated water loss audit reports available for public viewing in a timely manner after their receipt.
(h) Using available funds, the department shall provide technical assistance to guide urban retail water suppliers’ water loss detection programs, including, but not limited to, metering techniques, pressure management techniques, condition-based assessment techniques for transmission and distribution pipelines, and utilization of portable and permanent water loss detection devices.
(i) No earlier than January 1, 2019, and no later than July 1, 2020, the board shall adopt rules requiring urban retail water suppliers to meet performance standards for the volume of water losses. In adopting these rules, the board shall employ full life-cycle cost accounting to evaluate the costs of meeting the performance standards. The board may consider establishing a minimum Appendix A
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allowable water loss threshold that, if reached and maintained by an urban water supplier, would exempt the urban water supplier from further water loss reduction requirements.
Section 10608.35.
(a) The department, in coordination with the board, shall conduct necessary studies and investigations and make a recommendation to the Legislature, by January 1, 2020, on the feasibility of developing and enacting water loss reporting requirements for urban wholesale water suppliers. (b) The studies and investigations shall include an evaluation of the suitability of applying the processes and requirements of Section 10608.34 to urban wholesale water suppliers.
(c) In conducting necessary studies and investigations and developing its recommendation, the department shall solicit broad public participation from stakeholders and other interested persons.
Section 10608.36.
Urban wholesale water suppliers shall include in the urban water management plans required pursuant to Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 10610) an assessment of their present and proposed future measures, programs, and policies to help achieve the water use reductions required by this part.
Section 10608.40.
Urban water retail suppliers shall report to the department on their progress in meeting their urban water use targets as part of their urban water management plans submitted pursuant to Section 10631. The data shall be reported using a standardized form developed pursuant to Section 10608.52.
Section 10608.42.
(a) The department shall review the 2015 urban water management plans and report to the Legislature by July 1, 2017, on progress towards achieving a 20- percent reduction in urban water use by December 31, 2020. The report shall include recommendations on changes to water efficiency standards or urban water use targets to achieve the 20- percent reduction and to reflect updated efficiency information and technology changes.
(b) A report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
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Section 10608.43.
The department, in conjunction with the California Urban Water Conservation Council, by April 1, 2010, shall convene a representative task force consisting of academic experts, urban retail water suppliers, environmental organizations, commercial water users, industrial water users, and institutional water users to develop alternative best management practices for commercial, industrial, and institutional users and an assessment of the potential statewide water use efficiency improvement in the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors that would result from implementation of these best management practices. The taskforce, in conjunction with the department, shall submit a report to the Legislature by April 1, 2012, that shall include a review of multiple sectors within commercial, industrial, and institutional users and that shall recommend water use efficiency standards for commercial, industrial, and institutional users among various sectors of water use.
The report shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(a) Appropriate metrics for evaluating commercial, industrial, and institutional water use.
(b) Evaluation of water demands for manufacturing processes, goods, and cooling. (c) Evaluation of public infrastructure necessary for delivery of recycled water to the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors.
(d) Evaluation of institutional and economic barriers to increased recycled water use within the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors. (e) Identification of technical feasibility and cost of the best management practices to achieve more efficient water use statewide in the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors that is consistent with the public interest and reflects past investments in water use efficiency.
Section 10608.44.
Each state agency shall reduce water use at facilities it operates to support urban retail water suppliers in meeting the target identified in Section 10608.16.
Chapter 5. Sustainable Water Management,
Section 10608.50
Section 10608.50.
(a) The department, in consultation with the board, shall promote implementation of regional water resources management practices through increased incentives and removal of barriers consistent with state and federal law.
Potential changes may include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
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(1) Revisions to the requirements for urban and agricultural water management plans.
(2) Revisions to the requirements for integrated regional water management plans.
(3) Revisions to the eligibility for state water management grants and loans. (4) Revisions to state or local permitting requirements that increase water supply opportunities, but do not weaken water quality protection under state and federal law.
(5) Increased funding for research, feasibility studies, and project construction.
(6) Expanding technical and educational support for local land use and water management agencies.
(b) No later than January 1, 2011, and updated as part of the California Water Plan, the department, in consultation with the board, and with public input, shall propose new statewide targets, or review and update existing statewide targets, for regional water resources management practices, including, but not limited to, recycled water, brackish groundwater desalination, and infiltration and direct use of urban stormwater runoff.
Chapter 6. Standardized Data Collection,
Section 10608.52
Section 10608.52.
(a) The department, in consultation with the board, the California Bay-Delta Authority or its successor agency, the State Department of Public Health, and the Public Utilities Commission, shall develop a single standardized water use reporting form to meet the water use information needs of each agency, including the needs of urban water suppliers that elect to determine and report progress toward achieving targets on a regional basis as provided in subdivision (a) of Section 10608.28.
(b) At a minimum, the form shall be developed to accommodate information sufficient to assess an urban water supplier’s compliance with conservation targets pursuant to Section 10608.24 and an agricultural water supplier’s compliance with implementation of efficient water management practices pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10608.48. The form shall accommodate reporting by urban water suppliers on an individual or regional basis as provided in subdivision (a) of Section 10608.28.
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Chapter 7. Funding Provisions, Sections 10608.56–
10608.60
Section 10608.56.
(a) On and after July 1, 2016, an urban retail water supplier is not eligible for a water grant or loan awarded or administered by the state unless the supplier complies with this part.
(b) On and after July 1, 2013, an agricultural water supplier is not eligible for a water grant or loan awarded or administered by the state unless the supplier complies with this part.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the department shall determine that an urban retail water supplier is eligible for a water grant or loan even though the supplier has not met the per capita reductions required pursuant to Section 10608.24, if the urban retail water supplier has submitted to the department for approval a schedule, financing plan, and budget, to be included in the grant or loan agreement, for achieving the per capita reductions. The supplier may request grant or loan funds to achieve the per capita reductions to the extent the request is consistent with the eligibility requirements applicable to the water funds.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (b), the department shall determine that an agricultural water supplier is eligible for a water grant or loan even though the supplier is not implementing all of the efficient water management practices described in Section 10608.48, if the agricultural water supplier has submitted to the department for approval a schedule, financing plan, and budget, to be included in the grant or loan agreement, for implementation of the efficient water management practices. The supplier may request grant or loan funds to implement the efficient water management practices to the extent the request is consistent with the eligibility requirements applicable to the water funds. (e) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the department shall determine that an urban retail water supplier is eligible for a water grant or loan even though the supplier has not met the per capita reductions required pursuant to Section 10608.24, if the urban retail water supplier has submitted to the department for approval documentation demonstrating that its entire service area qualifies as a disadvantaged community.
(f) The department shall not deny eligibility to an urban retail water supplier or agricultural water supplier in compliance with the requirements of this part and Part 2.8 (commencing with Section 10800), that is participating in a multiagency water project, or an integrated regional water management plan, developed pursuant to Section 75026 of the Public Resources Code, solely on the basis that one or more of the agencies participating in the project or plan Appendix A
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is not implementing all of the requirements of this part or Part 2.8 (commencing with Section 10800).
Section 10608.60.
(a) It is the intent of the Legislature that funds made available by Section 75026 of the Public Resources Code should be expended, consistent with Division 43 (commencing with Section 75001) of the Public Resources Code and upon appropriation by the Legislature, for grants to implement this part. In the allocation of funding, it is the intent of the Legislature that the department give consideration to disadvantaged communities to assist in implementing the requirements of this part.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that funds made available by Section 75041 of the Public Resources Code, should be expended, consistent with Division 43 (commencing with Section 75001) of the Public Resources Code and upon appropriation by the Legislature, for direct expenditures to implement this part.
Chapter 9. Urban Water Use Objectives and Water Use
Reporting, Sections 10609–10609.38
Section 10609.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares that this chapter establishes a method to estimate the aggregate amount of water that would have been delivered the previous year by an urban retail water supplier if all that water had been used efficiently. This estimated aggregate water use is the urban retail water supplier’s urban water use objective. The method is based on water use efficiency standards and local service area characteristics for that year. By comparing the amount of water actually used in the previous year with the urban water use objective, local urban water suppliers will be in a better position to help eliminate unnecessary use of water; that is, water used in excess of that needed to accomplish the intended beneficial use. (b) The Legislature further finds and declares all of the following:
(1) This chapter establishes standards and practices for the following water uses:
(A) Indoor residential use.
(B) Outdoor residential use.
(C) CII water use.
(D) Water losses.
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(E) Other unique local uses and situations that can have a material effect on an urban water supplier’s total water use.
(2) This chapter further does all of the following:
(A) Establishes a method to calculate each urban water use objective. (B) Considers recycled water quality in establishing efficient irrigation standards.
(C) Requires the department to provide or otherwise identify data regarding the unique local conditions to support the calculation of an urban water use objective.
(D) Provides for the use of alternative sources of data if alternative sources are shown to be as accurate as, or more accurate than, the data provided by the department.
(E) Requires annual reporting of the previous year’s water use with the urban water use objective.
(F) Provides a bonus incentive for the amount of potable recycled water used the previous year when comparing the previous year’s water use with the urban water use objective, of up to 10 percent of the urban water use objective.
(3) This chapter requires the department and the board to solicit broad public participation from stakeholders and other interested persons in the development of the standards and the adoption of regulations pursuant to this chapter.
(4) This chapter preserves the Legislature’s authority over long- term water use efficiency target setting and ensures appropriate legislative oversight of the implementation of this chapter by doing all of the following:
(A) Requiring the Legislative Analyst to conduct a review of the implementation of this chapter, including compliance with the adopted standards and regulations, accuracy of the data, use of alternate data, and other issues the Legislative Analyst deems appropriate.
(B) Stating legislative intent that the director of the department and the chairperson of the board appear before the appropriate Senate and Assembly policy committees to report on progress in implementing this chapter.
