Upper Columbia water rights

AN ACT Relating to a pilot process for the upper Columbia water 1
rights adjudication; amending RCW 90.03.110, 90.03.120, 90.03.130, 2
and 90.44.220; adding a new section to chapter 90.03 RCW; creating a 3
new section; and providing an expiration date. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) Due to the unique nature of the water 6
rights in the upper Columbia river area, the legislature finds that 7
it would create efficiencies and reduce unnecessary costs on water 8
users to phase the general adjudication process to address 9
significant federal and tribal water rights claims prior to engaging 10
other claimants and streamline service of process requirements.11
(2) It is the intent of the legislature to establish a pilot 12
process to determine whether there would be an overall benefit to 13
water users throughout the state to modify the procedures for future 14
general adjudications statewide. 15
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 90.03 16
RCW to read as follows: 17
(1) The department is authorized to and shall initiate a general 18
adjudication of the upper Columbia river in accordance with this 19
H-2949.1
HOUSE BILL 2544
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Representatives Springer, Waters, Lekanoff, and Nance
Read first time 01/16/26. Referred to Committee on Agriculture &
Natural Resources.
p. 1 HB 2544
section. When initiated, the provisions under RCW 90.03.110 through 1
90.03.130, and 90.44.220 do not apply to this adjudication.2
(2) The department may initiate the general adjudication of the 3
upper Columbia river area by filing in the superior court of Stevens 4
county a report containing the following: 5
(a) A brief statement of the facts in relation to such water, and 6
the necessity for a determination of the rights thereto; and7
(b) A map of the geographic area to be included in the general 8
adjudication. 9
(3) Prior to filing the adjudication under subsection (2) of this 10
section, the department shall: 11
(a) Consult with the administrative office of the courts to 12
determine whether sufficient judicial resources are available to 13
commence and to prosecute the adjudication in a timely manner under 14
this pilot; and 15
(b) Inform the appropriate committees of the legislature of the 16
estimated budget needs for the court and the department to conduct 17
the adjudication. 18
(4) Upon the filing of the statement and map as provided in 19
subsection (2) of this section and in accordance with subsection (10) 20
of this section, the judge of Stevens county superior court shall 21
issue an order directing summons to be issued by the court and served 22
by the department on federal and federally recognized tribal 23
government entities known to have asserted water rights within the 24
adjudication area identified under subsection (2)(b) of this section. 25
The return day of the summons must be at least 100, but not more than 26
130, days after the issuance of the order. For good cause and at the 27
request of the department, the court may extend the return day.28
(5) Following issuance of summons under subsection (4) of this 29
section, the department shall serve the federal and federally 30
recognized tribal government claimants identified in the summons 31
personally or by first-class mail. Personal service of summons may be 32
made by employees of the department. For service by mail, completion 33
of service occurs five judicial days after mailing.34
(6) Prior to the return day specified in a summons issued under 35
this section, federal and federally recognized tribal government 36
claimants served under subsection (5) of this section may file their 37
claims with the superior court on a form prepared by the department 38
and approved by the court in accordance with RCW 90.03.140. 39
Notwithstanding RCW 90.03.645(2), at any time after the filing of 40
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claims under this subsection, the department may engage in settlement 1
negotiations with federal and federally recognized tribal government 2
claimants. During the course of any settlement negotiation, the 3
parties must provide annual status reports to the superior court by 4
December 31st of each year. 5
(7)(a) The Stevens county superior court shall issue an order 6
instructing the department to submit a report that identifies 7
potential claimants to the adjudication not already served under this 8
section. The order must be issued by the earlier of:9
(i) 180 days after the United States, jointly with one or more 10
tribal governments served under subsection (5) of this section, file 11
a motion to approve a proposed settlement with the Stevens county 12
superior court for consideration under RCW 90.03.645(3); or13
(ii) June 1, 2033. 14
(b) The department shall make reasonable efforts to identify 15
potential claimants by, at a minimum, identifying:16
