Idaho water director tells committee federal rulings, new Eastern Snake Plain mitigation plan and staffing needs will shape agency work

Matthew Weaver, director of the Idaho Department of Water Resources, told the House Resources and Conservation Committee that federal court rulings, a newly adopted mitigation plan for the Eastern Snake Plain and a recent information-technology failure will drive the department’s priorities this year and next.

Weaver said the department is preparing to begin—or continue—major adjudication work across the state, including the newly authorized Kootenai River Basin adjudication and contested matters arising from the Snake River Basin Adjudication (SRBA). He also described a settlement adopted as a mitigation plan on Jan. 3 for the Eastern Snake Plain that he said he supports and that gives junior groundwater users a path to avoid curtailment if they meet new mitigation requirements.

Weaver summarized three near-term challenges. First, a pair of federal and state legal tracks tied to federal defendants and SRBA deferred domestic and stock claims could force the department to process a very large number of water-rights claims and show-cause proceedings. Second, the agency’s recently rebuilt public records system is still restoring a multi-month gap of documents after a catastrophic failure in October 2023. Third, the department has asked the Legislature for staff and technical capacity to keep up with administration and adjudication work.

On adjudications, Weaver said the Attorney General’s Office filed a petition on Jan. 3 to commence the Kootenai River Basin adjudication; a hearing was set for April 15 and he said he would expect a commencement order in midyear if the court follows prior timelines. He also described ongoing federal litigation tied to show-cause orders the department issued around 2021; Weaver said the federal court recently held that…