(C) Providing one-time-only authority to the department and board to adopt water use efficiency standards, except as explicitly provided in this chapter. Authorization to update the standards shall require separate legislation.
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(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that the following principles apply to the development and implementation of long-term standards and urban water use objectives:
(1) Local urban retail water suppliers should have primary responsibility for meeting standards-based water use targets, and they shall retain the flexibility to develop their water supply portfolios, design and implement water conservation strategies, educate their customers, and enforce their rules.
(2) Long-term standards and urban water use objectives should advance the state’s goals to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
(3) Long-term standards and urban water use objectives should acknowledge the shade, air quality, and heat-island reduction benefits provided to communities by trees through the support of water-efficient irrigation practices that keep trees healthy.
(4) The state should identify opportunities for streamlined reporting, eliminate redundant data submissions, and incentivize open access to data collected by urban and agricultural water suppliers.
Section 10609.2.
(a) The board, in coordination with the department, shall adopt long-term standards for the efficient use of water pursuant to this chapter on or before June 30, 2022.
(b) Standards shall be adopted for all of the following:
(1) Outdoor residential water use.
(2) Outdoor irrigation of landscape areas with dedicated irrigation meters in connection with CII water use.
(3) A volume for water loss.
(c) When adopting the standards under this section, the board shall consider the policies of this chapter and the proposed efficiency standards’ effects on local wastewater management, developed and natural parklands, and urban tree health. The standards and potential effects shall be identified by May 30, 2022.
The board shall allow for public comment on potential effects identified by the board under this subdivision.
(d) The long-term standards shall be set at a level designed so that the water use objectives, together with other demands excluded from the long-term standards such as CII indoor water use and CII outdoor water use not connected to a dedicated landscape meter, would exceed the statewide conservation targets required pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 10608.16).
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(e) The board, in coordination with the department, shall adopt by regulation variances recommended by the department pursuant to Section 10609.14 and guidelines and methodologies pertaining to the calculation of an urban retail water supplier’s urban water use objective recommended by the department pursuant to Section 10609.16.
Section 10609.4.
(a)
(1) Until January 1, 2025, the standard for indoor residential water use shall be 55 gallons per capita daily.
(2) Beginning January 1, 2025, and until January 1, 2030, the standard for indoor residential water use shall be 47 gallons per capita daily. (3) Beginning January 1, 2030, the standard for indoor residential water use shall be 42 gallons per capita daily.
(b)
(1) The department, in coordination with the board, shall conduct necessary studies and investigations to assess and quantify the economic benefits and impacts of the 2030 indoor residential use standard on water, wastewater, and recycled water systems and shall include saturation end- use studies. The studies and investigations shall build on the standards and potential effects identified pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 10609.2 and shall also consider, and as appropriate incorporate, other regional and statewide studies that quantify the impacts on water, wastewater, and recycled water systems, and evaluate the long-term effects of telework. To facilitate these studies and investigations, the board may request necessary and relevant information from wastewater agencies, including monthly influent flow, actions taken to reassess treatment processes, and the impact of the implementation of this chapter on wastewater operations, maintenance, and capital investment.
The department, in coordination with the board, shall summarize the findings of these studies and investigations in a report to the Legislature on or before October 1, 2028. The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(2) If the department, in coordination with the board, determines that the 2030 indoor residential use standard is likely to unduly impact affordability of water and wastewater services, the department and the board may jointly recommend to the Legislature an alternate date on which the 2030 indoor residential use standard shall take effect. This determination shall be made using at least two years of data reflecting application of the 2025 indoor residential use standard.
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(3) Based upon the studies and investigations conducted pursuant to paragraph (1), the department shall consider whether to recommend, for adoption by the board, additional variances to accommodate unique challenges related to residential indoor water use pursuant to Section 10609.2. Variance options may include, but are not limited to, stranded assets, impacts on disadvantaged communities, impacts to environmental flows, or adverse impacts to wastewater or recycled water operations.
(4) The studies, investigations, and report described in paragraph (1) shall include timely and inclusive collaboration with, and input from, a broad group of stakeholders, including, but not limited to, environmental groups, experts in indoor plumbing, water, wastewater, and recycled water agencies.
(c) An urban retail water supplier shall not be subject to enforcement pursuant to this chapter solely for failing to meet the indoor residential use standard.
Section 10609.6.
(a)
(1) The department, in coordination with the board, shall conduct necessary studies and investigations and recommend, no later than October 1, 2021, standards for outdoor residential use for adoption by the board in accordance with this chapter.
(2)
(A) The standards shall incorporate the principles of the model water efficient landscape ordinance adopted by the department pursuant to the Water Conservation in Landscaping Act (Article 10.8 (commencing with Section 65591) of Chapter 3 of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code).
(B) The standards shall apply to irrigable lands.
(C) The standards shall include provisions for swimming pools, spas, and other water features. Ornamental water features that are artificially supplied with water, including ponds, lakes, waterfalls, and fountains, shall be analyzed separately from swimming pools and spas. (b) The department shall, by January 1, 2021, provide each urban retail water supplier with data regarding the area of residential irrigable lands in a manner that can reasonably be applied to the standards adopted pursuant to this section.
(c) The department shall not recommend standards pursuant to this section until it has conducted pilot projects or studies, or some combination of the two, to ensure that the data provided to local agencies are reasonably accurate for the Appendix A
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data’s intended uses, taking into consideration California’s diverse landscapes and community characteristics.
Section 10609.8.
(a) The department, in coordination with the board, shall conduct necessary studies and investigations and recommend, no later than October 1, 2021, standards for outdoor irrigation of landscape areas with dedicated irrigation meters or other means of calculating outdoor irrigation use in connection with CII water use for adoption by the board in accordance with this chapter. (b) The standards shall incorporate the principles of the model water efficient landscape ordinance adopted by the department pursuant to the Water Conservation in Landscaping Act (Article 10.8 (commencing with Section 65591) of Chapter 3 of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code). (c) The standards shall include an exclusion for water for commercial agricultural use meeting the definition of subdivision (b) of Section 51201 of the Government Code.
Section 10609.9.
For purposes of Sections 10609.6 and 10609.8, “principles of the model water efficient landscape ordinance” means those provisions of the model water efficient landscape ordinance applicable to the establishment or determination of the amount of water necessary to efficiently irrigate both new and existing landscapes.
These provisions include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(a) Evapotranspiration adjustment factors, as applicable. (b) Landscape area.
(c) Maximum applied water allowance.
(d) Reference evapotranspiration.
(e) Special landscape areas, including provisions governing evapotranspiration adjustment factors for different types of water used for irrigating the landscape.
Section 10609.10.
(a) The department, in coordination with the board, shall conduct necessary studies and investigations and recommend, no later than October 1, 2021, performance measures for CII water use for adoption by the board in accordance with this chapter.
(b) Prior to recommending performance measures for CII water use, the department shall solicit broad public participation from stakeholders and other interested persons relating to all of the following:
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(1) Recommendations for a CII water use classification system for California that address significant uses of water.
(2) Recommendations for setting minimum size thresholds for converting mixed CII meters to dedicated irrigation meters, and evaluation of, and recommendations for, technologies that could be used in lieu of requiring dedicated irrigation meters.
(3) Recommendations for CII water use best management practices, which may include, but are not limited to, water audits and water management plans for those CII customers that exceed a recommended size, volume of water use, or other threshold.
(c) Recommendations of appropriate performance measures for CII water use shall be consistent with the October 21, 2013, report to the Legislature by the Commercial, Industrial, and Institutional Task Force entitled “Water Use Best Management Practices,” including the technical and financial feasibility recommendations provided in that report, and shall support the economic productivity of California’s commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors. (b)
(1) The board, in coordination with the department, shall adopt performance measures for CII water use on or before June 30, 2022.
(2) Each urban retail water supplier shall implement the performance measures adopted by the board pursuant to paragraph (1).
Section 10609.12.
The standards for water loss for urban retail water suppliers shall be the standards adopted by the board pursuant to subdivision (i) of Section 10608.34.
Section 10609.14.
(a) The department, in coordination with the board, shall conduct necessary studies and investigations and, no later than October 1, 2021, recommend for adoption by the board in accordance with this chapter appropriate variances for unique uses that can have a material effect on an urban retail water supplier’s urban water use objective.
(b) Appropriate variances may include, but are not limited to, allowances for the following:
(1) Significant use of evaporative coolers.
(2) Significant populations of horses and other livestock. (3) Significant fluctuations in seasonal populations.
(4) Significant landscaped areas irrigated with recycled water having high levels of total dissolved solids.
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(5) Significant use of water for soil compaction and dust control. (6) Significant use of water to supplement ponds and lakes to sustain wildlife. (7) Significant use of water to irrigate vegetation for fire protection. (8) Significant use of water for commercial or noncommercial agricultural use. (d) The department, in recommending variances for adoption by the board, shall also recommend a threshold of significance for each recommended variance. (e) Before including any specific variance in calculating an urban retail water supplier’s water use objective, the urban retail water supplier shall request and receive approval by the board for the inclusion of that variance. (f) The board shall post on its Internet Web site all of the following:
(1) A list of all urban retail water suppliers with approved variances. (2) The specific variance or variances approved for each urban retail water supplier.
(3) The data supporting approval of each variance.
Section 10609.15.
To help streamline water data reporting, the department and the board shall do all of the following:
(a) Identify urban water reporting requirements shared by both agencies, and post on each agency’s Internet Web site how the data is used for planning, regulatory, or other purposes.
(b) Analyze opportunities for more efficient publication of urban water reporting requirements within each agency, and analyze how each agency can integrate various data sets in a publicly accessible location, identify priority actions, and implement priority actions identified in the analysis.
(c) Make appropriate data pertaining to the urban water reporting requirements that are collected by either agency available to the public according to the principles and requirements of the Open and Transparent Water Data Act (Part 4.9 (commencing with Section 12400)).
Section 10609.16.
