Wyoming water users could join a voluntary Colorado River conservation program

Water-right holders could apply to the state engineer for approval of voluntary projects that conserve water. The process covers people with valid rights to use water diverted from Wyoming’s portion of the Colorado River basin. The state engineer must reject a project that harms another water right unless it reduces past water use or helps meet Wyoming’s interstate compact duties. Applicants generally must show water use in at least three of the five years before applying, or show that the project helps meet those compact duties. Projects involving irrigation, conservancy, or watershed improvement districts require the district’s written consent. Approved projects would not cause the water right to be lost, abandoned, or impaired. Applications could be filed after the act takes effect, but no new project could be authorized on or after July 1, 2032. Temporary irrigation projects generally could last up to five consecutive years.

The state engineer and Wyoming Water Development Office could store conserved water and release it for specified state or interstate purposes. The authority covers conserved water from the program stored in Fontenelle Reservoir or other suitable reservoirs in Wyoming’s portion of the Colorado River basin. Releases could support water use in Wyoming, reduce the effects of water-use cutbacks or regulation on Wyoming water-right holders, or help meet Wyoming’s interstate compact duties. Storage in Fontenelle Reservoir must be consistent with contracts with the federal Bureau of Reclamation. Storage in another reservoir must be consistent with contracts with that reservoir’s owner. The authority would begin when the act takes effect; the text does not set an end date for storage or release authority.

The state engineer could use two additional full-time positions and up to $510,000 from the general fund to implement the program. The funding covers the state engineer’s program work and other expenses needed to carry out the act. The money could not be transferred or spent for another purpose. Any unused, unobligated money would return to the state as required by law. The positions and appropriation would run from the act’s effective date through June 30, 2028.