Water use outside the state.

2016
STATE OF WYOMING
16LSO-0300
Introduced
1.2

SENATE FILE

NO.
SF0080

Water use outside the state.

Sponsored by:
Senator(s) Hicks and Driskill

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to water; authorizing the use of produced water outside the state as specified; providing rulemaking authority; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1
.

W.S. 41
‑
3
‑
115(b), (c) and by creating a new subsection (t) are amended to read:

41
‑
3
‑
115.

Applications for use of water outside the state.

(b)

Except as otherwise provided in subsection (t) of this section, n
one of the water of the state either surface or underground may be appropriated, stored or diverted for use outside of the state or for use as a medium of transportation of mineral, chemical or other products to another state without the specific prior approval of the legislature. Provided, however, neither approval by the legislature nor compliance with the application procedures under subsections (m) through (r) of this section shall be required for appropriations that will transfer or use outside the state less than one thousand (1,000) acre
‑
feet of water per year unless the applications are part of a collection of related applications or appropriations from the same source of supply for the same or similar use where the total use or transfer outside the state exceeds one thousand (1,000) acre
‑
feet per year in aggregate. The state engineer is authorized to adopt rules and regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this subsection.

(c)

Except as otherwise provided in subsection (t) of this section, n
o holder of either a permit to appropriate water or a certificate to appropriate water, nor any
applicant for a right to appropriate the unappropriated water of this state, may transfer or use the water so appropriated, certificated or applied for outside the state of Wyoming without prior approval of the legislature of Wyoming.

(t)

Prior legislative approval under subsection (b) or (c) of this section
and compliance with the applicatio
n requirements of subsections (o
) through (r) of this section
shall not be required for the use of water outside the state of Wyoming if the wat
er used outside of the state
is
produced from an energy or mineral extraction process and the state engineer determines that the water is from a nontributary source of supply and is of a quality that would require treatment to improve the water to
meet
Wyoming water quality standards. The state engineer shall require a report of the amount and location of water used outside the state under this subsection. The state engineer may require the project proponent to install a measuring system to verify the amount of water transferred outside the state of Wyoming under this subsection. The state
engineer is authorized to adopt rules and regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this subsection.

Section
2
.

This
act is effective July 1,
201
6
.

(END)

1
SF0080