tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49100718187480064792024-03-18T10:03:01.523-06:00Utah Water Law and Water RightsA blog written by a Utah water rights lawyer with recent case law summaries, legislative updates, and informative articles about Utah water law.Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.comBlogger355125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-45526355703310237412024-03-18T10:02:00.001-06:002024-03-18T10:02:19.018-06:002024 Legislature - Water Bills That Passed<p>There was a long list of water-related bills that were passed during the 2024 session of the Utah Legislature. Below are bills summaries (drafted by the water attorneys at Smith Hartvigsen) about these bills that passed.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 11 (2nd Substitute) – Water Efficient Landscaping
Requirements<br /></b>Rep. Doug Owens</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 11 (2nd Substitute) mandates that certain
government entities in the Great Salt Lake Basin will not use overhead spray
irrigation of a new construction or reconstruction’s landscaped area after May
1, 2024. Despite this restriction, this bill does not restrict overhead spray
irrigation on the following land uses: sports fields, parks, amphitheaters,
golf courses (including driving ranges and putting greens), cemeteries, and
social gathering areas. This bill does not authorize a municipality or county
to impose landscaping requirements on school district entities. The purpose of
this bill is to send the message that the government is committed to conserving
water that can then be used for the Great Salt Lake. This bill is the product
of the Legislative Water Development Commission examining and retooling the
2023 Legislative Session’s failed HB 272 (Water Efficient Landscaping
Amendments), as it was not examined by the Commission prior to the 2023
Legislative Session.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0011.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 42 – Water Rights Publication Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Joel K. Briscoe</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 42 amends Utah Code section 73-3-6, which
addresses the State Engineer’s publication of notice of application to
appropriate or change application. The bill allows the State Engineer to
confirm a newspaper's publication of a notice of application through electronic
means.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0042.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 57- Snake Valley Aquifer Advisory Council Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Walt Brooks</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 57 dissolves the Snake Valley Aquifer Advisory
Council by repealing the entirety of Title 63C, Chapter 12 of the Utah Code.
The Council was originally established by the legislature in 2009, primarily to
deal with the Snake Valley water right filings made by the Southern Nevada
Water Authority. Because the SNWA water right filings are now a moot issue, the
Council is no longer needed. The bill also removes references to the Council
from other sections in the Code. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0057.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 61 - Water Measuring and Accounting Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Carl R. Albrecht</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 61 amends Utah Code sections 73-1-21 and 73-2-1.
Section 73-1-21 addresses Utah’s overall water policy and section 73-2-1
outlines the State Engineer's powers and duties and the qualifications for
those duties. The bill modifies the state water policy to allow for the use of
telemetry in water data collection and permits the State Engineer to make rules
governing telemetry and water distribution accounting. Finally, the bill also
removes outdated language regarding rulemaking authority on preferences of
water rights under Section 73-3-21.5, which was repealed in 2023.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0061.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 62 (1st Substitute) - Utah Water Ways Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Doug Owens</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 62 (1st Substitute) amends Utah Code section
79-2-408 to add an additional method for educating the public about water
issues. Specifically, the bill permits Utah Water Ways to coordinate with the
State Board of Education to implement resources and development opportunities
to select grades in kindergarten through grade twelve of the public school
system. These education opportunities may not include information on
human-caused climate change. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0062.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 206 - Columbia Interstate Compact Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Thomas W. Peterson</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 206 withdraws Utah’s ratification of the Columbia
Interstate Compact and repealed several Utah Code sections relating to the
Compact. The Compact was never ratified by the other states, so there is no
reason for Utah’s ratification to remain in place.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0206.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 249 - Utah Legal Personhood Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Walt Brooks</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 249 prohibits Utah governmental entities,
including courts, the Legislature, and other entities with adjudicatory or
rulemaking authority, from granting or recognizing legal personhood in
artificial intelligence, inanimate objects, bodies of water, land, real
property, atmospheric gases, astronomical objects, weather, plants, and
nonhuman animals or other taxa. While the list of creatures and things that
cannot receive legal personhood is diverse, the impetus of the bill is a trend
in some other states and countries to claim legal personhood for animals or
bodies of water. Groups such as Save Our Great Salt Lake spoke against the
bill, as it would foreclose the possibility of granting or recognizing
personhood in the Great Salt Lake.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0249.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 275 (2nd Substitute) - Water Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Casey Snider</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 275 (2nd Substitute) amends Utah Code section
57-8a-231 so that HOAs cannot require a property owner to install or keep lawn
or turf. The bill also amends Utah Code section 73-5-8 to require first class
cities and water conservancy districts within the Great Salt Lake watershed to
provide water use data “electronically in a particular format” to the Division
of Water Rights. Finally, the bill amends Utah Code section 73-10-34.5
regarding who may receive a State grant for water meter projects. The law previously
required secondary water providers to meter every connection, but allowed for
some secondary water providers to only meter at strategic points instead of
metering every connection. The law provided three circumstances under which a
secondary water provider only had to meter at strategic points. In two of the
circumstances, however, the secondary water provider was not eligible to
receive State grants to install the meters. This bill allows the grants to go
to a secondary water provider under any of the three circumstances. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0275.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 280 (5th Substitute) - Water Related Changes<br /></b>Rep. Casey Snider</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 280 (5th Substitute) changes how Utah funds water
infrastructure projects. Under the bill, “relevant agencies” with water-related
missions, such as the Divisions of Water Resources, Drinking Water, and Water
Quality, among others, will develop annual water infrastructure plans beginning
on June 30, 2025, that will describe needed water projects that fall within
their jurisdiction. Once adopted, these relevant agencies will submit their
plans to Utah’s Water Development Coordinating Council, which consists of
representatives from the Division of Water Resources, the Water Quality Board,
the Drinking Water Board, the Housing and Community Development Division, the
Treasurer’s office, the Department of Agriculture and Food, and, as amended by
HB 280, an individual appointed by the governor with the consent of the Senate
who is employed by a water conservancy district with asset management
obligations. Using the plans submitted by the relevant agencies, the Council
will then develop a “unified water infrastructure plan,” that will identify
water projects needed to “maintain the reliable supply of safe and clean
water.” The Council will adopt the first unified plan by March 1, 2026, which
it will update at least every four years. Once created, the Division of Water
Resources will be required to reference the unified plan in the state water
plan. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Council will also work in consultation with the relevant
agencies to develop a written process for ranking and prioritizing water
infrastructure projects that are or will be funded with state money beginning
in fiscal year 2027. This process will also include several criteria requiring
consideration of hardships, the public interest (including conservation and the
protection of public health and safety), the use of state funding to match
federal funding, and local entity consultation. H.B. 280 also requires the
Council to seek and consider public input in developing the prioritization
process. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The bill further requires the Utah Division of Water
Resources to study and make several recommendations by October 31, 2024,
regarding: (1) which funds or accounts used to finance water infrastructure
projects should be tied to the planning and prioritization process; (2) whether
any funds or accounts should be consolidated; and (3) whether changes to the
membership of the Council are needed. In addition, by October 31, 2025, the
Division will make recommendations about whether to impose a new fee to fund water
infrastructure projects identified in the unified water infrastructure
projects, including who will pay the fee, how the fee will be calculated and
collected, where the generated revenue will be deposited, whether the fee
should be a tax, how the revenue should be spent, the affordability for end
users, and how to ensure revenue is distributed equitably statewide. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To help fund these efforts, the bill creates a new “Water
Infrastructure Fund” to provide money to help pay for the Council’s water
infrastructure prioritization activities, the studies H.B. 280 requires, and to
provide loans and grants for projects prioritized in the unified water
infrastructure plan. The fund will consist of appropriations from the
Legislature, money received from the federal government, grants and donations
from the public, and loan repayments. The State Treasurer will invest money in
the fund and interest and earnings from those investments will be deposited
into the fund.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0280.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 295 - Produced Water Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Steven J. Lund</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 295 came from the oil and gas industry. Many oil
and gas wells also produce water, thus the term “produced water.” Due to the
great depths where oil and gas are found in Utah, the produced water is
brackish and is considered a waste product by the oil and gas producer.
However, in Utah, “all waters of this state, whether above or under the ground,
are declared to be public, subject to the existing rights to the use thereof.”
Utah Code Ann. § 73-1-1(1). Thus, under current law, to make any beneficial use
of produced water would require a water right issued by the State Engineer.
One beneficial use of produced water gaining popularity is to reinject the
water back into the oil and gas bearing strata under high pressure, in the
process of hydraulic fracturing, or as it is commonly
known, “fracking.” Fracking is widely used in Utah’s oil and gas
fields to increase production, most commonly in the production of natural gas.
The fractures created free gas from the rock. Under current law a water right
is needed to use produced water for fracking, which is a beneficial use of
water. The alternative is to purchase municipal water for fracking.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Beginning May 1, 2024, the bill creates an exception
for produced water which will no longer be subject to administration and
control by the State Engineer or Utah’s Water Code (Title 73). Instead,
produced water will be governed by Title 40, Chapter 12 of the Utah Code. Title
40 addresses mining and authorizes the Board of Oil, Gas, and Mining
(“Board’) to govern production of oil and gas. Under new Chapter 12,
rather than the State Engineer, the Board will regulate the nonconsumptive
beneficial use of produced water. The nonconsumptive use of produced water
will be neither an appropriation nor waste of water. No water right will
be needed to put produced water to any nonconsumptive beneficial use.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Disposal of produced water and fracking are already
regulated by the Board under Utah Code section 40-6-5 and Rule R649. This new
law will consolidate the regulation of produced water by the Board. Limiting
the use of produced water without a water right to nonconsumptive use is
intended to avoid abuse of this exemption from water right regulation and
provides an important “sideboard” or “guard rail” to protect water users. A
larger concern for the water community is whether this exemption is simply an isolated
encroachment or is the first step of a slippery slope of future exemptions from
water right regulations. If it is the former, creation of this exception will
create little impact on water right holders and users. However, if this is
simply the first of such exceptions, the regulation of water under Title 73 and
by the State Engineer may become compromised.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0295.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 453 (4th Substitute) - Great Salt Lake Revisions<br /></b>Rep. Casey Snider</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 453 (4th Substitute) directs the State Engineer
to develop a distribution management plan by October 1, 2025, for “Great Salt
Lake water rights,” which the bill defines as “a water right that allows for
the diversion of surface water or groundwater from a point below the Great Salt
Lake meander line and that contemplates the recovery of salts or another
mineral or element.” In other words, the distribution management plan will
focus on water rights used in mineral extraction within Great Salt Lake and
will not focus on water rights used for other purposes that have points of
diversion upstream of Great Salt Lake. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Through the plan, the State Engineer will establish
requirements for the measurement, quantification, and reporting of diversions,
depletions, and return flows associated with extractive water rights in the
Lake in accordance with “the principles of prior appropriation and multiple use
sustained yield.” </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To accompany the plan, the bill requires the State Engineer
to establish a priority schedule that apportions extractive water rights based
on their relative priority to one another, as well as an apportionment schedule
and distribution accounting tool. The bill also requires the State Engineer to
prohibit extractive rights from diverting water rights that the Divisions of
Wildlife; State Parks; and Forestry, Fire and State Lands deliver to Great Salt
Lake under Utah’s instream flow statute, Utah Code section 73-3-30. In adopting
the plan, the State Engineer may allow water users to participate in voluntary
arrangements that compensate or mitigate for the use of extractive
rights. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In addition to the plan, the bill increases the severance
tax on operators from 2.6% to 7.8%, with some exceptions. Among other things,
it also requires the royalty agreements issued by the Division of Forestry,
Fire and State Lands to include standards to protect Great Salt Lake and will
require extraction companies to measure their water use and test and report the
salinity of any water they discharge. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0453.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 18 (1st Substitute) - Water Modifications<br /></b>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 18 (1st Subsitute) is a follow-up to Senate Bill
277, a bill passed late in the 2023 Legislative Session, which allowed water
users who install agricultural water optimization projects to file applications
with the Division of Water Rights to put the “saved water”—the now-excess water
which was diverted and consumed under the more wasteful irrigation system—to
another beneficial use. SB 18 clarifies the definition of saved water as well
as the administrative procedures to secure its separate use and protect it from
forfeiture. It also clarifies that saved water cannot increase the depletion of
the underlying water right.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0018.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 39 - Water Shareholder Amendments<br /></b>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 39 amends Utah Code section 73-3-3.5 regarding
shareholder change applications. Previously, if a shareholder filed a proposed
change application with a water company, the water company had 120 days to
respond if it was a permanent change application and 60 days to respond if it
was a temporary change application. Now, a water company has 120 days to
respond, irrespective of whether the change application is permanent or
temporary. The bill also has some minor clean-up language, which mainly clarifies
when the term “it” in the statute is referring to a water company or to a
court</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0039.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 77 - Water Rights Restricted Account Amendments<br /></b>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 77 modifies the purposes for which money in the
Water Rights Restricted Account may be used. The bill adds that the Division of
Water Rights may use the Account to pay for installing, operating, and
maintaining water measurement infrastructure and for sharing in the costs of
installing stream gauges (with the U.S. Geological Survey).</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0077.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 125 (1st Substitute) - Secondary Water Amendments<br /></b>Sen. David P. Hinkins</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 125 (1st Substitute) clarifies the secondary
water metering requirements that have been imposed by the legislature in the
past couple of years. Specifically, it states that secondary water suppliers in
the Great Salt Lake Basin do not need to meter every connection but must meter
at strategic points, even if they have fewer than 1,000 connections. The bill
does not define what a “strategic point” is, but states that secondary water
suppliers must submit an application with the State Engineer regarding where it
believes the strategic points are, and that that State Engineer will review and
approve where the strategic points are that must be metered. Senate Bill 125
goes into effect on May 1, 2024.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0125.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 145 (2nd Substitute) - Utility Easement Amendments<br /></b>Sen. Daniel McCay</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 145 (2nd Substitute) creates a statewide
association to manage requests to utility operators to mark utility facilities
before any excavation. An excavator must provide notice to a utility operator
before beginning any excavation and if damage occurs, the excavator must
contact the utility operator and stop work immediately. Senate Bill 145’s new
association will overlap with the already-created blue stakes, but the new
association is more focused on reviewing the design process and how it will affect
utility operators. Senate Bill 145 goes into effect on May 1, 2024.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0145.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 211 (1st Substitute) - Generational Water
Infrastructure Amendments<br /></b>Sen. Stuart Adams</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 211 (1st Substitute), which was sponsored by
Speaker Schultz in the House, creates the Water District Water Development
Council comprised of the four largest water conservancy districts in Utah—Weber
Basin, Jordan Valley, Central Utah, and Washington County—and the Director of
the Division of Water Rights. The new council is tasked with planning for
“generational water infrastructure” within the four districts’ service areas
and reporting their findings and recommendations annually to the Governor and Legislature.
