Southern California's giant Metropolitan Water District is planning to ration imported water that it supplies to more than two dozen agencies and cities.
The Los Angeles Times reported Monday that the MWD will vote next week on the plan to cut water deliveries and force conservation amid the state's drought.
The cuts, which would take effect July 1, were proposed before Gov. Jerry Brown imposed a 25 percent mandatory restriction on urban water use last week. But they are expected to spur agencies to help meet the conservation goals.
Agencies that need more water than the MWD allocation will be required to pay punitive surcharges for the extra deliveries.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is a consortium of 26 cities and water agencies serving nearly 19 million people in parts of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura and San Bernardino counties. MWD is the largest supplier of water in San Diego County. It provided more than half of the water used in the region in fiscal year 2010, according to the San Diego County Water Authority.
MWD imports water from Northern California and the Colorado River.
