Building a Groundwater Sustainability Plan
Pursuant to SGMA, the NDGSA is obligated to undertake a variety of activities in order to achieve legal compliance. The NDGSA, in collaboration with the other GSAs in the Subbasins, undertake scientific investigations in order to fully understand the existing groundwater conditions. Based on these investigations, the NDGSA identified the relevant sustainability concerns, also known as undesirable results, and management strategies were proposed as necessary to address those issues. These findings and management strategies are outlined in the Groundwater Sustainability Plans for the South American Subbasin and the Solano Subbasin (“GSPs”). These GSPs were finalized, adopted and submitted to the Department of Water Resources (“DWR”) by SGMA January 2022 deadline. DWR has since approved both the South American Subbasin and the Solano Subbasin GSPs. The NDGSA is now implementing the GSPs, in partnership with the other GSAs for the Subbasins, and will continue to monitor groundwater conditions, adaptively managing the resources and taking all actions necessary to maintain compliance with SGMA.
Funding the GSP
To sufficiently fund the NDGSA’s essential operations and undertake the activities required by SGMA, the NDGSA needs to develop and implement a fee structure within the Agency’s management area. Based on the Agency’s budgetary needs to meet this legislative mandate, the NDGSA Board of Directors is proposing to impose a fee to generate revenue sufficient to fund both annual Agency operations costs and expenses associated with the development and implementation of a GSP. The annual operational costs have already begun to accrue for ongoing NDGSA operations and activities, and the annual GSP implementation cost shares have been defined.
Please note that, while the NDGSA does have members agencies that are Reclamation District GSAs (and other agencies), none of the fees collected for the NDGSA through the Proposition 218 process will go to those agencies or their activities. The funds collected by this process are strictly for the NDGSA to sustainably manage groundwater in order to comply with SGMA.
The proposed fee schedule will apply to all assessable parcels within the Agency’s boundaries as the NDGSA’s administrative and groundwater sustainability services are provided to all parcels. Some parcels may not be assessable due to public ownership. The County Assessors’ rolls for the portions of Sacramento and Solano counties within the Agency’s jurisdiction identify the acreage for each of these parcels. The actual fee will be set annually by the NDGSA Board, based on the budget needs, but not to exceed the proposed rate. If activities are proposed to attain the sustainability criteria established in the GSP that would require supplemental funding and fees greater than the fees recommended in this report, the NDGSA would need to adopt a new fee schedule to fund these costs, and if necessary, will comply with the requirements in Article XIIID of the California Constitution, commonly referred to as Proposition 218 requirements.
The NDGSA Board of Directors is proposing to adopt fees to cover the proposed budget, not to exceed $2.75 per acre for all assessable parcels. This amount will be applied proportionally to all parcels based on their actual size (e.g., if the annual fee is $2.50 per acre then a 0.5 acre parcel will be charged $1.25). The NDGSA Board will annually review the required funding and, depending on the projected funding needs, may approve annual rates up to $2.75 per acre. Importantly, the specific annual fee levied may vary each year but will not exceed $2.75 per acre and it is expected that the fee will be lower in most years. This is designed to allow the NDGSA to levy the fees to pay increases in operating costs and special activities without having to repeat the Proposition 218 process for several years to come. The NDGSA Board will always strive to minimize costs.
To determine if your property lies within the Northern Delta GSA, you can use this DWR Mapping Tool.
Proposition 218 Materials
Fact Sheet
Prop 218 Q&A
Cost of Service Report
Appendix C - NDGSA Assessable Property Roll
Public Notice Letter
Find updates about the funding process on the News & Updates page.