ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

57th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session

Majority Research Staff

Senate: NR DP 5-3-0-0 | Third Read 17-13-0-0

☐ Prop 105 (45 votes) ☐ Prop 108 (40 votes) ☐ Emergency (40 votes) ☐ Fiscal Note

SB 1785: water storage facility; withdrawals; area

Sponsor: Senator Petersen, LD 14

Committee on Natural Resources, Energy & Water

Overview

Mandates the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) Director assume a recovery well is located within the area of impact of the stored water if certain conditions are met.

History

An underground storage facility (USF) allows for water to be stored in an aquifer through a constructed device or managed channel, examples of USFs would include injection wells or percolation basins. To operate a facility a person must hold a USF Permit issued by ADWR (A.R.S. § 45-811.01).

A groundwater savings facility (GSF) is a water user that agrees to reduce its groundwater pumping from within an Active Management Area (AMA) or Irrigation Non-Expansion Area (INA) in exchange for an equal amount of renewable water supplies. A GSF Permit is issued by ADWR which allows the permit holder to deliver the renewable water supply to a recipient (A.R.S. § 45-812.01).

Current law allows a person who holds any long-term storage credits (LTSCs) or who can recover water to only recover the stored water in compliance with a Recovery Well (RW) Permit. The recovery of stored water can occur through a recovery well and must not damage other land and water users, an impact analysis may be required for recovery in certain situations (ADWR) (A.A.C. R12-15-1301-1308).

Area of impact means, as projected on the land surface, the area where the stored water has migrated or is located (A.R.S. § 45-802.01).

Provisions

1.   Requires the Director assume that the recovery well, for a person seeking to recover stored water within an area of impact in an AMA who does not submit a separate hydrologic study, is located within the area of impact of the stored water if the recovery well location is:

a.   in land permitted to operate as a GSF; or

b.   within one mile of the:

i. exterior boundary of a constructed USF basin or other water storage infrastructure; or

ii.   middle line of a drainage channel within the storage area of a managed USF. (Sec. 1)

2.   Makes technical changes. (Sec. 1)

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6.   Initials CW                      SB 1785

7.   3/6/2026    Page 0 Natural Resources, Energy & Water

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