Registration & Permitting

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All new water wells must be registered with the District and obtain a Notice to Proceed prior to drilling and operation.

Certain wells are exempt from registration, including:

• Leachate wells, monitoring wells, and piezometers
• Pre-Effective Date Exempt Wells (domestic, livestock, or wells with a capacity of less than 27.7 GPM) drilled before April 1, 2012

All non-exempt wells—regardless of the drilling date—must be registered with the District and equipped with a meter.

Owners of existing exempt wells are encouraged to register their wells with the District to help protect groundwater resources. There is no charge to register an exempt well that was drilled before April 1, 2012 (the date after which well registration became mandatory). Please note that only registered wells are eligible for protection under District rules.

All non-exempt wells are required to obtain a permit. Wells that were drilled and in operation prior to January 1, 2019, were granted a Historic Use Permit, which authorizes the highest annual volume of production recorded during the Historic Use Period (January 1, 2010 – December 31, 2018).

For new wells with a flow rate greater than 17.36 GPM or for any additional annual production exceeding the Historic Use amount, a Production Permit is required. The requested annual production amount must be justified and represent a reasonable use of water for the permit to be granted.

All Production Permits must be approved by the Board of Directors during a permit hearing. The District is required to provide notice of the hearing at least 10 days in advance.

The minimum spacing requirements for all new wells in the District are designed to ensure the sustainable use of groundwater resources and prevent excessive drawdown or interference between wells. Wells with a maximum capacity of 17.36 GPM or less must maintain a minimum distance of 50 feet from the property line and 100 feet from existing wells within the same aquifer. Wells exceeding 17.36 GPM must also be set back 50 feet from the property line but require a greater separation from other wells within the same aquifer, calculated as 889 feet plus 2.5 times the GPM of the proposed well. These spacing regulations help protect water availability and quality while minimizing potential conflicts between groundwater users.

A Hydrogeological Report is required for a new permit if the proposed aggregate production capacity of the well or well system is 200 GPM or more. This report must comply with all requirements outlined in the District’s Hydrogeological Report Requirements. A guideline for these requirements can be found in the Forms section.

If TCEQ approval is NOT required prior to operation:

• The well must be drilled and completed within 240 days from the date of approval of the registration application.
• If drilling has not commenced within this timeframe, the well registration will expire.
• A one-time extension for an additional 240 days may be requested, or an identical well registration may be resubmitted without incurring an additional administrative fee.
• Once the well registration expires, the District may process a resubmission only after a 30-day waiting period from the previous expiration date.

If TCEQ approval IS required prior to operation:

• The well must be drilled and completed within 365 days from the date of registration approval.
• Up to two (2) 365-day extensions may be granted.

• Drilling Location: All new wells must be drilled within 30 feet (10 yards) of the location specified in the registration application.
• Completion Reports: Upon completion, both a Well Completion Report and a State Well Report must be submitted to the District.
• Inspection Requirement: All new wells must be inspected within 60 days of completion. All new wells will be flow tested after completion, as the maximum flow rate is a key factor in determining well spacing.