B737-300 LANDED WITH 4100 LBS OF FUEL. MINIMUM FUEL IS 3700 LBS. FLC TOLD ATC THEY HAD MINIMUM FUEL WITHOUT EXPLAINING THAT THEY STILL HAD LEGAL FUEL BUT WERE GETTING SHORT. ATC DECLARED AN EMER FOR THEM. FAA WANTED TO STICK THE TANKS.

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THE FLT RELEASE FROM PIT TO SNA SHOWED ARR FUEL OF 5000 LBS WITH NO ALTERNATE. RESERVE FUEL WAS 3700 LBS WHICH PROVIDED US WITH 45 MINS OF FLYING TIME. DUE TO STRONGER THAN FORECAST WINDS; WE ANTICIPATED ARRIVING AT SNA VERY CLOSE TO OUR RESERVE FUEL REQUIREMENT OF 3700 LBS. WE INFORMED OUR DISPATCHER OF THE STRONG WINDS AND ARR FUEL THROUGH ACARS MESSAGES AND POS RPTS. THE DISPATCHER SENT US A MESSAGE INDICATING THAT WE SHOULD EXPECT NO ATC DELAYS INTO SNA. THE WX WAS EXCELLENT. I ASSUMED THAT OUR DISPATCHER PHONED AHEAD TO SOCAL APCH CTL TO DETERMINE IF THERE WERE ANY POSSIBLE ATC DELAYS. AFTER DETERMINING THAT THERE WOULD BE NO DELAYS; HE THEN SENT US AN ACARS MESSAGE INDICATING SO. WHILE ON THE KAYOH 3 ARR NE OF THE DAWNA INTXN; APCH CTL GAVE US A CLRNC DIRECT TO THE SNAKE INTXN ON THE RWY 19R ILS FOR SNA. (WE HAD NOT YET MENTIONED ANY MINIMUM FUEL CONDITION TO ATC.) THE CAPT SAID TO ATC; 'YOU MUST HAVE KNOWN WE WERE COMING;' AND THEN HE ADVISED ATC OF OUR MINIMUM FUEL STATUS. AT THIS POINT WE HAD 4800 LBS OF FUEL ON BOARD. WE CHANGED FREQS TO THE FINAL APCH CTLR. THIS CTLR ASKED US FOR OUR REMAINING FUEL IN MINS. THE CAPT SAID 45 MINS. THE REMAINING APCH AND LNDG WAS UNEVENTFUL. UPON TAXI TO THE GATE; WE WERE INFORMED BY OUR OPS THAT THE FAA HAD CALLED AND ASKED THAT WE NOT FUEL THE ACFT UNTIL THEY ARRIVE TO VISUALLY INSPECT THE GAUGES. WE ARRIVED AT THE GATE WITH 4100 LBS OF FUEL. I FOUND THE FAA'S REQUEST TO BE IRREGULAR. BECAUSE OF AN ANTICIPATED LENGTHY WAIT FOR THE FAA OFFICIALS; SOME PHONE CALLS WERE MADE AND WE WERE ALLOWED TO FUEL THE ACFT TO AVOID DELAYING THE OUTBOUND FLT.