The council cannot establish policy for the state, control money to fund water
infrastructure, or own or operate water infrastructure. The bill also creates a
new state officer, the “Utah water agent,” who is appointed by the Governor to
a six-year term with the advice and consent of the Senate. Outside of the Bear
River and Colorado River drainages, the Utah water agent assumes the
responsibilities previously assigned to the Board of Water Resources to
represent Utah in interstate negotiations. In particular, the Utah water agent
is responsible for exploring and negotiating opportunities for interstate water
importation projects. The bill was appropriated $3 million in one-time funding
and $1 million per year in ongoing funding. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0211.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 242 - Utah Lake Modifications<br /></b>Sen. Michael K. McKell</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 242 repeals the Utah Lake Restoration Act (Title
65A, Chapter 15 of the Utah Code). The Restoration Act was originally passed in
2018 and allowed for the possibility of the State to exchange public land for
restoration purposes. The bill also removes a reference to the Restoration Act
in the current Utah Lake Authority Act, which was passed in 2022.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0242.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 270 (1st Substitute) - Utah Lake and Great Salt Lake
Study Amendments<br /></b>Sen. Curtis S. Bramble</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 270 (1st Substitute) enacts Utah Code section
65A-10-5, which mandates the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands to
conduct a study to enhance the benefits associated with Utah Lake. The Division
will examine, among other things, improving the clarity and quality of the
water, conserving water resources, removing invasive species, restoring and
conserving native fish and other aquatic species, and increasing the
suitability for shore birds and waterfowl. The study is to be completed no
later than November 1, 2025, and report the findings to the Natural Resources,
Agriculture, and Environment Interim Committee. The bill appropriates $1.5
million from the general fund to pay for the study. It also amends Utah Code
section 63I-1-265 to state the Utah Lake Study legislation will be repealed on
July 1, 2027. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0118.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-90643492509175777132024-03-18T09:52:00.001-06:002024-03-18T09:52:09.440-06:002024 Legislature - Water Bills That Did Not Pass<p></p><p class="MsoNormal">There were a number of water-related bills that were considered during the 2024 legislative session that were ultimately not passed. Below are bill summaries (drafted by the water attorneys at Smith Hartvigsen) about these bills that did not pass.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 230 - State Agency Application Review Requirements<br /></b>Rep. Thomas W. Peterson</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 230 sought to put time limitations on decisions
made by agencies within the Utah Department of Natural Resources, including the
Utah Division of Water Rights. For example, the bill would have required the
Division of Water Rights to issue an Order on a Change Application within 30
days after the protest period ended. Similar timelines would also have been
required on other water filings, including Exchange Applications, Nonuse
Applications, Reports of Conveyance, Extension Requests, and Proofs of Beneficial
Use. If the Division had failed to issue an Order within the timeframe, the
filing would have been considered approved.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0230.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 242 (2nd Substitute) - Water Usage Data Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Melissa G. Ballard</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 242 (2nd Substitute) would have required the Utah
Division of Water Resources to study the water use of Utah’s public schools,
including charter schools, in the more populous counties. The Division would
have to complete the study by October 1, 2025. The results of the study were to
include recommendations of actions that schools can take to reduce water use
and recommendations to the legislature regarding whether schools should be
required to provide annual reports of water use to the Division. The bill would
have provided a mechanism for schools and school districts to purchase smart
irrigation controllers. Finally, the bill would have required all State
agencies to report their annual water use data to the Division beginning in
2027.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0242.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 243 (4th Substitute) - Riparian Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Gay Lynn Bennion</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The original draft of HB 243 would have required counties
and municipalities to include a riparian area element in their general plans
beginning in 2029. It also would have created a riparian resources database and
provided technical assistance in the development of the required plans. Due to
concerns about implementation costs and the protection of private property
rights, the bill’s regulatory requirements and scope were pared back
substantially in successive substitutes to the bill. Ultimately, the 4th Substitute
was defeated on the House floor. Rep. Bennion has expressed an intent to
continue working with stakeholders in the interim period to introduce another
riparian bill in the 2025 Legislature.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0243.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 401 - Water Usage Amendments<br /></b>Rep. Doug Owens</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 401 was a significant retooling of legislation
run by Rep. Owens in the 2023 Legislative Session. The bill would have
prohibited the irrigation of lawn or turf in most of northern Utah from October
1 to April 30—the so-called “shoulder seasons.” Violations would have resulted
in a fine of at least $50 for the first violation and $100 for successive
violations. The bill included exceptions for newly planted sod or grass seed.
The Division of Water Rights would have been required to produce an annual “good
faith estimate” of water savings from restricting shoulder season irrigation.
The bill was on a committee agenda in mid-February, but was not considered in
that meeting and never resurfaced during the session. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0401.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HJR 27 - Water Efficient Landscaping for New Construction<br /></b>Rep. Doug Owens</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Joint Resolution 27 recognized the low water level in
the Great Salt Lake and the need for conservation in order to help restore the
Great Salt Lake. This resolution specifically detailed that landscaping
techniques that use less water is an appropriate solution and requested that
municipalities and counties adopt water efficiency standards and promote water
efficient landscaping. If House Joint Resolution 27 had passed, it would not
have been a requirement for municipalities and counties to have water efficient
landscaping or water efficiency standards but would have only a suggestion from
the legislature. This resolution seems to have not passed as the Utah
legislature appears to be much more focused on providing incentives for water
conservation instead of mandating conservation or even the appearance of
mandating conservation. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HJR027.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 118 (4th Substitute) - Water Efficiency Amendments<br /></b>Sen. Michael K. McKell</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 118 (4th Substitute) sought to provide
incentives for developers to use water efficient landscaping in new residential
developments in the Great Salt Lake Basin. In order to receive any incentives,
the district where the residential development would be located needed to
request grant money from the Division of Water Resources and provide the
Division with a new construction landscaping incentive program. Districts that
obtained grants could then disperse grant money to new residential construction
projects in accordance with rules set by the Division of Water Resources.
Although this bill did not pass, it was extensively worked on and amended. In
order to promote conservation, the Utah legislature seems to be focused on
providing incentives for conservation instead of requiring conservation through
mandates. It would not be surprising if a similar bill is presented in next
year’s legislative session.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0118.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 203 (1st Substitute) - Drinking Water Amendments<br /></b>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</p><p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 203 proposed to enact Utah Code section 19-4-116
to permit the Department of Environmental Quality to establish and implement an
annual fee on a public water system in the state for the direct delivery of
water to an end user for human consumption and other domestic uses, on a per
connection or consumption basis; implement a reasonable fee for plan review;
and implement a reasonable fee for a public water system sanitary survey. These
may all include fees that provide financial incentives for certain public and
community water systems, except for wholesale water suppliers. The department
would retain the fees as dedicated credits and use the fees to administer the
regulation of public water systems, under monitoring from the Office of the
Legislative Fiscal Analyst.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0203.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</o:p></p><br /><p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-73392369767563314472024-03-15T09:19:00.001-06:002024-03-18T09:21:09.523-06:00Podcast - 2024 Legislative Recap<p><span face="Verdana, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 13px;">I was a guest on the Ripple Effect podcast to talk about some of the water-related bills passed (and did not pass) during the 2024 session of the Utah Legislature. To listen to the podcast, </span><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/154-2024-legislative-recap/id1511225977?i=1000649266690" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" target="_blank">click here</a><span face="Verdana, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 13px;">.<br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijE30jZ8CtzG-ISD6JidAjFPMiLxXR58BtkIZarMLYx_3s1-cjVGnFZgr0htnag8LTKclKdYGu-au2ZHb0idAMZDmoMPJrj5wIeGSGW1Rocnm5WPpzNZ9l1qCy9rmjGoAHKVNmqnefzPv2rhKgMw5lQebPbzwpqqJ7LfcLZLr83mAJgAIwhxqPOG_-K_w/s1236/Screenshot%202024-03-18%20091717.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="402" data-original-width="1236" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijE30jZ8CtzG-ISD6JidAjFPMiLxXR58BtkIZarMLYx_3s1-cjVGnFZgr0htnag8LTKclKdYGu-au2ZHb0idAMZDmoMPJrj5wIeGSGW1Rocnm5WPpzNZ9l1qCy9rmjGoAHKVNmqnefzPv2rhKgMw5lQebPbzwpqqJ7LfcLZLr83mAJgAIwhxqPOG_-K_w/w400-h130/Screenshot%202024-03-18%20091717.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span face="Verdana, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-88794196869253176832024-01-19T09:17:00.001-07:002024-03-18T09:18:41.648-06:00Podcast - 2024 Legislative Preview<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">I was a guest on the Ripple Effect podcast to talk about some of the water-related bills that will be considered at the 2024 session of the Utah Legislature. To listen to the podcast, </span><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/146-2024-legislative-preview/id1511225977?i=1000642202114" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" target="_blank">click here</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia50Dqxfhzmr4ycgSMLgrQxe7lL8Crbtx0CvUUcLf4UVTgKOI4e2ReNpDpgo_Mgb5xjpYE7C1KlJPQgq895JfdcK7yZaur-ymgREyDU1MLskU8B8QAcdztnwql86CPfQkspoanrIThP9YoZmGrPc3bWFtqNTCs-sbZ9G4yOw0eHyJbnpqrZcPQvHM_sXY/s1243/Screenshot%202024-03-18%20091717.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="1243" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia50Dqxfhzmr4ycgSMLgrQxe7lL8Crbtx0CvUUcLf4UVTgKOI4e2ReNpDpgo_Mgb5xjpYE7C1KlJPQgq895JfdcK7yZaur-ymgREyDU1MLskU8B8QAcdztnwql86CPfQkspoanrIThP9YoZmGrPc3bWFtqNTCs-sbZ9G4yOw0eHyJbnpqrZcPQvHM_sXY/w400-h130/Screenshot%202024-03-18%20091717.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-14730190451553924012024-01-13T20:28:00.001-07:002024-01-13T20:34:29.548-07:002024 Legislative Preview<p>The 2024 general session of the Utah Legislature begins next week. Here is a summary of the water-related bills that have been released so far. As the session goes along, additional water bills will certainly be added.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 11 - Water Efficient Landscaping Requirements<br /></u>Rep. Doug Owens</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0011.html" target="_blank">House Bill 11</a> mandates that after May 1, 2024 certain
government entities in the Great Salt Lake Basin will not use grass or turf in
more than 20% the landscaped area of a new construction or reconstruction of a
building or facility. Despite this restriction, this bill does not consider the
following type of grass or turf uses to be included in the 20% limitation: land
for sporting purposes, parks, amphitheaters, golf courses (including driving
ranges and putting greens), cemeteries, retention basins, and other areas that
use grass and turf for a special use. This bill also authorizes a municipality
or county to impose landscaping requirements on state government facilities or
require certain government entities to obtain approval for their landscaping.
