Transcript of SB216, Second Reading in the Senate

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TRANSCRIPT OF SB216, SECOND READING IN THE SENATE, MAY 3, 2001 Senator Entz: ...move for favorable adoption of SB216 on second reading and also like to move floor amendment 017 and the reason I am asking to have you consider 017 is the fact that the bill was amended considerably on the floor and also in the journal there are some errors and I just wanted to make it so everyone could read it and know what we have. And then also I do have a floor amendment 021 which then that one will grandfather Breckenridge and Vail into, uh, well leave them out of SB216. Chair: Senator Entz we are going to go ahead and take up 017 first so will the clerk please read amendment 017. Clerk: 017 by Senator Entz, strike the committee amendments. Chair: Senator Entz. Thank you. Senator Entz: You know this bill was introduced to give the Colorado Conservation Board the principle responsibility for evaluating water rights, applications for in channel recreational diversions and the boards' recommendations would only be overturned if they were found arbitrary arb tr and caprious. Y �' rious. And the P amendment changed the balance of power and give the principle authority back to the water courts. The bill now takes the Colorado Water Conservation Board, makes the Colorado Water Conservation Board responsible for making recommendations to the water court that are presumed to be accurate with respect to the control of water that must be shown to get a water right and ensuring that the amount of water being requested is reasonable and appropriate and any party can offer to rebut the CWCB's recommendations. And this amendment, there are several clarifying amendments were adopted and these were that no appropriation is needed, and I have a new fiscal note on that , I think we have two since the last time we had this on the floor, and there is no two tier system and no sunset language is necessary being as we are 11111 _ going back to the water court. And the copy of the application of the water right must be submitted to the CWCB after, rather than before filing them with the water court. And the reason for strike below and start over just to make it clear, to clarify the bill as is and it makes it more readable and you understand what is going on. Chair: Thank you — discussion on Entz' floor amendment 017, Senator Pascoe. Senator Pascoe: Thank you Mr. Chairman, I appreciate Senator Entz putting in the amendment which was passed, I believe, House bill on the floor last time, but it is included in the strike below and the rewrite and I am very supportive of your bill at this point Senator Entz. Thank you. Chair: Further discussion, Senator Fitzgerald. Senator Fitzgerald: Senator Entz I'd like you to clarify something for me that came up in a discussion in Summit County, um, under 37 -92 -102, we guarantee a lot of rights along stream beds to municipalities, to special districts, water and san. districts, we don't guarantee, the individual property rights to an individual. This would not apply, an individual could not do what were saying a municipality could do and I think that is contrary to water law as it now stands because an individual along a streambed has those water rights. Could you help me through this? Chair: Senator Entz. Senator Entz: Thank you, uh, we discussed this issue and if we open this wide open I think we'd have a lot of mischievous in channel diversions made for kayaking and that is the reason we left it. And it just is better if we just leave it to the muncipalities, and the water districts and so forth. I know it was suggested, Dave Robbins suggested that we would probably be better off to leave it within these different entities. • Chair: Senator Fitzgerald. 1