The department, in coordination with the board, shall conduct necessary studies and investigations and recommend, no later than October 1, 2021, guidelines and methodologies for the board to adopt that identify how an urban retail water supplier calculates its urban water use objective. The guidelines and methodologies shall address, as necessary, all of the following:
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(a) Determining the irrigable lands within the urban retail water supplier’s service area.
(b) Updating and revising methodologies described pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (h) of Section 10608.20, as appropriate, including methodologies for calculating the population in an urban retail water supplier’s service area.
(c) Using landscape area data provided by the department or alternative data. (d) Incorporating precipitation data and climate data into estimates of a urban retail water supplier’s outdoor irrigation budget for its urban water use objective.
(e) Estimating changes in outdoor landscape area and population, and calculating the urban water use objective, for years when updated landscape imagery is not available from the department.
(f) Determining acceptable levels of accuracy for the supporting data, the urban water use objective, and compliance with the urban water use objective.
Section 10609.18.
The department and the board shall solicit broad public participation from stakeholders and other interested persons in the development of the standards and the adoption of regulations pursuant to this chapter. The board shall hold at least one public meeting before taking any action on any standard or variance recommended by the department.
Section 10609.20.
(a) Each urban retail water supplier shall calculate its urban water use objective no later than January 1, 2024, and by January 1 every year thereafter. (b) The calculation shall be based on the urban retail water supplier’s water use conditions for the previous calendar or fiscal year.
(c) Each urban water supplier’s urban water use objective shall be composed of the sum of the following:
(1) Aggregate estimated efficient indoor residential water use. (2) Aggregate estimated efficient outdoor residential water use. (3) Aggregate estimated efficient outdoor irrigation of landscape areas with dedicated irrigation meters or equivalent technology in connection with CII water use.
(4) Aggregate estimated efficient water losses.
(5) Aggregate estimated water use in accordance with variances, as appropriate.
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(d)
(1) An urban retail water supplier that delivers water from a groundwater basin, reservoir, or other source that is augmented by potable reuse water may adjust its urban water use objective by a bonus incentive calculated pursuant to this subdivision.
(2) The water use objective bonus incentive shall be the volume of its potable reuse delivered to residential water users and to landscape areas with dedicated irrigation meters in connection with CII water use, on an acre- foot basis.
(3) The bonus incentive pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be limited in accordance with one of the following:
(A) The bonus incentive shall not exceed 15 percent of the urban water supplier’s water use objective for any potable reuse water produced at an existing facility.
(B) The bonus incentive shall not exceed 10 percent of the urban water supplier’s water use objective for any potable reuse water produced at any facility that is not an existing facility.
(4) For purposes of this subdivision, “existing facility” means a facility that meets all of the following:
(A) The facility has a certified environmental impact report, mitigated negative declaration, or negative declaration on or before January 1, 2019.
(B) The facility begins producing and delivering potable reuse water on or before January 1, 2022.
(C) The facility uses microfiltration and reverse osmosis technologies to produce the potable reuse water.
(e)
(1) The calculation of the urban water use objective shall be made using landscape area and other data provided by the department and pursuant to the standards, guidelines, and methodologies adopted by the board.
The department shall provide data to the urban water supplier at a level of detail sufficient to allow the urban water supplier to verify its accuracy at the parcel level.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), an urban retail water supplier may use alternative data in calculating the urban water use objective if the supplier demonstrates to the department that the alternative data are equivalent, or superior, in quality and accuracy to the data provided by the department. The department may provide technical assistance to an Appendix A
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urban retail water supplier in evaluating whether the alternative data are appropriate for use in calculating the supplier’s urban water use objective.
Section 10609.21.
(a) For purposes of Section 10609.20, and notwithstanding paragraph (4) of subdivision (d) of Section 10609.20, “existing facility” also includes the North City Project, phase one of the Pure Water San Diego Program, for which an environmental impact report was certified on April 10, 2018. (b) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2019.
Section 10609.22.
(a) An urban retail water supplier shall calculate its actual urban water use no later than January 1, 2024, and by January 1 every year thereafter. (b) The calculation shall be based on the urban retail water supplier’s water use for the previous calendar or fiscal year.
(c) Each urban water supplier’s urban water use shall be composed of the sum of the following:
(1) Aggregate residential water use.
(2) Aggregate outdoor irrigation of landscape areas with dedicated irrigation meters in connection with CII water use.
(3) Aggregate water losses.
Section 10609.24.
(a) An urban retail water supplier shall submit a report to the department no later than January 1, 2024, and by January 1 every year thereafter. The report shall include all of the following:
(1) The urban water use objective calculated pursuant to Section 10609.20 along with relevant supporting data.
(2) The actual urban water use calculated pursuant to Section 10609.22 along with relevant supporting data.
(3) Documentation of the implementation of the performance measures for CII water use.
(4) A description of the progress made towards meeting the urban water use objective.
(5) The validated water loss audit report conducted pursuant to Section 10608.34.
(b) The department shall post the reports and information on its internet website.
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(c) The board may issue an information order or conservation order to, or impose civil liability on, an entity or individual for failure to submit a report required by this section.
Section 10609.25.
As part of the first report submitted to the department by an urban retail water supplier no later than January 1, 2024, pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10609.24, each urban retail water supplier shall provide a narrative that describes the water demand management measures that the supplier plans to implement to achieve its urban water use objective by January 1, 2027.
Section 10609.26.
(a)
(1) On and after January 1, 2024, the board may issue informational orders pertaining to water production, water use, and water conservation to an urban retail water supplier that does not meet its urban water use objective required by this chapter. Informational orders are intended to obtain information on supplier activities, water production, and conservation efforts in order to identify technical assistance needs and assist urban water suppliers in meeting their urban water use objectives. (2) In determining whether to issue an informational order, the board shall consider the degree to which the urban retail water supplier is not meeting its urban water use objective, information provided in the report required by Section 10609.24, and actions the urban retail water supplier has implemented or will implement in order to help meet the urban water use objective.
(3) The board shall share information received pursuant to this subdivision with the department.
(4) An urban water supplier may request technical assistance from the department. The technical assistance may, to the extent available, include guidance documents, tools, and data.
(b) On and after January 1, 2025, the board may issue a written notice to an urban retail water supplier that does not meet its urban water use objective required by this chapter. The written notice may warn the urban retail water supplier that it is not meeting its urban water use objective described in Section 10609.20 and is not making adequate progress in meeting the urban water use objective, and may request that the urban retail water supplier address areas of concern in its next annual report required by Section 10609.24. In deciding whether to issue a written notice, the board may consider whether the urban retail water supplier has received an informational order, the degree to which the urban retail water supplier is not Appendix A
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meeting its urban water use objective, information provided in the report required by Section 10609.24, and actions the urban retail water supplier has implemented or will implement in order to help meet its urban water use objective.
(1) On and after January 1, 2026, the board may issue a conservation order to an urban retail water supplier that does not meet its urban water use objective. A conservation order may consist of, but is not limited to, referral to the department for technical assistance, requirements for education and outreach, requirements for local enforcement, and other efforts to assist urban retail water suppliers in meeting their urban water use objective.
(2) In issuing a conservation order, the board shall identify specific deficiencies in an urban retail water supplier’s progress towards meeting its urban water use objective, and identify specific actions to address the deficiencies.
(3) The board may request that the department provide an urban retail water supplier with technical assistance to support the urban retail water supplier’s actions to remedy the deficiencies.
(c) A conservation order issued in accordance with this chapter may include requiring actions intended to increase water-use efficiency, but shall not curtail or otherwise limit the exercise of a water right, nor shall it require the imposition of civil liability pursuant to Section 377.
Section 10609.27.
Notwithstanding Section 10609.26, the board shall not issue an information order, written notice, or conservation order pursuant to Section 10609.26 if both of the following conditions are met:
(a) The board determines that the urban retail water supplier is not meeting its urban water use objective solely because the volume of water loss exceeds the urban retail water supplier’s standard for water loss.
(b) Pursuant to Section 10608.34, the board is taking enforcement action against the urban retail water supplier for not meeting the performance standards for the volume of water losses.
Section 10609.28.
The board may issue a regulation or informational order requiring a wholesale water supplier, an urban retail water supplier, or a distributor of a public water supply, as that term is used in Section 350, to provide a monthly report relating to water production, water use, or water conservation.
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Section 10609.30.
On or before January 10, 2024, the Legislative Analyst shall provide to the appropriate policy committees of both houses of the Legislature and the public a report evaluating the implementation of the water use efficiency standards and water use reporting pursuant to this chapter. The board and the department shall provide the Legislative Analyst with the available data to complete this report. (a) The report shall describe all of the following:
(1) The rate at which urban retail water users are complying with the standards, and factors that might facilitate or impede their compliance. (2) The accuracy of the data and estimates being used to calculate urban water use objectives.
(3) Indications of the economic impacts, if any, of the implementation of this chapter on urban water suppliers and urban water users, including CII water users.
(4) The frequency of use of the bonus incentive, the volume of water associated with the bonus incentive, value to urban water suppliers of the bonus incentive, and any implications of the use of the bonus incentive on water use efficiency.
(5) The early indications of how implementing this chapter might impact the efficiency of statewide urban water use.
6) Recommendations, if any, for improving statewide urban water use efficiency and the standards and practices described in this chapter. (7) Any other issues the Legislative Analyst deems appropriate.
Section 10609.32.
It is the intent of the Legislature that the chairperson of the board and the director of the department appear before the appropriate policy committees of both houses of the Legislature on or around January 1, 2026, and report on the implementation of the water use efficiency standards and water use reporting pursuant to this chapter. It is the intent of the Legislature that the topics to be covered include all of the following:
(a) The rate at which urban retail water suppliers are complying with the standards, and factors that might facilitate or impede their compliance. (b) What enforcement actions have been taken, if any.
(c) The accuracy of the data and estimates being used to calculate urban water use objectives.
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(d) Indications of the economic impacts, if any, of the implementation of this chapter on urban water suppliers and urban water users, including CII water users.
