House eases secondary water‑metering rules for small systems, preserves grant support

Representative Snyder presented Senate Bill 251 as a targeted refinement to last year’s statewide secondary‑metering law, saying the original one‑size‑fits‑all approach imposed undue costs on ‘‘very specific small generally rural systems’’ where installing and maintaining individual meters would exceed local budgets.

Snyder said the bill authorizes three specific scenarios under which systems may work with the state engineer to find metering points within their networks rather than metering every individual hookup. He told the House that the operation and maintenance costs in some systems ‘‘would cost more to meter some of these systems ... than some of their annual budgets.’’

Representative Lyman asked whether the statutory fines referenced in the bill would be assessed against irrigation companies or secondary suppliers; Snyder confirmed fines apply to the supplier but said the bill pares back prior language so systems are responsible only for the hookups they have not metered rather than being fined for every hookup. Representative Briscoe and others noted the continued availability of last session’s grant funding; Snyder confirmed ‘‘there is money still available.’’

Members emphasized balancing measurement and conservation goals with rural affordability. After limited discussion, the House voted to pass the bill; the transcript records 71 yes votes, 0 no votes. The bill will be returned to the Senate for signature by the president.