Water Right Information

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The Division of Water Rights

The Division of Water Rights is the state agency that regulates the appropriation and distribution of water in the state of Utah. It is an office of public record for information pertaining to water rights, excepting that related to water right ownership. The office of public record for water right ownership is the county recorder's office for the county(ies) in which the water is diverted. All official and publicly accessible water right records are available in the Salt Lake City office or from this site. Region Offices outside Salt Lake City will also have copies of most records for the areas they administer.

The History of Utah Water Rights

The Utah pioneers, in the late 1840's, were the first Anglo-Saxons to practice irrigation on an extensive scale in the United States. Being a desert, Utah contained much more cultivable land than could be watered from the incoming mountain streams. The principle was established that those who first made beneficial use of water should be entitled to continued use in preference to those who came later. This fundamental principal was later sanctioned in law, and is known as the Doctrine of Prior Appropriation. This means those holding water rights with the earliest priority dates, and who have continued beneficial use of the water, have the right to water from a certain source before others with water rights having later priority dates.

In the early territorial days, rights to the use of public streams of water were acquired by physical diversion and application of water to beneficial use, or by legislative grant. A "county courts" water allocation system was enacted in 1852 and was in effect until 1880 when it was replaced by a statute providing for county water commissioners.

The Office of the State Engineer was created in 1897. The State Engineer is the chief water rights administrative officer. A complete "water code" was enacted in 1903 and was revised and reenacted in 1919. This law, with succeeding complete reenactments and amendments is presently in force mostly as Utah Code, Title 73. In 1967 the name of the Office of the State Engineer was changed to the Division of Water Rights with the State Engineer designated as the Director, but the public sometimes still refers to the Division as the State Engineer's Office.

Water Rights Definition

All waters in Utah are public property. A "water right" is a right to divert (remove from its natural source) and beneficially use water. The defining elements of a typical water right will include:

  • A defined nature and extent of beneficial use;
  • A priority date;
  • A defined quantity of water allowed for diversion by flow rate (cfs) and/or by volume (acre-feet);
  • A specified point of diversion and source of water;
  • A specified place of beneficial use.

Administration of Water Rights

Rights for water diversion and use established prior to 1903 for surface water or prior to1935 for ground water can be established by filing a "diligence claim" with the Division. Such claims are subject to public notice and judicial review and may be barred by court decree in some areas of the state.

All other rights to the use of water in the State of Utah must be established through the appropriation process administered by the Division of Water Rights. The steps to this process for an "Application to Appropriate Water" are as follows:

  • An Application to Appropriate Water is filed with the Division.
  • The application is advertised and protests may be received and a hearing may be held.
  • The State Engineer renders a decision on the application based upon principles established in statute and by prior court decisions.
  • If the application is approved, the applicant is allowed a set period of time within which to develop the proposed diversion and use water. When the diversion and use are fully developed, the applicant retains the services of a professional engineer or land surveyor who files "proof" documentation with the Division showing the details of the development.
  • Upon verification of acceptably complete proof documentation, the State Engineer issues a Certificate of Appropriation, thus "perfecting" the water right.

Many areas of the state are administratively "closed" to new appropriations of water. In those areas, new diversions and uses of water are established by the modification of existing water rights. Such modifications are accomplished by the filing of "change applications". These applications are filed and processed in a manner very similar to that described above for Applications to Appropriate Water. Water appropriation issues in specific geographic areas of the state are often administered using policies and guidelines designed to address local conditions. These policies and guidelines are generally developed for all or part of a defined Drainage Basin.


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The Division of Water Rights has statutory responsibility to notify owners of a water right of actions at the mailing address they have provided the Division. It is important water right owners maintain their current mailing address on agency records so these notices can be delivered. An owner can change their address of record either by sending in a written, signed request or electronically by submitting a request from the pulldown menu displayed on detailed water right listings from this website.

State law allows other parties to become involved with decisions on a water right by filing a protest. As a result protestants are also mailed a copy of correspondence relating to a water right decision.

Other individuals have asked that they be included in any correspondence regarding water rights. While the Division understands there may be compelling reasons to follow activity on a water right, there is no provision in current state law which provides resources for Water Rights to deliver such a service to individuals or groups who are not owners or protestants to an application.

Recently, the Division launched a new service which will (using email) automatically provide notification when new documents are placed on a water right file. This service uses data in the Division's electronic database, requires no additional resources for the agency to provide the notice, and is provided at no cost to the public. This new program is a service, not a duty of the agency and is provided on an as is basis. The user accepts all responsibility related to actions arising out of the use of the service. You will find links to the service on the menu to the left of this page.

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The Division administers water right appropriation according State Statutes, rules, and policies. Statutes and rules form the basic framework under which specific policies are developed to deal with characteristics of individual areas of the State. Information on this page will help you understand the laws, rules, and local policies which will be considered when the State Engineer acts on an application.

Duty Value Map

These maps are provided for general reference only and may not accurately represent the correct duty value in certain locations. Special circumstances exist in some areas which are difficult to convey at a scale viewable on-screen. Please contact the regional engineer nearest to you for further information and assistance in determining your location's exact duty value.


Policies


Calculators

The Division attempts to manage water right issues consistent with state law and in the best interest of the public. This is accomplished through entering into agreements which will resolve issues, and developing management and distribution plans in areas where problems have developed which effect existing rights.

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