Mandatory Water Use Curtailment
LCRA would impose mandatory curtailments on the amount of water its firm customers can use under Stage 4 of its Drought Contingency Plan. LCRA is currently in Stage 2 of its drought response. LCRA’s firm water customers are primarily cities, water districts and industries.
As part of the planning process for a possible mandatory curtailment, firm water customers are required to develop a plan outlining what measures they would take to meet the required curtailment.
LCRA would implement mandatory pro rata curtailment if the LCRA Board of Directors makes a Drought Worse than Drought of Record (DWDR) declaration. This would mean the Board has determined the current drought is potentially worse than the Drought of Record, or the worst drought the region has seen, and warrants more significant response measures. For the lower Colorado River basin, the Drought of Record is the 2008-2015 drought.
The LCRA Board would make a DWDR declaration if:
- The drought has lasted at least 24 consecutive months,
- The drought intensity is greater than that of the Drought of Record, and
- The amount of water in lakes Buchanan and Travis is less than 600,000 acre-feet, or 30% of capacity.
All uses of interruptible stored water would have to be cut off before curtailments would be imposed, including for the Garwood Agricultural Division.
LCRA projections show that if severe drought conditions continue, the region could see DWDR conditions sometime during the first half of 2026. Rainfall could postpone or negate the need for any curtailment. Read more about the current drought status for the lower Colorado River basin.
Mandatory curtailment FAQs
“Pro rata curtailment” means all LCRA firm water customers must reduce their water use by the same percentage.
How does LCRA determine the water use curtailment percentage?
LCRA’s Drought Contingency Plan provides for an initial minimum curtailment of 20%. This percentage may be adjusted by the LCRA Board if the drought worsens.
How would mandatory curtailment work?
LCRA would provide firm customers with information on the amount of water they would be allotted during a mandatory curtailment period based on their use during a recent, dry baseline year. Customers could request a modification to their allotted amount if the reference year is not reflective of the customer’s current reasonable demand. Customers would be required to develop a plan outlining what measures they will take to meet the required curtailment. Most firm customers prepared pro rata curtailment plans in 2024. These plans can be updated to reduce the effort in preparing a curtailment plan.
If mandatory curtailment were to be implemented, LCRA would compare each customer’s actual water use to its quarterly allotments. If the amount used exceeds the quarterly allotment, the customer could face a surcharge at the end of the calendar year. If the amount used is less than the customer’s quarterly allotment, the customer would receive a credit that could be used in a subsequent quarter of the same calendar year. At the end of the calendar year, if use exceeds allocated amounts any surcharges would be assessed and collected. LCRA also could stop delivery of water and take any necessary legal action to enforce pro rata curtailment and related rules and plans.
Could LCRA impose a surcharge to firm customers that use over the allotted amount?
LCRA rules provide for a tiered surcharge rate of up to 10 times the standard firm water rate of $165 per acre-foot, depending upon the percent of water used above the authorized allotted amount. The surcharge would be for firm customers such as cities and water districts, not residential customers or other end users. The LCRA Board also may establish different surcharge amounts at the time it declares a DWDR.
Will LCRA allow a customer to use more water than its allotted amount?
In general, no. If we are in Stage 4, however, LCRA will consider granting a customer a variance to its allotted curtailment amount if LCRA determines that failure to grant the variance would cause an emergency condition adversely affecting public health, welfare or safety. Details of how to apply for a variance are included in LCRA’s pro rata rules.
When would the mandatory curtailment end?
The LCRA Board would determine the conditions for lifting pro rata curtailment prior to initiating any curtailment. LCRA’s Water Management Plan provides that a DWDR declaration will be cancelled when combined storage of lakes Buchanan and Travis is above 1.4 million acre-feet. As determined by the LCRA Board, curtailment may be lifted, or the amount of curtailment may be reduced prior to a cancellation of a DWDR declaration.
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