A water infrastructure spending bill’s apparent lack of progress in the Idaho House concerns irrigators.

“It’s kind of catching us by surprise,” said Carl Taylor, an Idaho Falls-area farmer and rancher who serves on the Bonneville-Jefferson Ground Water District board. A key component of the 2024 settlement agreement between Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer groundwater and surface water users was that the state “would continue to assist us with long-term investment, for the good of the whole state.”

“We know that we’re running out of time” as the legislative session enters late stages, Blackfoot-area farmer Adam Young said. “We don’t know why this is held up.”

Gov. Brad Little’s proposed budget as well as Senate Bill 1128 call for an ongoing $30 million from the state general fund for water infrastructure projects such as aquifer recharge facilities, groundwater management projects, and water storage and conveyance improvements. In the legislation, no more than half the funds could be spent in one of the four Idaho Water Resource Board districts unless there are no competing applications in other districts in the fiscal year.

The Senate passed the bill 24-10-1 March 3 and referred it to the House Resources & Conservation Committee.

The bill is not on House Resources’ March 11 agenda, and whether it will be considered at the March 13 meeting is yet to be determined, committee secretary Andrea Blades said.

Committee chairman Ron Mendive, R-Coeur d’Alene, could not be reached.

Rep. Wendy Horman, R-Idaho Falls, co-chair of the budget-setting Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, said the committee held a hearing on the Department of Water Resources proposed budget that includes the ongoing $30 million but has not yet passed the budget.

JFAC will consider the budget, including the $30 million, irrespective of SB 1128, Horman said. The legislation is flawed in that the House should introduce appropriations bills, she said.

“There has been some pushback,” said Rep. Stephanie Mickelsen, R-Idaho Falls, a House Resources committee member who supports SB 1128.

An objection is that much of the existing funding for water infrastructure has not yet been allocated, she said.

“It has been allocated,” Mickelsen said.

Little and the legislature in the last several years directed substantial one-time spending, including American Rescue Plan Act funds and state budget surpluses, to water infrastructure. The Water Resource Board makes payouts as projects advance. Many projects take more than a year.

Having to return to the legislature for water infrastructure funding each year brings uncertainty, and poses risk if the economy turns down and state coffers diminish, Mickelsen said. Moreover, proposed water infrastructure spending is “a drop in the bucket” compared to some spending this year’s legislature approved already.

“Agriculture brings $11 billion into Idaho annually. It’s a huge driver of our economy,” Young said. “A $30 million ongoing investment to help shore up that industry, especially after last year’s water crisis, should be a no-brainer.”

“We’re in full support of the ongoing funding,” said Hamer resident Kirk Jacobs, chairman of the Jefferson Clark Groundwater District. Ongoing funding would mean a selection of projects could be developed over time, with IWRB funding them as planning, permitting and other processes advance.

Water users appreciate the legislature’s recent substantial funding, which has had an impact, said T.J. Budge, attorney for the Idaho Ground Water Appropriators. Significant infrastructure needs remain, and with one-time funding, “we’re just not going to be as successful as we would be with ongoing funding.”

If water entities and users don’t know if funding will be available, “it becomes very difficult to get these projects off the ground,” he said.