May 24, 2022
City Council of Santa Rosa
Peter Martin, Deputy Director Water Resources
Santa Rosa Plain Groundwater Sustainability
Agency Groundwater Fee Recommendation
2 Presentation Outline
• Groundwater Sustainability Agency Overview
• Groundwater Sustainability Fee History
• Current Rate and Fee Study: five-year plan
• Proposed Revised Fee
• Public Input Process
• Recommendation
3 What does the
Sustainable
Groundwater
Management
Act Require?
• Law became effective January 1, 2015.
• Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) must be
formed and prepare and submit Groundwater
Sustainability Plans (GSPs) by:
• January 2020, for critically overdrafted basins
• January 2022, for remaining high and medium priority
basins
• GSPs must include measurable objectives and milestones in
five year implementation increments to achieve
sustainability within 20 years of GSP adoption
3 4
Santa Rosa
Plain GSA
Governance
5 There are an estimated 7,000 wells
in the basin, including rural
domestic, mutual water companies,
agricultural, and municipal supply
32%
50%
18%
Estimated Demand By Sector
Agriculture
Rural Domestic
Municipal
6 Existing
Groundwater
Sustainability
Fee
Current fee, for development of Groundwater
Sustainability Plan:
• In 2019, the Santa Rosa Plain GSA Board of Directors
adopt
ed a fee of $19.90 per acre-foot of groundwater
pumped annually
• Fee was meant to sustain the GSA for three-y ear
development of GSP (July 2019 – June 2022)
• Fee is assessed on all groundwater user s in the basin • Rural homeowners are assessed a flat fee of $9.95
• Sonoma County and Sonoma Water have covered costs
f
or private wells from 2019 until June 30, 2022
7 UPDATE: Groundwater
Sustainability Plan
Adoption and Submittal
• The Final GSP was unanimously
ad
opted by Santa Rosa Plain
GSA Board of Director’s at their
December 9, 2021 Board
Meeting
• Submitted to the CA
D
epartment of Water
Resources (DWR) on January
26, 2022
• DWR has two years to
r
eview/assess the plan for
compliance with SGMA
7 8
Groundwater
Sustainability
Rate and Fee
Study
SRP GSA Anticipated additional resources necessary
for Implementation of Groundwater Sustainability Plan:
• Three Sonoma County GSAs are finalizing rate and fee
s
tudy update for funding GSP implementation beginning
July 1, 2022 (5 Years)
• SCI Consulting Group and Larry Walker Associates
• Existing Rate of $19.90 per acre foot of water extracted r
emains in effect
• Evaluated forecasted budget and multiple fee options
9 Fee Study & Adoption Schedule
10 Potential Funding Sources Evaluated
Member Agencies
Grants
Groundwater Users/
Beneficiaries
Any Combination
Groundwater Users/
Beneficiaries
Private Well Owners
Public Water Systems
Other Water Users
Projected SRP GSA Budget: 5 years
11 12
April SRP GSA Board of Directors Meeting
Gave Direction to the Rate and Fee Consultant to:
• Retain existing rate structure with updated fee level (groundwater fee) • Did not support:
• Wellhead fees
• Parcel Tax
• Benefit Assessment
• Assume 25% of 5-y ear budget will be met with grants
• Significant funding from Proposition 68 is available for implementation of GSPs • Complete analysis to be implemented by June 2022 – nex t year tax rolls 13 Proposed Fee: 5-year implementation
• Initial Draft Fee under consideration is $38.28 per acre-foot of gr oundwater pumped annually.
• Equivalent to $19-$20 a year for rural homeowners (0.5 acre-feet annually) Fee Calculation: Total Cost divided by Total Acre-Feet
$805,900 ÷ $21,100 AF ≈ $38.28 per acre-foot
14 Fiscal Impacts – Santa Rosa Water
Historical Fee Contributions (FYs 2019 – 2021)
$19.90 x ~1600 acre-feet = $31,800
Draft five-year Fee being Considered (FYs 2022 – 2026)
$38.28 x ~ 1600 acre-feet = $61,300
15 Community
Outreach
Public Meetings regarding Draft GSP
• The Santa Rosa Plain held four community meetings
r
egarding the Rate and Fee Study and Proposals
• Two virtual meetings via zoom (March)
• In Person Meetings (April)
• Town of Windsor
• Santa Rosa
• SRP GSA Board of Directors Meetings
• SRP GSA Advisory Committee Meetings
• SRP GSA Board w ill consider adoption of a revised fee amount at a public hearing on June 9, 2022
16 Recommendation
It is recommended by the Board of Public Utilities and Santa Rosa Water that Council, by Motion, recommend that the
City’s Santa Rosa Plain Groundwater Sustainability Agency Board of Directors representative support adoption of the revised groundwater sustainability user fee at the
June 9, 2022 Public Hearing.
Questions?