SB 23-177

Senate Bill 23-177, which has been approved and is now law in Colorado, allocates funds for various water-related projects aimed at conservation, monitoring, and restoration. The bill provides money for initiatives like improving flood maps, enhancing weather forecasting, and supporting endangered fish recovery programs. It also sets aside funds to help implement the state’s overall water plan and addresses legal issues related to water management. This funding will support efforts by the Colorado Water Conservation Board and other agencies to manage and protect the state's water resources effectively.

Official Summary

The act appropriates the following amounts for the 2023-24 state fiscal year from the Colorado water conservation board (CWCB) construction fund to the CWCB or the division of water resources in the department of natural resources for the following projects: Continuation of the satellite monitoring system, $380,000; Continuation of the floodplain map modernization program, $500,000; Continuation of the weather modification permitting program, $500,000; Continuation of the watershed restoration program, $500,000; Continuation of the Colorado Mesonet project, $150,000; Continuation of the weather forecasting partnership project, $1,000,000; Support for the division of water resources mobile field data collection application project, $800,000; Continuation of the reservoir enlargement assessment project, $1,000,000; Support for the central Colorado water conservancy district augmentation efficiency project, $3,000,000; and Support for the state water plan advancement project, $2,000,000. The act directs the state treasurer to transfer the following amounts on July 1, 2023, from the severance tax perpetual base fund to the CWCB construction fund, and appropriates those amounts from the CWCB construction fund to the CWCB for the following projects: Continuation of the Platte river recovery implementation program, $19,000,000; Support for the upper Colorado river endangered fish recovery program and the San Juan river basin recovery implementation program, $15,000,000; and Additional and continued support for the Frying Pan - Arkansas project, $20,000,000. The act directs the state treasurer to transfer the following amounts from the CWCB construction fund on July 1, 2023: $2,000,000 to restore the fish and wildlife resources fund; Up to $2,000,000 to the CWCB litigation fund to assist in addressing legal issues associated with compact compliance and other litigation activities; and $2,000,000 to the water plan implementation cash fund for continuation of the water plan implementation grant program. The act appropriates $25,200,000 of sports betting revenues from the water plan implementation cash fund to the CWCB to fund grants that will help implement the state water plan. The act appropriates $8,000,000 from the wildlife cash fund to the division of parks and wildlife to purchase up to 924 acre-feet of orphan shares from the CWCB as part of the Chatfield reservoir reallocation project. APPROVED by Governor June 5, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 5, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Related Legislation

Votes