(e) The frequency of use of the bonus incentive, the volume of water associated with the bonus incentive, value to urban water suppliers of the bonus incentive, and any implications of the use of the bonus incentive on water use efficiency.
(f) An assessment of how implementing this chapter is affecting the efficiency of statewide urban water use.
Section 10609.34.
Notwithstanding Section 15300.2 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, an action of the board taken under this chapter shall be deemed to be a Class 8 action, within the meaning of Section 15308 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, provided that the action does not involve relaxation of existing water conservation or water use standards.
Section 10609.36.
(a) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to determine or alter water rights.
Sections 1010 and 1011 apply to water conserved through implementation of this chapter.
(b) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to authorize the board to update or revise water use efficiency standards authorized by this chapter except as explicitly provided in this chapter. Authorization to update the standards beyond that explicitly provided in this chapter shall require separate legislation.
(c) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit or otherwise affect the use of recycled water as seawater barriers for groundwater salinity management.
Section 10609.38.
The board may waive the requirements of this chapter for a period of up to five years for any urban retail water supplier whose water deliveries are significantly affected by changes in water use as a result of damage from a disaster such as an earthquake or fire. In establishing the period of a waiver, the board shall take into consideration the breadth of the damage and the time necessary for the damaged areas to recover from the disaster.
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Urban Water Management Planning Act
This section contains information extracted from Water Code Division 6, Conservation, Development, and Utilization of State Water Resources, Part 2.6, Urban Water Management Planning. Click on any section header below to read Water Code directly at the California Legislative Information website.
Chapter 1. General Declaration and Policy,
Sections 10610–10610.4
Section 10610.
This part shall be known and may be cited as the “Urban Water Management Planning Act.”
Section 10610.2.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) The waters of the state are a limited and renewable resource subject to ever-increasing demands.
(2) The conservation and efficient use of urban water supplies are of statewide concern; however, the planning for that use and the implementation of those plans can best be accomplished at the local level. (3) A long-term, reliable supply of water is essential to protect the productivity of California’s businesses and economic climate, and increasing long-term water conservation among Californians, improving water use efficiency within the state’s communities and agricultural production, and strengthening local and regional drought planning are critical to California’s resilience to drought and climate change. (4) As part of its long-range planning activities, every urban water supplier should make every effort to ensure the appropriate level of reliability in its water service sufficient to meet the needs of its various categories of customers during normal, dry, and multiple dry water years now and into the foreseeable future, and every urban water supplier should collaborate closely with local land-use authorities to ensure water demand forecasts are consistent with current land-use planning.
(5) Public health issues have been raised over a number of contaminants that have been identified in certain local and imported water supplies. (6) Implementing effective water management strategies, including groundwater storage projects and recycled water projects, may require Appendix A
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specific water quality and salinity targets for meeting groundwater basins water quality objectives and promoting beneficial use of recycled water. (7) Water quality regulations are becoming an increasingly important factor in water agencies’ selection of raw water sources, treatment alternatives, and modifications to existing treatment facilities.
(8) Changes in drinking water quality standards may also impact the usefulness of water supplies and may ultimately impact supply reliability. (9) The quality of source supplies can have a significant impact on water management strategies and supply reliability.
(b) This part is intended to provide assistance to water agencies in carrying out their long-term resource planning responsibilities to ensure adequate water supplies to meet existing and future demands for water.
Section 10610.4.
The Legislature finds and declares that it is the policy of the state as follows:
(a) The management of urban water demands and efficient use of water shall be actively pursued to protect both the people of the state and their water resources.
(b) The management of urban water demands and efficient use of urban water supplies shall be a guiding criterion in public decisions. (c) Urban water suppliers shall be required to develop water management plans to achieve the efficient use of available supplies and strengthen local drought planning.
Chapter 2. Definitions, Sections 10611–10618
Section 10611.
Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions of this chapter govern the construction of this part.
Section 10611.3.
“Customer” means a purchaser of water from a water supplier who uses the water for municipal purposes, including residential, commercial, governmental, and industrial uses.
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Section 10611.5.
“Demand management” means those water conservation measures, programs, and incentives that prevent the waste of water and promote the reasonable and efficient use and reuse of available supplies.
Section 10612.
“Drought risk assessment” means a method that examines water shortage risks based on the driest five-year historic sequence for the agency’s water supply, as described in subdivision (b) of Section 10635.
Section 10613.
“Efficient use” means those management measures that result in the most effective use of water so as to prevent its waste or unreasonable use or unreasonable method of use.
Section 10614.
“Person” means any individual, firm, association, organization, partnership, business, trust, corporation, company, public agency, or any agency of such an entity.
Section 10615.
“Plan” means an urban water management plan prepared pursuant to this part. A plan shall describe and evaluate sources of supply, reasonable and practical efficient uses, reclamation and demand management activities. The components of the plan may vary according to an individual community or area's characteristics and its capabilities to efficiently use and conserve water. The plan shall address measures for residential, commercial, governmental, and industrial water demand management as set forth in Article 2 (commencing with Section 10630) of Chapter 3. In addition, a strategy and time schedule for implementation shall be included in the plan.
Section 10616.
“Public agency” means any board, commission, county, city and county, city, regional agency, district, or other public entity.
Section 10616.5.
“Recycled water” means the reclamation and reuse of wastewater for beneficial use.
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Section 10617.
“Urban water supplier” means a supplier, either publicly or privately owned, providing water for municipal purposes either directly or indirectly to more than 3,000 customers or supplying more than 3,000 acre-feet of water annually. An urban water supplier includes a supplier or contractor for water, regardless of the basis of right, which distributes or sells for ultimate resale to customers. This part applies only to water supplied from public water systems subject to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 116275) of Part 12 of Division 104 of the Health and Safety Code.
Section 10617.5.
“Water shortage contingency plan” means a document that incorporates the provisions detailed in subdivision (a) of Section 10632 and is subsequently adopted by an urban water supplier pursuant to this article.
Section 10618.
“Water supply and demand assessment” means a method that looks at current year and one or more dry year supplies and demands for determining water shortage risks, as described in Section 10632.1.
Chapter 3. Urban Water Management Plans
Article 1. General Provisions, Sections 10620–10621
Section 10620.
(a) Every urban water supplier shall prepare and adopt an urban water management plan in the manner set forth in Article 3 (commencing with Section 10640).
(b) Every person that becomes an urban water supplier shall adopt an urban water management plan within one year after it has become an urban water supplier.
(c) An urban water supplier indirectly providing water shall not include planning elements in its water management plan as provided in Article 2 (commencing with Section 10630) that would be applicable to urban water suppliers or public agencies directly providing water, or to their customers, without the consent of those suppliers or public agencies. (d)
(1) An urban water supplier may satisfy the requirements of this part by participation in areawide, regional, watershed, or basinwide urban water Appendix A
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management planning where those plans will reduce preparation costs and contribute to the achievement of conservation, efficient water use, and improved local drought resilience.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), each urban water supplier shall develop its own water shortage contingency plan, but an urban water supplier may incorporate, collaborate, and otherwise share information with other urban water suppliers or other governing entities participating in an areawide, regional, watershed, or basinwide urban water management plan, an agricultural management plan, or groundwater sustainability plan development.
(3) Each urban water supplier shall coordinate the preparation of its plan with other appropriate agencies in the area, including other water suppliers that share a common source, water management agencies, and relevant public agencies, to the extent practicable.
(e) The urban water supplier may prepare the plan with its own staff, by contract, or in cooperation with other governmental agencies.
(f) An urban water supplier shall describe in the plan water management tools and options used by that entity that will maximize resources and minimize the need to import water from other regions.
Section 10621.
(a) Each urban water supplier shall update its plan at least once every five years on or before July 1, in years ending in six and one, incorporating updated and new information from the five years preceding each update. (b) Every urban water supplier required to prepare a plan pursuant to this part shall, at least 60 days before the public hearing on the plan required by Section 10642, notify any city or county within which the supplier provides water supplies that the urban water supplier will be reviewing the plan and considering amendments or changes to the plan.
The urban water supplier may consult with, and obtain comments from, any city or county that receives notice pursuant to this subdivision. (c) An urban water supplier regulated by the Public Utilities Commission shall include its most recent plan and water shortage
contingency plan as
part of the supplier’s general rate case filings.
(d) The amendments to, or changes in, the plan shall be adopted and filed in the manner set forth in Article 3 (commencing with Section 10640). (e) Each urban water supplier shall update and submit its 2015 plan to the department by July 1, 2016.
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(f) Each urban water supplier shall update and submit its 2020 plan to the department by July 1, 2021.
Article 2. Contents of Plans, Sections 10630–10634
Section 10630.
It is the intention of the Legislature, in enacting this part, to permit levels of water management planning commensurate with the numbers of customers served and the volume of water supplied, while accounting for impacts from climate change.
Section 10630.5.
Each plan shall include a simple lay description of how much water the agency has on a reliable basis, how much it needs for the foreseeable future, what the agency’s strategy is for meeting its water needs, the challenges facing the agency, and any other information necessary to provide a general understanding of the agency’s plan.
Section 10631.
A plan shall be adopted in accordance with this chapter that shall do all of the following:
(a) Describe the service area of the supplier, including current and projected population, climate, and other social, economic, and demographic factors affecting the supplier’s water management planning. The projected population estimates shall be based upon data from the state, regional, or local service agency population projections within the service area of the urban water supplier and shall be in five-year increments to 20 years or as far as data is available. The description shall include the current and projected land uses within the existing or anticipated service area affecting the supplier’s water management planning. Urban water suppliers shall coordinate with local or regional land use authorities to determine the most appropriate land use information, including, where appropriate, land use information obtained from local or regional land use authorities, as developed pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 65300) of Chapter 3 of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code.
