The Bureau of Reclamation announced initial 2026 water supply allocations for Central Valley Project water users.
The Central Valley Project serves over 270 contracts that provide water for 3 million acres of highly productive farmland, communities across the Central Valley and Bay Area, and Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley wildlife refuges.
Water supply allocations are based on an estimate of water available for delivery and reflect current reservoir storage, precipitation, and snowpack in the Sierra Nevada, as well as contractor-rescheduled water from the last water year.
For South-of Delta Contractors:
Irrigation water service and repayment contractors south-of-Delta are allocated 15% of their contract total.
M&I water service and repayment contractors south-of-Delta are allocated 65% of their historic use, or public health and safety needs, whichever is greater.
San Joaquin River Settlement Contractors and San Joaquin Exchange Contractors’ water supply is based upon settlement/exchange of claimed senior water rights. The 2026 water year is determined as non-critical, as defined in their contracts, which allows for 100% of their contract supply.
In addition to this allocation, Central Valley Project contractors south-of-Delta are expected to reschedule approximately 180,000 acre-feet of unused allocated water from 2025 for use in 2026. South-of Delta allocation and rescheduled water supply accounts for 100% of the total south-of-Delta Water Repayment Contractors contract supply.
“While current snowpack conditions remain below average, we are encouraged by the recent storm activity and the additional precipitation it has brought to the state,” said Acting Regional Director Adam Nickels. “As we receive and analyze updated data from these storms, particularly snowpack and runoff forecasts, we are hopeful conditions may improve. We will continue to closely monitor hydrologic developments and update allocations accordingly to reflect the most accurate and up-to-date information available.”
