The Edwards Aquifer Authority board is scheduled to consider a new Mathis irrigation-suspension agreement Oct. 6. The proposal offers payment for setting aside permitted pumping rights during severe drought, when Comal Springs flows matter to residents and river users.
The Mathis proposal
The Oct. 6 board agenda lists the proposed Mathis VISPO agreement as item G.2, AI 13-3832. The item names Evan B. Mathis, Betty K. Mathis and Jamie Ann Mathis as parties to a proposed forbearance agreement involving permitted Edwards groundwater rights. Staff proposes a total payment of at least $17,334 and no more than $68,694 under the Mathis agreement. If directors approve the recommended motion, it would authorize the general manager to execute the agreement; the posted item is a proposal, not a board decision.
The Mathis item previously appeared on the Sept. 22 Permits/Enforcement Committee listing. Its placement on the Oct. 6 board agenda makes the board meeting the next stated decision point. This is the Mathis proposal identified in AI 13-3832; the listed parties and payment range are the useful identifiers for following its eventual disposition.
VISPO is intended to reduce irrigation pumping during severe drought and help maintain minimum flows at Comal and San Marcos springs. That purpose explains why the proposal matters beyond the agreement's parties: spring flow is part of the water system residents and river users experience. The item establishes the program's aim, while the payment range describes this proposed agreement; neither figure states how much this individual agreement would change spring flow.
Budget, water rights and other business
G.1 asks directors to consider 2027 legislative priorities. G.3 calls for presentation of the proposed 2027 operating budget and aquifer-management fee rates for public comment. Those are separate subjects from the Mathis agreement: the priorities concern the authority's legislative agenda, while the budget presentation gives the public a chance to address proposed spending and fee rates before a final budget decision. The meeting page identifies the subjects but supplies no adopted 2027 figures.
The consent portion lists approval of Sept. 8 board minutes as F.1. F.2 proposes a $1,160 payment to Kemp Smith for August legal services. F.3 lists a proposed Dos Ninas, LP irrigation-rights conversion. F.4 lists a proposed Gee Gee, LLC irrigation-rights conversion. These are listed for board consideration; their appearance together on the agenda does not establish that directors have approved the block or any individual request.
C.1 schedules general manager announcements on staffing, activities, legislative and program updates, and aquifer conditions. H.1 schedules a staff report on EAA recharge dams. H.2 schedules an Edwards Aquifer Conservancy quarterly report. The agenda also lists a closed-session notice covering legal, property, personnel and security matters. Reports and announcements can supply context for later decisions, but these listings alone do not record a new policy or a vote.
When to follow the decision
The Edwards Aquifer Authority Board of Directors is scheduled to meet Oct. 6, 2026, at 1 p.m. in the EAA Board Room. On Oct. 6, directors are scheduled to consider whether to authorize the general manager to execute the Mathis agreement. Readers can use the official Oct. 6 board meeting page to identify G.2, follow the proposed budget presentation and check later meeting records for the board's actual actions and public comments.