Summary of HB08-1280
Short Title: Protect Leased Instream Flow Water Right

Sponsors: Fischer/Schwartz

Specifies that the time during which the Colorado water conservation board uses water rights for instream flow purposes pursuant to a contract is excluded from the water court's historic consumptive use analysis and shall not be considered as abandonment of the water right. Requires the board to:
* Make a finding that the lessor or lender of the water rights is not entering into the contract for speculative purposes;
* Maintain records of how much water the board uses under the contract each year it is in effect; and
* Install a measuring device to record how much water flows out of the instream flow reach unless a suitable measuring device already exists. Prohibits the water court from approving a change decree in relation to such a contract unless it makes a finding that the lessor or lender of the water rights has not entered into the contract for speculative purposes. Specifies that an application for a change of a water right located in the same stream basin as an instream flow water right reach on which the board has used water provided under such a contract may not claim any historic consumptive use resulting from water that was made available by the contract.

Status
01/31/2008 Introduced In House - Assigned to Agriculture, Livestock, & Natural Resources
02/20/2008 House Committee on Agriculture, Livestock, & Natural Resources Pass Amended to House Committee of the Whole
02/22/2008 House Second Reading Laid Over
02/25/2008 House Second Reading Passed with Amendments
02/26/2008 House Third Reading Laid Over
02/27/2008 House Third Reading Passed
03/04/2008 Introduced In Senate - Assigned to Agriculture, Natural Resources & Energy
03/20/2008 Senate Committee on Agriculture, Natural Resources & Energy Pass Amended to Senate Committee of the Whole
03/26/2008 Senate Second Reading Passed with Amendments
03/27/2008 Senate Third Reading Passed
03/31/2008 House Considered Senate Amendments - Result was to Laid Over Daily03/31/2008
04/01/2008 House Considered Senate Amendments - Result was to Laid Over Daily04/01/2008
04/01/2008 House Considered Senate Amendments - Result was to Concur - Repass
04/09/2008 Signed by the President of the Senate
04/09/2008 Signed by the Speaker of the House
04/09/2008 Sent to the Governor
04/21/2008 Governor Action - Signed

Amendments

Fiscal Notes Status: No fiscal impact for this bill

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