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Committee advances bill instructing ADWR to count stormwater recharge in groundwater models, despite agency concerns
Summary
Lawmakers returned House Bill 22‑70 to update active management area groundwater models to account for natural, incidental and artificial stormwater recharge. ADWR and stakeholders urged caution about double counting and model calibration; the measure passed 6‑4.
House Bill 22‑70 would allow the Arizona Department of Water Resources director to adopt rules to update groundwater models for Active Management Areas (AMAs) to account for natural, incidental or artificial stormwater recharge and require annual updates reflecting new stormwater recharge.
Testimony and concerns: The Home Builders Association’s Spencer Camps and local water interests supported the bill as a way to better quantify recharge from retention basins, golf course lakes and other features that produce incidental recharge. “This bill is very simple,” Camps said, urging ADWR to “identify storm water that is getting recharged into the aquifers and count [it] toward the model.”
ADWR cautioned: Ben Alteneater, chief legislative liaison for ADWR, said the department is neutral and warned the bill as drafted risks redundancy or double counting because the department’s established modeling already incorporates recharge through calibration to historical streamflow and gauge data. ADWR also noted the technical challenge and administrative burden of collecting micro‑scale infrastructure data statewide.
Academic research and local concerns: Witnesses referenced ongoing university research by Arizona universities on recharge location and methods. Some members emphasized the need to progress on recharge options despite modeling challenges; others worried that premature statutory direction could produce inconsistent model outputs.
Committee outcome and next steps: The committee returned HB 22‑70 with a due‑pass recommendation, 6 ayes and 4 nays. Members indicated intent to continue work with ADWR, university researchers and stakeholders to refine the approach and avoid double counting in the model calibrations.
Votes at a glance
- HB 22‑70 (allow ADWR rulemaking to account for stormwater recharge in AMA groundwater models) — Passed, due pass; vote 6 ayes, 4 nays.
Ending: The bill advances to the floor; ADWR and the sponsor agreed to continue technical consultations on calibration methods and avoiding duplication of existing modeling inputs.
