Odd Ball HCR2012 - 561R - H Ver of HCR2012

House Engrossed

support; water management policies

(now: water management policies; support)

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-sixth Legislature

First Regular Session

2023

HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 2012

A Concurrent Resolution

supporting efforts to continue the tradition of leadership and support for appropriate water management practices and policies for the state of Arizona.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Whereas, Arizona has long been at the forefront among Western states in developing and implementing pioneering, well-reasoned water management policies; and

Whereas, through the efforts of many exemplary governmental, civic and community leaders, Arizona has enacted numerous programs and supported many projects, either through legislation or otherwise, that were designed to secure Arizona's water supplies and to ensure the wise use and stewardship of those supplies for the future, including:

1. The establishment of the Salt River Project by farmers in 1903, pledging their lands as collateral to construct the Roosevelt Dam as one of the nation's first reclamation projects in 1911 and to provide a secure water and electricity supply in support of expanding agricultural production and a burgeoning economy.

2. The passage of legislation in 1971 to provide for the establishment of the Central Arizona Water Conservation District to repay the federal government for the Central Arizona Project. Arizona State Representative Stan Turley and Arizona State Senator Ray Goetze, chairmen of the House of Representatives and Senate natural resource committees, respectively, participated in meetings with the federal government regarding the potential structure and operation of the Central Arizona Water Conservation District before enactment of this legislation.

3. The passage of legislation in 1980 to establish the Groundwater Management Act and to create the Department of Water Resources. This legislation was enacted after countless meetings and deliberations over at least a three-year period.

4. The passage of legislation in 1986 to provide for the underground storage of water for future uses, with additional provisions enacted in 1994.

5. The passage of legislation in 1993 to create the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District as a mechanism to provide for additional water supplies.

6. The passage of legislation in 1996 to create the Arizona Water Banking Authority to help ensure full use of Arizona's share of the Colorado River.

7. The passage of legislation in 2012 and 2017 to authorize Arizona to participate in Minutes 319 and 323 to the 1944 Treaty with Mexico regarding the use of Colorado River water.

8. The passage of legislation in 2019 to authorize Arizona to participate in the drought contingency plan among the seven basin states of the Colorado River. These successful conservation efforts included the participation of many parties, including representatives of tribes, cities, agricultural users, nongovernmental organizations, water users on the Colorado River, the United States and the State of Arizona; and

Whereas, due to these many proactive measures that Arizona has already enacted and implemented, this state uses less water today than in the 1950s, despite a population growth of nearly five hundred percent; and

Whereas, this state has more recently participated in and recognized these additional landmarks in Arizona's water efforts:

1. The 2017 celebration by the Salt River Project of the one hundredth anniversary of the United States Bureau of Reclamation's transfer of operational control of the Salt River Reclamation Project to the Salt River Valley Water Users' Association.

2. The 2018 celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Colorado River Basin Project Act, which authorized the construction of the Central Arizona Project.

3. The signing of a system use agreement in 2017 between the Central Arizona Water Conservation District and the United States Bureau of Reclamation to allow Central Arizona Project infrastructure to be used in more efficient and innovative ways, including the transport of non-Central Arizona Project water through the system. These and other similar innovative measures are crucial to the success of efforts to manage risks from drought and shortages on the Colorado River.

4. The signing of the 500+ Plan in 2021 with water agencies in Arizona, Nevada and California and the United States Bureau of Reclamation to add five hundred thousand acre-feet of additional water to Lake Mead in both 2022 and 2023 by facilitating actions to conserve water across the Lower Colorado River Basin.

5. The protection of Lake Mead by way of voluntary and mandatory conservation since 2012 to the present, during a period of drought and despite the structural deficit on the Colorado River. Since 2014, Arizona has engaged in conservation efforts and has participated in collaborative and innovative projects that expanded conservation volumes in both Lakes Powell and Mead as well as helped to develop future conservation programs. These actions from Arizona alone have left more than two million eight hundred thousand acre-feet of water in Lake Mead, equating to nearly forty feet of increased elevation, with an additional five hundred ninety-two thousand acre-feet minimum of shortage reductions and Lake Mead contributions planned for 2023; and

Whereas, this foundation of successful water policies and water management has provided a basis and a blueprint for this state to achieve more with respect to Arizona's current and future water challenges, including:

1. The renegotiation of the 2007 Interim Guidelines for Lower Basin Shortages in advance of the Guidelines' expiration at the end of 2025.

2. The resolution of issues involving the expiration of extinguishment credits in the Pinal Active Management Area.

3. The development of a desalination plan for brackish water as a means to provide additional sources of water in this state.

4. The development of a fourth and fifth management plan under the Groundwater Management Act for water users in the active management areas of this state.

5. The approval for the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority to administer three additional funds that total over $1.4 billion for water supply development and conservation projects.

6. The establishment of the on-farm irrigation efficiency pilot program for providing grants and collecting data to reduce on-farm use of water, including groundwater, surface water, central Arizona project water and mainstream Colorado River water, to minimize or eliminate the use of flood irrigation and fallowing.

7. The establishment of the direct potable reuse of treated wastewater program.

Therefore

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of Arizona, the Senate concurring:

That the Members of the Legislature continue this tradition of leadership and support for appropriate water management practices and policies that protect property and water rights and that provide for the continued safety and prosperity of the State of Arizona.