82a-708c. Application for term permits to appropriate water; fee. (a) A term permit is a permit to appropriate water for a limited specified period of time in excess of six months. At the end of the specified time, or any authorized extension approved by the chief engineer, the permit shall be automatically dismissed, and any priority it may have had shall be forfeited. No water right shall be perfected pursuant to a term permit.

(b) Each application for a term permit to appropriate water shall be made on a form prescribed by the chief engineer and shall be accompanied by an application fee fixed by this section for the appropriate category of acre feet in accordance with the following:

Acre Feet  Fee

0 to 100   $200

101 to 320   $300

More than 320   $300 + $20

for each additional 100

acre feet or any part thereof

On and after July 1, 2023, the application fee shall be set forth in the schedule below:

Acre Feet  Fee

0 to 100   $100

101 to 320   $100

More than 320   $150 + $10

for each additional 100

acre feet or any part thereof

The chief engineer shall render a decision on such term permit applications within 150 days of receiving a complete application except when the application cannot be processed due to the standards established in K.A.R. 5-3-4c. Upon failure to render a decision within 180 days of receipt of a complete application, the application fee is subject to refund upon request.

(c) Each application for a term permit to appropriate water for storage, except applications for permits for domestic use, shall be accompanied by an application fee fixed by this section for the appropriate category of storage-acre feet in accordance with the following:

Storage-Acre Feet  Fee

0 to 250   $200

More than 250   $200 + $20

for each additional 250

acre feet or any part thereof

On and after July 1, 2023, the application fee shall be set forth in the schedule below:

Storage-Acre Feet  Fee

0 to 250   $100

More than 250   $100 + $10

for each additional 250

acre feet or any part thereof

The chief engineer shall render a decision on such term permit applications within 150 days of receiving a complete application except when the application cannot be processed due to the standards established in K.A.R. 5-3-4c. Upon failure to render a decision within 180 days of receipt of a complete application, the application fee is subject to refund upon request.

(d) Each application for a term permit pursuant to K.S.A. 2018 Supp. 82a-736, and amendments thereto, shall be accompanied by an application fee established by rules and regulations adopted by the chief engineer in an amount not to exceed $400 for the five-year period covered by the permit.

(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of K.S.A. 82a-714, and amendments thereto, the applicant is not required to file a notice of completion of diversion works nor pay a field inspection fee. The chief engineer shall not conduct a field inspection of the diversion works required by statute for purposes of certification nor issue a certificate of appropriation for a term permit.

(f) A request to extend the term of a term permit in accordance with the rules and regulations adopted by the chief engineer shall be accompanied by the same filing fee applicable to other requests for extensions of time as set forth in K.S.A. 82a-714, and amendments thereto.

(g) An application to change the place of use, point of diversion, use made of water, or any combination thereof, pursuant to K.S.A. 82a-708b, and amendments thereto, shall not be approved for a term permit, except as provided in K.S.A. 82a-736, and amendments thereto.

(h) The chief engineer shall adopt rules and regulations to effectuate and administer the provisions of this section.

History: L. 2009, ch. 51, § 1; L. 2014, ch. 133, § 11; L. 2015, ch. 60, § 2; L. 2016, ch. 23, § 1; L. 2017, ch. 86, § 15; July 1.

* Bracketed wording inadvertently omitted.