CA AB2528

Allows landowners in Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare Counties with critically overdrafted water basins to petition for cancellation of Williamson Act contracts if land lacks permanent water access for commercial agriculture and would be used for renewable energy projects (solar, wind, energy storage, or transmission lines).

Requires county boards or councils to approve cancellation only if they find the land lacks sufficient permanent water access for viable irrigated agriculture and the proposed energy project would use less water than current agricultural use.

Imposes a 6.25% cancellation fee on fair market value for Williamson Act contracts and 12.5% for farmland security zone contracts, collected by county treasurers and allocated to the state Department of Conservation and county community benefits packages.

Requires landowners to notify relevant groundwater sustainability agencies when starting cancellation petitions and upon completion, and mandates energy projects provide community benefits packages including local employment, water services, and electricity discounts.

Prohibits cancellation from preventing boards or councils from designating energy projects as compatible uses on contracted land or from precluding voluntary participation in the Department of Conservation's Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program.