Industry Topics for Water Rights Fee

Registration with Other Agencies

Water rights owners and lessors are required to register with the State Water Board. The State Water Board provides the CDTFA with feepayer registration information.

Visit the sites below for more information about other state, federal, and local taxing licensing information:

  • The Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) offers extensive information on state, local, and federal permit requirements. For a listing of their assistance centers, visit GO-Biz.
  • CalGold for information regarding permit and licensing requirements for other state, federal, and local authorities (for example, you may need to be registered with the Franchise Tax Board or the Employment Development Department).
  • California Tax Service Center for additional tax information.

You may also want to consult with a tax professional for assistance on other agency requirements.

Filing an Appeal (Petition for Reconsideration)

If you are billed for the water rights fee in error, you must mail a Petition for Reconsideration to the State Water Board. The petition must be received by the State Water Board within 30 days from the date the billing (Notice of Determination) was issued to be considered timely.

Petitions for Reconsideration must be sent to the State Water Board. They may not be sent to the CDTFA.

The State Water Boards mailing address is:

State Water Resources Control Board
Division of Water Rights
P.O. Box 2000
Sacramento, CA 95812-2000

Refunds

You may file a claim for refund if you have overpaid the water rights fee directly to us. You may file a claim for refund by using form CDTFA-101, Claim for Refund or Credit. Claims for refund must be in writing and should specify the period for which you are making the claim and the amount of the refund.

You may email the claim form to the Refund Team or mail it to:

California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
Business Tax and Fee Division
Appeals and Data Analysis Branch (MIC 33)
P.O. Box 942879
Sacramento, CA 94279-0033

Deadline to File a Claim for Refund

Be sure to file your claim for refund by the applicable deadline. If you do not file on time, we cannot consider your claim, even if you overpaid the fee. You must file a claim for refund by whichever of the following dates that occurs last:

  • Six months after you overpaid the fee.
  • Six months after the date an assessment or billing (Notice of Determination) became final.
  • Three years after the CDTFA collected an involuntary payment, such as from a levy or lien.

If you have questions about your deadline to file a refund claim, contact our Customer Service Center at 1-800-400-7115 (CRS 711).

Questions relating to water rights

Questions related to your water rights license, permit, application, petition, etc. should be directed to:

State Water Resources Control Board
Division of Water Rights
P.O. Box 2000
Sacramento, CA 95812-2000

1-916-341-5300
Fax: 1-916-341-5400