On Friday, March 24, Governor Newsom issued a press release announcing the relaxation of drought restrictions. 

WHAT TO KNOW: Climate change has made California’s dry and wet spells more extreme and unpredictable – after the three driest years on record, recent rain and snowfall have dramatically changed conditions in many parts of the state. The state has also advanced actions to boost storage and supply. Friday's action eases drought emergency provisions that are no longer needed while maintaining others to support impacted communities statewide.
 
Harnessing water captured and stored from recent storms, the state also announced a major increase in expected State Water Project deliveries to local agencies – now an anticipated 75% allocation.
 
Governor Gavin Newsom rolled back some drought emergency provisions that are no longer needed due to current water conditions while maintaining other measures that support regions and communities still facing water supply challenges, and that continue building up long-term water resilience. Amid climate-driven weather whiplash, the state has taken action to boost water supplies through groundwater recharge, stormwater capture, reservoir storage, and more. 
 
Friday’s action comes as the state announced increased water deliveries to 29 public water agencies that serve 27 million Californians, now expecting to deliver 75% of requested water supplies – up from 35% announced in February and the highest since 2017. 
 
While recent storms have helped ease drought impacts, regions and communities across the state continue to experience water supply shortages, especially communities that rely on groundwater supplies that have been severely depleted in recent years.

Last week’s order is responsive to current conditions while preserving smart water measures: 
  • Ends the voluntary 15% water conservation target, while continuing to encourage that Californians make conservation a way of life;
  • Ends the requirement that local water agencies implement level 2 of their drought contingency plans;
  • Maintains the ban on wasteful water uses, such as watering ornamental grass on commercial properties;
  • Preserves all current emergency orders focused on groundwater supply, where the effects of the multi-year drought continue to be devastating;
  • Maintains orders focused on specific watersheds that have not benefited as much from recent rains, including the Klamath River and Colorado River basins, which both remain in drought;
  • Retains a state of emergency for all 58 counties to allow for drought response and recovery efforts to continue.

 A copy of the executive order can be found here.
 
WHAT GOV. NEWSOM SAID: “We’re all in this together, and this state has taken extraordinary actions to get us to this point. The weather whiplash we’ve experienced in the past few months makes it crystal clear that Californians and our water system have to adapt to increasingly extreme swings between drought and flood. As we welcome this relief from the drought, we must remain focused on continuing our all-of-the-above approach to future-proofing California’s water supply.”