The purpose of this bill is to conserve water that then can be used for the
Great Salt Lake and other conservation needs. This bill is the product of the
Legislative Water Development Commission examining and retooling the 2023
Legislative Session’s failed HB 272 (Water Efficient Landscaping Amendments),
as it was not examined by the Legislative Water Development Commission prior to
the 2023 Legislative Session. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0011.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 42 - Water Rights Publication Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Joel K. Briscoe</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0042.html" target="_blank">House Bill 42</a> proposes amending <a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title73/Chapter3/73-3-S6.html" target="_blank">Utah Code section 73-3-6</a>,
which addresses the State Engineer’s publication of notices of Applications to
Appropriate, <a href="https://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2009/06/what-is-change-application.html" target="_blank">Change Applications</a>, and other filings. The bill would allow the
State Engineer to confirm the publication of a notice of application through
electronic means.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0042.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 57 – Snake Valley Aquifer Advisory Council Amendments<br /></u></b><b>(Rep. Walt Brooks)</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0057.html" target="_blank">House Bill 57</a> dissolves the Snake Valley Aquifer Advisory Council by repealing the entirety of Title 63C, Chapter 12 of the Utah Code. The Council was originally established by the legislature in 2009, primarily to deal with the Snake Valley water right filings made by the Southern Nevada Water Authority. Because the SNWA water right filings are now a moot issue, the Council is no longer needed. The bill also removes references to the Council from other sections in the Code.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0057.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 61 - Water Measuring and Accounting Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Carl R. Albrecht</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0061.html" target="_blank">House Bill 61</a> proposes amending Utah Code sections 73-1-21
and 73-2-1. Section <a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title73/Chapter1/73-1-S21.html" target="_blank">73-1-21</a> addresses Utah’s overall water policy and section
<a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title73/Chapter2/73-2-S1.html" target="_blank">73-2-1</a> outlines the State Engineer's powers and duties and the qualifications
for those duties. The bill modifies the state water policy to allow for the use
of telemetry in water data collection and permits the State Engineer to make
rules governing telemetry and water distribution accounting. The bill also
removes outdated language regarding rulemaking authority on preferences of water
rights under Section 73-3-21.5, which was repealed in 2023.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0061.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 62 - Utah Water Ways Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Doug Owens</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0062.html" target="_blank">House Bill 62</a> proposes amending Utah Code section <a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title79/Chapter2/79-2-S408.html?v=C79-2-S408_2023050320230701" target="_blank">79-2-408</a> to
add an additional method for educating the public about water issues.
Specifically, the bill permits the partnership to coordinate with the
department of education to implement resources and development opportunities to
select grades in kindergarten through grade twelve of the public school system. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0062.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 206 – Columbia Interstate Compact Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Thomas W. Peterson</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0206.html" target="_blank">House Bill 206</a> withdraws Utah’s ratification of the Columbia
Interstate Compact and repeals several Utah Code sections relating to the
Compact.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0206.pdf" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 242 – Water Usage Data Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Melissa G. Ballard</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0242.html" target="_blank">House Bill 242</a> requires the Utah Division of Water Resources
to study the water use of Utah’s public schools, including charter schools. The
Division is to complete the study by October 1, 2025. The results of the study
are to include recommendations of actions that schools can take to reduce water
use and recommendations to the legislature regarding whether schools should be
required to provide annual reports of water use to the Division. The bill also
provides a mechanism for schools and school districts to purchase smart
irrigation controllers. Finally, the bill requires all State agencies to report
their annual water use data to the Division beginning in 2027.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0242.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 243 – Riparian Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Gay Lynn Bennion</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0243.html" target="_blank">House Bill 243</a> requires counties and municipalities (except
for fifth class cities and towns) to include a riparian area element in their
general plans, beginning in 2029. The riparian area element should address the
preservation and enhancement of natural streams; management of erosion,
sedimentation, and flood control; removal of dead or diseased vegetation to
minimize flood and fire risk; reduction of water pollution; protection of fish
and wildlife; preservation or restoration of vegetation; management of invasive
plant species and weeds; and preservation of aesthetic and recreation values.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0243.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>HB 275 – Water Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Casey Snider</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/HB0275.html" target="_blank">House Bill 275</a> amends a provision about who may receive a State
grant for water meter projects. The law currently requires secondary water providers
to meter every connection, but allows for some secondary water providers to
only meter at strategic points instead of metering every connection. The law
provides three circumstances under which a secondary water provider only has to
meter at strategic points. In two of the circumstances, however, the secondary
water provider was not eligible to receive State grants to install the meters.
This bill would allow the grants to go to a secondary water provider under any
of the three circumstances.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/hbillint/HB0275.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>SB 18 - Water Modifications<br /></u>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0018.html" target="_blank">Senate Bill 18</a> is a follow-up to SB 277, Water Conservation and
Augmentation, which passed late in the 2023 Legislative Session. Among other
things, SB 277 allowed water users who install agricultural water optimization
projects to file applications with the Division of Water Rights to put the
“saved water”—the now-excess water which was diverted and consumed under the
more wasteful irrigation system—to another beneficial use. SB 18 retools those
provisions, moving them into the State Engineer’s section of code and adding
language clarifying the definition of saved water and the administrative
procedures to secure its separate use and protect it from forfeiture. It also
clarifies that saved water cannot increase the depletion of the underlying water
right.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/sbillint/SB0018.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>SB 39 – Water Shareholder Amendments<br /></u>(Sen. Scott D. Sandall)</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0039.html" target="_blank">Senate Bill 39</a> proposes amended <a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title73/Chapter3/73-3-S3.5.html" target="_blank">Utah Code section 73-3-3.5</a> regarding shareholder <a href="https://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2009/06/what-is-change-application.html" target="_blank">change applications</a>. Previously, if a shareholder filed a proposed change application with a water company, the water company had 120 days to respond if it was a permanent change application and 60 days to respond if it was a temporary change application. This bill would make it a 120-day deadline for the water company, irrespective of whether the change application is permanent or temporary. The bill also has some minor clean-up language, which mainly clarifies when the term “it” in the statute is referring to a water company or to a court.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/sbillint/SB0039.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>SB 77 – Water Rights Restricted Account Amendments<br /></u>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/static/SB0077.html" target="_blank">Senate Bill 77</a> modifies the purposes for which money in the Water
Rights Restricted Account may be used. The bill adds that the Division of Water
Rights may use the Account to pay for installing, operating, and maintaining
water measurement infrastructure and for sharing in the costs of installing
stream gauges (with the U.S. Geological Survey).<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2024/bills/sbillint/SB0077.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>Unnumbered - Water Related Changes<br /></u>Rep. Casey Snider</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">This bill would change how Utah funds water infrastructure projects. The bill is currently unnumbered, but the Utah Legislative Water Development Commission recommended it to the full Legislature in November. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Under the bill, “relevant agencies” with water-related missions, such as the Divisions of Water Resources, Drinking Water, and Water Quality, among others, would develop annual water infrastructure plans that would describe needed water projects that fall within their jurisdiction. Once adopted, these relevant agencies would submit their plans to Utah’s Water Development Coordinating Council, which consists of representatives from the Division of Water Resources, the Water Quality Board, the Drinking Water Board, the Housing and Community Development Division, the Treasurer’s office, and the Department of Agriculture and Food. Using the plans submitted by the relevant agencies, the Council would develop a “unified water infrastructure plan” that would identify water projects needed to “maintain the reliable supply of safe and clean water.” The Council would create the first unified plan by January 1, 2025, which it would update at least every four years. Once created, the Division of Water Resources would be required to reference the unified plan in the state water plan. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">The Council would also work in consultation with the relevant agencies to develop a written prioritization process for ranking and prioritizing water infrastructure projects that are or will be funded with state money beginning in fiscal year 2026. This process would also include several criteria requiring consideration of hardships, the public interest, the use of state funding to match federal funding, and local entity consultation, along with the requirement to solicit public input on the prioritization process. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">The bill would further require the Board of Water Resources to assess an annual “water use fee” on retail water providers beginning on July 1, 2027. This fee would be based in part on the amount of water suppliers provide to their end users and would be deposited into a new “Water Infrastructure Fund,” which would also include appropriations from the Legislature and interest earnings on the fund. The Board would use the fund to issue loans and grants for water projects the Council has prioritized. In addition, the bill would require the Board to make recommendations to the Legislature by the October 2024 interim session regarding the possible consolidation of Utah’s various water infrastructure funding tools into a single fund or account.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001sqK4G1Iv0CeVBRFdSrSrHqDwICTlNvw6BWkHavmegyeKMVGBBS7QnzAr6oIdep4m83fVN1XXZbSoHu4bL3NC8dSsY6SZX17cJApSVd03e9mxkbk8x9P1BZFPw7JZ7Nh8KeqlU1TPKfZdkN1IhaPXjcrb1AKbXDdsT2HyLMlACzlqUC7wnKxUNgtDkYbgc1uR&c=LGb3_foR52FvWFsHMb9eWC520qITJxqEvnJtvGLe_T7warFeA4qLcQ==&ch=_x8L_BUrfZc_5sLy3quz4QnM-x7UJFN5cJDQIfWtYi3aO5HaLRzfXQ==" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>Unnumbered - Water Usage Amendments<br /></u>Rep. Doug Owens</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">This bill is an amended version of HB 538, which passed the House in the 2023 Legislative Session but failed in the Senate. It would prohibit the watering of lawn or turf from October 1 to April 1 in counties in the Great Salt Lake watershed. However, irrigation of trees, shrubs, gardens, and newly established turf would be allowed. Violating the prohibitions would be a civil infraction with a fine of at least $50 for the first violation and $100 for additional violations. It would allow municipalities and other water providers to impose these and other penalties or consequences for violation of the law.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001sqK4G1Iv0CeVBRFdSrSrHqDwICTlNvw6BWkHavmegyeKMVGBBS7QnzAr6oIdep4mtxg5mEnuTqLp5HJOP8fAXF8O-tMoWn5xfbR54ieHQkW6dSgY8DJBaQB2391mIAj8Mg1ww6wiqRsjiRlBIfpVCGgAMbN7kTPxWHzxv2vvzJBgonrBbuyWCRBuKGK6MgHg&c=LGb3_foR52FvWFsHMb9eWC520qITJxqEvnJtvGLe_T7warFeA4qLcQ==&ch=_x8L_BUrfZc_5sLy3quz4QnM-x7UJFN5cJDQIfWtYi3aO5HaLRzfXQ==" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-36187566548146190962023-12-20T10:16:00.006-07:002023-12-20T10:16:59.858-07:00Public Meeting Regarding Proposed Determination for Big Cottonwood Creek Area<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights recently published the <a href="https://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2012/05/where-can-i-get-copies-of-proposed.html" target="_blank">Proposed Determination</a> for the Big Cottonwood Creek area (Book 57-18). The Division has set a public meeting to discuss the Proposed Determination. The following information is from the public meeting notice:</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u>What</u>: Public Meeting<br /><u>Who</u>: Water Users within the Big Cottonwood Creek area<br /><u>When</u>: January 10, 2024, 4:00 to 5:00 pm<br /><u>Where</u>: Cottonwood Heights City Hall, 2277 East Bengal Blvd.<br /><u>Purpose</u>: In accordance with Chapter 73-4, Utah Code Annotated, and
