2023 Legislature: Water-Related Bills That Didn't Pass

These are the water-related bills that were presented at the 2023 legislative session but that failed to pass.

HB 188 (1st Substitute) - Golf Related Water Modifications

Rep. Douglas R. Welton

House Bill 188 (1st Substitute) would have required the owners and operators of golf courses and driving ranges to report annual water use data to the Division of Water Resources. The data would include the amount of water used for the operation and maintenance of the golf course and the sources of water used. The Division would publish the water use information on its website, and the golf course owners/operators would also have been required to publish the water use information on the golf course’s website. Utah State University would study and establish standards for the use of water on golf courses, and would report its findings to the legislature by June 2026. The bill would have provided up to $30 million in grants for golf courses to implement methods of efficiently using water and established a Golf Advisory Board to administer the grant program.

To read the full text of the bill, click here.

HB 272 (2nd Substitute) - Water Efficient Landscaping Amendments

Rep. Doug Owens

House Bill 277 (2nd Substitute) would have put landscaping limitations on new construction or reconstruction of properties owned by state agencies, cities, towns, counties, and districts. These entities would not be allowed to have more than 20% of the landscaped area be lawn or turf, would not be allowed to have lawn or turf in park strips or any other area less than eight feet with width, and would not be allowed to install overhead spray irrigation on any areas except for where lawn or turf was planted. An exception would be made for “active recreation areas” such as sports fields and parks.

To read the full text of the bill, click here.

HB 286 - Great Salt Lake Funding Modifications

Rep. Joel K. Briscoe

House Bill 286 would have modified where a percentage of sales tax proceeds are allocated. There is a 1/16% tax rate revenue that goes 20% to the Transportation Investment Fund and 80% to the Water Infrastructure Restricted Account. The bill would have 100% of this revenue go to the Great Salt Lake Account for fiscal years 2023 through 2028. 

To read the full text of the bill, click here.

HB 538 (3rd Substitute) - Water Usage Amendments

Rep. Doug Owens

House Bill 358 (3rd Substitute) would have required retail water suppliers and secondary water suppliers to enact ordinances prohibiting the use of culinary water or pressurized secondary water for the irrigation of lawn or turf in the Great Salt Lake Basin from October 1 until April 25, also known as the “shoulder season.” The bill also included requirements for certain large retail water providers and large secondary water providers to calculate the amount of water that otherwise would have been depleted during the prior shoulder season and then file an instream flow application to convey an equivalent amount of water to the Great Salt Lake, with some exceptions. The bill was later amended to remove the change application requirement but nevertheless raised questions about its legality and feasibility. Although the bill passed the House, it ultimately failed in the Senate on the final day of the session. Nevertheless, it is likely the bill’s concepts will be a topic for interim study and possible legislation in 2024.

To read the full text of the bill, click here.

HB 562 - Water Rights Inventory Requirements

Rep. Phil Lyman

House Bill 562 would have required all public water suppliers to file an annual “comprehensive inventory” with the Division of Water Rights. The inventory would include, at a minimum, a list of all water rights (and acre-foot amounts associated with each right) owned by the public water supplier, all water contracts (and acre-foot amounts associated with each contract) executed by the public water supplier; all water shares (and acre-foot amounts associated with each share) owned by the public water supplier, all water rights that the public water supplier has under approved nonuse status, all unapproved applications to appropriate water (and acre-feet associated with each application) filed by the public water supplier, and a breakdown of the inventory by surface water and underground water. The bill would also allow the Division of Water Rights to make rules to require additional information in the comprehensive inventory, including depletion amounts, unaccounted leakage water, evaporation, etc.

To read the full text of the bill, click here.

SB 280 - Bear Lake Preservation Amendments

Sen. Chris H. Wilson

Senate Bill 280 sought to address considerations for the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands regarding development of Bear Lake including coordination with other state agencies. Key considerations include preserving Bear Lake as “a natural lake [that] retains the basic form and inherent qualities” and the current and historical uses of Bear Lake. The bill would discourage developments that would utilize Bear Lake as a source for irrigation water.

To read the full text of the bill, click here.

SCR 6 - Concurrent Resolution Regarding the Great Salt Lake Elevation Targets

Sen. Nate Blouin

Senate Concurrent Resolution 6 relates to the Great Salt Lake, its current status, all of the benefits that it brings to Utah, and to encourage Utah to rally to commit to bringing it back to its optimal level. Specifically, the concurrent resolution noted that scientific studies state that the lower end of the Great Salt Lake’s optimal water level elevation is 4,198 feet in elevation and that the Great Salt Lake would need between 4 and 6 million acre-feet to return to 4,198 feet in elevation. The resolution hoped to establish raising the Great Salt Lake’s elevation from its current elevation, reported to be at 4190.4 feet in elevation, to 4,198 feet in elevation as the State’s official goal and that the State would adopt policies, funding, and incentives to achieve this goal.

To read the full text of the bill, click here.