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Committee backs bill to require joint watershed boards for cross-county drainage projects
Summary
Senate Bill 22-76 would require counties that share a multi-county drainage project to form a joint watershed board with powers like local water resource districts; supporters argue it will reduce long-running disputes and spread costs more fairly.
Senator Larry Lewick told the Senate Agriculture and Veterans Affairs Committee that Senate Bill 22-76 would require counties that share drainage and joint water projects to form a joint watershed board from the existing county water boards to oversee projects that cross jurisdictional lines.
Lewick said ongoing disputes between counties over multi-county drainage projects have stalled repairs and projects for years. “I believe that this would have never have taken place if we would have had this in place years ago,” he told the committee, arguing watershed-based governance is fairer than county-by-county decision-making.
Supporters included the North Dakota Grain Growers Association, which described the measure as “another tool in the toolbox” and urged a due-pass recommendation for coordinated water management. Several senators on the committee echoed those views and pushed that mandatory participation is necessary to avoid the repeated failures of voluntary watershed arrangements.
Committee action: After public testimony and discussion, Senator [unnamed committee member] moved a due-pass recommendation; the committee seconded the motion and approved it on a roll call. The clerk recorded unanimous or near-unanimous support with the roll call recorded in committee minutes and the committee assigned a carrier to carry the bill forward.
Why it matters: Proponents said a mandatory watershed approach would spread assessments and project costs more fairly, prevent upstream counties from shirking responsibility and avoid long, expensive disputes that delay needed drainage and water-management projects. County water boards and the state Water Commission will be key partners in implementation.
Implementation notes: Lewick said attorneys and legislative staff drew on existing Century Code sections (61-16.1-11; 61-16.1-09) to structure the joint boards and that some details about representation can follow existing law. Committee members acknowledged additional “fine tuning” would be needed but favored moving the bill forward rather than leaving long-standing conflicts unresolved.
Ending: The committee approved a due-pass recommendation and selected a committee member to carry the bill to the floor; members asked that local water resource districts and the state water commission be closely involved as the bill progresses.