the Third Judicial District Court (Civil No. 365729835), the State Engineer has
completed a general determination of the rights to the use of all water, both
surface and underground, within the drainage area of the Big Cottonwood Creek
Subdivision, Salt Lake County East Division, of the Utah Lake and Jordan River
drainage in Salt Lake County. In light of the completion of this work, the
Division of Water Rights will hold a public meeting in order to review the
proposed determination and answer questions. Representatives from the Division
of Water Rights will be available during this time to discuss water rights
within the proposed determination and answer any questions. If individuals
cannot attend but have questions regarding the adjudication process or water
rights within the Big Cottonwood Creek Subdivision, please contact Mike Drake
at 801-538-7397.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><u>Agenda</u>:<br />1. Introduction: Mike Drake, Assistant State Engineer - Adjudication<br />2. Adjudication Process Review<br />3. Public Comments and Questions</p><p class="MsoNormal">The meeting will also be broadcast electronically at https://waterrights.utah.gov/meetinfo.</p><p class="MsoNormal">For more information regarding this meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/880687.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-17213441454061206592023-12-11T13:54:00.115-07:002024-03-10T16:24:22.808-06:00Metropolitan Water District v. SorfThe Utah Court of Appeals recently issued its decision in the case of <i>Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake & Sandy v. Sorf</i>. The primary issue in the case was enforcement of an easement for a water pipeline. This case has been ongoing for many years. (<a href="https://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2019/06/metropolitan-water-district-v-sorf.html" target="_blank">Click here</a> to read about a 2019 decision by the Utah Supreme Court in the same case.)<div><br /><div>The District operates the Salt Lake Aqueduct, which is a large pipeline that runs for 42 miles through Utah County and Salt Lake County -- including through the backyard of Zdenek Sorf. The District owns a 125-foot easement for the pipeline, which the District acquired by warranty deed in 1946 from Sorf's predecessor-in-interest. In 2009, Sorf installed some improvements in his backyard, including sheds, a hot tub, decks, rock walls, and a pond, and some of these improvements are within the District's easement. In 2010, the District filed suit against Sorf and sought to have the district court require Sorf to remove the improvements from the easement area. Following a trial, a jury determined that Sorf's improvements did not unreasonably interfere with the District's use and enjoyment of the easement. The district court accordingly granted judgment in favor of Sorf, and the District appealed to the Utah Court of Appeals.</div><div>The District argued that district court should have instructed the jury that the placement of any permanent structure within the easement area was unreasonable as a matter of law. Some courts in other states have made this determination with respect to easements for ingress and egress, but not with respect to easements for underground pipelines. The Court of Appeals refused to adopt such a bright-line rule, and instead reiterated the "rule of mutual reasonableness, which is that "the owners of the dominant and servient estates must exercise their rights so as not unreasonably to interfere with the other."</div><div>The District also argued that the district court should have asked the jury about the cumulative effect of the improvements on the easement, instead of asking the jury to determine if each individual improvement unreasonably interfered with the District's easement rights. The Court of Appeals determined that if the district court had included a cumulative effect question to the jury, it would have made it more difficult to fashion a remedy; in other words, how would the court know which improvements would need to be removed in order to resolve the issue.</div><div>The District also argued that the district court should have limited the testimony of an engineer who testified on behalf of Sorf. In particular, the District argued that the engineer should not have been allowed to testify about possible alternative methodologies that the District could use to rehabilitate and repair the pipeline. The Court of Appeals rejected this argument, and reiterated that the "rule of mutual reasonableness" made it highly relevant how the District might make use of the easement area to operate, maintain, repair, and replace the pipeline.</div><div>In the end, the Court of Appeals ruled for Sorf and upheld the decision made by the district court (and the jury).</div><div>To read the full opinion, <a href="https://legacy.utcourts.gov/opinions/appopin/Metropolitan%20Water%20v.%20Sorf20231207_20220025_146.pdf" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div></div>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-75870126210276128942023-10-08T17:57:00.004-06:002023-10-09T11:33:06.887-06:00Park City Premier Properties v. Silver Summit EstateThe Utah Court of Appeals recently issued its decision in <i>Park City Premier Properties LLC v. Silver Summit Estates</i>. The central issue in this case was whether a developer was required to install a secondary water system for a residential subdivision.<br /><br /><div>In 2013, Park City Premier Properties ("Premier") acquired property in Weber County, along with 94 shares in Co-op Farm Irrigation Company. The irrigation company water had historically been used for agricultural irrigation on the property. Premier then filed a subdivision application with Weber County, which noted the irrigation company shares. Ultimately, Premier determined that each subdivision lot would have its own well that would provide water to be used for culinary purposes in the home as well as for irrigation of a small lawn/garden around the home. Water use from each well was authorized through (1) a water contract with Weber Basin Water Conservancy District ("Weber Basin") for one acre-foot of water and (2) an exchange application approved by the Utah Division of Water Rights. Some lot owners also acquired irrigation company shares, if they requested such shares under their Real Estate Purchase Contract. <br /><br /></div><div>Several years later, several lot owners became dissatisfied with the limited amount of irrigation water that they had. For example, a 3-acre lot might have enough well water to irrigate only 0.18 acres of the land. These lot owners sued Premier and asserted that Premier was obligated by Weber County ordinance to install a secondary water system and provide more irrigation water to the subdivision lots. The district court ultimately ruled in favor of the lot owners, and Premier appealed the decision to the Utah Court of Appeals.<br /><br /></div><div>The Court focused its decision on the plain language of the relevant Weber County ordinance, which provided as follows: "Where a subdivision is proposed within an existing culinary water district[,]...the planning commission shall, as part of the approval of the subdivision, require the applicant to furnish adequate secondary water and install a secondary water delivery system to the lots in the subdivision sufficient to conform to the public works standards, if such water district or company files or has filed a written statement with the Weber County Planning Division which specifies that the policy of such water district or company is to the effect that its water is not to be used for other than culinary purposes and will not permit culinary water connections unless secondary water is provided by the applicant."<br /><br /></div><div>The Court determined that the ordinance was unambiguous in its application to the Premier subdivision. The Court noted that Weber Basin had not adopted a policy that its water could not be used for irrigation purposes. To the contrary, Weber Basin's water contracts, as well as the exchange applications based on the water contracts, specifically allowed for the water to be used for both culinary and irrigation purposes. The lot owners argued that the limited amount of irrigation allowed for each lot was a "de facto policy" that met the requirements of the ordinance. The Court, however, held that the ordinance explicitly required a written policy adopted by the water district, and not an inferred policy. In the end, the Court held that "[b]y it's plain language, the Weber County Code does not require Premier to provide secondary water" to the subdivision lots, thereby reversing the decision of the district court.<br /><br /></div><div>To read the full opinion, <a href="https://legacy.utcourts.gov/opinions/appopin/Park%20City%20Premier%20Properties%20v.%20Silver%20Summit%20Esta20231005_20220556_121.pdf" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-37730068585518161142023-08-16T09:57:00.001-06:002023-08-16T09:57:25.821-06:00Public Meeting to Discuss Increased Fees<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights has announced a public meeting on September 5, 2023 to discuss a proposed increase to the fees associated with <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2010/07/what-is-report-of-conveyance.html" target="_blank">Reports of Conveyance</a>. The current fee is $40 per Report of Conveyance, and a separate Report of Conveyance is required for each water right. There is no mention about how much the proposed fee increase will be.</p><p>The following information comes from the notice of the public meeting:</p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">PUBLIC MEETING
CONCERNING THE INCREASE OF TITLE FEES FOR THE SUBMITTAL OF A REPORT OF
CONVEYANCE WITH THE DIVISION OF WATER RIGHTS<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Who: Holders of
water rights within the State of Utah that update title. <br />When: September 5,
2023, 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.<br />Where: Virtually<br />Video call link: <a href="https://meet.google.com/tfz-xuuv-uur">https://meet.google.com/tfz-xuuv-uur</a><br />Alternatively, dial
(US) +1 620-359-7451 PIN: 709 247 587 #</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Purpose:<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
State Engineer is not the official office of record of title for water rights.
However, once a water right holder updates title with the appropriate county recorder's
office, said holder must also update title with the State Engineer, aka the
Division of Water Rights. A water right holder updates title with the Division
of Water Rights via a Report of Conveyance, which has an associated fee. In an
effort to represent the true cost to process certain documents the State
Engineer is proposing to increase the fees collected for the submission of a
Reports of Conveyance.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A recording of the public meeting will be viewable on-line
at <a href="http://www.waterrights.utah.gov/meetinfo/oldmeet.asp">http://www.waterrights.utah.gov/meetinfo/oldmeet.asp</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Questions and comments may be sent via email
to <a href="mailto:waterrights@utah.gov">waterrights@utah.gov</a> with the
subject line Title Fees. For more information, please contact the Utah Division
of Water Rights at 801-538-5282.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Agenda for September 5, 2023 Public Meeting<br />1. Welcome
and Introduction<br />2. Overview
of Current Title Fees<br />3. Proposed
Changes and Rationale for Fee Increase<br />4. Open
Forum for Public Comments & Questions<br />5. Closing
Remarks</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In accordance with the Americans with Disability Act,
individuals needing special accommodations should notify Marianne Burbidge at
(801) 538-7370 at least three (3) days prior to the meeting.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Information from the meeting will be posted on the Utah
Division of Water Rights website at <a href="http://waterrights.utah.gov">http://waterrights.utah.gov</a>
as a resource for those who are unable to view the meeting live or require
additional information.<o:p></o:p></p>For more information about the meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/852757.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-24664488309824643902023-06-01T08:31:00.011-06:002023-07-08T08:35:40.024-06:00Utah Stream Access Coalition v. VR Acquisitions LLC<p>The Utah Supreme Court recently issued its decision in Utah
Stream Access Coalition v. VR Acquisitions LLC. This case focused on one
question: “whether there was a 19th-century basis for an easement providing the
public with the right to touch privately owned streambeds underlying state
waters.”</p><p class="MsoNormal">
In the 2008 decision in <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2009/04/conatser-v-johnson.html" target="_blank">Conatser v. Johnson</a>, the Utah Supreme Court established
a broad public easement to utilize the beds of Utah's waterways for
recreational purposes. In response to this decision, the Utah legislature
adopted the <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2010/03/2010-legislature-substituted-stream.html" target="_blank">Public Water Access Act</a> in 2010. The Act placed restrictions on the
broad easement recognized under Conatser. Specifically, the Act restricted
recreational access to water on public property and to waterways that are
navigable. <br />
<br />
In 2010, Utah Stream Access Coalition (USAC) filed a lawsuit challenging the
constitutionality of the Act under several different arguments. The district
court <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2012/06/utah-stream-access-coalition-v-state-of.html" target="_blank">originally ruled</a> against USAC on the majority of its claims, but did rule
that the Act violated the public trust doctrine found in <a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/ArticleXX/Article_XX,_Section_1.html?v=UC_AXX_S1_1800010118000101" target="_blank">Article XX, Section 1</a>
of the Utah Constitution. That decision was previously appealed to the Utah
Supreme Court, who <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2019/02/utah-stream-access-coalition-v-vr.html" target="_blank">reversed the district court’s decision</a> and sent the case
back to the district court to determine if the Conatser easement was “in line
with the sort of public access right that our law would have dictated at the
time of the framing of the Utah Constitution.”</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">After hearing additional evidence and argument from the
parties, the district court determined that USAC was unable to show that there
was a “historical basis as a public easement at the time of the framing of the
Utah Constitution” and therefore held that the Act was not unconstitutional.
