Utah House Votes to Negate 100 Years of Water Law

From Bryan Gergsen at the Utah Water Guardians.

CONTACT THE SENATE NOW!!

HB-141 passed 50-25 today and is now moving onto the Senate.

This is NOT GOOD! Please contact all Senators NOW...
VISIT YOUR SENATOR IN PERSON!!!!

The vote http://www.facebook.com/l/0dc02;le.utah.gov/~2010/status/hbillsta/hb0141s1.001h.txt HB 141: YEAS - 50 NAYS - 25

KEY POINTS of INTEREST --HB 141:

 It is a clear violation of separation of powers, making it in direct contrast to the Utah Constitution Article V Section I and the ideals of our founding fathers.

 It was done in secret, and the substitute bill came out after it passed committee and was sprung on the House for a quick debate.

Approves a political and controversial process of adding waters to a list that can be accessed by the public and saying what waters can't be accessed by the public.

 Negates over 100 years of water law in Utah.

Flies in the face of 3 Utah Supreme Court decisions separated by over 70 years declaring and defining the public's easement in State waters.

 Refuses to balance two competing constitutional rights, but unconstitutionally disregards one in the favor of the other.

This bill is unconstitutional....PERIOD!

Please, take 5 minutes out of your day to send a short and sweet email. Even if its a one line sentence staying…VOTE NO HB-141

SENATE ROSTER
 lrobles@utahsenate.org; bmcadams@utahsenate.org; gdavis@utahsenate.org; pjones@utahsenate.org; kmayne@utahsenate.org; waddoups@utahsenate.org; rromero@utahsenate.org; kmorgan@utahsenate.org; wniederhauser@utahsenate.org; dcbuttars@utahsenate.org; hstephenson@utahsenate.org; bgoodfellow@utahsenate.org; mmadsen@utahsenate.org; jvalentine@utahsenate.org; mdayton@utahsenate.org; cbramble@utahsenate.org; pknudson@utahsenate.org; jgreiner@utahsenate.org; achristensen@utahsenate.org; sjenkins@utahsenate.org; jstevenson@utahsenate.org; sadams@utahsenate.org; dliljenquist@utahsenate.org; rokerlund@utahsenate.org; lhillyard@utahsenate.org; kvantassell@utahsenate.org; dhinkins@utahsenate.org; dstowell@utahsenate.org; surquhart@utahsenate.org

Keep up the fight!!

Bryan

Take Action !

The first call to action concerns two competing pieces of proposed Utah legislation which are scheduled to come to a vote next Monday or Tuesday. You may remember the battle that was waged to keep access rights on Utah's rivers and streams? Well that fight continues and the outcome could effect access rights in other states as well.

The GOOD!

House Bill 80 (Rep. Lorie Fowlke) upholds the Utah Supreme Court’s ruling(Conatser 2008)which recognized the public’s right to access the streambeds of public waters on private property for lawful recreational activities. In the spirit of cooperation, Rep. Fowlke held a series of public meetings that included landowners, farmers, ranchers, fishermen, rafters, kayakers and hunters to develop a compromise bill that addressed the concerns of all parties involved.

The BAD!

House Bill 141 (Rep. Kay McIff) seeks to overturn the Utah Supreme Court’s ruling(Conatser 2008) which recognized the public’s right to access the streambeds of public waters on private property for lawful recreational activities.

Both these bills are scheduled to come to a vote early next week, take some time this weekend and go to the Utah Water Guardians web site where you will find e-mail links to members of the Utah House Judiciary Committe. Send every member an e-mail asking them to support HB-80.There are also e-mail links to members of the House Natural Resorces Committee, send them e-mails asking them to oppose HB- 141.

The second call to action comes via the Trout Underground.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., is preparing to introduce a legislative rider that would dramatically reduce Endangered Species Act protection for salmon and other fish in California. The amendment would lift restrictions on the amount of water that farmers can pump from the Sacramento-San Joaquin river delta for the next two years. But it could also scuttle a delicately negotiated effort to balance protections for endangered fish with the water needs of farms and residents of Southern California.

Please take some time and click through to the post on the Underground. Tom has provided a draft e-mail in oppostition to the plan and a link so you can forward to Senator Feinstein's office.

TAKE ACTION! Stop commercial striped bass quota rollovers

Stripers Forever – the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission – ASMFC – the group of East Coast states that regulate striped bass, is taking public comment and holding public hearings on a proposal to allow states with commercial quotas to transfer the quota that they did not report as caught in one year to the next year. This means that if, in a given commercial state, the quota was 1,100,000 pounds, and only 990,000 was caught in 2011, then in 2012 the new quota could be 1,210,000 pounds.  

Stripers Forever thinks this is just a thinly disguised attempt to add to commercial quotas, and that it is a very bad idea.  Here is why:

1.  If the state fails to reach its quota over the course of an entire season, it is a very good indication that there simply are not as many striped bass out there as the fishery managers estimated.  Given the fishing reports that we have been receiving this is a very likely scenario.  Just adding one year's deficit to the following year simply compounds unwarranted pressure on the fish.  Fishery management needs to be more risk averse, not more intent on vacuuming up every possible fish for the market.

2.  Transferring uncaught quota to the next year provides an incentive for some commercial fishermen to sell their catch under the table and, as a bonus, receive a larger quota the following year.  Time and again some members of the commercial community have shown their willingness to sell under the table.  Every year there are arrests and convictions.  The ASMFC ignores this and makes no estimate of the illegal catch nor allowance for it in their management plans.  They are sticking their head in the sand.  

Stripers Forever is urging all their members to write to the ASMFC and let officials know that you oppose any commercial quota rollovers. 

You can find the draft plan and a link to submit a public comment HERE.