Category: Water Rights

Categories
Legislature Policy Water Rights

House Committee on Water Passes Substitute Bill Seeking More Water Funding but Rejecting Reorganization 

This morning the House Committee on Water “worked” HB 2628, the Mega Water Bill.

First, the chairman proposed a comprehensive set of amendments, which would have: 

  • removed KDHE’s Division of Environment from the agency consolidation, leaving a Department of Water with its Secretary of Water; 
  • gutted the GMD provisions of the bill (membership, voting for Board members, action by the Chief Engineer if GMDs fail to develop conservation plans), but leaving its reporting requirements on finances and plans to implement water conservation; 
  • removed the water right fee for all water rights paying a GMD assessment and basing the fee on water use rather than authorized quantity; 
  • struck the increase in water protection fees; 
  • raised water funding by approx. $45 million/year via dedicating 1/65 of the current revenues from the state’s current 6.5 cents sales tax; 
  • clarifying provisions related to the water and environment maintenance board which would oversee the new funding; and 
  • amending the dam safety provisions.  

After some clarifying questions, Rep. Newland offered a substitute bill which included only the following:

  • expanded funding for water projects via dedicating 1/10 of one cent of the state’s current sales tax to water funding (approx. $49 million/year), in this case placing the funding in the State’s Water Plan Fund, using the existing processes to determine how the funding should be appropriated; and 
  • including the GMD reporting provisions on finances and planned conservation actions.

The committee amended this Substitute Bill to add a one-time reporting requirement on GMDs from the balloon on p. 24 of the Chairman’s proposed amendments.  Those provisions are as follows:

“Not later than January 15, 2023, the board of each district shall submit to the senate standing committee on agriculture and natural resources, the house of representatives standing committee on agriculture, and the house of representatives standing committee on water a report that includes the following:

(1) An itemized list of each resolution, program established or other action by the board that resulted in measurable conservation of water over the last five years and the total cost of implementation of each item listed;

(2) an itemized list of each resolution, program established or other action by the board that the board believes may have encouraged conservation but did not result in any measurable conservation of water or any other quantifiable data over the last five years and the total costs of implementation of each item listed;

(3) the goals and priorities set by the board for any period over the next 20 years and any actions taken by the board to achieve such goals and priorities; and

(4) a list of the areas within each district that meet the criteria set forth in K.S.A. 82a-1036(a) through (e), and amendments thereto, and any specific actions taken to address the conditions in each area.”

An additional amendment seeking to remove the Secretary of Agriculture’s ability to review orders of the Chief Engineer failed.  

While many expressed dissatisfactions at the failure to include the re-organization provisions of the original HB 2628 in the Substitute Bill, after discussion, the committee approved the amended substitute bill on a 9 to 6 vote, and then passed it favorably out of committee. 

Its fate is now in the hands of the House leadership, which will determine when and if it will be considered by the full House of Representatives.

Categories
KDA-DWR Legislature Meeting Reports Policy Water Rights

House Committee on Water Starts New Session Focused on Recommendations

Last year, a new committee was created in the Kansas Legislature: the House Committee on Water (HCOW).  The Committee held over 30 hearings during the 2021 legislative session, including a 2-day hearing in Garden City last August. Last year’s focus was to collect information on various state and local water agencies, their responsibilities, programs, staffing, and budgets.  

All the presentation materials received by the Committee, as well as committee minutes summarizing the same, are available on the committee’s website, under Committee Testimony, by date of the testimony. See http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2021_22/committees/ctte_h_water_1/.

The website also includes the committee calendars, a committee roster, bills sponsored and a link to access an audio stream of committee hearings as they occur. Committee documents include State & Federal Water Programs Manager, Water Programs Org Chart, and committee rules, and more.

The important work of the HCOW continues in 2022, focusing on developing recommendations to the Legislature related to water, including recommendations related to increase funding for water programs. During its first week of January 10, 2022, the committee’s work started with updates from three state agencies (KWO, KDA-DWR, and KDHE).  During the week of January 17, the committee will hear updates on Wednesday (1/19) from the Nature Conservancy and the US Army, Corps of Engineers, and on Friday (1/21) from the Kansas Farm Bureau.

To make the Committee’s information more accessible, we have built a webpage with tables for 2021 and 2022 listing hearing date, subject (e.g. agency), and a link to the testimony provided and committee minutes.

We will be keeping this page up-to-date as the session moves forward.

Categories
KDA-DWR LEMA Water Rights

KWRC January 2021 Water Update

The 2020 was pretty slow in the water world. The pace seems to be picking up in 2021. Here are select
stories from January.

Chief Engineer Approves Wichita County LEMA Plan

On December 30, 2020, KDA-DWR’s new
Chief Engineer, Earl Lewis, issued an “order of decision” approving a Local Enhanced Management Area (LEMA) plan implementing wateruse reductions for all
irrigation water rights in Wichita County within the boundaries of Western Kansas Groundwater
Management District (GMD) No. 1. The LEMA Plan was developed and requested by GMD 1 to reduce
irrigation wateruse by approx. 15% for the next 5 years to extend the life of the local aquifer.

This order is the first of two orders required to implement the Wichita County LEMA. The order was based on an extensive public process. In it, the Chief Engineer found that the LEMA plan meets the state law’s requirements and that the ordered reductions are necessary for the public interest. It is expected that in early February, the second order, an “order of designation”, will be issued, putting the LEMA in effect for the years 2021-25.

