Annual Certification/Reporting Forms
Federal Reclamation law requires certain landowners to annually submit certification/reporting forms as a condition of continued eligibility to receive water. Landowners whose total westwide 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 |
| Farm Operator | 960 acres |
Please return completed forms by February 1, 2020, to allow timely processing before water is ordered for the next water contract year, thereby ensuring continued water service. If your forms are not received, prior to the beginning of the 2020-2021 water contract year, your land will be ineligible to receive water or any benefit of Central Valley Project (CVP) facilities until the forms are submitted.
You may obtain your forms from the Bureau of Reclamation’s website under the RRA Forms menu item. Reclamation law forms are also available at the District’s Fresno or Five Points Field Offices.
Certification/Reporting Form Instructions:
Complete the enclosed Certification/Reporting Questionnaire to determine your filing requirements and submit the appropriate forms based on your answers to the questions.
- Please include your Westlands Water District account number (if one has been assigned), next to your name on Line No. 1 of the appropriate form (i.e., Joe Brown Farming – Account # 123456). If you are a part-owner, please include the words “Part-Owner” next to your name on Line No.1 of the appropriate form (i.e., Joe Brown – Part Owner).
- 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 forms may result in your land remaining ineligible to receive CVP water. The Bureau of Reclamation will assess administrative fees for form(s) 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 westwide must submit a “Declaration of Farm Operator Information” (Form 7-21FARMOP).
- If your landholdings change during the water contract 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.
- A separate Form 7-21VERIFY may be submitted in lieu of the standard form if no landholding changes occurred during the previous water contract year. If landholding changes take place during the water contract 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.
- Form 7-21VERIFY can only verify ONE standard form. Examples of commonly used standard forms include: 7-2180, 7-2181, and 7-21TRUST. Other standard forms are also subject to this filing requirement. If one Form 7-21VERIFY is used to verify two or more standard forms, the Bureau of Reclamation will assess an administrative fee for a form submittal violation.
Please contact Lorisa Heyman at (559) 241-6222 or Sophia Pulido at (559) 241-6216 if you have any questions regarding certification/reporting rules.
Certification/Reporting Questionnaire
| Change in marital status | ||
|---|---|---|
| Have you married, divorced, or widowed | Yes | No |
| Change in title | ||
| Have you married, divorced, or widowed | Yes | No |
| Have you deeded land to another individual/entity | Yes | No |
| Are you the beneficiary of a newly created trust | Yes | No |
| Have any members of your family holding title to land died | Yes | No |
| Are you the executor of land currently held in probate | Yes | No |
| Change in entities | ||
| Do you have an interest in a newly created corporation | Yes | No |
| Are you a partner in a new partnership | Yes | No |
| Are you a part-owner in a new tenancy-in-common | Yes | No |
| Has your ownership interest in an entity changed | Yes | No |
| Change in landholdings | ||
| Have you bought or sold land | Yes | No |
| Have your lease holdings changed | Yes | No |
| Have you renewed or extended a lease for a period longer than one year | Yes | No |
If you answer “yes” to any of the questions, you must file a new standard form. If you answer “no” to all the questions, you are eligible to file the 7-21VERIFY form.
Please include your Westlands Water District account number (if one has been assigned), next to your name on Line No.1 of the appropriate form (i.e., Joe Brown Farming – Account # 123456). If you are a part-owner, please include the words “Part Owner” next to your name on Line No. 1 of the appropriate form (i.e., Joe Brown – Part Owner).
Please remember, form 7-21VERIFY can only verify one standard form. Examples of standard forms include (but are not limited to) 7-2180, 7-2181, and 7-21TRUST. Other standard forms are also subject to this filing rule and each standard form must have a new 7-21VERIFY form.
Reclamation law forms are available on the Bureau’s website or at the District’s Fresno or Five Points Field Offices. If you need assistance, please contact Lorisa Heyman at (559) 241-6222 or Sophia Pulido (559) 241-6216.