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- Drilling & Well Operation FAQs
- General FAQs
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- Meter Reimbursement Program FAQs
Approved budgets are available on the District’s Budget and Tax Information page, including current and prior-year budget documents.
Tax rate notices, tax calculation worksheets, and meeting notices related to tax rate adoption are available on the District’s Tax Information page.
The District provides access to mapping tools that allow users to explore wells, groundwater information, aquifer boundaries, watersheds, and related geographic data. The Maps & Mapping Tools page also includes links to the Groundwater Interactive Map and the USDA Web Soil Survey for soil and land-use information.
Permit, rule, and reporting information is available through the Permit and Registration page on this website. Visitors should review the applicable program pages or contact District staff for help determining which requirements apply to their property or groundwater use.
The District is governed by a Board of Directors. Directors are elected from precincts within the District and are responsible for setting policy, adopting rules, approving budgets, and guiding District programs.
The District is located within the Ogallala Aquifer, part of the larger High Plains Aquifer system. This aquifer is an important groundwater source for communities, agriculture, and landowners throughout the region.
North Plains Groundwater Conservation District is a local groundwater conservation district serving portions of the Texas Panhandle. The District works to conserve, protect, and manage groundwater resources within its boundaries.
Anything you heard at the coffee shop or anywhere other than from a representative of the NPGCD may not be accurate. If you hear something, give us a call and ask if it is true. We are happy to answer any questions you might have.
The District undertaking or operating future reimbursement programs is not guaranteed. However, the program may continue if other funds become available.
Replacement meters (replacing a meter bought under this program) are not eligible for cost reimbursement. Meters bought to replace meters not bought with program funds are eligible for reimbursement.
Meters purchased and installed during the eligibility period without prior registration with the District will be evaluated on an individual basis and may or may not receive any reimbursement. Applicants must notify the District after the meter’s installation is complete.
Meter Reimbursement Program participants must report meter readings annually, what crops are grown and the number of acres of each crop. This information can be reported with the annual production report or may be reported separately.
Participants must furnish original receipts to the District that clearly show the meter costs and serial numbers. Copies of bank or credit card statements are not acceptable.
Meters must be maintained in good working order and repaired expeditiously as necessary. Non-repairable meters must be replaced at the owner’s expense and the owner must notify the District.
Meters and installation must meet District rules and be installed in accordance with manufacturer’s installation guidelines.
Must be meters installed on agricultural irrigation systems.
Meters and installations must be inspected by the District prior to reimbursements.
Installation costs, other equipment costs, labor costs and meters for nonagricultural irrigation purposes are not eligible for reimbursement.
First-come first-served does not mean first to register their intention to seek reimbursement. First-come first- served does mean first to complete the entire process of registering, completing all paperwork, installing all meters, receiving District inspections, furnishing all necessary receipts to the District and requesting reimbursement.
You should complete Meter Reimbursement Program registration with the District prior to purchasing and installing meters. Keep in mind, registration is no guarantee of full, partial or of any reimbursement. Reimbursement is contingent upon program funds availability and meeting program requirements.
One half (½) the actual cost of meters installed on an agricultural irrigation well is eligible for reimbursement.
Yes. If you intend to drill on your neighbor’s property, they will have to sign or file an Agent Authorization Form with the NPGCD allowing you to sign for them.
That depends. You can only sign for your brother if an Agent Authorization Form is on file with the NPGCD allowing you to do so. Otherwise, the answer is no. Your brother will be required to sign for the document as well.
No, unfortunately well and test hole permit fees are nonrefundable.
No. Drilling without an approved permit is a Class One violation of NPGCD rules which can result in fines up to $10,000 per day per violation.
The low pressure drain automatically opens when the well is shut down and prevents back flow into the aquifer which could cause contamination.
There are close to 3,000 production reports which are normally mailed out in middle to late November. A filing due date of March 1 was set by the Board to give the producer adequate time to fill out reports and gather supporting documents as needed. Late filed or non-filed reports cause a delay in total production calculations which are required to be presented to the General Manager and the Board of Directors to plan for desired future conditions. The District has also historically refunded the fees paid for late filed reports if the fee is paid in a timely manner and the following year’s reports are filed by Jan 15.
If the new well was drilled on a single section or portion of a section 640 acres or less and there are no adjoining (touching) sections you are associated with either by ownership, lease, management or re-establishment of a groundwater production unit, you are allowed to put the meters at the pivot(s) on that section.
If you are required to have flow meters installed on your property, the District expects you to report with those meters. A backup metering method, however, is highly encouraged in case your flow meters do not operate properly or have not captured all of your water use for the year. In this case, the backup metering may be used, but the flow meters are expected to be repaired and used within 30 days.
The actual readings are raw readings and have some corrections made to them by gas or electric companies. What is actually required for the end reading is total million cubic feet (MCF) for the year for gas meters or total kilowatt hours used for the year for electric meters taken off the electric or gas bills. The beginning reading on these types of meters will always be zero. The supporting documents (monthly bills or summaries) must always accompany these type of reports.
If you drill a new well, you are required to install a flow meter at every existing well to be in compliance. The NPGCD has a meter reimbursement program available to assist with the cost of the flow meters, but other changes and costs associated with the completing of installing flow meters is at the owner’s expense. Failure to install flow meters on any well as required by NPGCD rules is a Class One violation of up to $10,000.00 per day per violation.
