Agenda Item #13.8
For Council Meeting of: September 15, 2026
CITY OF SANTA ROSA
CITY COUNCIL
TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JENNIFER BURKE, DIRECTOR, SANTA ROSA WATER
SUBJECT: APPROVAL OF THE AMENDED AND RESTATED JOINT EXERCISE OF POWERS AGREEMENT OF THE SANTA ROSA PLAIN GROUNDWATER SUSTAINABILITY AGENCY AGENDA ACTION: RESOLUTION
RECOMMENDATION
The Board of Public Utilities and Santa Rosa Water recommend that the Council, by resolution, approve the Amended and Restated Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement of the Santa Rosa Plain Groundwater Sustainability Agency and authorize the City Manager to execute the agreement on behalf of the City. This item has no impact on the current fiscal year budget.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Santa Rosa Plain Groundwater Sustainability Agency (SRPGSA) is a joint powers authority formed in 2017 to manage groundwater sustainably within the Santa Rosa Plain groundwater subbasin, as required by state law. The City of Santa Rosa is a founding member of the SRPGSA. The SRPGSA Board has approved an Amended and Restated Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement (Amended Agreement) and requested approval from each member agency’s governing body.
GOAL
This item relates to Council Goal #2 - Invest in the Development and Maintenance of the City's Infrastructure.
BACKGROUND/PRIOR COUNCIL REVIEW
The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act of 2014 (SGMA) established a framework for the sustainable management of California’s groundwater resources. Among other requirements, SGMA directed local agencies with water-supply, water-management, or land-use authority in medium- and high-priority groundwater basins to form Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs). The Santa Rosa Plain Groundwater Sustainability Agency (SRPGSA) is a joint powers authority formed to manage groundwater sustainably within the Santa Rosa Plain groundwater subbasin in accordance with SGMA.
The SRPGSA’s members are the cities of Cotati, Rohnert Park, Santa Rosa, and Sebastopol; the Town of Windsor; the Sonoma Resource Conservation District; the Gold Ridge Resource Conservation District; the Sonoma County Water Agency; and the County of Sonoma.
The Santa Rosa Plain groundwater subbasin boundary includes areas that are within the City of Santa Rosa’s jurisdiction.
The SRPGSA is governed by a Board of Directors and advised by an Advisory Committee. The City appoints a City Council member to serve as its Primary Director on the SRPGSA Board, together with designated alternates, and is represented by Santa Rosa Water staff on the Advisory Committee. On May 2, 2017, the City Council, by resolution, approved the Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement (Agreement) that created the SRPGSA. The Agreement became effective on May 25, 2017, and the City of Sebastopol later joined on August 8, 2019. With feedback and coordination with the SRPGSA’s member agencies, including Santa Rosa, SRPGSA staff and legal counsel identified and proposed certain updates to the Agreement and Bylaws to improve efficiency and clarity for the governance and administration of the SRPGSA.
On June 11, 2026, the SRPGSA Board of Directors approved the proposed amendments to the Agreement, subject to approval by the governing bodies of all member agencies, and separately approved amendments to the Bylaws. The existing Agreement requires amendments to the Agreement to be approved unanimously by the member agencies’ governing bodies. Amendments to the Bylaws do not require approval by the member agencies’ governing bodies.
ANALYSIS
Following a review of the SRPGSA Bylaws and Agreement, SRPGSA staff proposed amendments intended to clarify governance provisions, improve administrative efficiency, and provide greater operational and procedural flexibility as the GSA has evolved since its formation in 2017. The proposed amendments would support the transparent and efficient administration of the SRPGSA and its continued implementation of SGMA.
Below is a summary of the proposed changes to the Agreement:
Section 6.02 – Directors and Alternates: Allow each member to appoint a Second Alternate Director who may exercise the rights and duties of the Primary Director when both the Primary Director and Alternate Director are absent or recused. A Second Alternate Director would be limited to attending no more than two SRPGSA meetings during a calendar year.
Section 7.06 – Supermajority Voting Requirements: Clarify that a supermajority vote is required to change the total number of Advisory Committee seats but is not required for individual appointments.
Section 9.03 – Employees and Management: Remove the supermajority-vote requirement for contracts with member agencies for technical and outreach services.
Section 10.06 – Budget: Allow the annual budget to be approved at any time before the beginning of the applicable fiscal year.
Section 12.02 – Amendments: Allow amendments that do not concern specified substantive matters to be approved by a three-fourths supermajority vote of the SRPGSA Board. Amendments concerning the Agency’s powers, Board composition, voting requirements, liabilities and indemnification, termination and withdrawal provisions, elimination of the Advisory Committee, and other matters expressly identified in the Agreement would continue to require unanimous approval by the governing bodies of all member agencies.
Other Revisions: Make other minor revisions throughout the Agreement for clarity and remove provisions that are no longer applicable.
Staff and the Board of Public Utilities recommend that the City Council approve the proposed Amended Agreement.
FISCAL IMPACT
Approval of the proposed recommendation would have no fiscal impact on the Water Enterprise Fund or General Fund. The proposed amendments concern the governance and administration of the SRPGSA and do not authorize any new City expenditure or financial commitment.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
Pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(5), the recommended action is not a “project” subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because approval of the Amended and Restated Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement is an organizational and administrative action that will not result in a direct physical change in the environment or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. The proposed amendments address representation, voting and amendment requirements, contracting procedures, budget timing, and other governance matters. They do not approve a groundwater project or management action, authorize construction, or commit the City or the SRPGSA to a physical activity. Any future activity constituting a project under CEQA will be subject to applicable environmental review before approval. In the alternative, the recommended action is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the action may have a significant effect on the environment.
BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS
At its August 20, 2026, meeting, the Board of Public Utilities, by motion, recommended that the City Council approve the Amended and Restated Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement.
NOTIFICATION
Not applicable.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Amended and Restated Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement (Redline) Resolution / Exhibit A – Amended and Restated Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement
PRESENTER
Peter Martin, Deputy Director – Water Resources
JOINT EXERCISE OF POWERS AGREEMENT FOR SANTA ROSA PLAIN GROUNDWATER SUSTAINABILITY AGENCY PAGE 2 OF 3