9 minute read
Water management
from 12/21/22 issue
Water Management Board answers frequently asked questions
News from Ethan Mace / Office of the Water Engineer
FLATHEAD RESERVATION — Hello from the Office of the Water Engineer. Our office works on behalf of the Flathead Reservation Water Management Board (the “Board”) and is charged with administering water rights on the Reservation.
We have been busy staffing up and furnishing our Ronan office as we shift from interim processes towards a fully functional office as intended by the Confederate Salish and Kootenai Tribes—Montana Compact (the “Compact). Our main projects have included: - Helping to authorize the drilling of over 220 new small domestic wells for resident water users; - Working to solve long-standing issues related to pending land divisions and sanitation permitting that requires resolution of water right issues; - Working with the Montana Department of Natural Resources & Conservation (“DNRC”) to move forward with the processing of nearly 3,000 pending state-based registrations of existing uses, some filed with DNRC as early as the mid 1990’s and others received during the 180day filing period that ended this past March; - Working with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation (the “Tribes”) to assist with their registration of Tribal water rights; - Providing general information to callers and walk-ins regarding water rights and questions about the Compact and Unitary Administration and Management Ordinance (the “Ordinance”).
Frequently Asked Questions
Our office receives some common questions that are asked of us, so we thought it might be useful to provide some answers here:
Is your office or the Board going to meter all of our wells?
Answer: No, we have no plans to meter most of the wells on the reservation. The exceptions to this rule include 1) wells used for subdivisions, 2) municipal wells, and 3) larger irrigation wells, and 3) wells that may be involved in a water right complaint. No private residence wells will be metered.
Will your office be charging us for our water use?
Answer: No, beyond a onetime application fee for a new use, our office does not charge for the use of water in any way. Is your office a Tribal office? Is your office a State office?
Answer: Our office is independent of the direct authority of either Tribal or State government but is authorized by the laws of both governments. Our office operates at the direction of the Board, which is made up of six members: two voting members are appointed by Montana’s Governor, two voting members are appointed by the Tribal Council, a fifth voting member is selected by the other four, and a non-voting member is appointed by the federal government. Funding for our office and Board operations comes partially from application fees and equal/matching appropriations provided by both the Tribes and the State.
Will your office set the fees and delivery quotas for the Flathead Indian Irrigation Project (FIIP)?
Answer: No, fees and quotas for the FIIP are set by the FIIP operator, not our office.
Who needs authorization to drill a well and put water to use on the Reservation
Answer: Everyone needs to get advanced authorization before drilling a new well for a new use, this includes Tribal and Non-Tribal members. If you have questions, we are happy to help.
What is the status of my pending or suspended statebased registration?
Answer: Back before 2013, when the provisions that govern registrations of all those pending state-based water rights were written, no one contemplated how many new wells would be drilled between then and the eventual passage of the Compact in 2021. But rest assured, our staff is working closely with our State partners to get these important registrations of existing uses reviewed and moved forward. If your filing met the terms and conditions of the registration filing requirements, you will get your water right. In the meantime, if you need a copy or verification of your filing, our staff can get you pointed in the right direction.
I didn’t file a registration for my existing use, what do I do now?
Answer: At this time, we don’t have a process for addressing the needs of those who didn’t file registrations, but the Board and our office are exploring options that will help water users become compliant.
When will your office start accepting applications for water uses other than Domestic Allowances?
Answer: Our office continues to release new application forms for other water right types. We are actively maintaining an ongoing list of people interested in certain appropriation types, so that we can contact them once the application form of interest is finalized.
see page 6
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Ronan City Council discusses revitalization, business licensing
from page 5
By Taylor Davison / Valley Journal
RONAN — The revitalization of Ronan continues to move forward as the Revitalization Committee prepares to hire a planning firm to establish the overall master plan.
At the Dec. 14 city council meeting, Whitney Liegakos of the Revitalization Committee shared that they have completed their draft Request for Proposal (RFP) for a comprehensive master plan to begin the revitalization process needed to receive funds from Montana Main Street (MMS).
Ronan received an offer of membership from MMS back in March – which offers technical assistance and expertise to member communities and awards competitive grant funding to communities actively working on downtown revitalization – along with the offer of an additional $50,000 grant from the organization that waived the funding match requirement from the town to let more major plans be built out for a downtown master plan.
