Pinal County Chairman Miller told the Board of Supervisors on July 2 that a cross‑sector working group assembled at his request successfully advanced an “Ag‑to‑Urban” framework that restores a way forward on the state’s Certificates of Assured Water Supply issue affecting development in the county.

Miller said he convened industry, municipal and water‑agency leaders in December 2019 and that the group — which included representatives from cotton, cattle, home building, water providers and other stakeholders — worked for years, through a change of governors and the COVID‑era delays, to secure legislation and administrative cooperation that re‑establishes a process for moving agricultural water entitlements into urban uses. He described the effort as taking roughly six years and praised former participants and staff who continued engagement across administrations.

Why it matters: Certificates of Assured Water Supply are a key state approval that affects whether and how land can be subdivided and developed; resolving the county’s Ag‑to‑Urban questions is intended to provide predictability for growth, water providers and developers.

Miller said the group did not produce a solution that left every party entirely satisfied but that the compromise produced a workable path. He noted a recent staffing change among water‑sector participants (Bill Garfield stepped down for medical reasons and was replaced by Terry Sue Rossi of Arizona Water) and said the county hopes to complete its work within about a year, though he told the assembled group that the timeline would be flexible until a durable solution is reached.

Miller urged participants to maintain a county‑first focus and described the effort as essential to the county’s future economic model.

(Reporting for this item: Chairman Miller; references to the Department of Water Resources and state legislative activity.)