The Washington State Legislature has approved $4.2 billion of state construction projects.
Projects include local water and sewer projects, affordable housing, K-12 school buildings, mental health beds, and public work projects.
Lawmakers adjourned last year without approving the two-year construction budget after Republicans refused to pass it without legislation to address the 2016 Hirst court ruling, which was over how the private wells in question would impact nearby rivers and streams, and with well-established water rights. It is based on all groundwater is linked to surface water.
The bill responds to the state Supreme Court’s 2016 Hirst decision. The court’s majority assumed new wells harm fish.
The Senate four times passed a bill aimed at reversing key elements of the Hirst decision.
In October 2016, the state Supreme Court ruled that Whatcom County failed to protect water resources by allowing new wells that reduce flow in streams for fish and other uses.
However, the Washington Farm Bureau’s water-policy expert said Friday, Jan. 19, that the Hirst bill passed by the Legislature and signed by Governor Jay Inslee will allow farmers to drill wells for homes and worker housing.
