45-462. Grandfathered groundwater rights; persons included; certificate of exemption amount is legal use

A. In an active management area, a person who was legally withdrawing and using groundwater as of the date of the designation of the active management area or who owns land legally entitled to be irrigated with groundwater as determined pursuant to this article has the right to withdraw or receive and use groundwater as determined by the director pursuant to this article.

B. For purposes of determining grandfathered rights pursuant to this article, a groundwater use shall not be determined to be illegal merely because the groundwater legally withdrawn is or has been transported.

C. The amount of groundwater use described by an applicaton for a certificate of exemption is recognized as a legal use for purposes of determining grandfathered rights pursuant to section 45-464, subject to any modification as a result of a finding on appeal of a factual mistake by the state land department or Arizona water commission in computing the amount of the authorized withdrawal.

D. The right to withdraw or receive and use groundwater pursuant to this article is a grandfathered right. There are three categories of grandfathered rights as follows:

1. Non-irrigation grandfathered rights associated with retired irrigated land as determined pursuant to sections 45-463, 45-469 and 45-472.

2. Non-irrigation grandfathered rights not associated with retired irrigated land as determined pursuant to section 45-464.

3. Irrigation grandfathered rights as determined pursuant to section 45-465.