Senate advances omnibus water bill after heated debate over Alkali Creek reservoir extension
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Summary
The Wyoming Senate's omnibus water-development bill advanced out of the committee of the whole after debate over a proposed one‑year extension for the Alkali Creek (Norwood) Reservoir project; senators split on whether to revert $59 million for other infrastructure or give the project more time to secure landowner easements.
Senators approved a committee recommendation advancing Senate File 70, a broad package authorizing dozens of water projects and funding transfers, after extended debate over a one‑year extension sought for the Alkali Creek (Norwood) Reservoir project.
Sponsor Senator Love summarized the bill as a mix of new development and rehabilitation projects with typical 50% grant/50% loan terms and explained the bill also transfers $16,000,000 from Water Development Account 1 to Account 2. He said the bill includes ground‑based cloud‑seeding authorizations that require external funding commitments and a range of level‑3 rehabilitation and transmission projects across the state.
The debate turned to a committee‑of‑the‑whole amendment moved by Senator Steinmetz that would delete the Alkali Creek Reservoir section and cause its previously appropriated funds to revert. Steinmetz argued the project has not progressed because of unresolved easements and that reverting the roughly $59 million would free resources for other aging irrigation and municipal infrastructure. “If they cannot finish this easement issue by that date…we have a lot of aging irrigation infrastructure,” he said.
Opponents, including Senator Larson and members of the Select Water Committee, urged patience and cited progress on securing easements and federal funding opportunities. Larson said the project is nearly fully permitted, noted that 95% of required acreage had been secured, and warned that removing the funding now would be “devastating” to a project worked on for 15 years. Senator Hicks urged giving the project a year to broaden benefits to impacted landowners.
A separate committee amendment redirected funds to an expedited timber‑management research effort administered through the Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station; proponents said this language would quicken implementation by using existing university capacity.
The record shows the committee of the whole ultimately reported SF70 do‑pass and the bill was advanced for further consideration. The Alkali Creek dispute illustrates a recurring policy tension in the chamber: whether to preserve long‑running, locally supported water projects that still face logistical hurdles or to reallocate funds to more immediately deliverable infrastructure work.