17-79-813. Exactions for water rights.
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Effective 5/6/2026
17-79-813. Exactions for water rights.
(1)Subject to the requirements of this section, a county or, if applicable, the county's culinary water authority shall base any exaction for a water interest on the culinary water authority's established calculations of projected water interest requirements.
(2)Except as described in Subsection
(3), a culinary water authority shall base an exaction for a culinary water interest on:
(a)consideration of the system-wide minimum sizing standards established for the culinary water authority by the Division of Drinking Water in accordance with Section 19-4-114 ; and
(b)the number of equivalent residential connections associated with the culinary water demand for each specific development proposed in the development's land use application, applying lower exactions for developments with lower equivalent residential connections as demonstrated by at least five years of usage data for like land uses within the county.
(3)If a county or culinary water authority determines, in the sole discretion of the county or culinary water authority, that good cause exists, the county or culinary water authority may impose an exaction for a culinary water interest that results in less water being exacted than would otherwise be exacted under Subsection
(2).
(a)A county shall make public the methodology used to comply with Subsection (2)(b) .
(b)A land use applicant may submit a request to the county's governing body an exaction calculation used by the county or the county's culinary water authority under Subsection
(2).
(c)A land use applicant may present data and other information that illustrates a need for an exaction recalculation and the county's governing body shall respond with due process.
(5)Upon an applicant's request, the culinary water authority shall provide the applicant with the basis for the culinary water authority's calculations under Subsection
(2)on which an exaction for a water interest is based.
(a)A county or the county's culinary water authority may not impose an exaction for a water interest if:
(i)the culinary water authority's existing available water interests exceed the water interests needed to meet the reasonable future water requirement of the public; or
(ii)the county or the county's culinary water authority does not have a written plan in accordance with Subsection (6)(b) .
(b)Beginning on January 1, 2028, a county shall determine the county's water interests needed to meet the reasonable future water requirement of the public by completing a written plan described in Subsection 73-1-4(2)(f) .
Enacted by Chapter 166 , 2026 General Session