The Fort Bend Subsidence District (FBSD) was created in 1989 by the 71st Legislature to regulate groundwater withdrawals within Fort Bend County to prevent subsidence, which can contribute to or precipitate flooding or overflow of the FBSD, including rising water from storms or hurricanes.

1990 Regulatory Plan – The initial FBSD Regulatory Plan was adopted in 1990 and focused on collecting water-use information, water-demand projections, water-level data from wells, and subsidence data within Fort Bend County.

2003 Regulatory Plan – This plan divided FBSD into two Regulatory Areas and one subarea. The requirements in the 2003 Regulatory Plan were based on the most current data available at the time. These data were used to develop projections of water demand, aquifer water levels, and subsidence throughout the FBSD. The plan provided permittees with organizational flexibility in meeting the regulatory goals and designated the timing and conversion requirements throughout the FBSD.

In 2010, FBSD began a Regulatory Plan Update Project to 1) update population and water demand projections and 2) update and recalibrate the parameters in the groundwater models and subsidence models. The updated data and models were then used to evaluate the regulations in the 2003 Regulatory Plan and to make any necessary changes for the upcoming decades. The FBSD used the conversion plans contained in certified Groundwater Reduction Plans to more accurately represent where groundwater reductions would likely occur. FBSD was able to incorporate the 2010 U.S. Census data and more accurately project population growth. Once projected water demands were determined for the updated population growth, multiple groundwater pumpage regulatory scenarios were evaluated in groundwater subsidence models developed for this update. The results from the groundwater and subsidence models for each potential regulatory change scenario were compared with a baseline scenario using the regulations from the 2003 Regulatory Plan. Consideration of the projected subsidence rates throughout the District was weighed against the feasibility of obtaining alternative water supplies necessary to meet the proposed groundwater reductions.

2013 Regulatory Plan – The 2013 Regulatory Plan was developed for the period through 2035, with an overall goal of reducing groundwater withdrawals to no more than 70% of total water demand in Regulatory Area A as of January 2014. Then, beginning in January 2025, a permittee shall be required to reduce and maintain groundwater withdrawals to comprise no more than 40% of the permittee’s total water demand. Permittees within Area B were not subject to groundwater reduction requirements or disincentive fees. The District states that it will continue to evaluate water-level and subsidence conditions within Area B boundaries and may adopt groundwater reduction requirements in the future.

2025 Regulatory Plan – After successfully completing the Joint Regulatory Plan Review (JRPR) in 2025, the Fort Bend Subsidence District Board of Directors adopted the 2025 Regulatory Plan. Based on the findings of the JRPR, the Regulatory Plan was amended with the following updates:

  • Groundwater Reduction Plans (GRPs) – Permittees with a total water demand greater than 10 million gallons per year may avoid disincentive fees by submitting and receiving certification of a GRP, provided they comply with the groundwater reduction goals and other milestones in that plan. The approved plan must provide an annual report to FBSD and the Board of Directors as part of that permittee’s/group’s permit renewal.
    • Regulatory Area A – Regulatory Area A’s conversion date to be extended from 2027 to 2030 to allow adequate timing for infrastructure to be developed. For permits beginning January 1, 2030, and thereafter, groundwater withdrawals may not exceed 40% of the permittee’s total water demand.
    • Regulatory Area B – Due to ongoing and projected growth combined with subsidence conditions, this regulatory area will begin groundwater reduction requirements as follows:
      • For permits beginning January 1, 2035: a permittee not operating under an approved GRP shall reduce its groundwater withdrawals to comprise no more than 40% of its total water demand.
      • For permits beginning January 1, 2050: a group of permittees operating under an approved GRP shall reduce its groundwater withdrawals to comprise no more than 70% of the group’s total water demand.