(i) Each person or entity owning real property situated within 17
the area to be adjudicated, but outside the boundaries of a service 18
area of a city, town, or public water system that provides water to 19
property within its service area; and 20
(ii) All known persons claiming a right to the water sought to be 21
determined. 22
(8) Following receipt of the report of potential claimants under 23
subsection (7) of this section, the court shall make an order 24
directing summons to be issued by the court and served by the 25
department on all potential claimants not already served. The return 26
day of the summons must be 130 days after the anticipated date for 27
completion of service by publication under subsection (9) of this 28
section. For good cause and at the request of the department, the 29
court may extend the return day. 30
(9)(a) The department shall serve the summons issued under 31
subsection (8) of this section on all entities and persons identified 32
in the report of known potential claimants required under subsection 33
(7) of this section personally or by first-class mail. Personal 34
service of summons may be made by employees of the department. For 35
service by mail, completion of service occurs five judicial days 36
after mailing. 37
(b) The department shall serve the summons issued under 38
subsection (8) of this section by publication on unidentified 39
potential claimants and any potential claimants where service by mail 40
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was returned undelivered or attempts at personal service were 1
ineffective. Service by publication must be made by publication of 2
the summons in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for six 3
consecutive weeks, six publications, in the county in which such 4
proceeding is pending and in each county in which any portion of the 5
water is situated. Service by publication is complete at the end of 6
the sixth week of publication. 7
(10)(a) The summons and all subsequent court documents for the 8
adjudication under this section must be captioned "In re the general 9
adjudication of all rights to use water in the Upper Columbia River 10
area" or in a substantially similar manner. 11
(b) The summons must contain a brief statement of the objects and 12
purpose of the proceedings, require the claimants to make and file an 13
adjudication claim to, or interest in, the water involved, and 14
contain a statement that unless they assert such right by the return 15
day, judgment will be entered determining their rights according to 16
the evidence. 17
(11) To the extent consistent with court rules and subject to the 18
availability of funds provided either by direct appropriation or 19
funded through the administrative office of the courts for this 20
specific adjudicative proceeding, the court is encouraged to conduct 21
the water rights adjudication employing innovative practices and 22
technologies appropriate to large scale and complex cases, such as:23
(a) Electronic filing of documents, including notices and claims;24
(b) Appearance via videoconferencing; 25
(c) Prefiling of testimony; and 26
(d) Other practices and technologies consistent with court rules 27
and emerging technologies. 28
(12) Except as provided under subsection (6) of this section, 29
following completion of service of summonses as provided in this 30
section, the general adjudication of the upper Columbia river is 31
subject to RCW 90.03.140 through 90.03.240 and 90.03.620 through 32
90.03.645. 33
(13) The expenses incurred by the state in a proceeding to 34
determine rights to water initiated under this section or upon appeal 35
of such a determination shall be borne by the state. Subject to the 36
availability of state funding provided either by direct appropriation 37
or funded through the administrative office of the courts for this 38
specific purpose, the county in which an adjudication or a suit to 39
administer an adjudication is being held must be provided the 40
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extraordinary costs imposed on the superior court of that county due 1
to the adjudication. 2
(14) Rights subject to determination proceedings conducted under 3
this section include all rights to the use of surface water and 4
groundwater, including all diversionary and instream water rights, 5
and include rights to the use of water claimed by the United States. 6
Any persons claiming the right to water by virtue of a contract with 7
a claimant to the right to divert the same are not necessary parties 8
to the proceeding. 9
(15) Nothing in this section may be construed as establishing or 10
creating any new rights to the use of water. This section relates 11
exclusively to the confirmation of water rights established or 12
created under other provisions of state law or under federal laws.13
(16) Upon expiration of each filing period established by a 14
