Questions about Exempt Water Rights Addressed

SWAN VALLEY - Jim Nave, Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation deputy regional manager, provided information about how to file a claim for exempt water rights filed before July 1, 1973 at the July 18 Swan Valley Community Council. Swan Lake District Ranger Rich Kehr also gave an update on the Flathead National Forest Plan and other district activities.

According to the DNRC website, House Bill 110, passed in the 2017 session of the 65th Legislature, requires the DNRC to notify all property owners in Montana about their opportunity to file for exempt water right claims. This began May 7, 2017 and will end June 30, 2019.

If a property owner has an exempt water right that includes water for livestock and individual domestic use from instream flows or groundwater sources only in existence before July 1, 1973, the rights were also exempted from the two previous mandatory claim filing periods which took place in 1982 and 1996. Exempt water right owners (pre July 1, 1973) who filed their claims before April 30, 1982, or during the late filing period that ended on June 30, 1996, do not need to update their claims.

It does not include rights for irrigation, diverted stock water from ditches or reservoirs or commercial and municipal wells.

The cost to file an exempt claim is $130, with a cap of $1,560, or 12 claims per water division. All claims beyond 12 for a single owner within a single water division have no additional filing fees.

Nave suggested that residents make sure that they have their water rights updated and filed, even though it is voluntary, because it gives the owner a priority date. It gives the owner senior water rights over junior water rights holder. The law dates back to Montana mining days. It is called first person, first person rights which means a senior water user has priority over the junior water user. “You want to protect your priority.” Nave said.

Nave answered questions (bold type), from some of the more than 50 residents in attendance.

How do we find out if the well dug in 1968 is filed? You need to research titles to find out the owner’s name and then see if they filed. The DNRC office can help with research if you call the Missoula DNRC office for an appointment.

I can’t find any information on when the well was dug in the early 1900s. There were no requirements then. You may have to use the date the house was built from information from the county assessor.

How do we find out for sure if the water rights are filed even if the well was established after 1973? You can research by geocode which pinpoints location, previous owners’ names, or the land description. There is information about how to go about researching on You Tube and at the DNRC water resource division website.

If there are existing water rights, you do not have to file again.

Why doesn’t a 627 (Notice of Water Right) count as a claim? The notice was used to put county records into state records and provided a database so that notices of changes could be sent to water users. You can use a 627 to fill out the water right claim. The 627 will not give you a priority date.

Does the new owner of property either by purchase or by inheritance automatically have the water rights? Yes, the water rights go with the property but the transfer of names is not automatic. You may need an ownership update form that has to be completed within 60 days of the land transfer to legally use the water. Check on the DNRC website for who does or does not have the water right.

Do ponds on our property for stock and fire protection need permits or water right claim?

If it is surface water, it needs a permit. If ground water it requires a water right claim. There are limitations to the size of the pond., It is still possible to file for a surface water right in the Swan Valley.

Nave encouraged those with questions to visit

http://dnrc.mt.gov/divisions/water/adjudication/hb-110-exempt-claim-filing for downloading the forms, information and help in filling out the claim forms entitled “Exempt Domestic Use” and “Exempt Stock Use”.

DNRC has set up a call center to assist landowners with any questions they may have about the filing process. The number is 406-444-0560 or the Missoula DNRC office at 721-4284. Exempt water right claim forms are also available at any DNRC regional office and the Montana Water Court.

Council member and realtor Lacey McNutt offered to help residents with research on titles and when wells were drilled. Call her at 754-3300.

In other business, Kehr presented an update on the FNF plan rewrite and other activities in the Swan Valley.

Kehr said Joe Krueger and the planning team will present the FNF draft revision plan later this summer to the Regional Forester Leslie Weldon in Washington, D.C. Comment and review will take place followed by the final decision in February or March 2018.

Kehr said FNF Forest Supervisor Chip Weber considered the recommended wilderness area in depth. The proposed draft will be available for review and comment later summer or early fall 2017.

According to Kehr, the Glacier Loon and Cold Jim projects are being held up by injunctions and intent to sue. The FNF has to do an environmental impact assessment followed by public comment. Kehr said he is hopeful that the issues will be resolved and that work can proceed.

Thinning crews are working in the Beaver Creek area south of Lindbergh Lake creating a line of defense to aid in fire staying on the ground if it occurs and not in the crown. Crews are also working to restore the lakeshore at Van Lake.

Kehr said that Section 33 next to Holland Lake was purchased by the USFS with the help of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation for public use.

Several trees, which were obstructing the south end of the landing field in Condon, were removed on USFS land and also with the cooperation of a private landowner.

Kehr’s said at the time of the meeting there was no fire activity in the Swan.

For more information visit http://www.fs.usda.gov/projects/flathead/landmanagement/projects. Kehr can be reached at 406-837-7500.

The next SVCC meeting is Aug. 15, 7 p.m. at the Swan Valley Community Hall.