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Public hearing on HB 473 draws residents and utilities over closure of Big Creek Lake; committee takes no vote
Summary
A House committee held a public hearing on House Bill 473, proposed after the closure of Big Creek Lake, hearing hours of testimony from the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, utility officials and dozens of residents. The committee did not vote.
A House committee held a public hearing on House Bill 473 — a bill proposed in response to the closure of Big Creek Lake — and heard hours of testimony from state attorneys, utility officials and dozens of residents. The committee did not vote on the bill.
Charlana Skaggs, general counsel for the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), told the committee the department's legal review concluded "we did find in our legal opinion that Big Creek Lake is a public waterway." She summarized the DCNR approach: to determine whether a watercourse was "navigable at the time the state became a member of the union" by reviewing historical survey maps and use in commerce, and by noting a statute the department interprets as having declared Big Creek navigable (transcript citation: "an act of Alabama 18 58 dash 3 3 9").
Residents who use Big Creek Lake for fishing and family recreation…
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