return day under subsections (4) and (8) of this section, the 15
department shall file a motion for default against defendants who 16
have been served but who have failed to timely file an adjudication 17
claim under RCW 90.03.140. A party in default may file a late claim 18
under the same circumstances the party could respond or defend under 19
court rules on default judgments. 20
(17) The department shall report to the relevant committees of 21
the legislature and the office of financial management by June 15, 22
2035, to evaluate the pilot process and make recommendations to the 23
legislature for changes to general adjudications to streamline the 24
process, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. 25
(18) This section only applies to the general adjudication of the 26
upper Columbia river area. 27
(19) For purposes of this section: 28
(a) "Judicial day" means the days of the week other than 29
Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays. 30
(b) "Return day" means the latest date to file an adjudication 31
claim for a water right pursuant to a summons. 32
(20) This section expires December 31, 2035. 33
Sec. 3. RCW 90.03.110 and 2009 c 332 s 1 are each amended to 34
read as follows: 35
(1) Upon the filing of a petition with the department by a 36
planning unit or by one or more persons claiming the right to any 37
waters within the state or when, after investigation, in the judgment 38
of the department, the public interest will be served by a 39
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determination of the rights thereto, the department shall prepare a 1
statement of the facts, together with a plan or map of the locality 2
under investigation, and file such statement and plan or map in the 3
superior court of the county in which said water is situated, or, in 4
case such water flows or is situated in more than one county, in the 5
county which the department shall determine to be the most convenient 6
to the parties interested therein. Such a statement shall:7
(a) Either (i) identify each person or entity owning real 8
property situated within the area to be adjudicated but outside the 9
boundaries of a city, town, or special purpose district that provides 10
water to property within its service area; (ii) identify all known 11
persons claiming a right to the water sought to be determined; or 12
(iii) identify both; and 13
(b) Include a brief statement of the facts in relation to such 14
water, and the necessity for a determination of the rights thereto.15
(2) Prior to filing an adjudication under this chapter, the 16
department shall: 17
(a) Consult with the administrative office of the courts to 18
determine whether sufficient judicial resources are available to 19
commence and to prosecute the adjudication in a timely manner; and20
(b) Report to the appropriate committees of the legislature on 21
the estimated budget needs for the court and the department to 22
conduct the adjudication. 23
(3) This section does not apply to the upper Columbia river area 24
adjudication pilot process under section 2 of this act.25
Sec. 4. RCW 90.03.120 and 2023 c 160 s 1 are each amended to 26
read as follows: 27
(1) Upon the filing of the statement and map as provided in RCW 28
90.03.110 the judge of such superior court shall make an order 29
directing summons to be issued, and fixing the return day thereof, 30
which shall be not less than 100 nor more than 130 days, after the 31
making of such order: PROVIDED, That for good cause, the court, at 32
the request of the department, may modify said time period: PROVIDED 33
FURTHER, That for an adjudication filed in water resource inventory 34
area 1 after June 1, 2023, the return day for the latest time to file 35
claims pursuant to such a summons shall be not less than one year 36
after the making of such an order, unless special rules of procedure 37
established by the court pursuant to RCW 90.03.160(3) provide for a 38
later date. 39
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(2) A summons issued under this section shall be issued out of 1
said superior court, signed and attested by the clerk thereof, in the 2
name of the state of Washington, as plaintiff, against all known 3
persons identified by the department under RCW 90.03.110. The summons 4
shall contain a brief statement of the objects and purpose of the 5
proceedings and shall require the defendants to appear on the return 6
day thereof, and make and file an adjudication claim to, or interest 7
in, the water involved and a statement that unless they appear at the 8
time and place fixed and assert such right, judgment will be entered 9
determining their rights according to the evidence: PROVIDED, 10
HOWEVER, That any persons claiming the right to water by virtue of a 11
contract with a claimant to the right to divert the same, shall not 12
be necessary parties to the proceeding: PROVIDED FURTHER, That for an 13
adjudication filed in water resource inventory area 1 after June 1, 14