(b) Identify and quantify, to the extent practicable, the existing and planned sources of water available to the supplier over the same five-year increments described in subdivision (a), providing supporting and related information, including all of the following:
(1) A detailed discussion of anticipated supply availability under a normal water year, single dry year, and droughts lasting at least five years, as well as more frequent and severe periods of drought, as described in the Appendix A
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drought risk assessment. For each source of water supply, consider any information pertinent to the reliability analysis conducted pursuant to Section 10635, including changes in supply due to climate change. (2) When multiple sources of water supply are identified, a description of the management of each supply in correlation with the other identified supplies.
(3) For any planned sources of water supply, a description of the measures that are being undertaken to acquire and develop those water supplies. (4) If groundwater is identified as an existing or planned source of water available to the supplier, all of the following information:
(A) The current version of any groundwater sustainability plan or alternative adopted pursuant to Part 2.74 (commencing with Section 10720), any groundwater management plan adopted by the urban water supplier, including plans adopted pursuant to Part 2.75 (commencing with Section 10750), or any other specific
authorization for groundwater management for basins underlying the urban water supplier’s service area.
(B) A description of any groundwater basin or basins from which the urban water supplier pumps groundwater.
(C) For basins that a court or the board has adjudicated the rights to pump groundwater, a copy of the order or decree adopted by the court or the board and a description of the amount of groundwater the urban water supplier has the legal right to pump under the order or decree. For a basin that has not been adjudicated, information as to whether the department has identified the basin as a high- or medium-priority basin in the most current official departmental bulletin that characterizes the condition of the groundwater basin, and a detailed description of the efforts being undertaken by the urban water supplier to coordinate with groundwater sustainability agencies or groundwater management agencies listed in subdivision (c) of Section 10723 to maintain or achieve sustainable groundwater conditions in accordance with a groundwater sustainability plan or alternative adopted pursuant to Part 2.74 (commencing with Section 10720).
(D) A detailed description and analysis of the location, amount, and sufficiency of groundwater pumped by the urban water supplier for the past five years. The description and analysis shall be based on information that is reasonably available, including, but not limited to, historic use records.
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supplier. The description and analysis shall be based on information that is reasonably available, including, but not limited to, historic use records.
(c) Describe the opportunities for exchanges or transfers of water on a short-term or long-term basis.
(d)
(1) For an urban retail water supplier, quantify, to the extent records are available, past and current water use, over the same five-year increments described in subdivision (a), and projected water use, based upon information developed pursuant to subdivision (a), identifying the uses among water use sectors, including, but not necessarily limited to, all of the following:
(A) Single-family residential.
(B) Multifamily.
(C) Commercial.
(D) Industrial.
(E) Institutional and governmental.
(F) Landscape.
(G) Sales to other agencies.
(H) Saline water intrusion barriers, groundwater recharge, or conjunctive use, or any combination thereof.
(I) Agricultural.
(J) Distribution system water loss.
(2) The water use projections shall be in the same five-year increments described in subdivision (a).
(3)
(A) The distribution system water loss shall be quantified for each of the five years preceding the plan update, in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to Section 10608.34.
(B) The distribution system water loss quantification shall be reported in accordance with a worksheet approved or developed by the department through a public process. The water loss quantification worksheet shall be based on the water system balance methodology developed by the American Water Works Association.
(C) In the plan due July 1, 2021, and in each update thereafter, data shall be included to show whether the urban retail water supplier met Appendix A
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the distribution loss standards enacted by the board pursuant to Section 10608.34.
(4)
(A) Water use projections, where available, shall display and account for the water savings estimated to result from adopted codes, standards, ordinances, or transportation and land use plans identified by the urban water supplier, as applicable to the service area. (B) To the extent that an urban water supplier reports the information described in subparagraph (A), an urban water supplier shall do both of the following:
(i) Provide citations of the various codes, standards, ordinances, or transportation and land use plans utilized in making the projections.
(ii) Indicate the extent that the water use projections consider savings from codes, standards, ordinances, or transportation and land use plans. Water use projections that do not account for these water savings shall be noted of that fact.
(a) Provide a description of the supplier’s water demand management measures.
This description shall include all of the following:
(1)
(A) For an urban retail water supplier, as defined in Section 10608.12, a narrative description that addresses the nature and extent of each water demand management measure implemented over the past five years. The narrative shall describe the water demand management measures that the supplier plans to implement to achieve its water use targets pursuant to Section 10608.20.
(B) The narrative pursuant to this paragraph shall include descriptions of the following water demand management measures:
(i) Water waste prevention ordinances.
(ii) Metering.
(iii) Conservation pricing.
(iv) Public education and outreach.
(v) Programs to assess and manage distribution system real loss. (vi) Water conservation program coordination and staffing support. (vii) Other demand management measures that have a significant impact on water use as measured in gallons per capita per day, including innovative measures, if implemented.
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(2) For an urban wholesale water supplier, as defined in Section 10608.12, a narrative description of the items in clauses (ii), (iv), (vi), and (vii) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1), and a narrative description of its distribution system asset management and wholesale supplier assistance programs.
(f) Include a description of all water supply projects and water supply programs that may be undertaken by the urban water supplier to meet the total projected water use, as established pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10635. The urban water supplier shall include a detailed description of expected future projects and programs that the urban water supplier may implement to increase the amount of the water supply available to the urban water supplier in normal and single-dry water years and for a period of drought lasting five consecutive water years. The description shall identify specific projects and include a description of the increase in water supply that is expected to be available from each project. The description shall include an estimate with regard to the implementation timeline for each project or program.
(g) Describe the opportunities for development of desalinated water, including, but not limited to, ocean water, brackish water, and groundwater, as a long-term supply.
(h) An urban water supplier that relies upon a wholesale agency for a source of water shall provide the wholesale agency with water use projections from that agency for that source of water in five-year increments to 20 years or as far as data is available. The wholesale agency shall provide information to the urban water supplier for inclusion in the urban water supplier’s plan that identifies and quantifies, to the extent practicable, the existing and planned sources of water as required by subdivision (b), available from the wholesale agency to the urban water supplier over the same five- year increments, and during various water-year types in accordance with subdivision (f). An urban water supplier may rely upon water supply information provided by the wholesale agency in fulfilling the plan informational requirements of subdivisions (b) and (f).
Section 10631.1.
(a) The water use projections required by Section 10631 shall include projected water use for single-family and multifamily residential housing needed for lower income households, as defined in Section 50079.5 of the Health and Safety Code, as identified in the housing element of any city, county, or city and county in the service area of the supplier.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the identification of projected water use for single-family and multifamily residential housing for lower income households will assist a supplier in complying with the requirement under Appendix A
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Section 65589.7 of the Government Code to grant a priority for the provision of service to housing units affordable to lower income households.
Section 10631.2.
(a) In addition to the requirements of Section 10631, an urban water management plan shall include any of the following information that the urban water supplier can readily obtain:
(1) An estimate of the amount of energy used to extract or divert water supplies.
(2) An estimate of the amount of energy used to convey water supplies to the water treatment plants or distribution systems.
(3) An estimate of the amount of energy used to treat water supplies. (4) An estimate of the amount of energy used to distribute water supplies through its distribution systems.
(5) An estimate of the amount of energy used for treated water supplies in comparison to the amount used for nontreated water supplies. (6) An estimate of the amount of energy used to place water into or withdraw from storage.
(7) Any other energy-related information the urban water supplier deems appropriate.
(b) The department shall include in its guidance for the preparation of urban water management plans a methodology for the voluntary calculation or estimation of the energy intensity of urban water systems. The department may consider studies and calculations conducted by the Public Utilities Commission in developing the methodology.
(c) The Legislature finds and declares that energy use is only one factor in water supply planning and shall not be considered independently of other factors.
Section 10632.
(a) Every urban water supplier shall prepare and adopt a water shortage contingency plan as part of its urban water management plan that consists of each of the following elements:
(1) The analysis of water supply reliability conducted pursuant to Section 10635.
(2) The procedures used in conducting an annual water supply and demand assessment that include, at a minimum, both of the following:
(A) The written decision making process that an urban water supplier will use each year to determine its water supply reliability.
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(B) The key data inputs and assessment methodology used to evaluate the urban water supplier’s water supply reliability for the current year and one dry year, including all of the following:
(i) Current year unconstrained demand, considering weather, growth, and other influencing factors, such as policies to manage current supplies to meet demand objectives in future years, as applicable.
(ii) Current year available supply, considering hydrological and regulatory conditions in the current year and one dry year. The annual supply and demand assessment may consider more than one dry year solely at the discretion of the urban water supplier. (iii) Existing infrastructure capabilities and plausible constraints. (iv) A defined set of locally applicable evaluation criteria that are consistently relied upon for each annual water supply and demand assessment.
(v) A description and quantification of each source of water supply. (3)
(A) Six standard water shortage levels corresponding to progressive ranges of up to 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 percent shortages and greater than 50 percent shortage. Urban water suppliers shall define these shortage levels based on the suppliers’ water supply conditions, including percentage reductions in water supply, changes in groundwater levels, changes in surface elevation or level of subsidence, or other changes in hydrological or other local conditions indicative of the water supply available for use. Shortage levels shall also apply to catastrophic interruption of water supplies, including, but not limited to, a regional power outage, an earthquake, and other potential emergency events.
(B) An urban water supplier with an existing water shortage contingency plan that uses different water shortage levels may comply with the requirement in subparagraph (A) by developing and including a cross- reference relating its existing categories to the six standard water shortage levels.
(4) Shortage response actions that align with the defined shortage levels and include, at a minimum, all of the following:
(A) Locally appropriate supply augmentation actions.
(B) Locally appropriate demand reduction actions to adequately respond to shortages.
(C) Locally appropriate operational changes.
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(D) Additional, mandatory prohibitions against specific water use practices that are in addition to state- mandated prohibitions and appropriate to the local conditions.
(E) For each action, an estimate of the extent to which the gap between supplies and demand will be reduced by implementation of the action.
