… The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act of 2014 … for the first time regulated a much-overdrawn resource critical to the state’s economy and the livelihoods of its residents. … (On Monday), 10 years after then-Gov. Jerry Brown signed SGMA into law, most GSAs have had their plans approved by the California Department of Water Resources while a handful whose plans didn’t pass muster are facing potential intervention by state regulators. Overall, water policy experts deem the early stages of SGMA implementation a success … Wade Crowfoot, California’s natural resources secretary, said it is important to recognize both the progress that has been made and the greater challenges that lie ahead. The GSAs must start putting their Groundwater Sustainability Plans into action, he said. “It involves finding ways to invest in and maximize groundwater recharge and identifying how annual groundwater use is going to be reduced,” Crowfoot said. “For me, this is where the rubber meets the road.”