Speaker's Great Salt Lake Bill Cut Short by Weak Utah Water Law

Speaker Wilson unveiled HB 410 to help the Great Salt Lake, but many are disappointed that the measure fails to offer a permanent means of protecting the Lake. HB 410 awards $40 million to one new entity to acquire temporary water rights, protect lands or prepare studies on the Lake. But Utah’s restrictive instream flow laws threaten to impair these efforts before they even get off the ground.

“The Great Salt Lake needs 2 million acre-feet of water and its own legally protected water rights” said Zach Frankel, executive director of the Utah Rivers Council. “Without a plan to ensure the permanent protection of the Lake’s water, the Lake will continue to drop in the face of shrinking snowpacks and new water diversions,” said Frankel.

HB 410 directs the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands to administer a one-time grant award of $40 million to create just one water trust. Water trusts allow private organizations to hold water rights by acquiring these paper rights via donation or purchase. But HB 410 only allows the creation of one water trust and the water rights are temporary and will expire in 10 years.

“If protection isn’t permanent, it’s not really protection” said Frankel.

The $40 million award process would happen rapidly, with the grant being awarded just 90 days after the bill becomes law. Only one grantee would be selected, and they would be awarded the entire $40 million. Any water purchased for the Great Salt Lake under the $40 million grant program would, at best, only flow to the Lake for 10 years, not permanently.

The Speaker’s bill could be amended to allow the creation of multiple water trusts, allowing free-market principles and competition to benefit the Lake. The bill could also be amended to allow the permanent protection of Lake water rights.

Utah’s feeble water laws are very restrictive, since they prevent water rights from being used to permanently protect rivers and lakes. Individuals are not allowed to use their water rights to stay instream, or else they will be subject to forfeiture. HB 33, a new bill proposed at the statehouse would expand Utah’s current water law to allow an individual to hold instream flow rights, but only for 1 – 10 years at a time. If HB 33 passes, three state agencies are allowed to hold water rights on a permanent basis, but these three agencies may elect to hold water rights for the short term.