USAC then appealed to the Utah Supreme Court for a second time.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Court first looked at the modern caselaw that USAC cited
in support of the public easement. The Court determined that these cases were
the product of common-law developments in the 20th and 21st centuries, and were
therefore inapplicable to the status of the law in 1896 when the Utah
Constitution was adopted. The Court then examined the customs and practices of
early Utahns that USAC asserted in support of an “easement by custom.” The
Court concluded that USAC did not carry its burden in establishing a legal
basis for a Conatser easement based on the 19th century customs and practices
of Utahns. Finally, the Court examined USAC’s argument that 19th century
federal laws suggested the existence of a Conatser easement. The Court
determined that the federal laws were irrelevant because they related to the
appropriative use of water, and not the public’s use of easements for accessing
the bed of waterways.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In sum, the Utah Supreme Court upheld the district court’s
determination that there is not a historical basis for the type of public
easement established by the Conatser case. This therefore means that the Public
Water Access Act is constitutional in its current form.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">To read the full opinion, <a href="https://legacy.utcourts.gov/opinions/supopin/Utah%20Stream%20v.%20VR%20Acquisitions20230518.pdf" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-11091845998914542342023-05-16T11:51:00.001-06:002023-05-16T11:51:15.074-06:00Appointment of Great Salt Lake Commissioner<p>Governor Spencer Cox has appointed Brian Steed to serve as the first Great Salt Lake Commissioner. The Commissioner position was created by 2023 <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2023/03/2023-legislature-water-related-house.html" target="_blank">House Bill 491</a>. The Commissioner is tasked with creating a strategic
plan by the end of 2023 based on a “holistic approach that balances the diverse
interests related to the health of the Great Salt Lake,” and includes
provisions concerning the coordination of Great Salt Lake efforts, achieving a
sustainable water supply, protecting human health and the ecosystem, economic
development, water conservation, water and land use planning, and regional
water sharing.</p><p>Mr. Steed has significant experience in water and natural resource issues. He previously served as executive director of the Utah Department of Natural Resources and is currently serving as executive director of the Janet Quinney Lawson Institute for Land, Water, and Air at Utah State University.</p><p>For more information on the appointment, <a href="https://governor.utah.gov/2023/05/15/gov-cox-appoints-brian-steed-as-new-great-salt-lake-commissioner/" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-42909378327077544962023-04-25T10:45:00.004-06:002023-04-25T10:45:37.899-06:00Water Rights in Utah Seminar<p>Attorneys, engineers, city planners, and government officials - If you
want a good basic-to-intermediate course on Utah water rights and water
law, the "Water Rights in Utah" seminar is a great place to learn. The
seminar is May 4, 2023 from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm, and will be held
virtually. I will be presenting the first two hours of the seminar, and
other talented attorneys at my firm (Craig Smith, Peter Gessel, Emily Haynie, Nathan Bracken, and Clayton Preece) will be presenting the remainder of the seminar. Continuing education credits are available.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.nbi-sems.com/96511" target="_blank">Click here</a> to learn more and to register.</p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-35081224212888559802023-03-17T23:06:00.005-06:002023-03-17T23:06:37.052-06:002023 Legislature: Water-Related House Bills That Passed<p>These are the House bills that passed during the 2023 legislative session.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 33 (1st Substitute) - Water Related Liability Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Carl R. Albrecht</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 33 (1st Substitute) amends Utah Code section
73-1-8, which addresses the duties of canal owners or operators and their
liability. The bill expands the section’s applicability by changing the
existing “ditch, canal, flume or other watercourse” language to “water
facility,” which includes any facility “used for the diversion, transportation,
distribution, measurement, collection, containment, or storage of irrigation
water.” Similar language has already been inserted into two other sections of
the Water Code to reflect the changing uses of canals and the need to extend
protections to other types of water facilities as well. Among other things, the
bill clarifies that water facility owners and operators have a duty of
“reasonable and ordinary care” to maintain the water facilities to prevent the
waste of water or property damage, rather than being subject to a higher
standard of care that courts have threatened to impose on canals in recent
years. In addition, the bill would shield the owners or operators of water
facilities from liability for damage or injury caused by “the diversion or
discharge of water or another substance into the water facility by a third
party” beyond the control of the water facility owner, or “an act of God,
including fire, earthquake, storm, flash floods, or similar natural
occurrences.”</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0033.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 150 (3rd Substitute) - Emergency Water Shortages
Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Carl R. Albrecht</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 150 (3rd Substitute) addresses preferences for
water use during a temporary water shortage emergency. The existing statute is
extremely vague about what constitutes a water shortage emergency, how the
preference determination process should be managed, and how compensation for
the preferential use should be calculated. The bill outlines a new procedure by
which the governor would declare a temporary water shortage emergency, which
would be distinct from the governor’s powers to declare a state of emergency
under the Disaster Response and Recovery Act. A temporary water shortage
emergency could only be declared if an interruption of water delivery “caused
by manmade or natural causes other than drought” either (a) threatens the
“availability or quality of an essential water supply or water supply
infrastructure” or (b) threatens the operation of the economy and “jeopardizes
the peace, health, safety, or welfare” of the public. In issuing an executive
order declaring a temporary water shortage emergency, the governor would be
required to seek the advice and recommendation of the State Engineer and
consult with the state’s Emergency Management Administration Committee. The
preferential uses of water in a temporary water shortage emergency, in order,
would be for: (1) drinking, (2) sanitation, (3) fire suppression, (4) commercial
agriculture animal welfare needs, and (5) generation of electricity. Outside of
the ranking of preferential uses, the bill states that water for agriculture
purposes, including irrigation, livestock watering, and food processing, would
be preferred over the remaining water uses. Preferential users would be
required to pay the interrupted users for the reasonable value of the water,
applicable crop losses, and “other consequential damages incurred as a result
of the interruption.”</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0150.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 207 - Compact Commission Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Casey Snider</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 207 changes Utah’s appointee to the Bear River
Compact Commission and the Columbia Compact Commission from the Director of the
Division of Water Resources to the State Engineer.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0207.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 208 (1st Substitute) - Criminal Trespass Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Scott H. Chew</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 208 (1st Substitute) sets forth the elements of
criminal trespass when a person is on the “bed or bank of a non-navigable
freshwater stream or river that flows through privately owned land and is
privately owned.” Defenses against a charge of criminal trespass include that
the private property was open to the public and the person charged was
complying with “all lawful conditions imposed on access to or remaining on the
private property”; that the touching was incidental or otherwise allowed under
state code; or the person “acted in compliance with an express easement.”
Prescriptive easements are not a valid defense against a criminal trespass
charge.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0208.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 217 (3rd Substitute) - School Energy and Water Reductions<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Gay Lynn Bennion</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 217 (3rd Substitute) provides that the State
Board of Education can award grants to school districts or charter schools,
upon recommendation by a review panel, for implementation of programs to reduce
the use of water or energy. Priority is given to projects that are (1) for
rural school districts or charter schools, (2) for school districts or charter
schools located within the Great Salt Lake watershed, and (3) for outdoor water
conservation. The Board is required to draft rules about the grant program,
including procedures for applying for grants, eligibility requirements, and
reporting requirements. This program is intended to be a pilot program, so the
Board is required to report on the effectiveness of the grants by 2027. The
fiscal note contemplates $900,000 to be allocated to the program in fiscal
year 2024.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0217.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 299 (4th Substitute) - Boating Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Casey Snider</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 299 (4th Substitute) provides that 50% of the
revenue collected from boat registration fees is to be deposited into the new
Utah Boating Grant Account. The Division of Outdoor Recreation is tasked with
administering the Account and awarding grants to water conservancy districts,
state agencies, counties, and municipalities for projects. Such projects could
include construction, repair, or replacement of public boating facilities;
waterway shoreline protection; or drought access mitigation.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0299.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 307 (3rd Substitute) - Utah Water Ways<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Calvin R. Musselman</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 307 (3rd Substitute) provides for the creation of
a new nonprofit, statewide partnership addressing water. The purpose of the
nonprofit is to facilitate the coordination of water optimization efforts by:
(1) sponsoring policy discussions about the state’s water supply; (2) engaging
the private sector for support to optimize water use; (3) coordinating with the
Department of Agriculture and Food and the Department of Environmental Quality
on water-related issues; (4) maintaining communication among the partnership;
(5) providing a line of communication between the partnership and state
leaders; (6) promoting coordination of grants, rebate programs, or sponsorships
that support optimal use of water; and (7) encouraging residents to make
changes to optimize their water use by providing educational tools, public
awareness campaigns and seeking grants, gifts, donations, etc. for these
purposes. The bill will take effect on July 1, 2023.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0307.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 349 (4th Substitute) - Water Reuse Projects Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Casey Snider</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 349 (4th Substitute) prohibits the State Engineer
and the Division of Water Quality from approving a water reuse project
submitted after November 1, 2023 “if the water related to the reuse project
would have otherwise been discharged into a tributary of the Great Salt Lake.”
However, this prohibition does not apply to federally owned water rights, reuse
projects to supply water to the Great Salt Lake, or reuse projects “approved
subject to a water replacement plan.” The water replacement plan must provide
“an equivalent amount of water to the Great Salt Lake.” The State Engineer may
deny the application or approve it in part if the water replacement plan is
inadequate.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0349.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 370 (4th Substitute) - Utility Infrastructure Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Carl R. Albrecht</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 370 (4th Substitute) makes it a felony to destroy
or tamper with a “critical infrastructure facility,” which includes a water
facility as it is currently defined in Title 73 of Utah Code. To be subject to
the felony charges, the person committing the crime must cause “widespread
injury or damage to persons or property” by destroying or substantially
damaging a critical infrastructure facility, or by tampering with, inhibiting,
or impeding the operation of a critical infrastructure facility.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0370.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 450 (1st Substitute) - Landscaping Requirements<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Ryan D. Wilcox</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 450 (1st Substitute) amends section 57-8a-231 of
the Utah Code by adding more limitations on the power of homeowners
associations to limit water efficient landscaping. Specifically, the bill
states that HOAs cannot require a property owner to have more than 50% coverage
that is not water wise landscaping.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0450.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 488 (Amended) - Utah Lake Authority Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Brady Brammer</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 488 (amended) modifies the membership of the
board of the Utah Lake Authority. Previously, the Utah County Council of
Governments appointed eight board members, one of whom was an individual
designated by a chamber of commerce in Utah County and four of whom were
elected officials from municipalities immediately adjacent to the Authority
boundary. HB 488 keeps the appointment of eight board members and the one
appointee designated by a chamber of commerce, but the other seven board member
appointees must be elected officials from municipalities whose boundaries are
no more than one-half mile from the Authority boundary.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0488.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 491 (3rd Substitute) - Amendments Related to the Great
Salt Lake<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Mike Schultz</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 491 (3rd Substitute) creates a new Great Salt
Lake Commissioner (“GSL Commissioner) who answers jointly to the Governor,
Speaker of the House, and President of the Senate. The GSL Commissioner is
tasked with creating a strategic plan by the end of 2023 based on a “holistic
approach that balances the diverse interests related to the health of the Great
Salt Lake,” and includes provisions concerning the coordination of Great Salt
Lake efforts, achieving a sustainable water supply, protecting human health and
the ecosystem, economic development, water conservation, water and land use
planning, and regional water sharing. The plan needs to be approved by the
Governor, after which it will be distributed to state agencies. The GSL
Commissioner is also responsible for implementing the strategic plan and may
require state agencies—other than the State Engineer and, in some
circumstances, the Department of Environmental Quality—to take action or
refrain from acting “to benefit the health of the Great Salt Lake to comply
with the strategic plan.” The other responsibilities of the GSL Commissioner
include maintaining information on the lake; coordinating and consulting with
state and federal agencies, political subdivisions, elected officials, and