The Wichita County LEMA will be the third LEMA in Kansas, following the notable successes achieved by
the LEMA plans in northwest Kansas, which showed that the reduction in water use slowed the rate of groundwater level decline, extending the life of the aquifer with little to no economic harm caused by
the reduction during the same period.

For more see: https://agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/dwr/managing-kansas-water-resources/local-enhanced-management-areas/wichita-county-lema

Audubon of Kansas Files Federal Lawsuit to Restore Quivira Water Right

On January 15, 2021, the Audubon of Kansas (AOK) filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of Kansas in an effort to restore the water right belonging to the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge of southcentral Kansas. The Refuge is a wetland of international significance. AOK contends that the Quivira Refuge has suffered from a shortage of water for the last 3 decades, due to groundwater pumping upstream in the Rattlesnake Creek basin by irrigators, whose water rights are junior to that of the refuge. The basis for the lawsuit is a 2016 impairment investigation conducted by the KDA/DWR Chief Engineer which found that impairment is occurring and by the failure of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to act to protect its water right. During October 2019, the Chief Engineer had planned to begin reducing water use under junior water rights of the basin, but in an agreement that was brokered by Senator Jerry Moran, with concurrence of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, that water right administration was postponed to allow more time to seek a remedy to the impairment. AOK’s lawsuit seeks an injunction, a declaratory judgment and an order of mandamus, to compel federal and state officials to do their duties as required by law.

For more:
https://www.audubonofkansas.org/aok-news.cfm?id=218
https://agriculture.ks.gov/divisions-programs/dwr/water-appropriation/impairment-complaints/quivira-
national-wildlife-refuge

Connie Owen Confirmed as Director of the Kansas Water Office

With former Kansas Water Office (KWO) Director Earl Lewis leaving the agency to become KDA-DWR’s chief engineer, the Governor announced her selection of Connie Owen, who had been serving as the Chair of the Kansas Water Authority, to take his place as KWO Director. Ms. Own was confirmed by the Senate last week.

Governor Laura Kelly has announced that Dawn Buehler will serve as the Chair of the Kansas Water Authority. Buehler’s appointment is subject to confirmation by the Kansas Senate. The water authority advises the governor, the Legislature and the director of the Kansas Water Office (KWO) on water policy issues — including the approval of the Kansas Water Plan and revisions, federal contracts, administration regulations and legislation proposed by KWO.

For more information: https://www.kwo.ks.gov/home

KDA to Resume Public Hearing on Wichita ASR Project

On February 3, the KDA-DWR will resume the final stages of the formal phase of the public hearing process to consider the City of Wichita’s proposed modifications to Phase II of its Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) Project beginning. This is a continuation of proceedings that were initiated by the agency during 2018, in response to modifications requested by the city of Wichita. While the in-person hearing location will not be open to the public, the public will be able to view the proceedings virtually, using either Zoom or YouTube. The public is also invited to submit written comments and will be allowed to do so until Feb. 26.

For more information: https://www.agriculture.ks.gov/WichitaASR

Upcoming meetings

  • Feb 2, Equus Beds GMD 2 Board monthly Board meeting, 9:30. Call their office at (316) 835-2224 for information or see http://gmd2.org/
  • Feb 11, Northwest Kansas GMD 4 will host both its monthly Board meeting at 9:00 AM and its annual meeting at 1:30, both at the City Limits Convention Center. For more information: http://gmd4.org/
  • Feb 11, Southwest Kansas GMD 3 Board meeting, 9:00 AM, http://www.gmd3.org/
  • Feb 17, Western Kansas GMD 1 Board meeting, 8:00 AM (CT). Check http://gmd1.org/ for updates.
  • Feb 18, Big Bend GMD 5 Board annual meeting at the Stafford County Annex located at 210 E Third Ave in St. John (just east of the Courthouse). The meeting will start at 7:00 p.m.
Categories
Water Rights

Do multi-year flex accounts lead to expanded water use?

The Chief Engineer of the Division of Water Resources (DWR) is required to report annually to the Kansas Legislature on implementation of the multi-year flex account (MYFA) program. The program was started in 2001 to allow waterusers to use more than their water right’s authorized quantity in any one year in exchange for a 5-year limitation on use. For years, the tool got little use as the prescribed 5-year limit was 10% less than average historic use. In 2012, there were significant reforms to the MYFA program’s statutory requirements that removed this required 10% conservation and also provided a second option to compute the 5-year limitation. This led to significant use of MYFAs, especially starting in 2012 as it was an extremely dry year. The program continues to see significant use, especially in southcentral Kansas.

Prior to this year’s report to the Legislature, DWR looked at the question of whether MYFAs were facilitating an expansion of water use via its flexibilities. DWR’s review focus was on the areas of greatest use of southcentral Kansas. For 11 counties, DWR tabulated water use by those currently enrolled in MYFAs for two periods: a pre-MYFA period vs. more recent use under MYFAs. For the same counties, DWR also compared use by those enrolled in MYFAs vs. those not enrolled in MYFAs.

The detailed results are in DWR’s “Water Use Comparison” document that can be found on DWR’s MYFA page.

In sum, DWR found “little evidence of expanded use under MYFAs when compared to pre-MYFA use, with a few counties showing reduction in use during the MYFA period.”

Also on the MYFA page is the Chief Engineer’s 2020 annual report to the Legislature, which includes a map showing locations of active MYFAs.

More from the blog: