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KITTITAS COUNTY <br />DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS <br />PUBLIC WORKS — BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS <br />STUDY SESSION STAFF REPORT <br />STUDY SESSION DATE: June 10, 2019 <br />TOPIC: 2019 Drought Lease Program <br />ACTION REQUESTED: Schedule Public Hearing on June 24, 2019 at 1:00 PM <br />LEAD STAFF: <br />Arden Thomas <br />RECOMMENDATION: <br />Schedule a Public Hearing on June 24, 2019 at 1:00 PM to consider a minimum bid price <br />and auction date to lease a portion on Kittitas County's Water Right holdings during <br />2019. <br />BRIEFING SUMMARY: <br />• Kittitas County holds water right assets that will not be needed for domestic use in <br />2019. <br />• In 2019 Yakima Basin water supply will be insufficient to meet water needs and <br />Washington State declared a drought emergency. <br />• Kittitas County staff have obtained initial feedback that a water leasing program <br />could help alleviate drought impacts to water users. <br />• A drought leasing program would benefit Kittitas County water users negatively <br />affected by drought conditions by providing an addition option to obtain irrigation <br />water and would generate revenue to support the Kittitas County Water Bank <br />program. <br />• A Public Hearing to consider a minimum bid price and auction date is required to <br />make these water right assets available in 2019. <br />BACKGROUND: <br />2019 Yakima Basin water supply is expected to be insufficient to meet water needs, <br />potentially resulting in prorationing and full curtailment affecting a number of water <br />users. On April 4, 2019, Governor Inslee declared a drought emergency for a portion of <br />Washington State, including the Upper Yakima River watershed. <br />Kittitas County has identified 235.677 acre-feet of consumptive use water that could be <br />made available through leasing agreements to assist water users facing prorationing or <br />curtailment. This water is a subset of the County's portfolio that was purchased through <br />local funds to mitigate new uses and has not yet been allocated through mitigation <br />certificates for domestic use and is not needed to meet projected County mitigation <br />certificate demand during the 2019 irrigation season. <br />Page 1 of 2 <br />PUBLIC WORKS BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS WORK SESSION STAFF REPORT <br />