Michael Lyndon of Post Falls — Gubernatorial appointee being introduced at the start of the meeting.
Michael Linden of Post Falls, Idaho — Gubernatorial appointee to the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.
Kevin Cook — Seconded the motion to send the appointment to the Senate floor.
Kevin Cook — Senator Kevin Cook presents Senate Bill 1306 and explains its purpose and mechanics. He describes the petition process for a landowner seeking exclusion from a water district, the reasons a board may deny a petition, the current issue where a petition is deemed granted if no hearing occurs within 150 days, and the bill’s proposed structured timeline for hearings and appeals to address that problem.
Kevin Cook — Asks for the difference between a water district and an irrigation district.
Kevin Cook — Moved that Senate Bill 1305 be sent to the floor with a due pass recommendation.
Kevin Cook — Was referenced as having discussed the water delivery issue with Paul Arrington.
Kevin Cook — Moved that Senate Bill 1307 be sent to the floor with a due pass recommendation.
Kevin Cook — Senator Cole speaks before the motion and says he will support sending the bill to the floor, while reserving the right to vote differently once it reaches the floor.
Doug Okuniewicz — Moved to send the appointment to the floor of the Senate; likely a transcription error for a member name.
Doug Okuniewicz — A senator is addressed by name in two close-together mentions during the same exchange, with the transcript likely mangling the surname in both instances. The references appear to concern the same committee member being questioned or addressed, forming one continuous moment.
Doug Okuniewicz — Asked whether the fees are restricted in how they can be used.
Doug Okuniewicz — Senator O'Conniewicz opens by asking for a little discussion before making a motion, then begins discussing cloud seeding and its possible effects on downwind areas.
Mark Harris — Senator Mark Harris of the Idaho State Senate is introduced and presents Senate Bill 1304, identifying his district representation as part of the bill introduction.
Mark Harris — Asked whether he has closing remarks.
Mark Harris — Moved to send Senate Bill 1306 to the Senate floor with a do pass recommendation.
Mark Harris — Seconded the motion on Senate Bill 1305.
Mark Harris — Seconded the motion on Senate Bill 1307.
Mark Harris — Introduced a question about whether the fee is efficient given existing fire districts and insurance.
Mark Harris — Asked a clarifying question about whether the fee increase would create additional costs for improved land.
Mark Harris — Asked whether the fee increase would create additional costs for improved land.
Mark Harris — Asked whether anyone else had testified and invited closing remarks.
Mark Harris — Recorded as voting nay on House Bill 511.
Mark Harris — Senator Hart is invited to comment, states his support for the bill, and says he was going to second the motion; he is then identified as the senator who seconded it.
Mr. Paul Arrington — Invited to provide additional explanation.
Paul Arrington — Paul Arrington of the Idaho Water Users Association testifies in support of legislation affecting irrigation districts and water-right administration. He explains that the first bill clarifies existing ditch easement rights, addresses disputes over whether written permission is needed for work within an easement, and preserves the need for landowner involvement when changes move ditches or laterals outside the easement. He then turns to the bill’s exclusion process, saying some petitions clearly fail statutory criteria and do not require a hearing, while the bill creates a more structured timeline to avoid the current-code trap of automatic approval. He also clarifies that the measure concerns irrigation district entitlements rather than private water rights, and describes the consequences of exclusion, including loss of delivery rights and assessment obligations, with reassigned water potentially taken by other district members who pay the associated assessments. Arrington then begins testimony on Senate Bill 1305, again for the Idaho Water Users Association, explaining that water-right ownership transfers can be complicated and expensive because old records may require chains of title to be recreated. He gives an example from private practice and notes that updating ownership records burdens district staff and spreads the costs broadly across district members.
Paul Arrington — Paul Arrington, representing the Idaho Water Users Association, testified on Senate Bill 1307 and explained the distinction between canal delivery and laterals that serve multiple landowners.
Paul Arrington — Said he did not know the answer about the language change and noted the wording came from existing code, originally from 42-902.
Paul Arrington — Testifies on behalf of the Idaho Water Users Association in support of the legislation.
Jim Guthrie — Senator Guthrie asks whether moving a headgate could affect a landowner’s irrigation system, and the response confirms that it could.
Jim Guthrie — Senator Guthrie asked whether excluding someone from the district would affect water rights or shift the assessment burden to others in the system. In the same exchange, a reference to Senator Jim Guthrie was used as an example to clarify that the bill does not address private water rights.
Jim Guthrie — Senator Guthrie asks whether the bill could expose a ditch company or similar entity to legal risk if a water-right update is incorrect. The response begins by acknowledging it as a good question, and later discussion continues to reference Guthrie’s question while explaining the related title-company process and how the issue would be handled.
Jim Guthrie — Asked whether the $100 fee applies to small home lots or larger parcels and whether acreage matters.
Jim Guthrie — Seconded the motion on House Bill 511.
Mr. Erick — Likely a transcription error referring to Paul Arrington.
Ron Taylor — Seconded the motion on Senate Bill 1304.
Ron Taylor — Was invited to make closing remarks and then urged consideration of raising the IDL structure surcharge cap.
Ron Taylor — Gave closing remarks and asked the committee to consider raising the IDL structure surcharge fee cap.
Ron Taylor — Moved to send House Bill 511 to the floor with a do pass recommendation.
Neal Shippy — Neal Shippy introduces himself as the watermaster for Water District 65 and draws on his experience managing an irrigation district to explain why he wants to use a similar approach for the water district. He describes how ownership records can lag behind property sales, making it important to verify the correct owner and ensure the right people are notified during district processes, which supports the need for a statutory fix to charge a fixed fee.
Tim Luke — Credited with doing nearly all of the drafting and heavy lifting on the bill.
Mr. Eric, too [questionable] — A committee member appears to be asking for clarification on a new section; the name is unclear in the transcript.
Mr. Arrington — Responded to the question about intent language, but did not have an answer yet.
Joshua Kohl — Likely the intended reference in the garbled name 'Senator Connoewex.'
Joshua Kohl — Senator Nichols is thanked for working with stakeholders and for bringing the proposal before the committee. After testimony concludes, the chair returns to her, and Nichols responds by thanking the testifiers and committee, emphasizing transparency and the importance of getting information to the public, and asking for a do-pass recommendation.
Jim Woodward — Identified himself as a state senator from Legislative District 1 and introduced House Bill 511.
Clead Edmondson — Acknowledged as present with the Associated Logging Contractors.
John Larson — Identified as the current president of the Associated Logging Contractors.
John Larson — John Larson, president of the Associated Logging Contractors of Idaho, supports the bill and discusses rising costs and fire response demands.
Van Burtenshaw — Van Burtenshaw, acting as chair, is addressed during a discussion about fire suppression costs and whether people may be paying multiple times through the fire district, insurance, and the surcharge. He then closes the questioning, announces that testimony will follow, asks about lowering the screens, and sets the order and two-minute limit for witnesses. Later, he is thanked by a witness, and he responds that there are no further questions and thanks the witness for their testimony.