2023, the latest day for a party to appear by filing a claim in 15
response to such a summons shall be set by the court and listed 16
within the summons as a date not less than one year after the service 17
of said summons, unless special rules of procedure established by the 18
court pursuant to RCW 90.03.160(3) provide for a later date.19
(3) To the extent consistent with court rules and subject to the 20
availability of funds provided either by direct appropriation or 21
funded through the administrative office of the courts for this 22
specific adjudicative proceeding, the court is encouraged to conduct 23
the water rights adjudication employing innovative practices and 24
technologies appropriate to large scale and complex cases, such as: 25
(a) Electronic filing of documents, including notice and claims; (b) 26
appearance via teleconferencing; (c) prefiling of testimony; and (d) 27
other practices and technologies consistent with court rules and 28
emerging technologies. 29
(4) This section does not apply to the upper Columbia river area 30
adjudication pilot process under section 2 of this act.31
Sec. 5. RCW 90.03.130 and 2023 c 160 s 2 are each amended to 32
read as follows: 33
(1) Service of said summons shall be made in the same manner and 34
with the same force and effect as service of summons in civil actions 35
commenced in the superior courts of the state: PROVIDED, That as an 36
alternative to personal service, service may be made by certified 37
mail, with return receipt signed and dated by defendant, a spouse of 38
a defendant, or another person authorized to accept service. If the 39
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defendants, or either of them, cannot be found within the state of 1
Washington, of which the return of the sheriff of the county in which 2
the proceeding is pending or the failure to sign a receipt for 3
certified mail shall be prima facie evidence, upon the filing of an 4
affidavit by the department, or its attorney, in conformity with the 5
statute relative to the service of summons by publication in civil 6
actions, such service may be made by publication in a newspaper of 7
general circulation in the county in which such proceeding is 8
pending, and also publication of said summons in a newspaper of 9
general circulation in each county in which any portion of the water 10
is situated, once a week for six consecutive weeks (six 11
publications). Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, 12
the summons by publication shall state that adjudication claims must 13
be filed within ((sixty)) 60 days after the last publication or 14
before the return date, whichever is later. In cases where personal 15
service or service by certified mail is had, summons must be served 16
at least 60 days before the return day thereof. For summons by 17
certified mail, completion of service occurs upon the date of receipt 18
by the defendant. 19
(2) Personal service of summons may be made by department of 20
ecology employees for actions pertaining to water rights.21
(3) For an adjudication filed in water resource inventory area 1 22
after June 1, 2023, any summons shall state that adjudication claims 23
must be within the time frame set pursuant to RCW 90.03.120, unless 24
special rules of procedure established by the court pursuant to RCW 25
90.03.160(3) provide for a later date. 26
(4) This section does not apply to the upper Columbia river area 27
adjudication pilot process under section 2 of this act.28
Sec. 6. RCW 90.44.220 and 2009 c 332 s 17 are each amended to 29
read as follows: 30
(1) Upon the filing of a petition with the department by a 31
planning unit or by one or more persons claiming a right to any 32
waters within the state or when, after investigation, in the judgment 33
of the department, the public interest will be served by a 34
determination of the rights thereto, the department shall file a 35
petition to conduct an adjudication with the superior court of the 36
county for the determination of the rights of appropriators of any 37
particular groundwater body and all the provisions of RCW 90.03.110 38
through 90.03.240 and 90.03.620 through 90.03.645, shall govern and 39
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apply to the adjudication and determination of such groundwater body 1
and to the ownership thereof. Hereafter, in any proceedings for the 2
adjudication and determination of water rights — either rights to the 3
use of surface water or to the use of groundwater, or both — pursuant 4
to chapter 90.03 RCW, all appropriators of groundwater or of surface 5
water in the particular basin or area may be included as parties to 6
such adjudication, as set forth in chapter 90.03 RCW.7
(2) This section does not apply to the upper Columbia river area 8
adjudication pilot process under section 2 of this act.9
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