SECTIONS 1700-1707 - California Statutes

WATER CODE

SECTION 1700-1707

1700. Water appropriated under the Water Commission Act or this
code for one specific purpose shall not be deemed to be appropriated
for any other or different purpose, but the purpose of the use of
such water may be changed as provided in this code.

1701. At any time after notice of an application is given, an
applicant, permittee, or licensee may change the point of diversion,
place of use, or purpose of use from that specified in the
application, permit, or license; but such change may be made only
upon permission of the board.

1701.1. A petition for change filed after notice of an application
shall meet all of the following requirements:
(a) State the name and address of the petitioner.
(b) Be signed by the petitioner, or the petitioner's agent or
attorney.
(c) Set forth amendments to the application or an amended
application reflecting the proposed change, including any information
necessary for the amended application to comply with Section 1260.
(d) Include sufficient information to demonstrate a reasonable
likelihood that the proposed change will not injure any other legal
user of water.
(e) Contain other appropriate information and be in the form
required by applicable regulations.

1701.2. A petition for change in a permit or license shall meet all
of the following requirements:
(a) State the name and address of the petitioner.
(b) Be signed by the petitioner, or the petitioner's agent or
attorney.
(c) Include all information reasonably available to the
petitioner, or that can be obtained from the Department of Fish and
Game, concerning the extent, if any, to which fish and wildlife would
be affected by the change, and a statement of any measures proposed
to be taken for the protection of fish and wildlife in connection
with the change.
(d) Include sufficient information to demonstrate a reasonable
likelihood that the proposed change will not injure any other legal
user of water.
(e) Contain other appropriate information and be in the form
required by applicable regulations.

1701.3. (a) After a petition is filed, the board may request
additional information reasonably necessary to clarify, amplify,
correct, or otherwise supplement the information required to be
submitted under this chapter. The board shall provide a reasonable
period for submitting the information.
(b) The additional information may include, but need not be
limited to, any of the following:
(1) Information needed to demonstrate that the change will not
injure any other legal user of water.
(2) Information needed to demonstrate that the change will comply
with any applicable requirements of the Fish and Game Code or the
federal Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1531 et seq.).
(3) Information needed to comply with Division 13 (commencing with
Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code.

1701.4. If, within the period provided, the petitioner does not
provide the information requested pursuant to Section 1701.3, the
board shall cancel the petition, unless, for good cause shown, the
board allows additional time to submit the requested information.

1702. Before permission to make such a change is granted the
petitioner shall establish, to the satisfaction of the board, and it
shall find, that the change will not operate to the injury of any
legal user of the water involved.

1703. After filing a petition for permission to make a change, the
petitioner, in case the board so requires, shall cause notice thereof
to be given or published in the manner prescribed by the board. In
all cases the petitioner shall notify the Department of Fish and Game
in writing of the proposed change.

1703.1. Any interested person, within the time allowed in the
notice of petition, or within the time the board may allow for good
cause shown, may file with the board a written protest against
approval of the petition.

1703.2. The protest shall meet all of the following requirements:
(a) State the name and address of the protestant.
(b) Be signed by the protestant, or the protestant's agent or
attorney.
(c) Clearly and specifically set forth the protestant's objections
to the approval of the petition, and state the bases for these
objections.
(d) Contain other appropriate information and be in the form
required by applicable regulations.
(e) Be served on the petitioner by the protestant by mailing a
duplicate copy of the protest to the petitioner or through service
undertaken in another manner determined to be adequate by the board.

1703.3. The board may request from the protestant additional
information reasonably necessary to clarify, amplify, correct, or
otherwise supplement the information required to be submitted
pursuant to Section 1703.2. The board shall provide a reasonable
period for submitting the information, and may allow additional time
for good cause shown.

1703.4. The protestant and the petitioner shall make a good faith
effort to resolve the protest not later than 180 days from the date
the period provided pursuant to Section 1703.1 expires. For good
cause, the board may allow additional time for the protestant and the
petitioner to attempt to resolve the protest.

1703.5. The board may request from the protestant or the petitioner
additional information that the board determines is reasonably
necessary to attempt to resolve the protest. The board shall provide
a reasonable period for submitting the information, and may allow
additional time for good cause shown.

1703.6. (a) The board may cancel a protest or petition for failure
to provide information requested by the board under this chapter
within the period provided.
(b) Except as provided in subdivisions (c) and (d), the board
shall not cancel a protest for failure to submit information not in
the possession or under the control of the protestant if the protest
meets the requirements of Section 1703.2 and the petitioner is or
could be required to submit the information under Section 1701.1,
1701.2, or 1701.3.
(c) If a protest is based on injury to a legal user of water, the
board may cancel the protest if the protestant fails to submit any of
the following information requested by the board:
(1) Information that the protestant is required to submit to the
board to comply with Part 5.1 (commencing with Section 5100) during
any period after the protest is filed.
(2) Information that is reasonably necessary to determine if the
protestant is a legal user of water.
(3) Information concerning the protestant's historical, current,
or proposed future diversion and use of water that is reasonably
necessary to determine if the proposed change will result in injury
to the protestant's exercise of its water right or other legal use of
water.
(d) If the protest is based on an allegation other than injury to
a legal user of water, the board may cancel the protest for failure
to submit information requested by the board if the board determines
both of the following:
(1) The public review period has expired for any draft
environmental document or negative declaration required to be
circulated for public review and comment pursuant to Division 13
(commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code.
(2) In the absence of the requested information, there is no
substantial evidence in light of the whole record to support the
allegation.
(e) If a protest is subject to both subdivisions (c) and (d), the
part of the protest subject to subdivision (c) may be canceled
pursuant to subdivision (c) and the part of the protest subject to
subdivision (d) may be canceled pursuant to subdivision (d).

