Proposed Water Legislation and Ballot Initiative
Legislation: The 2014 Colorado Legislative Session convened on January 8th and several pending bills appear headed for enactment, including:
The fate of several other water related bills of interest is less clear at this time, including SB-103 (Phase In High Efficiency Fixtures); SB-017(Limit Use of Ag Water for Lawn Irrigation); HB-1052 (Ground Water Management District Enforcement Authority); HB-1002 (Water Infrastructure Natural Disaster Grant Fund); and SB-023 (Transfer Water Efficiency Savings for Instream Use).
Ballot Initiative: At least one group is pursuing a ballot initiative to impose the public trust doctrine for water rights by amendment of the Colorado Constitution. The proposed amendment, if accepted by the State Title Board and if backers collect sufficient signatures, would go to a state-wide vote this November. Such an initiative may threaten the reliability of decreed water rights. Many nonpublic water rights organizations are mobilizing to oppose the initiative. We will keep you updated on developments in this arena.
If you have questions about the above legislation, initiative or any legislative matters, contact attorneys in the Lyons Gaddis Water Law group.
Controversy Over Previously Quantified Water Rights.
The State and Division Engineers have taken several controversial positions concerning the continuing validity of quantifications of the historical consumptive use of water rights previously changed, including requantifications in ditch systems that have already been subject to a ditch-wide analysis. Members of the water community have requested the State Engineer reconsider these positions. As a result, a meeting with attorneys representing interested water users is scheduled for April 10, 2014 in Denver. A second meeting with the broader water community, including the general public, is scheduled for April 15, 2014 at the Southwest Weld County Services Building from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. RSVPs for that meeting are requested from Linda Korf at lindakorf@state.co.us or by phone at 970-352-8712.
If you have any questions about any of these issues, contact attorneys in the Lyons Gaddis Water Law group.
By Jeffrey J. Kahn and Michelle R. Soule On May 8,2024 the City of Thornton…
The smallest assets can create some of the biggest headaches when someone dies. We often…
Northern Colorado has been home to an abundance of oil and gas development and drilling…
The Business Attorneys at Lyons Gaddis have been advising our clients to take a slow…
By: Megan Henderson Starting January 1, 2024, if you own a small business or just…
By: Brian L. Allard In 2023, the Colorado legislature passed seven bills related to residential…