Amendment No. 7 to the Agreement for the Supply and Conveyance of Water by the Department of Water Resources of the State of California Under the Dry Year Water
Summary
SCH Number
2025120404
Public Agency
Coachella Valley Water District
(CVWD)
Document Title
Amendment No. 7 to the Agreement for the Supply and Conveyance of Water by the Department of Water Resources of the State of California Under the Dry Year Water
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
12/10/2025
Document Description
On March 31, 2008, CVWD entered into the Participation Agreement with DWR to help manage the Coachella Valley groundwater basin. The Yuba Water Purchase Agreement is a dry-year water purchase program, which offsets the impacts from reduced State Water Project (SWP) flows to the Contractors. The reduced flows are due to hydrologic conditions and/or regulatory constraints, and this program provides water for supply augmentation from voluntary sellers. Yuba County Water Agency (YCWA) makes surface water and groundwater available for delivery under specific
water year conditions for purchase by DWR, who in t urn sells and delivers the water to interested State Water Contractors (Contractors), including CVWD. The Participation Agreement has been amended several times since its inception, with the current pricing structure and terms established under Amendment 6 expiring on December 31, 2025.
Amendment 7 includes:
• New contract terms from January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2030
• Updated unit costs for water purchased
• Updated classification of "Storage Component Water" for surface water purchases
• Billing procedures for SWP delivery charges based on net volumes delivered
Contact Information
Name
Robert Cheng
Agency Name
Coachella Valley Water District
Job Title
Assistant General Manager
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Email
Name
Carlos Huerta
Agency Name
Coachella Valley Water District
Job Title
Environmental Resources Analyst
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Email
Location
Counties
Imperial, Riverside, San Diego
Regions
Southern California
Other Location Info
Throughout Riverside, Imperial and San Diego Counties
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Not a project: State CEQA Guidelines: 15378
Reasons for Exemption
Approval of the Amendment 7 to the Agreement for the Supply and Conveyance of Water by the Department of Water Resources of the State of California Under the Dry Year Water Purchase Program Between the Department of Water Resources and the Coachella Valley Water District (SWP #25-809) is not subject to CEQA for multiple reasons. First, approval of Amendment 7 is not subject to CEQA because it does not constitute a " project," under CEQA, i.e., pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines §15378(a), the action has no potential to result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment because the action will merely result in
minor administrative changes to an existing agreement and will have no effect on the
environment.
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Review for Exemption/Common Sense Exemption: State CEQA Guideline 1506(b)(3)
Reasons for Exemption
If approval of the Amendment 7 to the Agreement for the Supply and Conveyance of
Water by the Department of Water Resources of the State of California Under the Dry Year Water Purchase Program between the Department of Water Resources and the Coachella Valley Water District (SWP #25-809) constituted a "project" subject to CEQA, the action would be exempt from CEQA review pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines §15061(b)(3); because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that approval of the amendment may have a significant effect on the environment. Amendment 7 will result in minor changes regarding the administration of an existing agreement; there will be no changes or adverse impacts to the environment as a result of the minor administrative changes.
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
State CEQA Guidelines 15301
Reasons for Exemption
If approval of the Amendment No. 7 to the Agreement for the Supply and Conveyance
of Water by The Department of Water Resources of the State of California Under the Dry Year Water Purchase Program Between the Department of Water Resources of the State of California and the Coachella Valley Water District, SWP #25-809, constituted a "project" under CEQA, it involves continuing in place an existing program to purchase, transfer, and exchange water using existing facilities. Accordingly, it is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
under the Class 1 exemption for continued operation of existing public facilities involving negligible or no expansion of existing use. 14 CCR §15301(b).
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
State CEQA Guidelines 15378(b)(5)
Reasons for Exemption
Approval of the Amendment 7 to the Agreement for the Supply and Conveyance of Water by the Department of Water Resources of the State of California Under the Dry Year Water Purchase Program Between the Department of Water Resources and the Coachella Valley Water District (SWP #25-809) is not subject to CEQA because it does not constitute a "project," pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines §15378(b)(5), because the minor administrative changes to the existing agreement will not result in any change to the previously approved entitlements and constitutes an organizational or administrative activity that will not result in a direct or indirect physical change in the environment not previously analyzed.
County Clerks
Imperial, Riverside, San Diego
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
Disclaimer: The Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI) accepts no responsibility for the content or accessibility of these documents. To obtain an attachment in a different format, please contact the lead agency at the contact information listed above. For more information, please visit LCI’s Accessibility Site.