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Senate committee stalls bill to give watersheds and reefs legal standing after legal concerns
Summary
A joint Senate committee failed to advance SB3323, which would have recognized watersheds and coral reefs as legal persons and allowed citizen enforcement; state attorneys warned the measure could trigger wide-ranging liability and due-process issues dating to statehood.
A joint Senate Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources and Water, Land, and Culture committee considered SB3323 on Feb. 11, a proposal to recognize watersheds and coral-reef ecosystems as legal persons with enforceable rights and to authorize citizen enforcement. The committee voted not to advance the bill after members raised legal and drafting concerns.
The Department of the Attorney General, represented by Deputy AG Alyssa Cowell, told the panel it had submitted testimony in opposition because the bill "opens up liability to the state" and could allow claims "going back to 1959,"…
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