Assured water supply; certificate; model
HB2091 creates a temporary process for the Arizona Department of Water Resources to re-review certain pending or previously withdrawn applications for certificates of assured water supply in the Phoenix active management area. The bill applies only to applications submitted between January 26, 2021 and August 31, 2023, where no certificate had been issued by the effective date. For qualifying applications, the department must issue a new written determination if the municipal provider has filed a notice of intent to serve that includes specified long-term groundwater replenishment commitments.
The bill requires the municipal provider to calculate excess groundwater delivered to member land parcels each year and to offer the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District long-term storage credits equal to 25% of that excess groundwater. The district may buy all or part of those credits at no less than the average price paid over the prior five years. The bill also provides that, for certain applications supported by the 2006-2009 Salt River Valley regional model or the 2006 Lower Hassayampa Sub-Basin groundwater flow model, the department must deem the physical availability requirement satisfied, while leaving other assured water supply requirements in place. Any certificate issued under the bill is treated as if issued in calendar year 2023 for certain later designation purposes, and the section repeals on December 31, 2028. The act is also declared an emergency measure, making it immediately operative.
In practical terms, HB2091 affects Arizona water law, especially the assured water supply certification process, groundwater replenishment obligations, and the relationship between municipal providers and the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District. It modifies how certain Phoenix-area developments can qualify for water supply certification and how excess groundwater and long-term storage credits are accounted for under existing statutes governing replenishment assessments and parcel replenishment obligations. The bill is narrowly targeted to a specific time window and geographic area, but it could materially affect development approvals and water accounting for affected landowners, municipal providers, and the district.
The overall sentiment in the recorded votes suggests the bill was supported by a majority but remained somewhat contentious. It passed House committees unanimously or near-unanimously early on, but the floor votes were more divided, including a 43-10 House third reading vote and a 17-12 Senate third reading vote. That pattern indicates broad support among some lawmakers for resolving or clarifying water supply certification issues, but also meaningful opposition, likely tied to concerns about water policy, precedent, and the bill’s targeted relief for specific applications. The Senate Natural Resources Committee’s 4-3 vote also suggests the bill was debated closely rather than being broadly consensus-driven.
HB2091 would temporarily amend Arizona water administration by directing the Department of Water Resources to re-review certain Phoenix active management area assured water supply applications and, in specified cases, to treat groundwater physical-availability requirements as satisfied. It creates new obligations for municipal providers to offer long-term storage credits to the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District, adjusts how excess groundwater is reported and offset in member service area agreements, and preserves annual replenishment assessments. The bill also creates a retroactive effect for certain certificates and sunsets the new section at the end of 2028.
The bill appears to have had mixed but generally favorable support, with strong committee approval early in the process and narrower margins on final floor votes. The recorded votes show that a majority of legislators supported the measure, but the closer Senate vote and the 4-3 committee vote indicate real reservations. Overall, the discussion history suggests the bill was viewed as a targeted water-supply fix, but not an uncontested one.
The main points of contention likely centered on whether the bill gives special treatment to a limited set of applicants and whether it effectively relaxes or predetermines part of the assured water supply review process. Opponents may have objected to the retroactive treatment of certificates as if issued in 2023, the mandated finding that certain applications meet physical availability requirements, and the ongoing credit-transfer obligations imposed on municipal providers. Supporters likely emphasized the bill’s narrow scope, its linkage to replenishment credits, and its role in resolving stalled applications in the Phoenix area.