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WPIC hears legal update and Idaho experience on exempt groundwater wells
Summary
The Water Policy Interim Committee received a litigation update and an Idaho case study on exempt groundwater wells, followed by industry and conservation public comment and committee Q&A. No formal action or vote was recorded.
The Water Policy Interim Committee met Jan. 12, 2026, in Helena and by Zoom to review legal and policy questions surrounding exempt groundwater wells in Montana.
Legal staff Alexis Sandru of the Legislative Services Division opened the committee’s substantive discussion with a litigation update on exempt wells, entering materials into the record. Anna Pakenham Stevenson, Water Resources Division Administrator at the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC), summarized relevant 2025 water-related bills and described areas where those proposals intersect with exempt-well policy. The committee then heard a comparative presentation from Idaho: Shelley Keen, deputy director of the Idaho Department of Water Resources, reviewed Idaho’s legislative and regulatory history and discussed Idaho Senate Bill 1083 as a point of comparison for Montana lawmakers.
Stakeholder witnesses included Paul Arrington, executive director of the Idaho Water Users Association, who spoke to practical implications for water users, and DNRC staff (including Nate Ward, Water Rights Bureau Chief) who answered committee questions about implementation and administration. Committee members, including Rep. Tracy Sharp, Vice Presiding Officer Jill Cohenour and Presiding Officer Sen. Wylie Galt, pressed presenters on legal and technical points.
The committee’s morning record shows a sustained public-comment period. Recorded commenters included representatives of the Montana Trout Unlimited chapter, the Montana Stock Growers Association, the Montana Building Industry Association, the Montana Senior Water Rights Coalition, licensed well drillers and multiple local residents. The minutes log records the presence of multiple on-the-record viewpoints but does not include verbatim statements in the minutes document.
No motion or formal vote on policy changes appears in the minutes for this agenda item. The committee recessed for a midday break and continued other agenda topics later in the day.
