Dry January wasn’t just a sober month for people looking to start the year out on a healthy note, it also pretty accurately describes California’s precipitation levels so far in 2026.

The state’s Department of Water Resources on Friday conducted the second snow survey of the rainy season at dozens of locations in the Sierra Nevada and found that the snowpack is 59% of average for this date.

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Kiley Russell writes primarily for Local News Matters on issues related to equity and the environment. A Bay Area native, he has lived most of his life in Oakland. He studied journalism at San Francisco State University, worked for the Associated Press and the former Contra Costa Times, among other outlets. He has covered everything from state legislatures, local governments, federal and state courts, crime, growth and development, political campaigns of various stripes, wildfires and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.