Wyoming commission orders Cheyenne utility to share revenue from Crystal Reservoir water sales

The Wyoming Water Development Commission voted to require the Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities (BOPU) to begin sharing net water revenue immediately from sales of water taken from Crystal Reservoir, overriding earlier office guidance that payments should wait until a higher-use threshold was exceeded.

The commission’s action follows days of detailed discussion at the Select Water Committee about when sales to a proposed U.S. Gold mining project should trigger a payment obligation under a 2000 project agreement between the commission and BOPU. The commission’s motion directs the Water Development Office to implement the agreement and to treat BOPU as responsible for sharing net revenue from the sales.

Why it matters: The decision affects how fast the commission (and ultimately state coffers or program accounts) could receive tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars a year if the mine develops a long‑term water purchase. Commissioners debated whether to begin revenue sharing immediately or wait until peak use exceeded a previously discussed threshold linked to the capacity of the 30‑inch transmission line. The vote to require immediate sharing was intended to ensure the state receives compensation when municipal infrastructure supported outside commercial sales.

What the committee heard - Director Jason Mead summarized the…