Harney County Court spent a major portion of its Dec. 17 meeting debating the Water Resources Department’s recent action to declare the Kearney Basin — roughly 5,000 square miles — a critical groundwater area that would require meters, monitoring devices and subarea caps on permissible withdrawals.

Local officials and irrigators told the court the department’s rulemaking creates immediate uncertainty for farms and ranches and could materially reduce water available for agriculture. Commissioners and attendees argued the department failed to complete required coordination and outreach to affected jurisdictions, and several urged the county to demand formal corrective action from the state before implementation proceeds.

The county’s stated next steps include sending follow‑up letters to the governor’s regional coordinator and the water commission, requesting Oregon Solutions or a similar mediator be engaged, and drafting a joint resolution with nearby jurisdictions to press the department to reopen coordination. Representative Owens and the county’s counsel have recommended pursuing subarea contested cases first — focused on the two subbasins with the largest impacts — so disputes can be litigated incrementally rather than across the entire basin.

County members also described a longer path: if administrative remedies fail, the county is prepared to consider judicial review on process grounds. The court’s outside counsel and a state water attorney, identified in meeting notes as Elizabeth Howard, are expected to brief the court on the legal options and likely costs before any litigation is filed.

Court leaders said they want to avoid immediate litigation if possible, but emphasized they will not accept agency action the county believes was taken without the statutorily required written coordination and findings. Commissioners pressed the state for clearer outreach to irrigators and for compensation mechanisms (buybacks or other mitigations) if curtailment proceeds under the new rules.

The court asked staff to bring a draft resolution and suggested calling an interjurisdictional meeting including the county, the cities of Burns and Hines, the tribal government and the Department of Water Resources to pursue a collaborative alternative before escalating to court.