This notice regards:
2020-2021 Agricultural Water Allocation Application and Purchase Agreement
Enclosed are your Agricultural Water Allocation Application and Purchase Agreement form(s) for the new water year. Applications are due on or before January 15, 2020. Postmark dates will not be accepted.
Applications received after January 15, 2020, will not receive an initial 2020-2021 Central Valley Project (CVP) Contract water allocation.
Applications may be mailed to:
- Westlands Water District, P.O. Box 6056, Fresno, CA 93703
Or hand delivered to either of the District offices listed below:
- Fresno Office, 3130 N. Fresno St., Fresno, CA 93703
- Five Points Office, 23050 W. Mt. Whitney Ave, Five Points, CA 93624
All water users are subject to the District’s Regulations for the Allocation and Use of Agricultural Water and the Terms and Conditions for Agricultural Water Service. Terms and Conditions and Regulations are available on the District’s website under the News & Reports, Rules and Regulations menu item. A water user may still apply for a lesser amount than the pro rata allocation to which his land is entitled. Blank application forms can be obtained on the District’s website by logging into your web user account, selecting Menu, Forms, then selecting Water Allocation Application and Purchase Agreement.
The District has projected that the initial 2020-2021 allocation for south-of-Delta CVP agricultural service contractors will be 20-40%. District staff will continue to monitor conditions and will provide additional notice to water users if the allocation estimate should change.
Allocation Application Form Instructions
- Complete and sign both sides of the form.
- Update the water user name and address. The water user name must be the same as that used on Reclamation law forms.
- List all land within Westlands’ boundaries for which allocation of CVP contract water is being requested. Land must be eligible under Reclamation law on March 1, 2020, to receive an allocation of water.
- Using whole acre feet, indicate the maximum amount of CVP contract water you would like to receive for each field. Actual allocations will be determined by the amount of water available to the District. If the amount requested is less than the ratable share, the amount requested will be the amount allocated to the water user.
- Using whole acres, indicate number of estimated fallowed acres for each field. Providing this information to the District will not impact your request for a water supply allocation. This information will only be used to educate the public on how the continued lack of water supply is impacting our water users.
- The District uses acreage records from the U.S. Farm Service Agency (FSA) or District measurements to determine your allocation. You must provide verification from the FSA for any changes. FSA determinations dated after March 1, 2020, will not result in an adjustment to your initial 2020-2021 allocation, but will be used for allocations made subsequent to the change.
- If you are increasing or decreasing the total acreage you farm prior to March 1, 2020, you must submit a revised 2019-2020 application in addition to your 2020-2021 application.
Account Contact Information Form Instructions
- Please review the list of authorized contacts associated with your account and make necessary changes. It is imperative District staff has current contact information for all individuals within your organization who are authorized to manage your account. This information will be used to contact you in the event of an emergency lateral shutdown, overcapacity condition, or other issues that could affect water service to your farm.
- Sign, date and return the contact form along with your allocation application.
- Allocation applications missing the account contact information form will be considered incomplete and are subject to processing delays.
You may call your Customer Service Representative at (559) 241-6250 if you have any questions regarding the allocation application or contact information form.
Reclamation Law Certification/Reporting
Federal Reclamation law requires certain landholders to annually submit certification/reporting forms as a condition of continued eligibility to receive water. Only landholders whose total west-wide landholdings exceed the following acreage thresholds must submit forms.
| Acreage Limitation Status | Forms Submittal Threshold |
| Qualified Recipient (New Law, 25 people or fewer) | 240 acres |
| Limited Recipient (New Law, more than 25 people) | 40 acres |
| Public Entities | 40 acres |
| Trusts and Estates (benefiting 25 people or fewer) | 240 acres |
| Trusts and Estates (benefiting more than 25 people) | 40 acres |
| Trusts benefiting a class of beneficiaries | 40 acres |
| Farm Operator | 960 acres |
- A separate Form 7-21 VERIFY may be submitted in lieu of the standard form if no landholding changes occurred during the previous water year. If landholding changes take place during the water year, you must notify all districts in which you hold land within 30 calendar days, and you must submit new forms within 60 calendar days of the change. If one Form 7-21 VERIFY is used to verify two or more standard forms, the Bureau of Reclamation will assess an administrative fee for a form submittal violation.
To reduce costs, the District does not mail the Certification Forms booklet. We encourage you to obtain your forms from the Bureau’s website under the RRA Forms menu item. Reclamation law forms are also available at the District’s Fresno or Five Points Field Office.
Please submit completed forms by February 1, 2020, to allow timely processing before water is ordered for the next water year and to ensure water service is not interrupted. If your forms are not received prior to the beginning of the 2020-2021 water year, your land will be ineligible to receive water or any benefit of CVP facilities until the forms are submitted.
Certification/Reporting Form Instructions
- For land exceeding your non-full-cost entitlement, please complete the Selection of Full-Cost Land (Form 7-21FC). For land exceeding your ownership entitlement, please complete the Designation of Excess Land (Form 7-21XS).
- All forms for multiple ownership entities must be signed by all partners or part owners unless you have a notarized entity signature authorization form on file with the District or your partnership agreement allows for only one party to sign on behalf of the entity. Spouses must sign on all individual forms unless a notarized spousal signature authorization form is on file with the District. Signature authorization forms are available from the District. Submittal of incomplete, unsigned, or undated certification/reporting forms may result in your land remaining ineligible to receive Project water. The Bureau of Reclamation will assess administrative fees for forms violations if water is delivered prior to receipt of forms.
- Landowners and water users are required to identify farm operators that perform farming services for an entity or trust. The Bureau of Reclamation defines a farm operator as an individual or entity other than the owner, lessee, or sub-lessee that performs any portion of the farming operation. This includes farm managers, but does not include spouses, minor children, employees for whom the employer pays social security taxes, or custom service providers. Farm operators that provide more than one service on more than 960 acres west-wide must submit a “Declaration of Farm Operator Information” (Form 7-21FARMOP).
Please contact your Customer Service Representative at (559) 241-6250 if you have any questions regarding certification/reporting rules.