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Any action, statute, or regulation that would improve the certainty of the water transfer process should improve the likelihood of participation in the bank. Banking And Marketing Opportunities And Limitations * Since the law allows transfer of an entire water right, the SB 1030 provision that limits deposits into the water bank to fifty percent of a water right has been identified by potential bank users as an obstacle to the use of the bank for transfers. The Legislature should consider deleting this limitation. * As stated in Water (or Texas: Today and Tomorrow - 1992, the Texas Legislature should consider a recommendation to: 'continue and further support the TWC (now TNRCC) program to establish water divisions statewide and appoint watermasters to administer each division'" to facilitate the marketing and transfer of water rights (extemal to the bank). The . creation of new watennaster divisions should be directly related to the necessity of implementing an intense management program in a particular watershed, nonnally when the watershed either becomes fully appropriated andlor other exte~al factors threaten the ability of rights holders to access their lawful entitlements, thereby justifying the additional expense. * For transfers not within the purview of the Bank, but in the extemal function . of encouraging water marketing, it is recommended that rights holders receive additional assurance that, by engaging in water conservation and transfers, no jeopardy to their water rights will ensue. Currently, many water rights holders are reluctant to advertise that they have water for sale or lease because they believe that such advertisement could be used in a water rights proceeding to reduce the amount of their respective water rights. This fear can be ameliorated by changing the Water Code to declare that the conserving of water and the offering of conserved water for sale or lease under reasonable terms, are beneficial activities and as such. are prohibited to be used as evidence of non-beneficial use or waste on the part of a water rights holder in any future proceedings. This would further reinforce the existing TNRCC administrative rules conceming conserved water. IV. Ways To Assist In Providing Flows To Meet Instream, Water Quality, Fish and Wildlife Habitat, and Bay and Estuary Inflow Needs Through the Water Rights Marketing and Transfer Process. Background Since the 1985 enactment of the conservation amendments to the Texas Water Code, an environmental assessment is performed on applications for new water rights and certain amendments to existing water rights. If the assessment Indicates that the proposed request 15 Texas Water Development Board. Water for Texas: Today and Tomorrow - 1992. p.34. Document No. GP-6-1, December 1992. 10