HB 1874: Water rights

Summary

• $ Identifies the inchoate portion of certain certificated water rights of public water systems, requires the use of such an inchoate right to be initiated within 50 years and to be consistent with adopted comprehensive plans, and establishes mitigation and monitoring requirements for transferring inchoate rights where certain fish habitat would be adversely affected.
• $ Requires Department of Health (DOH) to adopt conservation and efficiency standards and safeguards for water distribution and identifies the circumstances under which the standards apply.
• $ Allows interties to be used to acquire water, no longer prohibits interties from including the development of new sources of supply to meet future demands, and, with certain exceptions, prohibits an intertie from being used to deliver a primary or secondary supply of water on a temporary basis.

From the House Bill Analysis (HB 1874), written by the Legislature's nonpartisan staff. Read the full report ↗