City of San Buenaventura v. United Water Conservation District

The California Constitution, as amended by a series of voter initiatives, places limitations on the authority of state and local governments to collect revenue through taxes, fees, charges, and other types of levies. (Cal. Const., arts. XIII A, XIII C, XIII D.) This case concerns the application of these constitutional limitations to a particular kind of local government charge: a statutorily authorized "ground water charge" imposed on well operators by a local water conservation district to fund conservation activities such as replenishing groundwater stores and preventing degradation of the…