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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh Legislature, First Regular Session
VETOED
subsequent AMA; previously nonirrigated land
Purpose
Allows a person in a subsequent Active Management Area (AMA), on the Director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources' (ADWR's) determination of Irrigation Grandfathered Rights (IGFR), to irrigate land that was not previously subject to irrigation if outlined conditions apply.
Background
In a subsequent
AMA, only acres of land that were legally irrigated at any time during the five
years preceding the date of the notice of the initiation of designation
procedures or the call for the election, that are capable of being irrigated,
that have not been retired from irrigation for a
non-irrigation use and for which the IGFR has not been conveyed for
non-irrigation use, may be irrigated with groundwater, effluent, diffused water
on the surface or surface water. The right to use groundwater for the
irrigation of an irrigation acre is an IGFR and is appurtenant to that acre. An
IGFR is owned by the owner of the land to which it is appurtenant and may be
leased for an irrigation use with the land to which it is appurtenant (A.R.S. §
45-452
and 45-465).
Currently, the Douglas AMA, which was designated on December 1, 2022, after an election and the Willcox AMA, which was designated on January 8, 2025, by the Director of ADWR, are the only two subsequent AMAs in Arizona (ADWR: Douglas AMA and Willcox AMA).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Allows a person in a subsequent AMA, on the Director of ADWR's determination of IGFRs, to irrigate land that was not previously subject to irrigation if:
a) the land is adjacent to a farm unit or parcel that was previously subject to irrigation; and
b) the person's irrigation of the land would not cause the person to exceed the volume of groundwater awarded to the person by an IGFR.
2. Makes technical and conforming changes.
3. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Governor's Veto Message
The Governor indicates in her veto message that H.B. 2202 weakens rural groundwater protections when rural Arizonans have been asking the Legislature for years to institute meaningful rural groundwater management measures, and that she will not consider rural groundwater legislation outside of the context of ongoing negotiations for an alternative framework for rural groundwater management.
House Action Senate Action
NREW 1/28/25 DP 5-4-0-1 NR 3/25/25 DP 4-3-1
3rd Read 2/12/25 32-27-1 3rd Read 4/9/25 16-14-0
Vetoed by the Governor 4/15/25
Prepared by Senate Research
April 16, 2025
SB/slp