Senate committee advances two measures to ease irrigation-district contracting and lateral disputes

Senate Resources and Environment Committee Vice Chairman Hart and members on Thursday advanced two legislative proposals aimed at clarifying how irrigation entities may participate in groundwater recharge projects and how laterals are governed.

The measures — RS31977 and RS31978 — were introduced by Paul Arrington of the Idaho Water Users Association and moved by committee members for printing. RS31977 would create a limited exception in existing code that can prevent irrigation districts from entering recharge-related contracts when district board members also are groundwater users who would benefit. RS31978 would expand the entities that can receive petitions about lateral management to include canal companies and…