Yakima basin water plan

AN ACT Relating to extending the water supply milestone for the 1
Yakima river basin integrated plan to 2035; amending RCW 90.38.010, 2
90.38.110, and 90.38.130; providing an effective date; providing an 3
expiration date; and declaring an emergency. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
Sec. 1. RCW 90.38.010 and 2013 2nd sp.s. c 11 s 2 are each 6
amended to read as follows: 7
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter 8
unless the context clearly requires otherwise. 9
(1) "Department" means the department of ecology.10
(2) "Integrated plan" means the Yakima river basin integrated 11
water resource management plan developed through a consensus-based 12
approach by a diverse work group of representatives of the Yakama 13
Nation, federal, state, county, and city governments, environmental 14
organizations, and irrigation districts, which is to be implemented 15
consistent with congressional Yakima river basin water enhancement 16
project enactments and for which the final programmatic environmental 17
impact statement was made available for review through public notice 18
published in the federal register (77 FR 12076 (2012)).19
(3) "Net water savings" means the amount of water that through 20
hydrological analysis is determined to be conserved and usable for 21
H-0843.1
HOUSE BILL 1691
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Dent, Dye, Dufault, Manjarrez, and Mendoza
Read first time 01/29/25. Referred to Committee on Agriculture &
Natural Resources.
p. 1 HB 1691
other purposes without impairing existing water rights, reducing the 1
ability to deliver water, or reducing the supply of water that 2
otherwise would have been available to other water users.3
(4) "Trust water right" means that portion of an existing water 4
right, constituting net water savings, that is no longer required to 5
be diverted for beneficial use due to the installation of a water 6
conservation project that improves an existing system. The term 7
"trust water right" also applies to any other water right acquired by 8
the department under this chapter for management in the Yakima river 9
basin trust water rights program. 10
(5) "Water conservation project" means any project funded to 11
further the purposes of this chapter and that achieves physical or 12
operational improvements of efficiency in existing systems for 13
diversion, conveyance, or application of water under existing water 14
rights. 15
(6) "Water supply facility permit and funding milestone" means a 16
date prior to June 30, ((2025)) 2035, when required permits have been 17
approved, and funding has been secured to begin construction on one 18
or more water supply facilities designed to provide at least ((two 19
hundred fourteen thousand)) 214,000 acre feet of water to be used for 20
instream and out-of-stream uses. 21
(7) "Yakima river basin water enhancement project" means a series 22
of congressional enactments, originally initiated by the United 23
States congress in 1979 under P.L. 96-162, with subsequent federal 24
implementing legislation being passed in 1984 under section 109 of 25
P.L. 98-381 to promote fish passage improvements, and in 1994 under 26
P.L. 103-434, as amended by P.L. 105-62 in 1997 and P.L. 106-372 in 27
2000, to promote water conservation, water supply, habitat, and 28
stream enhancement improvements in the Yakima river basin.29
Sec. 2. RCW 90.38.110 and 2013 2nd sp.s. c 11 s 10 are each 30
amended to read as follows: 31
(1) Prior to the appropriation of funding for the construction of 32
a water supply project proposed in the integrated plan with a cost of 33
greater than ((one hundred million dollars )) $100,000,000, the state 34
of Washington water research center shall review, evaluate, and 35
prepare comments on the cost-benefit analysis prepared for the 36
project by the department and the United States bureau of 37
reclamation. 38
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(2) To the greatest extent possible, the center must use 1
information from existing studies, supplemented by primary research, 2
to measure and evaluate each project's benefits and costs.3
(3) The center must measure and report the economic benefits of 4
each project subject to subsection (1) of this section, so that it is 5
clear the extent to which an individual project is expected to result 6
in increases in fish populations, increases in the reliability of 7
irrigation water during severe drought years, and improvements in 8
municipal and domestic water supply. 9
(4) The center may enter into agreements with other state 10
universities and with private consultants as needed to accomplish the 11
scope of work. 12
(5) The center may consult, as necessary, with the department of 13
ecology and the Yakima river basin water enhancement project work 14
group. 15
(6) No more than ((twelve)) 12 percent of any appropriations 16
provided for the implementation of this section may be retained for 17
administrative overhead expenses. 18
(7) This section expires July 1, ((2025)) 2035.19
Sec. 3. RCW 90.38.130 and 2013 2nd sp.s. c 11 s 12 are each 20
amended to read as follows: 21
(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this 22
specific purpose, the department of natural resources is authorized 23
to purchase land to be held in the community forest trust under RCW 24
79.155.040 to serve the purposes of the community forest trust 25
including the protection of Yakima river basin functioning, without 26
complying with the requirements of RCW 79.155.030(1), 79.155.060, or 27
