Senate Bill 72 Modernizes the California Water Plan to Include Quantitative Performance Measurements

November 2025

California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 36, Number 2

On October 1, 2025, Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) 72 into law, amending and reorganizing sections of the Water Code to modernize the California Water Plan (CWP) in response to increasing climate variability. The CWP is the state’s primary planning document for the strategic administration of California’s water supplies. Authored by Senator Anna Caballero, SB 72 directs the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to update the CWP in 2028 to set new water supply targets for 2050, considering the current and future water needs of municipal, agricultural, environmental, and tribal beneficial uses throughout the state.

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