others with responsibilities or interests relating to the lake; monitoring the
ongoing integrated water assessment; and other similar duties. The GSL
Commissioner will be supported by a new Office of the Great Salt Lake
Commissioner, which will be housed in the Department of Natural Resources but
staffed and operated independently by the GSL Commissioner. The bill also adds
a seat to the Board of Water Resources for a member that “represents the
interests of the Great Salt Lake.”</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0491.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 513 (3rd Substitute) - Great Salt Lake Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Casey Snider</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Bill 513 (3rd Substitute) changes how certain mineral
royalties from the Great Salt Lake are collected and managed and imposes a new
severance tax for the mining of metalliferous compounds from the lake. It also
requires that new mineral leases use the most water efficient technologies
available and, in some circumstances, provide replacement water to the lake. In
addition, the bill requires the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands, as
manager of the lake, to make rules for the management of the lake which: (a)
provide strategies to manage the lake based on fluctuating lake levels; (b)
develop the lake in a manner that protects bird habitats, wetlands, brines,
brine shrimp, and wildlife; (c) promote water quality; (d) protect public
access to the lake; (e) consider the effects of the lake on the local environment;
(f) maintain the flood plain; (g) maintain the lake and marshes for birds; (h)
protect recreation; and (i) maintain wildlife refuges. It also requires the
division to take on emergency management of the Great Salt Lake when the lake
reaches the “emergency trigger,” which is when the salinity levels of the south
arm of the lake do not meet the ecological conditions required for brine shrimp
and brine fly reproduction. When the emergency trigger is reached, the division
may “construct, operate, modify, and maintain” management berms and structures;
stop issuing mineral production permits; and withdraw or curtail existing
mineral leases.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0513.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HCR 7 (1st Substitute) - Concurrent Resolution Supporting
the Creation of the Great Salt Lake Sentinel Landscape<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Trevor Lee</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">House Concurrent Resolution 7 (1st Substitute) states that
the Utah Legislature and Governor support the Utah Department of Veterans and
Military Affairs and its partners in applying for the establishment of the
Great Salt Lake Sentinel Landscape. The United States Department of Defense,
Department of Agriculture, and Department of Interior have created the Sentinel
Landscape Partnership, a federal conservation policy to designate certain lands
as “Sentinel Landscapes” that are critical to the nation’s defense mission.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HCR007.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-90753175907867278272023-03-17T22:07:00.007-06:002023-03-17T22:07:57.799-06:002023 Legislature: Water-Related Senate Bills That Passed<p>These are the Senate bills that passed in the 2023 legislative session.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 34 (1st Substitute) - Water Infrastructure Funding Study<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Daniel McCay</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 34 (1st Substitute) directs the Department of
Natural Resources to study the use of property tax revenue to fund water
infrastructure, treatment, and delivery. It also requests that recommendations
be made for future funding and requires the Department make a written report to
the Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Interim Committee on or
before October 30, 2024. No money is appropriated for this bill.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0034.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 53 (1st Substitute) - Groundwater Use Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Evan J. Vickers</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 53 (1st Substitute) amends Utah Code section
73-5-15 regarding groundwater management plans. The bill provides that in the
context of groundwater management plans, the use of water from a surface source
to artificially recharge an aquifer constitutes beneficial use of water
(provided certain conditions are met). The bill also corrects a punctuation
error that created potential confusion regarding aquifer storage as an
exception to claims of nonuse.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0053.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 76 (3rd Substitute) - Groundwater Use Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Scott D. Sandall</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 76 (3rd Substitute) implements changes on the
municipal, county, and state agency level to increase coordination in
water-related planning. It requires municipal and county planning commissions
to consult with the Division of Water Resources when drafting the water use and
preservation element of their general plans. Water Resources will help the
planning commissions determine how implementing the land use and water use
elements of their general plans may affect the Great Salt Lake. County planning
commissions are also required to notify and seek feedback from community water
systems regarding water supply and distribution planning and to consider the
potential opportunities and benefits of planning for regionalization of public
water systems. In addition, the bill allows the Division of Drinking Water to
change water source, storage, and system minimum sizing standards based on
water use data and enforceable water conservation measures implemented by
public water systems, and requires the Division to study how greater
efficiencies can be found through improved coordination, consolidation, and
regionalization of public water systems. In a different vein, the bill also
modifies the shareholder change application statute to allow 60 days for an
irrigation company to respond to a temporary change application submitted by a
shareholder, rather than 120 days for a permanent change application.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0076.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 92 - Special License Plat Designation<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Jen Plumb</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 92 creates a Great Salt Lake specialty license
plate. The purchase of this specialty license plate will provide funding to the
Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands to “benefit and conserve the Great
Salt Lake watershed and ecosystem.” </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0092.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 118 (5th Substitute) - Water Efficient Landscaping
Incentives<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Scott D. Sandall</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 118 (5th Substitute) creates landscape
conversion incentive programs (commonly called “turf buyback” programs) in the
state. The bill allows the Division of Water Resources to provide grants to
water conservancy districts who initiate and operate a program for homeowners
to replace lawn or turf with water efficient landscaping. The property must,
however, be located in municipality that has implemented regional-based water
use efficiency standards established by the Division. The bill allocates $3 million
of funding to the initiative.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0118.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 119 - Per Capita Consumptive Use<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Michael K. McKell</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 119 provides direction for how per capita water
use is determined in Utah. Such numbers are often quoted in news articles
comparing Utah’s water use with neighboring states, but an issue has been that
the states don’t all calculate water use in the same manner. The bill defines
per capita consumptive use as “a valid representation of total water consumed
divided by the total population for a given area.” The Division of Water
Resources designates “reporting districts” that provide wholesale water to
calculate the per capita consumptive use in the counties that they serve. The
bill provides definition and clarification on determining population, return
flow, conserved water, and other items that factor into the per capita
calculations. The bill prohibits state agencies and political subdivisions of
the state from calculating, publishing, or disseminating a statewide per capita
consumptive use number.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0119.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 144 - Water Instream Flow Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. David P. Hinkins</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 144 amends Utah’s instream flow statute (Utah
Code section 73-3-30) to allow fixed time or temporary change applications to
deliver water to reservoirs located partially or entirely within Utah’s portion
of the Colorado River System. This bill follows the passage of federal
legislation that gave Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming the opportunity
to voluntarily conserve water and store the savings in Lake Powell and other
reservoirs in the Upper Colorado River Basin. If needed, the conserved water
could later be released if the Colorado River Compact requires mandatory
reductions in Utah water use. Known as “demand management,” this concept would
require the approval of Utah and the three other Upper Colorado River Basin
States before it could be implemented. However, the bill is not limited to
demand management and would also allow change applications to be filed pursuant
to other water conservation programs funded by Utah or the Bureau of
Reclamation.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The purpose of the bill is to provide express recognition
under Utah law that water conserved for conservation programs in Utah’s portion
of the Colorado River System has the legal protection needed to reach a
reservoir such as Lake Powell. Water right holders seeking to file a change
application under the bill’s new provisions, would need to obtain approval from
the Director of the Colorado River Authority of Utah, who would be required to
attest that the water can be used in accordance with one of the bill’s
enumerated conservation programs.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0144.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 158 (3rd Substitute) - Local Government Water Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Michael K. McKell</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 158 (3rd Substitute) amends Utah statutes
governing dedication/exaction of water rights or shares by municipalities,
counties, water authorities, and local districts. In many ways it is a follow
up to 2018 legislation which amended the Safe Drinking Water Act. The earlier
2018 legislation required community water systems and the Division of Drinking
Water to establish system based minimum sizing requirements for source and
storage. Systems serving a population of more than 3,300 were supposed to
establish system-based standards by March 1, 2019. Systems serving between 500
and 3,300 were given until October 31, 2023 to establish system based standards
for source and storage. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">SB 158 specifically ties the dedication/exaction of water
rights and shares to the system source and storage requirements in Utah Code §
19-4-114. Additionally, it requires that dedications/exactions be tied to the
expected culinary water demand of a specific development. For example, for a
multifamily or townhome development, which will likely have lower per
residential connection water demand, the per connection dedication/exaction
must reflect this lower demand. The determination of per connection water
demand for different types of residential development is to be based on at
least five years of water use data, within the water system, for similar
developments.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">SB 158 also requires that the water supplier make public the
methodology used to determine the per connection water demand. If the dedicator
disagrees with the calculation of the dedication/exaction there is a right of
appeal to the governing body of the municipality, county, or district. In the
appeal, the dedicator has the right to present data and information and the
governing body must respond with due process. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Finally, SB 158 grants specific authority to third, fourth,
fifth and sixth class counties (less than 175,000 residents) and municipalities
in those counties, by ordinance, to adopt drinking water source protection
zones for wells and springs. While this power likely exists, regardless of
county size, it is now explicitly provided.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0158.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 236 - Legislative Water Development Commission Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. David P. Hinkins</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 236 authorizes the existing Legislative Water
Development Commission to open committee bill files related to the commission’s
duties. Those duties include making recommendations to the Legislature on water
needs for the state, funding and ownership of water projects, and water
conservation programs.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0236.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 251 - Secondary Water Metering Requirements<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. David P. Hinkins</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 251 exempts certain secondary water providers
from metering every connection. Instead, these exempted providers can meter
strategic points of their system. It also amends Section 73-10-34.5 to allow
the Board of Water Resources to issue or convert a previous grant issued to
secondary water suppliers who fall under the new exemption to fund projects
that are alternative to metering, if it can be established that the project
will conserve more water than expected through metering.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0251.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 277 (2nd Substitute) - Water Conservation and
Augmentation Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Scott D. Sandall</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Senate Bill 277 (2nd Substitute) reorganizes the
Agricultural Water Optimization program housed at the Utah Department of
Agriculture and Food (UDAF). It dissolves the current Agricultural Water
Optimization Task Force located at the Department of Natural Resources and creates
a similar Agricultural Water Optimization Committee at UDAF. In addition to
assuming the roles of the previous task force, the committee sets the
eligibility requirements for agricultural water optimization grants, creates
the grant application process, and develops the preliminary screening criteria
for the grant applications. The committee reviews and ranks the grant
applications, which are approved by the existing Utah Conservation Commission
(which is also housed at UDAF). The bill also creates a new change application
process by which a person implementing an agricultural water optimization
project—whether within or independent of the grant program—can seek a
quantification of the “saved water” created by the project, which can then be
used for other purposes that do not enlarge the depletion or diversion amounts
of the saved water. Finally, the bill adjusts the purposes for which the Water
Infrastructure Restricted Account (WIRA) funds can be used, encompassing
projects that “benefit the Colorado River drainage in Utah, including projects
for water reuse, desalinization, building of dams, or water conservation,”
subject to the adoption of certain water conservation policies and practices by
