Cal. WAT § 31638.5
This is the official text of Cal. WAT § 31638.5, part of California’s Water Code — governs water rights and water resource management.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Official statutory text
It shall be unlawful to produce water from within any area of benefit after one year following the levy of a replenishment assessment within such area, unless the well or other water-producing facility producing such water shall have a water-measuring device affixed thereto which is capable of measuring and registering the accumulated amount of water produced. The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to minimal pumpers. The district by written agreement with any producer shall provide, install, maintain, own and read such water-measuring device. Violation thereof shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed six hundred dollars ($600), or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed 30 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in California?
Find a California lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.