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H0794.....................................................by WAYS AND MEANS
WATER FLOW AUGMENTATION - Repeals and adds to existing law to provide
findings of the Legislature; to authorize the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to
release 427,000 acre feet of water to augment river flows to aid the
migration of Snake River salmon; to provide that the release of storage
water from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation reservoirs to aid salmon
migration must be rented through the water bank operated by the Water
Resource Board or through local water rental committees; to provide
conditions upon the release of storage water; to provide that the section
will not become effective until the director of the Department of Water
Resources certifies to the governor that the Bureau of Reclamation's
applications to transfer certain water rights and to amend certain water
right permits will be held in abeyance until July 1, 2000; and to provide a
sunset date.
03/29 House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
03/30 Rpt prt - 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
Rules susp - PASSED - 63-3-4
AYES -- Alltus, Barraclough, Bell, Bieter, Black, Boe, Bruneel,
Callister, Campbell, Chase, Cheirrett, Clark, Cuddy, Deal, Denney,
Ellsworth, Field(13), Field(20), Gagner, Geddes, Gould, Hadley,
Hammond, Hansen(23), Hansen(29), Henbest, Hornbeck, Jaquet,
Jones(Jones), Judd, Kellogg, Kempton, Kendell, Kunz, Lake, Linford,
Loertscher, Marley, Meyer, Montgomery, Mortensen, Moss, Moyle,
Pearce, Pischner, Pomeroy, Reynolds, Ridinger, Ringo, Robison, Sali,
Schaefer, Sellman, Shepherd, Smith, Smylie, Stoicheff, Stone, Tilman,
Trail, Wheeler, Zimmermann, Mr Speaker
NAYS -- Barrett, McKague, Wood
Absent and excused -- Crow, Mader, Stevenson, Taylor
Floor Sponsor - Linford
Title apvd - to Senate
Senate intro - 1st rdg - to Res/Env
04/03 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
04/04 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
04/05 3rd rdg - PASSED - 35-0-0
AYES--Andreason, Boatright, Bunderson, Burtenshaw, Cameron, Crow,
Danielson, Darrington, Davis, Deide, Dunklin, Frasure, Geddes,
Hawkins, Ingram, Ipsen, Keough, King-Barrutia, Lee, McLaughlin, Noh,
Parry, Richardson, Riggs, Risch, Sandy, Schroeder, Sorensen, Stegner,
Stennett, Thorne, Walton, Wheeler, Whitworth, Williams
NAYS--None
Absent and excused--None
Floor Sponsor - Noh
Title apvd - to House
To enrol - rpt enrol - Sp signed - Pres signed
04/06 To Governor
04/12 Governor signed
Session Law Chapter 222
Effective: 04/12/00
01/01/01 Sunset Clause
H0794
|||| LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ||||
Fifty-fifth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2000
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 794
BY WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO RENTAL OF STORAGE WATER TO AUGMENT RIVER FLOWS TO AID SALMON
3 MIGRATION; REPEALING SECTION 42-1763B, IDAHO CODE; AMENDING CHAPTER 17,
4 TITLE 42, IDAHO CODE, BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION 42-1763B, IDAHO
5 CODE, TO PROVIDE FINDINGS AND INTENT OF THE LEGISLATURE, TO AUTHORIZE THE
6 U.S. BUREAU OF RECLAMATION TO RELEASE FOUR HUNDRED TWENTY-SEVEN THOUSAND
7 ACRE FEET OF WATER FROM ITS PROJECTS UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS IN THE YEAR
8 2000 TO AUGMENT RIVER FLOWS TO AID THE MIGRATION OF SNAKE RIVER SALMON, TO
9 PROVIDE THAT RELEASE OF STORAGE WATER FROM U.S. BUREAU OF RECLAMATION RES-
10 ERVOIRS TO AID SALMON MIGRATION MUST BE RENTED THROUGH THE WATER BANK
11 OPERATED BY THE WATER RESOURCE BOARD OR THROUGH LOCAL WATER RENTAL COMMIT-
12 TEES, TO PROVIDE CONDITIONS UPON THE RELEASE OF STORAGE WATER, TO PROVIDE
13 THAT THIS SECTION WILL NOT BECOME EFFECTIVE UNTIL THE DIRECTOR OF THE
14 DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES CERTIFIES TO THE GOVERNOR THAT THE BUREAU'S
15 APPLICATIONS TO TRANSFER CERTAIN WATER RIGHTS AND TO AMEND CERTAIN WATER
16 RIGHT PERMITS WILL BE HELD IN ABEYANCE UNTIL JULY 1, 2000, AND TO PROVIDE
17 THAT THIS SECTION SHALL BE NULL AND VOID ON AND AFTER JANUARY 1, 2001; AND
18 DECLARING AN EMERGENCY.
19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
20 SECTION 1. That Section 42-1763B, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
21 repealed.
