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Audit: Utah lacks consistent standards for future water needs; auditors propose three legislative paths
Summary
Legislative auditors found Utah lacks consistent statewide standards for projecting future municipal water needs, flagged inconsistent use of 40‑year plans and engineering studies, and proposed three mutually exclusive legislative options for clarification; the subcommittee unanimously referred the audit to interim and appropriations committees.
At a Legislative Audit Subcommittee meeting, Deputy Auditor General Darren Underwood and audit staff presented a performance audit finding that Utah does not apply consistent statewide standards to determine future municipal water needs, a gap the auditors said could allow inconsistent or excessive developer water exactions. The audit team told the committee it surveyed over 200 water providers, received nearly 100 responses and conducted in-depth reviews with about 15–20 cities.
The audit staff said exactions are broadly used: "Of those who responded, 45% indicated that they do require exactions," Tyson reported. Auditors described wide variation in the planning documents municipalities rely on to justify exactions. Some jurisdictions use 40‑year planning horizons, others use…
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