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Senate moves groundwater management bill to third-reading table after fiscal concerns
Summary
Senators advanced House Bill 228 — clarifying groundwater management responsibilities, defining 'safe yield', and emphasizing public input — to the third-reading calendar but voted to table it on third citing its fiscal note.
House Bill 228, addressing groundwater management plans and the state engineer's role, was brought before the Utah Senate on Feb. 24. Senator Hatch described the bill as a major step to clarify the state engineer's responsibilities, reaffirm prior‑appropriation principles for both groundwater and surface water, provide a workable definition of "safe yield," and emphasize the importance of public input in plan adoption and implementation.
Hatch moved that H.B. 228 be read for a third time; the Senate recorded a roll call with the clerk reporting 24 yes votes, 0 nay votes, and 5 absent, and the bill was read for the third time. Immediately afterward, Hatch moved to table H.B. 228 on third due to its fiscal note. The motion to table carried and the bill was placed on the third‑reading table for later consideration.
Senators noted the bill's emphasis on voluntary cooperation among stakeholders and directed the state engineer to adopt a deliberate approach to basin management plans. Questions were not raised on the floor record prior to the motion to table.