22 SECTION 2. That Chapter 17, Title 42, Idaho Code, be, and the same is
23 hereby amended by the addition thereto of a NEW SECTION, to be known and des-
24 ignated as Section 42-1763B, Idaho Code, and to read as follows:
25 42-1763B. INTERIM AUTHORITY FOR RENTAL OF STORAGE WATER TO AUGMENT FLOWS
26 DURING THE MIGRATION OF SNAKE RIVER SALMON. (1) Legislative findings and
27 intent regarding rental of storage water from U.S. bureau of reclamation proj-
28 ects in the Snake River basin within Idaho to augment lower Snake River flows
29 during the migration of Snake River salmon. The legislature finds that the
30 U.S. bureau of reclamation requested the release of four hundred twenty-seven
31 thousand (427,000) acre feet of water to augment salmon flows in order to sat-
32 isfy the conditions of the biological opinion issued by the national marine
33 fisheries service on March 2, 1995. The legislature authorizes the U.S. bureau
34 of reclamation to release water from its projects under the limited conditions
35 of this section in 2000.
36 (2) Rental of storage water from U.S. bureau of reclamation storage.
37 (a) Notwithstanding the legislative approval required in section 42-108,
38 Idaho Code, any storage water release from U.S. bureau of reclamation res-
39 ervoirs within the state of Idaho for use to augment river flows during
40 the migration of Snake River salmon pursuant to this section must be
41 rented through the water bank operated by the Idaho water resource board
42 pursuant to sections 42-1761 through 42-1764, Idaho Code, or through local
2
1 water rental committees, created pursuant to section 42-1765, Idaho Code,
2 under their respective water bank rules.
3 (b) For any rental of water pursuant to this section, the director shall
4 not be required to determine under section 42-1763, Idaho Code, whether
5 the water supply is sufficient for the purpose for which it is sought,
6 whether the rental would cause the use of water to be enlarged beyond
7 that authorized under the water right to be rented, whether such use is in
8 the public interest, or whether such use is consistent with the factors
9 enumerated under subsection (3) of section 42-401, Idaho Code.
10 (3) Conditions on storage water rentals.
11 (a) Any storage water made available under this section shall be obtained
12 only from willing lessors. Any water rented under this section from reser-
13 voirs located within a basin having a local rental pool committee estab-
14 lished pursuant to section 42-1765, Idaho Code, shall be rented pursuant
15 to this section only through the local rental pool committee.
16 (b) Storage water made available under this section shall be limited to
17 four hundred twenty-seven thousand (427,000) acre feet annually. These
18 releases from storage shall be reduced by other water the U.S. bureau of
19 reclamation provides for augmentation of salmon flows from the Snake River
20 and its tributaries.
21 (c) In no event shall the release of water under this section cause the
22 water surface of Cascade Reservoir to be below the elevation required to
23 maintain a storage volume of three hundred thousand (300,000) acre feet,
24 fifty thousand (50,000) acre feet of which is dead space, which is cur-
25 rently estimated to be at an elevation of four thousand eight hundred nine
26 and two-tenths (4,809.2) feet.
27 (d) The U.S. bureau of reclamation shall report on the plan for releases
28 for the spring and summer chinook prior to such releases and on the plan
29 for releases for the fall chinook by July 15, 2000. The U.S. bureau of
30 reclamation shall submit a report to the director by January 15, 2001,
31 describing the time, volume and purpose of storage water released for
32 salmon purposes during the year 2000.
33 (e) All storage water rented from U.S. bureau of reclamation reservoirs
34 under this section must be used for power production purposes within the
35 state of Idaho.
36 (f) Nothing herein shall entitle the U.S. bureau of reclamation to rent
37 storage water upon termination or expiration of the permission given in
38 this section.
39 (4) Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter in any way the
40 existing contractual obligations of the U.S. bureau of reclamation or to con-
41 stitute a finding by the legislature that the rental or use of storage water
42 for augmentation of flows for salmon migration is a beneficial use of water,
43 that it is in the public interest, or whether such use injures existing water
44 rights.
45 (5) This section shall not become effective until the director certifies
46 to the governor that the U.S. bureau of reclamation's applications to transfer
47 water right numbers 4616, 4617, 4618, 4623, 4625, 4626, 4627, 4628, 4629,
48 4630, 4631, 4632, 4633 and 4636, and to amend water right permit numbers
49 25-07004 and 63-3618 will be held in abeyance until July 1, 2000.
50 (6) On and after January 1, 2001, this act shall be null, void and of no
51 force and effect.
52 SECTION 3. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby
53 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after its
54 passage and approval.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 10338
The purpose of this legislation is to renew the existing statute 42-1763B and
provide statutory authority for the temporary use of storage water from Idaho for
flow augmentation purposes during the year 2000. The legislation sunsets January
1, 2001.
FISCAL IMPACT
None.
Contact
Name: Rep. Golden Linford
Phone: 208-332-1000
Name: Sherl Chapman, Idaho Water Users
Phone: 208-344-6690
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE H 794