West Coast Basin Amended Judgment: VI Exchange Pool

VI. PHYSICAL SOLUTION - EXCHANGE POOL  

As a further part of said physical solution herein imposed:  

1. Mandatory Offer to Exchange Pool  

Not less than sixty (60) days prior to the beginning of each Administrative Year, each Party having supplemental water available to it through then existing facilities, other than water which any such Party has the right to extract hereunder, shall file with the Water Rights Panel the offer of such Party to release to the Exchange Pool the amount by which such Party's Adjudicated  Right exceeds one-half of the estimated total required use of water by such Party during the  ensuing Administrative Year, provided that the amount required to be so offered for release shall  not exceed the amount such Party can replace with supplemental water so available to it. 

2. Basis of Offer to Exchange Pool; Redetermination of Offer by Water Rights Panel  

Such estimate of total required use and such mandatory offer shall be made in good faith and shall state the basis on which the offer is made, and shall be subject to review and redetermination by the Water Rights Panel, who may take into consideration the prior use by such Party for earlier Administrative Years and all other factors indicating the amount of such total required use and the availability of replacement water.  

3. Voluntary Offer to Exchange Pool  

Any Party filing an offer to release water under the mandatory provisions of this Section 22  

VI may also file a voluntary offer to release any part or all of any remaining amount of water which such Party has the right under this Amended Judgment to pump or otherwise extract from the Basin, and any Party who is not required to file an offer to release water may file a voluntary offer to release any part or all of the amount of water which such Party has the right under this Amended Judgment to pump or otherwise extract from the basin. All such voluntary offers shall be made not less than sixty (60) days prior to the beginning of each Administrative Year. 

4. Price of Water Offered to Exchange Pool  

Each offer to release water pursuant to this Section VI shall be the price per acre-foot declared and determined at the time of the filing of such offer by the releasing Party; provided that:  

(a) such price per acre-foot shall not exceed the price that the releasing Party would have to pay to obtain from others, in equal monthly amounts, through existing facilities, a quantity of supplemental water equal in amount to that offered to be released; or  (b) if any such releasing Party has no existing facilities through which to obtain water from others, such price shall not exceed the sum of the price per acre-foot charged by MWD and West Coast Basin Municipal Water District to municipalities and public utilities for  water received from MWD.

5. Price Dispute Objection - Water Rights Panel Determination  

A. In the event of a dispute as to any price at which water is offered for release, any Party affected thereby may, within thirty (30) days thereafter, by an objection in writing, refer the matter to the Water Rights Panel for determination. Within thirty (30) days after such objection is filed, the Water Rights Panel shall consider said objection and shall make its finding as to the price at which said water should be offered for release and notify all Parties.  

B. The costs of such determination shall be apportioned or assessed by the Water Rights Panel in its discretion between or to the Parties to such dispute, and the Water Rights Panel shall have the power to require, at any time prior to making such determination, any Party or Parties to such dispute to deposit with the Water Rights Panel funds sufficient to pay the cost of such determination.  

C. Any Party may appeal to the Court from a decision of the Water Rights Panel as provided in Section XI.4. Pending the Court's determination if the water so offered has been allocated, the Party making the offer shall be paid the price declared in its offer, subject to appropriate adjustment upon final determination.  

6. Request for Water From Exchange Pool   

A. Not less than sixty (60) days prior to the beginning of each Administrative Year, any Party whose estimated demand for water during the ensuing Administrative Year exceeds the sum of all of the Party's supplies available to it from the Basin under this Amended Judgment, may file with the Water Rights Panel a request for the release of water in the amount that said estimated demand exceeds said available supply. Such request shall be made in good faith and shall state the basis upon which the request is made, and shall be subject to review and redetermination by the Water Rights Panel.  

B. Within thirty (30) days thereafter, the Water Rights Panel shall advise, in writing, those Parties requesting water of the estimated price thereof. Any Party desiring to amend its request by reducing the amount requested may do so after the service of such notice.  

C. Prior to the first day of each Administrative Year, the Water Rights Panel shall determine if sufficient water has been offered to satisfy all requests. If it determines that sufficient water has not been offered, it shall reduce such requests pro rata in the proportion that each request bears to the total of all requests.  

D. Not later than the first day of each Administrative Year, the Water Rights Panel shall advise all Parties offering to release water of the quantities to be released by each and accepted in the Exchange Pool and the price at which such water is offered. Simultaneously, it shall advise all Parties requesting water of the quantities of released water allocated from the Exchange Pool and to be taken by each requesting Party and the price to be paid therefore.  

7. Allocation of Exchange Pool Water by Water Rights Panel  

A. In allocating water which has been offered for release to the Exchange Pool under Section VI.1, the Water Rights Panel shall first allocate that water required to be offered for release and which is offered at the lowest price, and progressively thereafter at the next lowest price or prices. If the aggregate quantity of water required to be released is less than the aggregate quantity of all requests for the release of water made pursuant to Section VI.6, the Water Rights Panel shall then allocate water voluntarily offered for release and which is offered at the lowest price and progressively thereafter at the next lowest price or prices, provided that the total allocation of water shall not exceed the aggregate of all such requests. Any water offered for release under Section VI and not accepted in the Exchange Pool, and not allocated therefrom, shall be deemed not to have been offered for release and may be extracted from the Basin by the Party offering the same as if such offer had not been made.  

B. Each Party requesting the release of water for its use and to whom released water is allocated from the Exchange Pool may thereafter, subject to all of the provisions of this Amended Judgment, extract such allocated amount of water from the Basin, in addition to the amount such Party is otherwise entitled to extract hereunder during the Administrative Year for which the allocation is made.  

8. Exchange Pool Water Pumped Before Pumper's Own Right  

From and after the first day of each Administrative Year, all water extracted from the Basin by any Party requesting the release of water and to whom such water is allocated shall be deemed to have been water so released until the full amount released for use by it shall have been  taken, and no such Party shall be deemed to have extracted from the Basin any water under its own right so to, do until said amount of released water shall have been extracted. Water extracted  from the Basins, by Parties pursuant to their request for the release of water shall be deemed to have been taken by the offerors of such water under their own rights to extract water from the Basin.  

9. Price and Payment for Water Released for Exchange Pool  

A. All Parties allocated water under Section VI.6 shall pay a uniform price per acre-foot for such water, which price shall be the weighted average of the prices at which all the water allocated was offered for release.  

B. Each Party shall pay to the Water Rights Panel, in five equal monthly installments during the applicable Administrative Year, an amount equal to the quantity of water allocated to it multiplied by said uniform price. The Water Rights Panel shall bill each such Party monthly for each such installment, the first such billing to be made on or before the first day of the second month of the Administrative Year involved, and payment therefore shall be made to the Water Rights Panel within thirty (30) days after the service of each such statement. If such payment be not' made within said thirty (30) days such payment shall be delinquent and a penalty shall be assessed thereon at the rate of one percent (1%) per month until paid. Such delinquent payment, including penalty, may be enforced against any Party delinquent in payment by execution or by suit commenced by the Water Rights Panel or by any Party hereto for the benefit of the Water Rights Panel.

C. Promptly upon receipt of such payment, the Water Rights Panel shall make payment for the water released and allocated, first, to the Party or Parties which offered such water at the lowest price, and then through successive higher offered prices up to the total  allocated.