The SVBGSA Regulatory Fee was adopted by the Board of Directors in March 2019 and implemented July 1, 2019. The fee is the funding mechanism used to pay for SVBGSA’s operations, management, and annual reporting to the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), contract administration, a prudent reserve, and other activities to support overall operations of the SVBGSA and the six subbasins it manages.

Currently, the Basin-wide uniform fee is calculated by allocating the total annual SVBGSA regulatory activity costs 90% to agricultural users and 10% to all other groundwater users. The methodology for how to best allocate costs was vetted among interested parties during a comprehensive fee study in 2018/19. Agricultural users are charged per irrigated acre and municipal users are charged per connection. On February 9th 2023, the SVBGSA Board of Directors adopted a policy which states that it is appropriate to consider a tiered fee structure for setting the regulatory fee. If a tiered fee structure is approved, the regulatory fee will no longer be the same for every subbasin. Alternatively, the Board could continue with a uniform regulatory fee for all subbasins.

The SVBGSA will hold a public hearing on the FY 2024 Regulatory Fee on June 29, 2023. Pertinent materials are provided below.

• Public Hearing Notice (English)
• Public Hearing Notice (Spanish)
• Tiered Fee Memo HEC (to be updated for 6/29/23 board meeting)
• Tiered Fee Presentation
• Tiered Fee Justification Technical Memo (to be updated for 6/29/23 board meeting)
• FY 2024 Budget
• FY 2024 Work Plan (to be updated for 6/29/23 board meeting)
• Tiered Regulatory Fee Policy (to be updated for 6/29/23 board meeting)