Once the RFP is published in early January, a selection committee, potentially including a city council member, will choose a planning firm to work with - after a six-week deadline for firms to respond - to start establishing the city’s master plan. As a grantee, the city will need to cover expenses itself until reaching $25,000, at which point MMS will reimburse Ronan.
The master plan will ideally include a summary of the community engagement process, an appropriate town theme, a map of community assets, visual representation of a revitalized downtown Ronan, infrastructure and conceptual designs for community development projects, plan implementation recommendations, and summaries of opportunities for growth, funding resources available, and how the MMS approach is being modeled in the plan and process.
“Most of the time, obtaining an actual master plan is a prerequisite to obtaining any grant,” Mayor Chris Adler commented. As a good ground level document, the council agreed investing in a master plan would be to Ronan’s benefit and showed appreciation to Montana Main Street for its assistance in making sure Ronan could actually obtain the grant it had offered.
“We need that guidance for us to see what’s out there,” council member Calvin Hardy commented. “I think to hook on with somebody that says ‘no, hang on, we’ll go through this together’ will get (us) through it.”
“They want to see our town succeed, that’s why they’ve offered us this unique grant they haven’t offered any other town,” Liegakos agreed.
In other news:
- Discussions on a potential business license for Ronan remain ongoing to hammer out the specifics before bringing a proposal. Hardy shared some business owners asked what would happen if they didn’t pay the possible fee, and they did not yet have an answer.
“It’s going to be trickier than we thought,” council member Lindsay Myers commented. “But really we’re doing this to avoid the popup shops on Main Street that are essentially selling not great things next to schools.”
Council members shared several businesses they spoke with did approve of the idea, and the Chamber of Commerce expressed interest in the idea to form a master list of businesses available in the area. For now, the council stated they aren’t rushing in as they consider possibilities for the license, and may have a proposal in the next fiscal year. - Ronan Police Chief Robert Jacobson reached out to the State of Montana to find out when marijuana tax money would be allocated to the counties, and was told Lake County should receive its funds Dec. 15. When Ronan gets its allocation of the money, Jacobson will propose a wage increase for Ronan Police to the council to help recruitment for two vacancies within the department.
TAYLOR DAVISON / VALLEY JOURNAL
Does your office have jurisdiction over water right administration off the Flathead Reservation?
Answer: No, our office only has jurisdiction over nonFIPP water rights on the Reservation, and DNRC retains jurisdiction everywhere else. DNRC will also continue to receive and process ownership updates of water rights on the Reservation.
How do we contact you?
Answer: We typically staff our office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday. We encourage calling ahead and making an appointment for better service. Official meetings of the Board are also held at our office at 400 SW Main in Ronan.
News from the office of Governor Gianforte
HELENA — Approving the recommendations of the Communications Advisory Commission, Governor Greg Gianforte today announced a $309 million investment to expand access to reliable broadband for 62,000 families, small businesses, farms, and ranches in Montana.
“Today’s a great day for Montana,” Governor Gianforte said. “Our historic, $309 million investment in broadband expansion will create new opportunities for Montanans to receive an education, access health care services, thrive in a good-paying job, and stay connected with family and loved ones. I thank the commission and Department of Administration for their hard work to expand Montanans’ access to broadband.”
Last May, Governor Gianforte signed into law a bill establishing the ConnectMT program to expand access to reliable broadband in unserved and underserved Montana communities.
According to the Federal Communications Commission, about one in three Montanans do not have access to broadband, which is three times the national average. The digital divide is even greater in Montana’s rural communities where three in five Montanans do not have access to broadband.
Following a robust and transparent public process, on Dec. 7, 2022, the Communications Advisory Commission, chaired by Senator Jason Ellsworth, approved a list of 61 broadband infrastructure projects totaling $309,080,600.16 to recommend to the governor for approval. The governor formally approved the commission’s recommendations today. The investment will provide service to 61,887 serviceable locations in Montana. Of those locations, 38,631 will be in unserved communities, 21,956 will be in underserved communities, and 1,300 will be in frontier communities.
“I’d like to thank my team at the Department of Administration as well as the commission for their extraordinary work to bring reliable, affordable broadband to 62,000 Montana households,” said Misty Ann Giles, Director of the Department of Administration and the state’s Chief Operating Officer who leads the broadband program. “This generational expansion will help deliver greater opportunities for hardworking Montanans in education, health care, and remote work, and we look forward to the impact of this investment.”
COURTESY PHOTO Governor Gianforte, seated beside Director of Administration Misty Ann Giles, signs a letter authorizing the investment of over $309 million to expand broadband access
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