(5) Communication protocols and procedures to inform customers, the public, interested parties, and local, regional, and state governments, regarding, at a minimum, all of the following:
(A) Any current or predicted shortages as determined by the annual water supply and demand assessment described pursuant to Section 10632.1.
(B) Any shortage response actions triggered or anticipated to be triggered by the annual water supply and demand assessment described pursuant to Section 10632.1.
(C) Any other relevant communications.
(6) For an urban retail water supplier, customer compliance, enforcement, appeal, and exemption procedures for triggered shortage response actions as determined pursuant to Section 10632.2.
(7)
(A) A description of the legal authorities that empower the urban water supplier to implement and enforce its shortage response actions specified in paragraph (4) that may include, but are not limited to, statutory authorities, ordinances, resolutions, and contract provisions.
(B) A statement that an urban water supplier shall declare a water shortage emergency in accordance with Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 350) of Division 1.
(C) A statement that an urban water supplier shall coordinate with any city or county within which it provides water supply services for the possible proclamation of a local emergency, as defined in Section 8558 of the Government Code.
(8) A description of the financial consequences of, and responses for, drought conditions, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(A) A description of potential revenue reductions and expense increases associated with activated shortage response actions described in paragraph (4).
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(B) A description of mitigation actions needed to address revenue reductions and expense increases associated with activated shortage response actions described in paragraph (4).
(C) A description of the cost of compliance with Chapter 3.3 (commencing with Section 365) of Division 1.
(9) For an urban retail water supplier, monitoring and reporting requirements and procedures that ensure appropriate data is collected, tracked, and analyzed for purposes of monitoring customer compliance and to meet state reporting requirements.
(10) Reevaluation and improvement procedures for systematically monitoring and evaluating the functionality of the water shortage contingency plan in order to ensure shortage risk tolerance is adequate and appropriate water shortage mitigation strategies are implemented as needed. (b) For purposes of developing the water shortage contingency plan pursuant to subdivision (a), an urban water supplier shall analyze and define water features that are artificially supplied with water, including ponds, lakes, waterfalls, and fountains, separately from swimming pools and spas, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 115921 of the Health and Safety Code. (c) The urban water supplier shall make available the water shortage contingency plan prepared pursuant to this article to its customers and any city or county within which it provides water supplies no later than 30 days after adoption of the water shortage contingency plan.
Section 10632.1.
An urban water supplier shall conduct an annual water supply and demand assessment pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10632 and, on or before July 1 of each year, submit an annual water shortage assessment report to the department with information for anticipated shortage, triggered shortage response actions, compliance and enforcement actions, and communication actions consistent with the supplier’s water shortage contingency plan. An urban water supplier that relies on imported water from the State Water Project or the Bureau of Reclamation shall submit its annual water supply and demand assessment within 14 days of receiving its final allocations, or by July 1 of each year, whichever is later.
Section 10632.2.
An urban water supplier shall follow, where feasible and appropriate, the prescribed procedures and implement determined shortage response actions in its water shortage contingency plan, as identified in subdivision (a) of Section 10632, or reasonable alternative actions, provided that descriptions of the alternative actions are submitted with the annual water shortage assessment report pursuant to Section 10632.1. Nothing in this section prohibits an urban water supplier from Appendix A
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taking actions not specified in its water shortage contingency plan, if needed, without having to formally amend its urban water management plan or water shortage contingency plan.
Section 10632.3.
It is the intent of the Legislature that, upon proclamation by the Governor of a state of emergency under the California Emergency Services Act (Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 8550) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code) based on drought conditions, the board defer to implementation of locally adopted water shortage contingency plans to the extent practicable.
Section 10632.5.
(a) In addition to the requirements of paragraph (3) of subdivision of Section 10632, beginning January 1, 2020, the plan shall include a seismic risk assessment and mitigation plan to assess the vulnerability of each of the various facilities of a water system and mitigate those vulnerabilities. (b) An urban water supplier shall update the seismic risk assessment and mitigation plan when updating its urban water management plan as required by Section 10621.
(c) An urban water supplier may comply with this section by submitting, pursuant to Section 10644, a copy of the most recent adopted local hazard mitigation plan or multihazard mitigation plan under the federal Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (Public Law 106- 390) if the local hazard mitigation plan or multihazard mitigation plan addresses seismic risk.
Section 10633.
The plan shall provide, to the extent available, information on recycled water and its potential for use as a water source in the service area of the urban water supplier. The preparation of the plan shall be coordinated with local water, wastewater, groundwater, and planning agencies that operate within the supplier’s service area, and shall include all of the following:
(a) A description of the wastewater collection and treatment systems in the supplier’s service area, including a quantification of the amount of wastewater collected and treated and the methods of wastewater disposal. (b) A description of the quantity of treated wastewater that meets recycled water standards, is being discharged, and is otherwise available for use in a recycled water project.
(c) A description of the recycled water currently being used in the supplier’s service area, including, but not limited to, the type, place, and quantity of use.
Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-54
(d) A description and quantification of the potential uses of recycled water, including, but not limited to, agricultural irrigation, landscape irrigation, wildlife habitat enhancement, wetlands, industrial reuse, groundwater recharge, indirect potable reuse, and other appropriate uses, and a determination with regard to the technical and economic feasibility of serving those uses. (e) The projected use of recycled water within the supplier’s service area at the end of 5, 10, 15, and 20 years, and a description of the actual use of recycled water in comparison to uses previously projected pursuant to this subdivision. (f) A description of actions, including financial incentives, which may be taken to encourage the use of recycled water, and the projected results of these actions in terms of acre-feet of recycled water used per year.
(g) A plan for optimizing the use of recycled water in the supplier’s service area, including actions to facilitate the installation of dual distribution systems, to promote recirculating uses, to facilitate the increased use of treated wastewater that meets recycled water standards, and to overcome any obstacles to achieving that increased use.
Section 10634.
The plan shall include information, to the extent practicable, relating to the quality of existing sources of water available to the supplier over the same five-year increments as described in subdivision (a) of Section 10631, and the manner in which water quality affects water management strategies and supply reliability.
Article 2.5. Water Service Reliability, Section 10635
Section 10635.
(a) Every urban water supplier shall include, as part of its urban water management plan, an assessment of the reliability of its water service to its customers during normal, dry, and multiple dry water years. This water supply and demand assessment shall compare the total water supply sources available to the water supplier with the long-term total projected water use over the next 20 years, in five-year increments, for a normal water year, a single dry water year, and a drought lasting five consecutive water years. The water service reliability assessment shall be based upon the information compiled pursuant to Section 10631, including available data from state, regional, or local agency population projections within the service area of the urban water supplier.
(b) Every urban water supplier shall include, as part of its urban water management plan, a drought risk assessment for its water service to its customers as part of information considered in developing the demand management measures and water supply projects and programs to be included Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-55
in the urban water management plan. The urban water supplier may conduct an interim update or updates to this drought risk assessment within the five- year cycle of its urban water management plan update. The drought risk assessment shall include each of the following:
(1) A description of the data, methodology, and basis for one or more supply shortage conditions that are necessary to conduct a drought risk assessment for a drought period that lasts five consecutive water years, starting from the year following when the assessment is conducted. (2) A determination of the reliability of each source of supply under a variety of water shortage conditions. This may include a determination that a particular source of water supply is fully reliable under most, if not all, conditions.
(3) A comparison of the total water supply sources available to the water supplier with the total projected water use for the drought period. (4) Considerations of the historical drought hydrology, plausible changes on projected supplies and demands under climate change conditions, anticipated regulatory changes, and other locally applicable criteria. (c) The urban water supplier shall provide that portion of its urban water management plan prepared pursuant to this article to any city or county within which it provides water supplies no later than 60 days after the submission of its urban water management plan.
(d) Nothing in this article is intended to create a right or entitlement to water service or any specific level of water service.
(e) Nothing in this article is intended to change existing law concerning an urban water supplier’s obligation to provide water service to its existing customers or to any potential future customers.
Article 3. Adoption and Implementation of Plans,
Sections 10640–10645
Section 10640.
(a) Every urban water supplier required to prepare a plan pursuant to this part shall prepare its plan pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 10630).
The supplier shall likewise periodically review the plan as required by Section 10621, and any amendments or changes required as a result of that review shall be adopted pursuant to this article.
(b) Every urban water supplier required to prepare a water shortage contingency plan shall prepare a water shortage contingency plan pursuant to Section 10632. The supplier shall likewise periodically review the water shortage contingency plan as required by paragraph (10) of subdivision (a) of Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-56
Section 10632 and any amendments or changes required as a result of that review shall be adopted pursuant to this article.
Section 10641.
An urban water supplier required to prepare a plan or a water shortage contingency plan may consult with, and obtain comments from, any public agency or state agency or any person who has special expertise with respect to water demand management methods and techniques.
Section 10642.
Each urban water supplier shall encourage the active involvement of diverse social, cultural, and economic elements of the population within the service area prior to and during the preparation of both the plan and the water shortage contingency plan. Prior to adopting either, the urban water supplier shall make both the plan and the water shortage contingency plan available for public inspection and shall hold a public hearing or hearings thereon. Prior to any of these hearings, notice of the time and place of the hearing shall be published within the jurisdiction of the publicly owned water supplier pursuant to Section 6066 of the Government Code.
The urban water supplier shall provide notice of the time and place of a hearing to any city or county within which the supplier provides water supplies. Notices by a local public agency pursuant to this section shall be provided pursuant to Chapter 17.5 (commencing with Section 7290) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code. A privately owned water supplier shall provide an equivalent notice within its service area. After the hearing or hearings, the plan or water shortage contingency plan shall be adopted as prepared or as modified after the hearing or hearings.
Section 10643.
An urban water supplier shall implement its plan adopted pursuant to this chapter in accordance with the schedule set forth in its plan.
Section 10644.
(a)
(1) An urban water supplier shall submit to the department, the California State Library, and any city or county within which the supplier provides water supplies a copy of its plan no later than 30 days after adoption.