the counties and municipalities seeking the funds.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0277.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-58621953061981822512023-03-17T21:54:00.003-06:002023-03-17T21:57:35.950-06:002023 Legislature: Water-Related Bills That Didn't Pass<p class="MsoNormal">These are the water-related bills that were presented at the 2023 legislative session but that failed to pass.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 188 (1st Substitute) - Golf Related Water Modifications<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Douglas R. Welton<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">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.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0188.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 272 (2nd Substitute) - Water Efficient Landscaping
Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Doug Owens</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">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.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0272.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 286 - Great Salt Lake Funding Modifications<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Joel K. Briscoe</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">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. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001TXTFDzjRTlMlUcq-0dWtj1bhwM3imRK_jBEfjg-LALwdyikaRJ6OE8KXyFUWT7nr6wfmcyD0i4l8JlsDXZ4nbn8jTQ-wJUylMK6pZ8cqplFGQCFjI9zmQfWrZv0G56TDaTZ1nDmaWlY5shXByTMxeee8B8dW4DrHd2jv75QLCjrgktV30uIUZpBUbJ2N6-Zu&c=G5_jyBhuq5SE1BcvjNa6ABlBiyZZv2LPAUfYh8dR1ACOGHwGDBEF4g==&ch=Jp5D1gJ3JWuf7u8_HNIqkOQW4LKNT4FdYN9rjc3ZYYhz7-0gBDdbzA==" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 538 (3rd Substitute) - Water Usage Amendments<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Doug Owens</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">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.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0538.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>HB 562 - Water Rights Inventory Requirements<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rep. Phil Lyman</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">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.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0562.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB 280 - Bear Lake Preservation Amendments</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Chris H. Wilson</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">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.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p>To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0280.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>SCR 6 - Concurrent Resolution Regarding the Great Salt Lake Elevation Targets</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sen. Nate Blouin</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">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.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To read the full text of the bill, click <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SCR006.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-44553135995468147892023-03-12T21:17:00.001-06:002023-03-17T21:41:44.461-06:00Podcast: 2023 Legislative Wrap-Up<p>Last week, I was a guest on the Ripple Effect podcast to talk about the many water-related bills that passed (and failed) in the 2023 session of the Utah Legislature. To listen to the podcast, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/124-2023-legislative-wrap-up/id1511225977?i=1000603528745&fbclid=IwAR2jAbIFRGfeVF_nJtX-7vgFXSV0sB31hE8RF99LMq-az3K4UoQvCxL7ZE0" target="_blank">click here</a>.<br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN7CW4TC4mdqOiVuLor4d6aLwtuWVm6da1BBuxnA-oZSJed1kLJpTP4ovNXMXYNcN51Irc0yRXgvjb1aYB1WGeyFDdCQHDJQ0o6pArW5KkNePEEVaDxZKDJBa-2GBV-n1XLICFMje_gfsN7ezcVbjcXiPQqTF18epOKLeFswVszFAFY1nVTd4Tzh5U/s1257/Ripple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="457" data-original-width="1257" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN7CW4TC4mdqOiVuLor4d6aLwtuWVm6da1BBuxnA-oZSJed1kLJpTP4ovNXMXYNcN51Irc0yRXgvjb1aYB1WGeyFDdCQHDJQ0o6pArW5KkNePEEVaDxZKDJBa-2GBV-n1XLICFMje_gfsN7ezcVbjcXiPQqTF18epOKLeFswVszFAFY1nVTd4Tzh5U/w400-h145/Ripple.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-7160064912600779642023-02-17T09:33:00.002-07:002023-03-17T21:42:18.657-06:00Public Meeting Regarding Appropriation Policy for Weber and Davis Counties<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights has set a public meeting to discuss the appropriation policy for the Weber Delta Sub-Area of the East Shore Area of the Great Salt Lake (Area 31 and Area 35) in Davis County and Weber County. The policy change is being driven in part by Governor Cox's <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2022/11/proclamation-closing-great-salt-lake.html" target="_blank">recent proclamation</a> to close the Great Salt Lake drainage to new water appropriations. The following information is from the public meeting notice:</p><u>What</u>: Public Meeting<br /><u>Who</u>: Weber Delta Sub-Area Water Users and interested parties<br /><u>When</u>: March 8, 2023, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.<br /><u>Where</u>: Roy High School, 2150 West 4800 South, Roy<br /><u>Purpose</u>: The purpose of the meeting is to present a proposed update to the appropriation policy in the Weber Delta Sub-Area of the East Shore Area of the Great Salt Lake in Davis County and Weber County. Personnel from the Division of Water Rights will be available to take all questions and comments provided by the general public and interested parties.<div><u>Agenda</u>:<br />1. Welcome/Introduction<br />2. Summary of Current Appropriation Policy and the Governor's Proclamation<br />3. Update to Appropriation Policy<br />4. Public Questions and Comments</div><div>The meeting will also be broadcast via Internet at <a href="https://waterrights.utah.gov/publicmeetings">https://waterrights.utah.gov/publicmeetings</a>.</div><div><br />If you are unable to attend the meeting, you can provide written comments to the Division of Water Rights at PO Box 146300, Salt Lake City, UT 84114-6300.<br /><br />For more information about the meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/808435.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<br /><br />For current water right policies in Area 31, <a href="https://www.waterrights.utah.gov/wrinfo/policy/wrareas/area31.asp" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>For current water right policies in Area 35, <a href="https://www.waterrights.utah.gov/wrinfo/policy/wrareas/area35.asp" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-19857921788846453022023-01-30T09:13:00.006-07:002023-01-30T09:13:58.180-07:00Ripple Effect Podcast - Episode 118<p>I was recently invited by my colleague, Emily E. Lewis, to join her on the Ripple Effect podcast to discuss the water bills that are being considered by the Utah legislature in the 2023 session. To listen to the podcast, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/118-2023-legislative-preview/id1511225977?i=1000596834133" target="_blank">click here</a>.<br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6mjXB7A-ghm_D3-DVLXmjTTVodlaCdXRN634ZaANK9Pm1IpMOvC2PQGA0LVNebx8uGnAT7su3BQoXTBjwYfBzFRl5t1l8zk6TzaHK3Sr6eDsA2TLRDv2NlqRzxYQ50OuEHMJj6mnyFsyBIQrucNMy9kSm2X6QhVnJDPLSI9yuhVkItuoLKiNJlzaA/s1521/Screenshot%202023-01-30%20091255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="557" data-original-width="1521" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6mjXB7A-ghm_D3-DVLXmjTTVodlaCdXRN634ZaANK9Pm1IpMOvC2PQGA0LVNebx8uGnAT7su3BQoXTBjwYfBzFRl5t1l8zk6TzaHK3Sr6eDsA2TLRDv2NlqRzxYQ50OuEHMJj6mnyFsyBIQrucNMy9kSm2X6QhVnJDPLSI9yuhVkItuoLKiNJlzaA/w400-h146/Screenshot%202023-01-30%20091255.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-29851628139889981512023-01-24T11:10:00.002-07:002023-01-24T11:10:53.360-07:00Public Meeting Regarding Appropriation Policy for Bear River Basin<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights has set a public meeting to discuss the appropriation policy for the Bear River Basin in Cache County (Area 25). The policy change is being driven in part by Governor Cox's <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2022/11/proclamation-closing-great-salt-lake.html" target="_blank">recent proclamation</a> to close the Great Salt Lake drainage to new water appropriations. The following information is from the public meeting notice:</p><u>What</u>: Public Meeting<br /><u>Who</u>: Bear River Basin Water Users and interested parties<br /><u>When</u>: February 22, 2023, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m.<br /><u>Where</u>: Council Chambers, Cache County Building, 199 North Main, Logan<br /><u>Purpose</u>: The purpose of the meeting is to present a proposed update to the appropriation policy in the Bear River Basin area of Cache County. Personnel from the Division of Water Rights will be available to take all questions and comments provided by the general public and interested parties.<div><u>Agenda</u>:<br />1. Welcome/Introduction<br />2. Summary of Current Appropriation Policy and the Governor's Proclamation<br />3. Update to Appropriation Policy<br />4. Public Questions/Comments</div><div>The meeting will also be broadcast via Internet at <a href="https://waterrights.utah.gov/publicmeetings">https://waterrights.utah.gov/publicmeetings</a>.</div><div><br />If you are unable to attend the meeting, you can provide written comments to the Division of Water Rights at PO Box 146300, Salt Lake City, UT 84114-6300.<br /><br />For more information about the meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/808435.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<br /><br />For current water right policies in Area 25, <a href="https://www.waterrights.utah.gov/wrinfo/policy/wrareas/area25.asp" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-764592400529339482023-01-13T16:46:00.014-07:002023-01-13T16:58:53.758-07:002023 Legislative Preview of Water Bills<p>The 2023 session of the Utah Legislature is (once again) going to be a very busy session for the water community. There are a number of water bills that are being proposed, which are summarized below. More water bills are also expected to be filed as the session goes on.</p><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="background: white; mso-cellspacing: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 0in 0in; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 100%px;">
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">HB 33 - Water Related Liability
Amendments</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Rep. Carl R. Albrecht</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">House Bill 33 proposes amending
<a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title73/Chapter1/73-1-S8.html?v=C73-1-S8_1800010118000101" target="_blank">Utah Code section 73-1-8</a>, which addresses the duties of canal owners or
operators and their liability. The bill would expand the section’s applicability
by changing the existing “ditch, canal, flume or other watercourse” language
to “water facility,” which includes any facility “used for the diversion,
transportation, distribution, measurement, collection, containment, or
storage of water.” Identical language has already been inserted into two
other sections of the Water Code to reflect the changing uses of canals and
the need to extend protections to other types of water facilities as well.
Among other things, the bill clarifies that water facility owners and
operators have a duty of “ordinary care” to maintain water facilities to
prevent the waste of water or property damage, rather than being subject to a
higher standard of care courts have threatened to impose on canals in recent
years. In addition, the bill would shield the owners or operators of water
facilities from liability for damage or injury caused by “the diversion or
discharge of water or another substance into the water facility by a third
party” without permission, or “an act of God, including fire, earthquake,
storm, flash floods, or similar natural occurrences.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To read the full text of the
bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0033.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">HB 150 - Emergency Water
Shortages Amendments</span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Rep. Carl R. Albrecht</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">House Bill 150 addresses
preferences for water use during a temporary water shortage emergency. The
existing statute is extremely vague about what constitutes a water shortage
emergency, how the preference determination process should be managed, and
how compensation for the preferential use should be calculated. The bill
outlines a new procedure by which the governor would declare a temporary
water shortage emergency, which would be distinct from the governor’s powers
to declare a state of emergency under the Disaster Response and Recovery Act.
A temporary water shortage emergency could only be declared if an
interruption of water delivery “caused by manmade or natural causes other
than drought” either (a) threatens the “availability or quality of an
essential water supply” or (b) threatens the economy and “jeopardizes the
peace, health, safety, or welfare” of the public. In issuing an executive
order declaring a temporary water shortage emergency, the governor would be
required to seek the advice and recommendation of the State Engineer and
consult with the state’s Emergency Management Administration Committee. The
preferential uses of water in a temporary water shortage emergency, in order,
would be for: (1) drinking, (2) sanitation, (3) fire suppression, (4)
commercial agriculture animal welfare needs, and (5) generation of
electricity. Outside of the ranking of preferential uses, the bill states
that water for agriculture purposes, including irrigation, livestock
watering, and food processing, would be preferred over the remaining water
uses. Preferential users would be required to pay the interrupted users for
the reasonable value of the water, applicable crop losses, and “other
consequential damages incurred as a result of the interruption.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To read the full text of the
bill, click here. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">HB 188 - Golf Related Water
Modifications</span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Rep. Douglas R. Welton</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">House Bill 188 requires the
owners and operators of golf courses and driving ranges to report annual
water use data to the Division of Water Resources. The data includes the
amount of water used for the operation and maintenance of the golf course and
the sources of water used. The golf course owners/operators are also required
to publish the water use information on the golf course’s website. The
Division will also publish the water use information on its website.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To read the full text of the
bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0150.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">HB 207 - Compact Commission
Amendments</span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Rep. Casey Snider</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">House Bill 207 changes Utah’s
appointee to the Bear River Compact Commission and the Columbia Compact
Commission from the Director of the Division of Water Resources to the State
Engineer.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To read the full text of the
bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/HB0207.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">SB 34 - Water Infrastructure
Funding Study</span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Sen. Daniel McCay</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Senate Bill 34 directs the
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to study the current use of property
tax revenue to fund water infrastructure, treatment, and delivery by local
governments. DNR’s study, conducted by a working group, would include: (i)
developing policies to ensure tax exempt entities contribute to
infrastructure funded with property tax revenue; (ii) considering the effects
of removing or reducing the use of property taxes for infrastructure; and
(iii) developing tiered water rate structures that promote water conservation
and ensure reasonable revenue stability. By October 30, 2024, DNR would
report on the study to the two Interim Committees: (i) Natural Resources,
Agriculture, and Environment and (ii) Revenue and Taxation Interim Committee.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To read the full text of the
bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0034.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">SB 53 - Groundwater Use
