All of the legal motions that can be filed, have been filed in the state’s appeal of a preliminary injunction that has kept it from implementing sanctions against growers in Kings County. The next step could be oral arguments, or not. It all depends on how the justices at the 5th District Court of Appeal decide to go forward. … The Farm Bureau sued the state Water Resources Control Board after it placed the region, known as the Tulare Lake subbasin, on probation in April 2024. Under probation, farmers would have had to meter and register their wells, paying an annual $350 fee to the Water Board, report extractions and pay the state $20 per acre foot pumped. So far, those sanctions have been held at bay after a Kings County Superior Court judge issued a preliminary injunction, finding the Water Board had overstepped its authority.

Other groundwater news:

• SJV Water: Land conversion money available for Tulare County farmers, others, to cut groundwater use
• Fontana Herald News (Calif.): Local agencies seek info on Chino Basin Program funding