79.155.070, relating to the identification, prioritization, local 28
commitment, and financial contribution normally prerequisite to 29
nominating and acquiring community forest trust lands. The purchase 30
must be reviewed and approved by the board of natural resources. In 31
its evaluation of this acquisition pursuant to RCW 79.155.040(3), the 32
board is relieved from considering the criteria for identifying and 33
prioritizing land set forth in RCW 79.155.050. Once purchased, the 34
land must be managed by the department of natural resources in 35
consultation with the department of fish and wildlife. Any investment 36
in the land purchase with funds belonging to the common school trust 37
constitutes a loan from the irreducible principal of the common 38
school trust and may only be made if first determined to be a prudent 39
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investment by the board of natural resources. An annual interest 1
payment on the loan of nine percent must be paid, with six percent 2
deposited into the common school construction account and three 3
percent deposited into the real property replacement account. 4
Interest begins to accrue on the date the land purchase is completed 5
and is due and payable July 1st following the completion of the state 6
fiscal year. The principal of the loan must be repaid in accordance 7
with the provisions of subsection (3) of this section.8
(2) The land purchased under this authority must be managed under 9
a transitional postacquisition management plan during the period 10
between the date of purchase and the water supply facility permit and 11
funding milestone or until June 30, ((2025)) 2035, whichever is 12
sooner. The plan must be consistent with RCW 79.155.080(1), provided 13
that the lands acquired as community forest trust lands are not 14
required to generate financial support for their management as would 15
otherwise be required by RCW 79.155.020(2), 79.155.030(2)(d), and 16
79.155.080(3), and provided further that the authority granted to the 17
department to divest of the property under RCW 79.155.080(4) does not 18
apply to these lands. The department of natural resources must 19
develop the transitional postacquisition management plan in 20
consultation with the department of fish and wildlife.21
(a) The plan must ensure that the land is managed in a manner 22
that is consistent with the Yakima basin integrated plan principles 23
for forestland acquisitions, including the following:24
(i) To protect and enhance the water supply and protect the 25
watershed; 26
(ii) To maintain working lands for forestry and grazing while 27
protecting key watershed functions and aquatic habitat;28
(iii) To maintain and where possible expand recreational 29
opportunities consistent with watershed protection, for activities 30
such as hiking, fishing, hunting, horseback riding, camping, birding, 31
and snowmobiling; 32
(iv) To conserve and restore vital habitat for fish, including 33
steelhead, spring chinook, and bull trout, and wildlife, including 34
deer, elk, large predators, and spotted owls; and 35
(v) To support a strong community partnership, in which the 36
Yakama Nation, residents, business owners, local governments, 37
conservation groups, and others provide advice about ongoing land 38
management. 39
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(b) The department of natural resources, in consultation with the 1
department of fish and wildlife, must establish the Teanaway 2
community forest advisory committee that includes representatives 3
from the department of ecology, the local community, land 4
conservation organizations, the Yakama Nation, the Kittitas county 5
commission, and local agricultural interests. 6
(c) By June 30, 2015, the department of natural resources must 7
complete the transitional postacquisition management plan with a 8
public process that involves interested stakeholders, particularly 9
residents from Kittitas county, friends of the Teanaway, back country 10
horsemen, off-road vehicle and snowmobile users, a representative 11
from Kittitas field and stream, hikers and wildlife watchers, and 12
ranchers who graze cattle. 13
(3) After the water supply facility permit and funding milestone 14
or June 30, ((2025)) 2035, whichever is sooner, the land must be 15
disposed of in the following manner: 16
(a) If the water supply facility permit and funding milestone 17
conditions have been met, the land remains in the community forest 18
trust and the transitional postacquisition management plan must be 19
converted to a permanent postacquisition management plan with 20
whatever updates and amendments are periodically adopted. Under these 21
conditions, the remaining principal of any investment in the land 22
purchased with funds belonging to the common school trust must be 23
repaid to the real property replacement account. 24
(b) If the water supply facility permit and funding milestone 25
conditions have not been met, the board of natural resources must 26
decide between the following dispositions of the land:27
(i) Deposit of the entire amount of land purchased into the 28
ownership of the common school trust for management or disposition 29
for the benefit of the common schools; or 30
(ii) Disposition under the terms of (a) of this subsection.31
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. This act is necessary for the immediate 32
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of 33
the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes 34
effect June 30, 2025.35
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