Amendments</span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Sen. Evan J. Vickers</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Senate Bill 53 seeks to amend
<a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title73/Chapter5/73-5-S15.html?v=C73-5-S15_1800010118000101" target="_blank">Utah Code section 73-5-15</a> regarding groundwater management plans. The bill
provides that in the context of groundwater management plans, the use of
water from a surface source to artificially recharge an aquifer constitutes
beneficial use of water (provided certain conditions are met). The bill also
corrects a punctuation error that created potential confusion regarding
aquifer storage as an exception to claims of nonuse.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To read the full text of the
bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0053.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">SB 76 - Water Amendments</span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Senate Bill 76 implements changes on the
municipal, county, and state agency levels to increase coordination in
water-related planning. It requires municipal and county planning commissions
to consult with the Division of Water Resources when drafting the water use and
preservation element of their general plans. Water Resources will help the
planning commissions determine how implementing the land use and water use
elements of their general plans may affect the Great Salt Lake. County
planning commissions are also required to notify and seek feedback from
community water systems regarding water supply and distribution planning and
to consider the potential opportunities and benefits of planning for
regionalization of public water systems. In addition, the bill allows the
Division of Drinking Water to change water source, storage, and system
minimum sizing standards based on water use data and enforceable water
conservation measures implemented by public water systems. Finally,
the bill tasks the existing Water Development Coordination
Commission—comprised of state water agency heads, the Commissioner of the
Department of Agriculture and Food, the director of the Housing and Community
Development Division, and the state treasurer—with identifying incentives to develop
and implement conservation plans and regionalize water systems.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To read the full text of the
bill, <a href="https://le.utah.gov/~2023/bills/static/SB0076.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<td style="padding: 7.5pt 15pt;" valign="top"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>(Not Yet Numbered) - </b><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Water Efficient Landscaping
Amendments</span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Rep. Doug Owens</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">This bill would amend <a href="https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title73/Chapter10/73-10-S37.html?v=C73-10-S37_2022050420220504" target="_blank">Utah Code section 73-10-37</a> by, among other things, increasing appropriations
from $5,000,000 to $12,500,000 and allow administration through the local
water districts or the municipality. The municipality would first need to enact
an ordinance to establish water use efficiency standards. The bill includes
specific details a municipality would need to include in the ordinance; for
example, an owner may not install or maintain a lawn or turf within a park
strip or an area that is less than eight feet wide. The purpose here is to
ensure municipalities are committed to more efficient water use for the long
term. When Rep. Owens discussed this bill at the Utah Water Task Force meeting
on January 11, 2023 his emphasis was combating the bad press Utah has
received for our lack of water conservation. Many provisions in this bill
revolve around combating this perception by showing long term commitment to
water efficiency. A similar bill was introduced by Sen. Sandall (discussed
below). One of the main differences is Rep. Owen’s bill requests more
appropriations to implement the turf buyback program. The bills do not
conflict and many feel unifying the two bills would be the best
approach. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<td style="padding: 7.5pt 15pt;" valign="top"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>(Not Yet Numbered) - </b><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Water Efficient Landscaping
Incentives</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b>Sen. Scott D. Sandall</b></span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">This bill, which is similar to
Rep. Owens' bill discussed above, establishes a financial incentive program for the
conversion of lawn or turf to water-efficient landscaping. The Division of
Water Rights will award grants to water conservancy districts that administer
landscaping conversion incentive programs. In areas without these programs,
landowners are eligible to directly receive financial incentives to
voluntarily remove lawn or turf. The bill also permits the Division of Water
Rights and/or water conservancy districts to hold a lien on a property if the
recipient of a financial incentive subsequently re-installs lawn, turf, or
overhead spray irrigation on the property.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-87836051748928940562022-12-30T10:22:00.002-07:002022-12-30T10:51:11.214-07:00Public Meeting Concerning the General Adjudication in Upper Provo River Area<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights has set a public meeting to discuss the <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2009/04/what-is-general-adjudication.html" target="_blank">general adjudication</a> of water rights in the Upper Provo River area in the Provo River Division of the Utah Lake/Jordan River Drainage (Area 55, Book 15). The Upper Provo River area boundaries are shown on the map below. The following information is from the public meeting notice:</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">What: Public Meeting<br />Who: Water Users within the Upper Provo River area<br />When: January 26, 2023, 6:00 to 7:00 pm<br />Where: Francis Community Center, 2319 South Spring Hollow Road, Francis, Utah</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Purpose: In accordance with Chapter 73-4, Utah Code Annotated, and the Third Judicial District Court (Civil No. 365729854), the State Engineer is authorized and ordered to conduct a general determination of the rights to the use of all water, both surface and underground, within the drainage area of the Upper Provo River Subdivision, Provo River Division, of the Utah Lake and Jordan River drainage in Wasatch County. Efforts are currently underway and over the next few months, representatives of the Division of Water Rights will be working in the Upper Provo River area to survey existing water rights and investigate <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2016/11/what-is-notice-to-file-statement-of.html" target="_blank">water user's claims</a>. In light of this work, the public is invited to a public meeting. Representatives from the Division of Water Rights will be available during this time to discuss the adjudication process, review water rights within the area, and answer questions. If individuals cannot attend, but have questions regarding the adjudication process or water rights within the Upper Provo River area, please contact the Division of Water Rights at 801-538-5282.<br /><br />Agenda:<br />1. Introduction<br />2. Adjudication Process Presentation<br />3. Public Comments and Questions<br /><br />For more information regarding this meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/802621.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnBVjsW_kly9fEPTLLrCSLaZGyZs2KkinUQXcmypu2gQjI2lQgPAbIVXi-6W4gVJNqGC6CxaDiQmL39qK6eHfWxeBszpd9GvrrE3B_QvAa1Ffn6j-50Q4eoVpXXAPDwgqOVO43D6SUdh633fpiNor8d83QWAJHNGtEKv6LPWcaj8M50rv7EPJ7Adj-/s1521/Area%2055-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1521" data-original-width="1357" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnBVjsW_kly9fEPTLLrCSLaZGyZs2KkinUQXcmypu2gQjI2lQgPAbIVXi-6W4gVJNqGC6CxaDiQmL39qK6eHfWxeBszpd9GvrrE3B_QvAa1Ffn6j-50Q4eoVpXXAPDwgqOVO43D6SUdh633fpiNor8d83QWAJHNGtEKv6LPWcaj8M50rv7EPJ7Adj-/w356-h400/Area%2055-15.jpg" width="356" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-12475871364592157292022-12-30T10:14:00.003-07:002022-12-30T10:18:04.774-07:00Public Meeting Concerning the General Adjudication in Francis / Woodland Area<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights has set a public meeting to discuss the <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2009/04/what-is-general-adjudication.html" target="_blank">general adjudication</a> of water rights in the Francis/Woodland area in the Provo River Division of the Utah Lake/Jordan River Drainage (Area 55, Book 14). The Francis/Woodland area boundaries are shown on the map below. The following information is from the public meeting notice:</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">What: Public Meeting<br />Who: Water Users within the Francis/Woodland area<br />When: January 26, 2023, 6:00 to 7:00 pm<br />Where: Francis Community Center, 2319 South Spring Hollow Road, Francis, Utah</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Purpose: In accordance with Chapter 73-4, Utah Code Annotated, and the Third Judicial District Court (Civil No. 365729853), the State Engineer is authorized and ordered to conduct a general determination of the rights to the use of all water, both surface and underground, within the drainage area of the Francis/Woodland Subdivision, Provo River Division, of the Utah Lake and Jordan River drainage in Wasatch County. Efforts are currently underway and over the next few months, representatives of the Division of Water Rights will be working in the Francis/Woodland area to survey existing water rights and investigate <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2016/11/what-is-notice-to-file-statement-of.html" target="_blank">water user's claims</a>. In light of this work, the public is invited to a public meeting. Representatives from the Division of Water Rights will be available during this time to discuss the adjudication process, review water rights within the area, and answer questions. If individuals cannot attend, but have questions regarding the adjudication process or water rights within the Francis/Woodland area, please contact the Division of Water Rights at 801-538-5282.<br /><br />Agenda:<br />1. Introduction<br />2. Adjudication Process Presentation<br />3. Public Comments and Questions<br /><br />For more information regarding this meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/802621.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8FP0U3my8Z_zDEv33KYmWl4RbT4nRV9qXkLbZ6-xkevDbghVuXC6qpyK4eKvTk0RA4Il7WJ3QYn9rkuEVbzGeMu3k3c6eMzVnwWIm8YoVS1wqw1-RNXjkuZvhfkYbFaYmlynduV6C3HoauFei5D-L-ht6-T2CQQTd4xdPrgOVtPYxOPR60dPgaCaL/s2020/Area%2055-14.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1640" data-original-width="2020" height="325" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8FP0U3my8Z_zDEv33KYmWl4RbT4nRV9qXkLbZ6-xkevDbghVuXC6qpyK4eKvTk0RA4Il7WJ3QYn9rkuEVbzGeMu3k3c6eMzVnwWIm8YoVS1wqw1-RNXjkuZvhfkYbFaYmlynduV6C3HoauFei5D-L-ht6-T2CQQTd4xdPrgOVtPYxOPR60dPgaCaL/w400-h325/Area%2055-14.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-86923270112417663302022-12-30T09:40:00.004-07:002022-12-30T10:00:39.145-07:00Public Meeting Regarding Appropriation Policy for Bear River Basin<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights has set a public meeting to discuss the appropriation policy for the Bear River Basin in Box Elder County (Area 29). The policy change is being driven in part by Governor Cox's <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2022/11/proclamation-closing-great-salt-lake.html" target="_blank">recent proclamation</a> to close the Great Salt Lake drainage to new water appropriations. The following information is from the public meeting notice:</p><u>What</u>: Public Meeting<br /><u>Who</u>: Bear River Basin Water Users<br /><u>When</u>: February 6, 2023, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m.<br /><u>Where</u>: Multi-Purpose Room at USU Brigham City, 989 South Main, Brigham City<br /><u>Purpose</u>: The purpose of the meeting is to present a proposed update to the appropriation policy in the Bear River Basin area of Box Elder County. Personnel from the Division of Water Rights will be available to take all questions and comments provided by the general public and interested parties.<div><u>Agenda</u>:<br />1. Welcome/Introduction<br />2. Summary of Current Appropriation Policy and the Governor's Proclamation<br />3. Update to Appropriation Policy<br />4. Public Questions/Comments</div><div>The meeting will also be broadcast via Internet at <a href="https://waterrights.utah.gov/publicmeetings">https://waterrights.utah.gov/publicmeetings</a>.</div><div><br />If you are unable to attend the meeting, you can provide written comments to the Division of Water Rights at PO Box 146300, Salt Lake City, UT 84114-6300.<br /><br />For more information about the meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/802623.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<br /><br />For current water right policies in Area 29, <a href="https://www.waterrights.utah.gov/wrinfo/policy/wrareas/area29.asp" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-37822083123698098702022-12-21T14:16:00.002-07:002022-12-21T14:45:18.825-07:00Public Meeting Concerning the Groundwater Management Plan for Goshen Valley<p>The Utah Division of Water Rights has set a public meeting to discuss the groundwater resources, appropriation policy, and groundwater management plan for Goshen Valley. The following information is from the public meeting notice:</p><u>What</u>: Public Meeting<br /><u>Who</u>: Goshen Valley Water Users<br /><u>When</u>: January 24, 2023, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.<br /><u>Where</u>: Goshen Elementary School, 60 North Center Street, Goshen, UT 84633<br /><u>Purpose</u>: The purpose of the meeting is to present the results of a recently published hydrology study performed by the Utah Geological Survey and to discuss the groundwater appropriation policies and groundwater management plan in the valley. Personnel from the Division of Water Rights will be available to take all questions and comments provided by the general public and interested parties.<div><u>Agenda</u>:<br />1. Welcome/Introduction<br />2. Summary of Groundwater Hydrology Study by UGS Staff<br />3. Appropriation Policy and Groundwater Management Plan Discussion<br />4. Public Questions/Comments</div><div><br /></div><div>The meeting will also be broadcast via Internet at https://waterrights.utah.gov/publicmeetings.</div><div><br />If you have groundwater rights in the Goshen Valley area, you may want to attend the public meeting, as the policies and plans that will be discussed could have a significant impact on your water rights.<br /><br />For more information about the meeting, <a href="https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/796953.html" target="_blank">click here</a>.<br /><br />For current water right policies in Goshen Valley area, <a href="http://www.waterrights.utah.gov/wrinfo/policy/wrareas/area75.asp" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4910071818748006479.post-12758824456147158612022-12-13T13:47:00.002-07:002022-12-13T13:47:20.632-07:00Water Judges<p>The Utah Judicial Council previously approved a rule allowing for <a href="http://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/2022/05/district-court-water-judges-rule-adopted.html" target="_blank">water judges</a> to serve at the district court level. The rule went into effect on November 1, 2022, and the Council has approved nine judges to serve as water judges. These judges are:</p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">• First District Court – Judge Angela Fonnesbeck <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">• Second District Court – Judge Jennifer Valencia<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">• Third District Court – Judge Laura Scott, Judge Patrick
Corum, and Judge Kent Holmberg (possibly short-term) <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">• Fourth District Court – Judge Kraig Powell<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">• Fifth District Court – Judge Ann Marie McIff Allen and
Judge Michael Westfall (possibly short-term)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">• Eighth District Court – Judge Greg Lamb<o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>Jeff Gittinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13110412959915265771noreply@blogger.com0