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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh Legislature, Second Regular Session
appropriation; brackish groundwater; feasibility study
Purpose
Appropriates $100,000 from the state General Fund (state GF) in FY 2027 to the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) for a required feasibility study of potential brackish groundwater desalination project sites.
Background
It is generally understood that brackish groundwater is water that has a greater dissolved-solids content that occurs in freshwater, but not as much as seawater. Desalination is the process of removing salts and other minerals from water, making it suitable for human consumption, irrigation or industrial uses. To separate out these contaminants, water is either distilled through thermal desalination or pumped through a membrane that holds back impurities but allows water to pass through (USGS: Brackish Groundwater Assessment and U.S. Department of Energy).
In 2010, there were 649 active desalination plants in the United States with a capacity to treat 402 million gallons per day. Of the desalination plant capacity in the United States, 67 percent was for municipal purposes, 18 percent for industry, 9 percent for power and the remaining 6 percent for other uses (USGS: How is Brackish Groundwater Being Used?).
H.B. 2056 appropriates $100,000 from the state GF in FY 2027 to ADWR.
Provisions
1. Appropriates $100,000 from the state GF in FY 2027 to ADWR for the feasibility study of potential brackish groundwater desalination project sites.
2. Requires ADWR to conduct a feasibility study of potential brackish groundwater desalination project sites in Ranegras Plain, Willcox, the Hualapai Valley and the Little Colorado Plateau.
3. Requires ADWR to consult with the Arizona State Land Department and local officials, property owners and political subdivisions located in or around each area for the prescribed study to identify:
a) the most probable and cost-effective potential sites to construct and operate a brackish groundwater recovery and treatment facility, including the most cost-effective potential points of withdrawal and accounting for factors such as land ownership, legal access, depth to water and hydrology;
b) the potential size, scope and cost of construction and operation of a brackish groundwater recovery and treatment facility, including identification of the most probable and costs-effective water treatment method;
c) the most probable, cost-effective and environmentally feasible use and plan for brine disposal, including the method and location of brine disposal;
d) the potential volume of potable water that a brackish groundwater recovery and treatment facility in the area could create; and
e) the identification of the most probable end user, including the expected cost and method of transportation to the most probable end user.
4. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
House Action
NREW 1/27/26 DP 6-4-0-0
APPROP 1/28/26 DP 11-6-0-1
3rd Read 2/24/26 32-23-5
Prepared by Senate Research
March 6, 2026
SB/SF/hk