1704. (a) The board, after a hearing, may approve with conditions,
or deny, a petition.
(b) Notice of hearing shall be given by mailing the notice not
less than 20 days before the date of hearing to the petitioner and to
any protestant by registered mail.
(c) (1) The board may, but is not required to, hold a hearing
prior to approving an unprotested petition.
(2) The board may, but is not required to, hold a hearing if the
board determines that undisputed facts support the approval of the
petition and there is no disputed issue of material fact.
(3) The board may, but is not required to, hold a hearing prior to
denying a petition, if, after notice, the board determines that the
petition is defective, the petition fails to provide information
requested by the board, or undisputed facts support the denial of the
petition and there is no disputed issue of material fact.

1704.1. The Division of Water Rights shall conduct a field
investigation of all minor protested petitions for change. The board
shall notify the parties of the field investigation not less than 20
days prior to conducting the field investigation, to enable the
parties to attend and present information to the board.

1704.2. The Division of Water Rights may request the parties to
submit information in support of their positions. The Division of
Water Rights may request information before, during, or after the
field investigation. After the field investigation, the Division of
Water Rights may conduct additional proceedings in accordance with
Article 10 (commencing with Section 11445.10) of Chapter 4.5 of Part
1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

1704.3. Based upon the field investigation and any other
information obtained under this chapter, the Division of Water Rights
shall issue an order acting on the minor petition for change unless
the board in its discretion determines that additional proceedings
should be conducted under Section 183. An order of the Division of
Water Rights is subject to review as provided in Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 1120) of Part 1.

1704.4. For purposes of this chapter, a minor petition for change
shall mean any petition which does not involve direct diversions in
excess of three cubic-feet per second or storage in excess of 200
acre-feet per year.

1705. After the hearing the board shall grant or refuse, as the
facts warrant, permission to change the point of diversion, place of
use, or purpose of use.

1706. The person entitled to the use of water by virtue of an
appropriation other than under the Water Commission Act or this code
may change the point of diversion, place of use, or purpose of use if
others are not injured by such change, and may extend the ditch,
flume, pipe, or aqueduct by which the diversion is made to places
beyond that where the first use was made.

1707. (a) (1) Any person entitled to the use of water, whether
based upon an appropriative, riparian, or other right, may petition
the board pursuant to this chapter, Chapter 6.6 (commencing with
Section 1435) or Chapter 10.5 (commencing with Section 1725) for a
change for purposes of preserving or enhancing wetlands habitat, fish
and wildlife resources, or recreation in, or on, the water.
(2) The petition may be submitted for any of the purposes
described in paragraph (1) and may, but is not required to, be
submitted in combination with a petition to make any other change
authorized pursuant to this part. The petition shall specify the
time, location, and scope of the requested change, and other relevant
information relating thereto.
(b) The board may approve the petition filed pursuant to
subdivision (a), subject to any terms and conditions which, in the
board's judgment, will best develop, conserve, and utilize, in the
public interest, the water proposed to be used as part of the change,
whether or not the proposed use involves a diversion of water, if
the board determines that the proposed change meets all of the
following requirements:
(1) Will not increase the amount of water the person is entitled
to use.
(2) Will not unreasonably affect any legal user of water.
(3) Otherwise meets the requirements of this division.
(c) (1) Upon the request of the petitioner, the board may specify,
as part of its approval of the petition, that the water that is
subject to the approval pursuant to this section shall be in addition
to water that is required, if any, to be used for instream purposes
to satisfy any applicable federal, state, or local regulatory
requirements governing water quantity, water quality, instream flows,
fish and wildlife, wetlands, recreation, and other instream
beneficial uses. If the request is approved by the board, state and
local agencies, as well as the courts, shall not credit the water
subject to that petition towards compliance with any of the
regulatory requirements described in this subdivision. A federal
agency shall comply with the requirement imposed by this paragraph to
the extent required by federal law, or to the extent that it chooses
to comply.
(2) For the purposes of this subdivision, "requirements" includes
requirements or obligations that have not been formally established
or allocated at the time of the petition, and obligations under any
agreement entered into to meet those requirements. Neither any
petition filed pursuant to this section nor any documents or
statements made in connection therewith shall be construed or used as
an admission, evidence, or indication of any obligation to meet any
of the requirements described in this subdivision.
(d) Except as provided in subdivision (c), water that is subject
to a petition granted pursuant to this section shall be used to meet,
in whole or in part, any requirement described in subdivision (c) if
any of these requirements exist. The water shall be credited to the
petitioner, or to any other person or entity designated by the
petitioner, whenever that person or entity has, or may have,
obligations to meet one or more of the requirements described in
subdivision (c). The water shall be credited towards compliance with
any requirements described in subdivision (c), by state and local
agencies, as well as the courts. A federal agency shall comply with
the requirement imposed by this subdivision to the extent required by
federal law, or to the extent that it chooses to comply.