Copies of amendments or changes to the plans shall be submitted to the department, the California State Library, and any city or county within which the supplier provides water supplies within 30 days after adoption. (2) The plan, or amendments to the plan, submitted to the department pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted electronically and shall Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-57
include any standardized forms, tables, or displays specified by the department.
(b) If an urban water supplier revises its water shortage contingency plan, the supplier shall submit to the department a copy of its water shortage contingency plan prepared pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10632 no later than 30 days after adoption, in accordance with protocols for submission and using electronic reporting tools developed by the department. (c)
(1)
(A) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, the department shall prepare and submit to the Legislature, on or before July 1, in the years ending in seven and two, a report summarizing the status of the plans and water shortage contingency plans adopted pursuant to this part. The report prepared by the department shall identify the exemplary elements of the individual plans and water shortage contingency plans. The department shall provide a copy of the report to each urban water supplier that has submitted its plan and water shortage contingency plan to the department. The department shall also prepare reports and provide data for any legislative hearings designed to consider the effectiveness of plans and water shortage contingency plans submitted pursuant to this part.
(B) The department shall prepare and submit to the board, on or before September 30 of each year, a report summarizing the submitted water supply and demand assessment results along with appropriate reported water shortage conditions and the regional and statewide analysis of water supply conditions developed by the department. As part of the report, the department shall provide a summary and, as appropriate, urban water supplier specific information regarding various shortage response actions implemented as a result of annual supplier-specific water supply and demand assessments performed pursuant to Section 10632.1.
(C) The department shall submit the report to the Legislature for the 2015 plans by July 1, 2017, and the report to the Legislature for the 2020 plans and water shortage contingency plans by July 1, 2022. (2) A report to be submitted pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(d) The department shall make available to the public the standard the department will use to identify exemplary water demand management measures.
Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-58
Section 10645.
(a) Not later than 30 days after filing a copy of its plan with the department, the urban water supplier and the department shall make the plan available for public review during normal business hours.
(b) Not later than 30 days after filing a copy of its water shortage contingency plan with the department, the urban water supplier and the department shall make the plan available for public review during normal business hours.
Chapter 4. Miscellaneous Provisions, Sections 10650–
10657
Section 10650.
Any actions or proceedings, other than actions by the board, to attack, review, set aside, void, or annul the acts or decisions of an urban water supplier on the grounds of noncompliance with this part shall be commenced as follows:
(a) An action or proceeding alleging failure to adopt a plan or a water shortage contingency plan shall be commenced within 18 months after that adoption is required by this part.
(b) Any action or proceeding alleging that a plan or water shortage contingency plan, or action taken pursuant to either, does not comply with this part shall be commenced within 90 days after filing of the plan or water shortage contingency plan or an amendment to either pursuant to Section 10644 or the taking of that action.
Section 10651.
In any action or proceeding to attack, review, set aside, void, or annul a plan or a water shortage contingency plan, or an action taken pursuant to either by an urban water supplier on the grounds of noncompliance with this part, the inquiry shall extend only to whether there was a prejudicial abuse of discretion. Abuse of discretion is established if the supplier has not proceeded in a manner required by law or if the action by the water supplier is not supported by substantial evidence.
Section 10652.
The California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code) does not apply to the preparation and adoption of plans pursuant to this part or to the implementation of actions taken pursuant to Section 10632. Nothing in this part shall be interpreted as exempting from the California Environmental Quality Act any project that would significantly affect water supplies for fish and wildlife, or any project for implementation of the Appendix A
California Water Code—Urban Water Management Planning
Informational Purposes Only
January 2026 A-59
plan, other than projects implementing Section 10632, or any project for expanded or additional water supplies.
Section 10653.
The adoption of a plan shall satisfy any requirements of state law, regulation, or order, including those of the board and the Public Utilities Commission, for the preparation of water management plans, water shortage contingency plans, or conservation plans; provided, that if the board or the Public Utilities Commission requires additional information concerning water conservation, drought response measures, or financial conditions to implement its existing authority, nothing in this part shall be deemed to limit the board or the commission in obtaining that information. The requirements of this part shall be satisfied by any urban water demand management plan that complies with analogous federal laws or regulations after the effective date of this part, and which substantially meets the requirements of this part, or by any existing urban water management plan which includes the contents of a plan required under this part.
Section 10654.
An urban water supplier may recover in its rates the costs incurred in preparing its urban water management plan, its drought risk assessment, its water supply and demand assessment, and its water shortage contingency plan and implementing the reasonable water conservation measures included in either of the plans.
Section 10655.
If any provision of this part or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this part which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application thereof, and to this end the provisions of this part are severable.
Section 10656.
An urban water supplier is not eligible for a water grant or loan awarded or administered by the state unless the urban water supplier complies with this part.
Section 10657.
The department may adopt regulations regarding the definitions of water, water use, and reporting periods, and may adopt any other regulations deemed necessary or desirable to implement this part. In developing regulations pursuant to this section, the department shall solicit broad public participation from stakeholders and other interested persons.
DWR 2025 Urban Water Management Plan Tables
Appendix B
CA4310012 City of Santa Clara 25,875 20,728
25,875 20,728
Submittal Table 2-1 Retail: Public Water Systems
NOTES:
Volume of Water
Supplied 2025 (AF)
DWR NOTES:
Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3. This table identifies the unit of measure selected in Submittal Table 2-3.
Total
Public Water System
Number
Public Water System
Name
Number of Municipal
Connections 2025
Select
One
Name of Regional Alliance or
RUWMP (Drop Down List)
NOTES:
Submittal Table 2-2: Plan Identification
Type of Plan
Individual UWMP
If Water Supplier is also a member of a SB X7-7
Regional Alliance, select name from the drop-down.
Regional Urban Water Management Plan (RUWMP)
If Supplier selected RUWMP, select name from the
drop-down.
Supplier is a wholesale supplier
Supplier is a retail supplier
UWMP Tables are in calendar years
UWMP Tables are in fiscal years
Unit AF
Submittal Table 2-3: Supplier Identification
Type of Supplier (select one or both)
Fiscal or Calendar Year (select one)
If using fiscal years provide month and date that the fiscal year begins (mm/dd)
Units of measure used in UWMP
(Select from the drop down list).
DWR NOTES:
Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent
throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3.
NOTES:
Submittal Table 2-4 Retail: Water Supplier Information Exchange Water Code Section 10631(h)
The retail Supplier has informed the following wholesale supplier(s) of projected water use.
Wholesale Water Supplier Name
Valley Water
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC)
South Bay Water Recycling (SBWR)
NOTES:
2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050(opt)
134,587 150,529 165,733 176,944 188,156 199,368
Submittal Table 3-1 Retail: Population - Current and Projected Water Code Section 10631(a)
Population
Served
NOTES:
□
Use Type
Drop down list
May select each use multiple times
These are the only use types that will be recognized by the WUEdata online submittal tool
Potable or Non-Potable
(OPTIONAL)
Drop down list
Volume (AF)
Single Family Potable 3,785
Multi-Family Potable 4,206
Institutional/Governmental Potable 557
Industrial Potable 1,277
Commercial Potable 5,584
Other (optional) Municipal/Public Potable 335
Other (optional) Recycled Water Non-Potable 3,871
Distribution System Water Loss Potable 1,113
16,857
3,871
20,728Total
Submittal Table 4-1 Retail: Total Uses for Potable and Non-Potable Water — Actual Water Code Section 10631(d)(1)
NOTES: Volumes are in AF.
DWR NOTES: Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-
3. This table identifies the unit of measure selected in Submittal Table 2-3. 2025 Actual Water Use
Subtotal Potable
Subtotal Non-Potable
Additional Description
(as needed)
Use Type
Drop down list
May select each use multiple times
These are the only Use Types that will be recognized by the WUEdata online submittal tool
Potable or Non-Potable
(OPTIONAL)
Drop down list
2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF) 2050 opt (AF)
Single Family Potable 3,776 3,768 3,759 3,751 3,742
Multi-Family Potable 4,651 5,097 5,542 5,988 6,433
Industrial Potable 1,437 1,597 1,758 1,918 2,078
Commercial Potable 5,827 6,070 6,312 6,555 6,798
Other (optional) Municipal/Public/Institutional Potable 858 824 791 757 723 Other (optional)
Mixed use, parks, Misc. including
hotels for potable water
consumption and unknown land
use type for recycled water
consumption
Potable 576 1,152 1,727 2,303 2,879
Other (optional) Recycled Water Non-Potable 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 Other (optional) NRW - Projected non-revenue
water estimated to be 7.6% Potable 1,263 1,413 1,563 1,713 1,863 18,388 19,921 21,452 22,985 24,516
4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017
22,688 24,650 26,611 28,573 30,533
Add additional rows as needed.
Submittal Table 4-2 Retail: Total Uses for Potable, and Non-Potable Water — Projected Water Code Section 10631(d)(1)
Projected Water Use
(Report To the Extent that Records are Available)
Additional Description
(as needed)
NOTES: Projected Water Use is in AF.
Total
DWR NOTES: Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3. This table identifies the unit of measure selected in Submittal Table 2-3.
Subtotal Non-Potable
Subtotal Potable
Are Future Water Savings Included in Projections?
Drop down list (y/n) No
If "Yes" to above, state the section or page number, in the cell to the right, where citations of the codes, ordinances, or otherwise are utilized in demand projections are found.
Optional Suppliers may complete Optional Submittal Table 4-4 R to quantify the expected savings.
Are Lower Income Residential Demands Included In Projections? Drop down list (y/n) Yes
Optional If the method for accounting Lower Income Residential Demands has been included, provide page number where this accounting can be found. Section 4.2.6 Submittal Table 4-3 Retail: Inclusion in Water Use Projections Water Code Section 10631 (a), 10631 (d)(4)(A), and 10631 (d)(4)(B) NOTES:
DWR NOTES: Additional guidance is provided in Appendix K.
