State Senators voted down legislation dealing with public use of water on private lands. Debate on Senate Bill 169 was to continue Tuesday in the full Senate, after a rule invoked last Wednesday deferred it. Senator Tim Rave was the only member to speak on the bill before it was tabled. He says the meandering water issue will continue to be an ongoing discussion.
“It’s an emotionally charged issue, it’s a very personal issue for many folks. Over the last four months there’s been some really good discussions, a lot of debate, some compromises from many stakeholders. There’s been a lot of give and take, right up to and including this session. With that, there are also many pending questions and misunderstandings, frankly, by both proponents and opponents of this bill,” Rave says.
Rave says legislators haven't found a full resolution to the problem just yet. Prime sponsor of the bill, Senator Corey Brown, moved to table the bill. Senators approved the motion 31-3, effectively killing the measure.