45-547. Transportation of groundwater withdrawn in the Yuma basin; permit

A. Groundwater may be withdrawn in the Yuma basin for direct or indirect transportation outside of the basin, including transportation to an initial active management area, only if a permit is obtained from the director pursuant to this section.

B. A person who has the legal right to divert and use Colorado river water may apply to the director for a permit to withdraw groundwater in the Yuma basin for direct or indirect transportation outside of the basin, including transportation to an initial active management area. The director may issue the permit if all of the following apply:

1. The water to be withdrawn was originally Colorado river water applied for irrigation purposes.

2. The water to be pumped is groundwater under Arizona law that is causing waterlogging to the detriment of agricultural operations or municipal infrastructure in the Yuma basin.

3. No person is currently pumping or will pump the water for use in the Yuma basin during the term of the permit.

4. Issuance of the permit will result in water being returned to the Colorado river that otherwise would not have returned.

5. Any irrigation district or water users' association in the Yuma basin that has a contractual right with the secretary of the interior for a return flow credit for the water returned to the river pursuant to the permit has waived that right.

6. The permittee will comply with all federal laws and treaties and state laws regarding returning the water to the Colorado river.

7. If the groundwater will be pumped from wells within the exterior boundaries of an irrigation district or water users' association, that irrigation district or water users association has consented to the issuance of the permit.

8. If the groundwater will be pumped from wells within the city limits of a city or town that holds an entitlement to Colorado river water, that city or town has not objected to the issuance of the permit.

9. If the applicant is the United States or an agent or agency of the United States, the water transported pursuant to the permit will be used as replacement water for the specific purposes identified in section 45-107.01, paragraph 2.

C. An applicant for a permit issued under this section shall apply to the director in writing and shall submit all evidence necessary to establish that the requirements of subsection B of this section apply, including a hydrologic study. The director shall review the application and determine within one hundred days of receipt of the application whether it is administratively complete. The director shall complete the substantive review of the application and shall issue or deny the permit within nine months of determining the application to be administratively complete.

D. If the application is determined to be administratively complete, the director, within fifteen days of that determination, shall give notice of the application once each week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in Yuma, La Paz and Mohave counties. The director shall also give first class mail notice of the application to each city, town, private water company, irrigation district, water users' association and electrical district within Yuma county and to any multicounty water conservation district as defined in section 48-3701. The notice shall state that persons adversely affected by the withdrawal of groundwater in the Yuma basin and the transportation of that water may file written objections to the issuance of the permit with the director within fifteen days after the last publication of the notice. An objection shall state the name and mailing address of the objector, shall be signed by the objector or the objector's agent or attorney and shall clearly set forth the reasons why the permit should not be issued. The grounds for objection are limited to whether the application meets the criteria for issuing the permit as prescribed by subsection B of this section.

E. If the director deems a hearing necessary or if a proper objection to the permit application has been filed, an administrative hearing shall be held before the director's decision on the application. At least thirty days before the hearing, the director shall notify the applicant and any person who filed a proper objection to the issuance of the permit. The hearing shall be scheduled for at least ninety days but no more than one hundred twenty days after the expiration of the time in which to file objections. If an administrative hearing is held, it shall be held in the Yuma basin.

F. A permit under this section shall contain that information determined to be necessary by the director and may include any condition determined by the director to be consistent with this section or necessary to protect the interests of this state and the water users of the Yuma basin. The director may issue a permit under this section for a period of not more than ten years and, on the director's initiative or the request of a water user in the Yuma basin, may review the permit to ensure that the requirements of subsection B of this section continue to apply. If the requirements no longer apply, the director may revoke the permit. On the request of the permit holder, the director may renew the permit if the director determines that the requirements of subsection B of this section apply. The director shall monitor withdrawals of groundwater pursuant to permits issued under this section and shall terminate a permit if the static groundwater level at the location of waterlogging identified in the permit reaches a depth greater than twenty feet below land surface or the conditions specified in subsection B, paragraph 2 of this section for issuance of the permit no longer apply.

G. Issuance of a permit under this section to the United States, an agent or agency of the United States or any other person shall not preclude issuance of a permit to any other eligible applicant to transport water for use within this state.

H. Before October 1 of each year, each permit holder shall file a written statement of intent with the director stating the quantity of groundwater the permit holder intends to withdraw and transport pursuant to its permit during the next calendar year. A permit holder who fails to submit a written statement of intent on or before October 1 of any year shall not withdraw or transport any groundwater pursuant to its permit in the following calendar year. A permit holder who files a statement of intent shall not withdraw and transport an amount of groundwater greater than that reported on its statement of intent. If, based on the statements of intent, the director determines that there is insufficient groundwater available to allow withdrawal of the total amount reported in the statements of intent filed by all permit holders, the director, on or before December 1, shall send notice by first class mail to all permit holders who filed a statement of intent. The notice shall state that the director shall allocate the groundwater available to each permit holder, up to the amount reported in the statement of intent, according to each permit holder's priority to divert and use Colorado river water, except that the director may allocate the groundwater in accordance with a written agreement signed by all permit holders who filed a statement of intent.