Public Water System ID # Reported
in Table 2-1 R Reporting Period Submitted to DWR Water
Loss Audit Program (yes/no)
2020 Yes
2021 Yes
2022 Yes
2023 Yes
2024 Yes
Submittal Table 4-5 Retail: Water Loss Audit Reporting
Water Code Section 10631(d)(3)(A)
CA4310012
DWR NOTES: Suppliers will provide a link to the WUEdata submittals of their Water Loss Audit Reports.
NOTES:
Report submittal status for all five years for each Public Water System as available.
Add rows as needed
2028 Real
Water Loss
Standard per
Unit per day
Units for Real
Water Loss
Drop down list
Number of
Units
(Connections
or Miles
corresponding
with units
selected)
Volume of
Total Real Loss
(from AWWA
Water Loss
Audit)
(AF)
2028 Apparent
Water Loss
Standard per
Unit per Day
Units for
Apparent
Water Loss
Number of
Connections
Volume of
Total Apparent
Loss
(from AWWA
Water Loss
Audit)
(AF)
CA4310012 Yes 16.3
Gallons per
Service
Connection per
Day (GPSCD)
26,026 1,255 43.0 18.3
Gallons per
Service
Connection per
Day (GPSCD)
26,026 318 10.9
Submittal Table 4-6 Retail: Progress Towards 2028 Water Loss Standard Water Code Section 10631(d)(3)(C)
NOTES:
Based on the City's 2024 Water Loss Audit, covering the period from January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024. Number of Units are number of connections. Volume of Total Real Loss and Volume of Total Apparent Water Loss
Did the Water Board
Calculate a Water Loss
Standard for this Public
Water System? (y/n)
If no, Supplier will not
complete this row.
Real Water Loss
Water Board's Calculated Water Loss Standards
DWR NOTES: Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) for Water Loss MUST remain consistent with units reported in Submittal Table 2-3. The units reported in Submittal Table 2-3 are used in this table's calculations.
Public Water
System ID #
Reported in
Submittal Table 2-
1 R
Add additional rows as needed.
Most Recent AWWA Water
Loss Audit
Real Water
Loss Per Unit
per Day
Most Recent AWWA Water
Loss Audit
Apparent
Water Loss Per
Unit per Day
State Water Board Standard State Water Board Standard
Actual 2025 GPCD
(From SB X7-7
Compliance Form)
Did Supplier meet
the 2020 Target in
2025?
No Individual Target 186 124 Yes NA
Submittal Table 5-1 Retail: SB X7-7 2020 Target Progress Water Code Section 10608.40
NOTES:
Did Supplier
Achieve Targeted
Reduction for
2020?
Actual 2020 GPCD2020 Target
Regional Alliance
Target or
Individual
Target?
Drop down list
DWR NOTES:
Suppliers calculating a 2025 GPCD will need to complete and submit SB X 7-7 Compliance Tables to verify the use of SB X7-7 Methodologies.
Suppliers that were part of a merger or consolidation since 2020 see Chapter 5 and Appendix P for guidance.
NA=Not Applicable
Check the box if the Supplier was not an Urban Water Supplier during or before the 2020 UWMP reporting cycle. Proceed to the next table.
Only for suppliers that did not meet the
Target in 2020
See DWR NOTES below.
Was Supplier part of a
merger or
consolidation since
2020?
Groundwater Type
Drop Down List
May use each category
multiple times
Potable or
Non-Potable
(OPTIONAL)
Drop down list
Location or Basin Name 2021 (AF) 2022 (AF) 2023 (AF) 2024 (AF) 2025 (AF) Alluvial Basin Potable Santa Clara Subbasin 9,816 10,329 10,431 10,659 11,038 9,816 10,329 10,431 10,659 11,038
Submittal Table 6-1 Retail: Groundwater Volume Pumped
Water Code Section 10631(4) and 10631(4)(c)
DWR NOTES:
Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3. This table identifies the unit of measure selected in Submittal Table 2-3.
NOTES:
Total
Check the box if the Supplier does not pump groundwater.
Proceed to the next table.
Check the box if all or part of the groundwater described below is desalinated. (OPTIONAL)
Name of Wastewater
Collection Agency
Wastewater
Volume Metered
or Estimated?
OPTIONAL
Drop Down List
Volume of Wastewater
Collected from UWMP
Service Area 2025 (AF)
Name of Wastewater
Treatment Plant (WWTP) and
Place ID Number
Drop down list
Is WWTP Located
Within UWMP
Area?
Drop Down List
City of Santa Clara Metered 11,048 San Jose/Santa Clara WPCP, Place ID 255333 No
11,048
Check the box if there is no wastewater collection system.
Proceed to the next table.
NOTES:
The reported wastewater volume includes contributions from the Cupertino Sanitary District.
Submittal Table 6-2 Retail: Wastewater Collected Within Service Area Water Code Section 10633(a)
Percentage of 2025 service area population served by wastewater collection system (OPTIONAL)
Percentage of 2025 service area served by wastewater collection system (OPTIONAL) DWR NOTES: Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3. This table identifies the unit of measure selected in Submittal Table 2-3.
Additional Guidance: See Appendix M, Section M.21 for detailed guidance on this table.
Wastewater Collection Recipient of Collected Wastewater Total Wastewater Received from UWMP
Service Area in 2025:
Submittal Table 6-3 Retail: Wastewater Treatment and Outcomes Within UWMP Service Area Water Code Section 10633(b)
■
w ast ewat er
Treatment Plant
Name and Place ID
Number
Drop down list
San Jose/ Santa Clara
WPCP, Place ID 255333
Check the box if no wastewater is treated or disposed of within the UWMP service area.
Proceed t o the next table.
Io.
Plant Treat of Wast ewater
Wast ewat er Received from T ot al 2025 Water Recycled Within Water Recycled Outside Generat ed UWMP Servic e Volum e of UWMP Service Area of UWMP Service Area Outside the Area Wat er (enter dat a as applicabl e) ( ent er data as applicabl e) UWMP Servi ce (As Reported Treated
Area? in Submittal (AF)
(OPTIONAL) Table 6-2 R) Treatment Volum e Treat ment Volum e Drop down Ust (AF) Level (AF) Level (AF) Drop down list Drop down list Yes 11,048 116,831 Tertiary 3,871 Tertiary 8,572
Total 11,048 116,831 3,871 8,572
2025 Outcomes of Treated Wastewater
Effluent Discharge that is Required Discharge for Delivered to Another Entity for Additional not a Permitted Recycled lnstream Flow Treatment Water Use (ent er data as applicabl e) (enter d at a as applicab le) {enter dat a as applicabl e)
Treatment Volum e Treatment Volume Treat ment Volu me
Level (AF) Level (AF) Level (AF) Nam e of ot her entity Drop down list Drop down list Drop down list
Terti ary 4,387
Valley Water's
SVAWPC
0 0 4,387
NOTES: The reported wastewat er volume of 11,048 AF includes contri butions from the Cupertino Sanitary District. Advanced treat ed flows from Valley Water' s Advan ced Purific ation Center are b lended back w ith tertiary treated recycled water for SBWR. Therefore, these treated flows are inclu ded in the total recycled water produced by the San Jose/Santa Clara WPCP.
Volume Narrative page number
(OPTIONAL)
Other (Description Required) Non-Potable
Landscape Irrigation (Parks, schools,
cemeteries, churches, residential,
other public facilities); Commercial Use
(Landscaping, toilets, HVAC, car
washes, laundries, nurseries, etc);
Industrial Use (Cooling towers)
3,871 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 6,017
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3,871 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 6,017
3,871 4,300 4,729 5,159 5,588 6,017 6,017Total
Use Type
Drop down list
Potable or Non-Potable
(after treatment if treated)
(OPTIONAL)
Drop down list
Additional Information
(as needed)
DWR NOTES: Units of measure (AF, CCF, MG) must remain consistent throughout the UWMP as reported in Submittal Table 2-3. This table identifies the unit of measure selected in Submittal Table 2-3.
Additional Guidance: See Appendix M, Section M.21 for detailed guidance on this table.
Potential recycled water use: a description of the feasibility of these uses must be included in the narrative.
Multiple Producers: If you have multiple recycled water producers, submit a separate table for each.
NOTES:
2050 (AF)2025 (AF) 2030 (AF) 2035 (AF) 2040 (AF) 2045 (AF) Subtotal Potable
Subtotal Non-Potable
Check box if recycled water is not used and is not planned for use within the service area of the supplier. The supplier will only complete the column on "Potential Recycled Water Use" and submit an accompanying narrative on the feasibility of that potential recycled water use.
Submittal Table 6-4 Retail: Recycled Water Direct Beneficial Uses Within Service Area Water Code Section 10633 (c),(d),(e)
Potential Recycled Water Use
Name(s) of Facility/ies Producing (Treating) the Recycled Water (OPTIONAL) :
Name of Supplier Operating the Recycled Water Distribution System (OPTIONAL) :
Volume of Supplemental Water Added in 2025 (OPTIONAL) :
Source of 2025 Supplemental Water (OPTIONAL) :
2020 Projection
for 2025 (AF)
2025 Actual
Use (AF)
4,570 3,871
4,570 3,871
Submittal Table 6-5 Retail: 2020 UWMP Recycled Water Use Projection Compared to 2025 Actual
Water Code Section 10633(e)
Check the box if recycled water was not used in 2025 nor previously projected for use in 2020.
Proceed to the next table.
Other (Description Required)
NOTES:
The recycled water uses include landscape irrigation (parks, schools, cemeteries, churches, residential, other public facilities), commercial use (landscaping, toilets, HVAC, car washes, laundries, nurseries, etc), and industrial use (cooling towers).
Total
Use Type
Drop Down list
Submittal Table 6-6 Retail: Methods to Encourage Future Recycled Water Use Water Code Section 10633 (f)
■
Check the box if the Supplier does not plan to expand recycled water use in t he future. Supplier will not complete the tab le