Hill Country drought stages and well restrictions
When drought hits, your groundwater district sets the rules. Here is how the stages work, what each one requires, and where the Hill Country districts stand now.
By mid-June 2026, spring rains had eased all seven of our counties to "None" on the US Drought Monitor. But groundwater drought stages, which lag surface rain, stayed elevated across most of the Hill Country. Here is the most recent confirmable stage for each district we serve:
| District | County | Stage | As of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cow Creek GCD | Kendall | Stage 3 | in effect since mid-2025 |
| Hill Country UWCD | Gillespie | Stage 4 (Critical) | as of spring 2026 |
| Hays Trinity GCD | Hays (western) | Emergency | since 2024, still in effect 2026 |
| Blanco-Pedernales GCD | Blanco | Stage 3 (Severe) | as of April 2026 |
| Bandera County RA & GD | Bandera | Moderate | as of June 2026 |
| Headwaters GCD | Kerr | Check current stage | may have eased after spring rain |
| Comal Trinity GCD | Comal | Check current stage | district links to the Drought Monitor |
We also drill across a wider stretch of the Hill Country. Here is where those districts stand, with a link to each one's guide:
| District | County | Stage | As of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Texas GCD | Burnet | Stage 2 (Moderate) | eased from Stage 3 in May 2026 |
| Real-Edwards C&RD | Real & Edwards | Stage 4 (Extreme) | in effect June 2026 |
| Trinity Glen Rose GCD | Bexar (north) | Stage 3 | since Nov 2024, still in effect |
| Southwestern Travis County GCD | Travis (western) | D-3 (Extreme) | since Feb 2026 |
| Uvalde County UWCD | Uvalde | No staged framework | monitoring based, voluntary |
| Medina County GCD | Medina | No staged framework | Edwards wells fall under the EAA |
| Hickory UWCD No. 1 | Mason | No staged framework | no mandatory cutbacks in its rules |
Drought stages change by Board action. This reflects the most recent dated information as of June 2026; always confirm the current stage on your district's own drought page before you rely on it.
Who sets the rules: your groundwater district
For a private well, the authority that matters is your groundwater conservation district. Each one declares its own drought stages based on aquifer levels, monitor wells, and in some cases river flow, and each stage carries its own rules. This is separate from any city water utility's restrictions, which apply to that utility's customers, not to your well.
Exempt wells versus permitted wells
The single most important thing to understand is which kind of well you have, because the rules are very different. (Our guide to permits versus registration explains the distinction in full.)
- Exempt household and livestock wells are generally not subject to mandatory percentage cutbacks. You are asked to conserve, and you may face limits on which days and hours you can water outdoors, but there is no enforced volume reduction on your home well.
- Permitted, non-exempt wells (municipal, public-supply, irrigation, and commercial) face mandatory percentage reductions that tighten with each stage, enforced through their permits.
How the stages escalate
The details vary by district, but the pattern is consistent. As a representative example, the Headwaters district (Kerr County) sets mandatory reductions for permitted users at 10 percent in Stage 1, 20 percent in Stage 2, 30 percent in Stage 3, and 40 percent in Stage 4, with outdoor irrigation limited to fewer days and to overnight hours as the stage climbs. Other districts use four or five stages with similar steps. At the deepest stages, non-essential outdoor use, filling pools or ponds and washing pavement, is typically banned outright.
Year-round conservation
Several common-sense rules apply across districts even outside a declared emergency, and they become enforceable limits as stages escalate:
- Water outdoors only in the cool hours, commonly overnight to mid-morning, to cut evaporation.
- Limit irrigation days; many districts suggest no more than one day a week as a baseline.
- Fix leaks promptly. A running toilet or a dripping line wastes hundreds of gallons a day from a stressed well.
- Run dishwashers and washing machines only when full, use shut-off nozzles on hoses, and skip washing driveways.
What a well owner should do in a drought
- Do not run a struggling well dry. Pumping air can damage the pump. If your well sputters or loses pressure, see your options when a well runs low.
- Consider storage. A storage tank lets a slower well keep up by building a reserve, which is a real advantage in a dry year.
- Understand the bigger picture. See why levels are low on our Trinity Aquifer page.
- Check your district's current stage on its official drought page, linked from our district guide.
Frequently asked questions
Who sets water restrictions on my well in the Hill Country?
Your local groundwater conservation district, not the city. Each district declares its own drought stages based on aquifer levels, monitor wells, and river flow, and those stages set the rules for wells in that district. A nearby town's water utility may have its own restrictions, but for a private well it is your district's stage that applies. Find yours on our groundwater district guide.
Do drought restrictions apply to my exempt household well?
Mostly through watering limits, not mandatory cutbacks. Exempt domestic and livestock wells are generally not subject to the mandatory percentage reductions that permitted, non-exempt wells face. You are asked to conserve, and you may face limits on outdoor watering days and hours, but the enforced volume cutbacks fall on municipal, public-supply, and irrigation permit holders.
What do the different drought stages require?
It escalates by stage. A typical Hill Country district moves from a roughly 10 percent reduction for permitted users at Stage 1 up to 40 percent or more at the most severe stage, with outdoor watering progressively limited to fewer days and overnight hours, and a ban on non-essential use like filling pools or washing pavement at the deepest stages. The exact percentages and rules vary by district, so check your district's drought plan.
If the drought map says None, why is my district still in a drought stage?
Because the two measure different things. The US Drought Monitor tracks surface conditions, which recover quickly after rain. Groundwater districts track aquifer levels, which lag surface rainfall by months to years. In 2026 the surface drought cleared while aquifer levels, and therefore district drought stages, stayed elevated. We explain that gap on our Trinity Aquifer page.
Drought stressing your well?
We help Hill Country homeowners ride out dry years, with honest advice on storage, pump depth, and what your well can really do. Reach out anytime.