House committee hears bill to require Land Board review before state lawyers assert private water rights

Senator Becky Beard, sponsor of Senate Bill 263, told the House Natural Resources Committee the bill would ensure “a process of transparency and accountability when the state attempts to claim private water rights.” The bill would require the Land Board — the elected body that oversees state trust lands — to decide whether to direct state attorneys to pursue co-ownership or other claims before lawyers file in water court.

Beard, R-38, said the bill does not change who ultimately owns water rights but would add a step: notice to private water-rights owners and a chance to present to the Land Board before litigation. "This bill does not change who ultimately owns water rights. It simply requires the land board, not unelected state lawyers, to decide whether in each particular case it wants to direct its lawyers to claim the ownership," Beard said.

Nut graf: Supporters said the change restores a public, elected decision-maker to a process that, in some instances, left private owners unaware their rights were being challenged; opponents, including the lieutenant governor and multiple agricultural groups, said the measure could conflict with the state’s fiduciary obligations to school trust lands and could impose timing constraints that impair the Land Board’s ability…