S.B. 250 Great Salt Lake Amendments: transcript

Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Committee, Feb 9, 2026

1. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:11:52

   allowing us to switch that around. Um, we're gonna call Senate Bill two 50 Great Salt Lake Amendments. Hey, Senator, we still have a quorum and we have a, a number of, uh, of our Senator Vickers who are online. They might be in another room with their phone on and their earplugs in. So multitasking here. You've been, you've been there too. So we, uh, everyone's listening in. We'll turn the time to you for Senate Bill two 50.

2. Sen. Nate Blouin1:12:31

   This is on. Oh, there we go. It is on. Well, thank you, Mr. Chair. Uh, I wanna start with the basic premise of this bill of SB two 50, because it is a pretty straightforward proposal. Um, so right now we have taxpayer dollars that are sitting in, uh, a state account dedicated to the Bear River Development. At the same time, leadership, legislative leadership has been very clear, uh, folks including Speaker Schultz that, uh, the Bear River development is, is probably not going to happen. And if it were to happen, uh, it's probably a long ways in the future. So if that's the case, uh, if this project is either not needed or so far off that it's not realistically on the horizon, then there's no reason to just let that money, uh, sit there unused while the Great Salt Lake continues to decline. So SB two 50, uh, is about putting that money to work now, uh, when it actually matters, this bill, uh, doesn't raise taxes. It doesn't create new programs. It doesn't tell anyone how to use their water. Uh, it doesn't even divert the ongoing sales tax increment that goes to Yra. Um, that funding stream remains intact and it remains available for other uses. What this bill, uh, does is allow existing funds already dedicated in statute, um, to be used to purchase water and support actions that directly benefit Great Salt Lake. Uh, and the urgency here is real. Uh, we've all heard for years that the Bear River development is, uh, decades away. While meanwhile, today, uh, the lake is at historic levels right now, historically low levels right now, uh, we don't have the luxury of waiting for a future project, uh, that may never happen. While the state has money sitting idle that could be helping right now. Um, there's, then there's also a bigger contradiction that we need to be honest about. The, uh, proposed Bear River diversion is about 220,000 acre feet of water. Uh, that is somewhere in the range of 20 to 30% of the Bear River's flows. And the Bear River is the single largest surface water source feeding great Salt Lake. We can't approve new diversions of the lake's tributaries, and at the same time, seriously claim that we are going to save the lakes. Those two things do not align. So sb uh, two 50 resolves that contradiction. Uh, it de authorizes the Bear River development and allows the state to focus on strategies that actually increase water reaching the Great Salt Lake. Uh, things like water leasing, water acquisition, these are, are tools that we know work and they produce results right now, not decades into the future. Uh, another important piece is, is private investment. Uh, landowners and conservation partners are stepping up with real dollars to help the lake. Uh, so SB two 50 just allows the state to match that investment, making taxpayer dollars go further without creating new spending obligations. I also wanna highlight that young Utahans played a real role in shaping this bill. Uh, their message was clear and pragmatic. If the state is stepping away from massive diversion projects, then it needs to act quickly and decisively on conservation that works. They are thinking long term because they will be the ones that will be living with the consequences if we don't act now. And finally, uh, there is a real timeline that we can't ignore. The 2034 Olympics are less than a decade away. The world will be watching Utah and the condition of the Great Salt Lake, um, or it's continued decline, will be impossible to hide. SB two 50 makes sure that we are not waiting until the last minute, and that we are using the resources we already have to act right now. So this bill isn't radical, it is practical. It puts taxpayer dollars to work instead of letting them sit idle. Uh, it aligns statute with what leadership has already acknowledged and it focuses our efforts on actually saving the Great Salt Lake. So thank you. Uh, happy to take the committee's questions.

3. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:16:29

   Thank you. Uh, thank you for the presentation, Senator. Um, I'm gonna bring it back to the committee, uh, for any clarifying questions. Any questions from the committee? There's two of us here and others online. You're welcome to, uh, chime in if Senator Stratton. Go ahead.

4. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:16:49

   Thank you, Mr. Chair. In recent years, the legislature's appropriated hundreds of millions of dollars to help the lake and there's been some good positive, uh, direction and, and a lot of positive, uh, things that happened two years ago. It raised four feet from its lowest level, and it's still above that. Uh, at one of the things we did is we set up a, uh, commission to study and make recommendations to the legislature, put that formal in process. Uh, just wondering if the sponsor has had any interaction with the, the director of the commission if, if they have taken a position on this.

5. Sen. Nate Blouin1:17:31

   I, I have not. I assume, uh, maybe he, someone is here to speak to that, but, uh, this is really about augmenting those existing resources that we've allocated to them, uh, and supplementing the, the $200 million in, uh, private funding that come, came from the, I believe it's called the Great Salt Lake, Salt Lake Rising, uh, effort. And, uh, and matching those funds so that we as a state are saying we're gonna, we're gonna pony up, uh, when the private sector comes to the table, we're gonna step in and, and supplement those funds. And so that's what we're trying to do right here.

6. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:18:01

   Follow up, Senator? No, I guess we'll hold my follow up until after public comment. Okay. Thank you. I, I assume then the sponsor has not spoken to him, is that maybe that is a question. Have, correct?

7. Sen. Nate Blouin1:18:14

   Yeah, you have not. I think I addressed,

8. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:18:15speaker not certain

   Have you not reached out to him? The governing body. Okay. Thank you. Yeah.

9. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:18:20

   Further questions for the sponsor, sir. I, I have one that goes along that same line. And, um, Senator, we Yeah. Say we put hundreds of millions. I, um, and I love your ingenuity and ideas on this. Um, why haven't you spoken to him? Yeah,

10. Sen. Nate Blouin1:18:40

    This while the bill came out recently, uh, this is something we worked on for a few months with some, some members of the community. Um, and we just didn't go to that, uh, step to engage in, uh, conversations with that body. I mean, we are the appropriating body for the state. Uh, this is a, a decision that doesn't affect policy or anything like that. And so I think this is just, uh, plain and simply augmenting the existing authorities, the existing funding that they have and, uh, and contributing more, uh, as far as what the state is doing to help the lake.

11. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:19:11

    Okay. Yeah, just observation. I think that, um, if they were sitting next to you asking for this, I think you could be much more powerful and maybe they will come to the table and say that just, uh, observation, I mean, not get out with all stakeholders and, and they aren't political. This is a group we put hundreds of millions of dollars behind with the authority to request these funds and put it into action with real science. So, uh, just my comments, I dunno if you wanna respond to that.

12. Sen. Nate Blouin1:19:39

    I, I don't disagree. I think the, the more stakeholders we have at the table, the better and I'm happy to engage in those conversations. Okay.

13. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:19:45

    Thank you. Um, I don't see any other conversation from, or questions from the committee, so I'm gonna open it to public comment. Let me see how many in the room want to speak to this? Okay. I'm seeing more hands, more hands coming up. Okay. Here, here's, uh, what me, let me ask this. How many are, uh, in favor of the bill? Hold your hands up. Okay. Let's see. How many are against? Okay, so, uh, that's, that's pretty one sided. So I'm going to, um, I'm gonna allow a comment. We're, I, we can't hear from everybody. We'll be here three hours. So let me take 10 comments. We have some online, I have seven online, and I'm just, I'm gonna, um, award those who made the effort to come to the capitol today and be in the room. I'm gonna, um, award you the opportunity to come and speak to the bill. And, uh, let me go a minute and a half. Um, and let me set it up this way. Uh, I, I, because I, there's a lot of, um, support here and, um, I wanna make sure as a chair that each of you know, we are grateful you're here. Thank you for being part of the de our democratic process in our state. Um, and we will keep the quorum I'll if, if you agree there, there, there won't be any outbursts. We have to keep the quorum. So if you agree after somebody speaks and you want to clap, you can't, but you can wave your hand Okay. And, and do that, that that's fine, but we won't have any outburst. Um, and so if all of you will respect that as all of you have, um, so far in the meeting, I, I appreciate that. Do you have, um, Senator Stratton, do you have comment or your light was blinking? No, no,

14. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:21:36

    No. I, well, yes, I, I guess if the, anyone from the Salt Lake Commission is here to speak on it, I'd like to be able to hear from, I don't know if you're gonna limit the amount of, uh, comments, but if you choose to do that, I, and if someone from the commission is here, I'd like them to have an opportunity to speak.

15. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:21:54

    I, I appreciate that. I, I think we will limit to 10, um, witnesses. Um, 10 in favor. 10. If there's 10 against, we'll do that and give you, um, a minute each. And please don't repeat. If somebody has shares something that's, uh, a, a fact that we need to consider, uh, please honor that and don't repeat, uh, we really look forward to hearing from the public. So lemme change this to one minute. Do you want me to move off? Lemme get this changed. Move off. Why don't you move out and then we can rotate one to another. Thank you Senator. And then we'll have you back for summation. Okay. Um, let's go ahead and, um, it's gonna be, I'm, I'm not, uh, refereeing who it is. So if you just wanna line up over here on the wall, we'll take the first two in the chairs, sign in after you speak. Okay. And then we'll just keep rolling. Let me get this set. Um, I'm gonna go, yep. Okay. Time is yours. Please, uh, introduce

16. Adalayde Scott, resident, Millcreek1:22:54

    Yourself. Yes, thank you, chair and Senator Vickers. My name is Adelaide Scott. I'm 17 years old and I live in Millcreek. I am here to testify in strong support of SB two 50. I was born and raised here in Utah. It's my home and community and I feel a sense of responsibility to protect it. Much like many of you, I grew up being told that our government institutions work for the people and I feel that this is a common sense solution and I think that, I think you guys should pass it. I think that blue suits and pins and claims to save the lake are fantastic, but I think that when we pair that with tangible action, that's the outcome that the youth are really looking for. SB two 50 gives our government the opportunity to commit to tangible action by removing 200 million from the Yra account and redirecting it towards the Great Salt Lake. 15 seconds. Yes. For those worried about, uh, you know, money for existing water infrastructure projects. This does leave 79 million in the account that can continue to be used for existing infrastructure projects as necessary. So I would appreciate you passing this common sense. Bill, I believe your family first, and I think this is a family first solution. Thank you.

17. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:23:54

    Thank you. 17 years old. Thank you for being here. I love that. Alright, young lady. Go ahead.

18. Sophia Smith, student, University of Utah1:24:00

    Um, hello, my name is Sophia Smith. I'm 18 years old. I'm a student at the University of Utah. I'm studying art education and I'm here to talk about how, um, when I graduate, I'm gonna be receiving Utah State Teaching license in 2040. I'm sorry, in 2050 when the Bear River Development Project is like projected to be being done. I will be in the midst of my career and I want to see my students in a world that's gonna be safe and that's gonna be prioritized. Um, I fear what could happen to me and my family through ecological collapse that could come with the loss of the Great Salt Lake, as I'm sure you guys know. But more so I fear what could happen to the countless students across this valley and state. My future students, the kids that are gonna be breathing in chemicals that we don't understand with the possibility of lifelong ailments. Students and children aren't the ones making these decisions clearly, and we don't really have the power to stop it, but I think that you guys do, and I would really appreciate if we could take this step forward for prioritizing students and the people. Thank you.

19. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:25:01

    Thank you. Next.

20. Danielle Knight, resident, Millcreek1:25:03

    Hello, my name is Danielle. I'm 29, and I am a resident of Millcreek. I'm also born and raised here in Utah. And I honestly just wanna start by saying this plainly. Danielle,

21. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:25:13

    Tell us your last name.

22. Danielle Knight, resident, Millcreek1:25:14

    Knight. Knight. Thank you. If our state leaders are serious about their commitment to save the Great Salt Lake by 2034, then this bill must pass. Like many Utahans, I've gone out to the Great Salt Lake, not just to recreate, but to witness what is actually happening for myself. On one visit last May, I stood on the shore and I personally saw hundreds of dead birds scattered along the lake bed. I could feel the poor air quality and I later learned that the dust blowing off of the exposed sediment contains arsenic and other heavy metals. This is an abstract, this is happening right now, and it's affecting real people, especially children like my daughter, that you can see sitting in the audience here as well as pregnant women. We know what it will take to save the lake and to meet Governor Cox's stated goal. So I urge all of you to support SB two 50. Thank you.

23. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:25:58

    Thank you.

24. Alta Fairbourne, Utah Rivers Council1:26:00

    Hi, my name is Alta Fairborn. I'm the community water organizer and advocate at Utah Rivers Council. And I'm here to ask you to support Senate Bill two 50. This is a common sense solution to a massive and rapidly growing financial liability in northern Utah. Current research indicates that mitigating dust across the dried up great Salt Lake could cost up to $31 billion over the next 50 years. Every single engineered dust control option is extraordinarily expensive, and these figures do not capture the secondary cost of a dries it up. Great Salt Lake, like growing healthcare costs for families, and the collapse of great Salt Lake industries like mineral extraction and brine shrimping, and the collapse of Utah's tourism and ski industries. Meanwhile, we're still putting taxpayer dollars towards a $4 billion diversion project, which will exacerbate these expenses. Let's pick the most, uh, fiscally conservative and responsible future and vote yes on Senate Bill two 50. Thank

25. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:26:54

    You. Thank you. Next, please.

26. Luis Miranda, resident, Salt Lake City1:26:57

    Yes, uh, my name is, uh, Luis Miranda. Uh, I'm a resident of of Salt Lake. Uh, and I'm here to speak on behalf, uh, in, in support of SB two 50. Um, Mr. Chair, I, I really, uh, I I was, I'm, I'm a proud member of an immigrant family that came here to, to, to, to particularly this land, uh, for opportunity. I was raised on Redwood Road. I Uintah Eisenhower Junior High Hunter, junior high. Uh, I remember the first time I saw snow, actually right by in the area, right by the, uh, by where the driving theater is at. And my family has really depended on the opportunity that comes from the service industry. The fact is that right now we are indeed in a very precarious situation with no snow. I'm really afraid about families like mine along with the kids that I grew up with that may not have the opportunity to be able to have, uh, you know, a tourism industry that is possible because the lake is drying up. What I really appreciate about this bill is that it's practical. It's not racing taxes is using the money that has already been earmarked to, to give us a chance to find the solutions we need in the future. I wanna raise my family here. Please give us a chance. Thank you.

27. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:28:04

    Thank you. Okay. We, uh, we're halfway there. Keep going. Thank you.

28. Maria Archibald, resident, Salt Lake City1:28:09

    Awesome. Uh, thank you chair and members of the committee. My name's Maria Archibald and I live in Salt Lake City. Um, as I think these incredible young people have made clear, this bill was brought forward, um, by youth in Salt Lake. And, uh, while I don't think I have time to read statements from the youth who can't be here because of school and work, I would just like to name some of them. Amelia's Wicker, age 18, Astrid Van Wagner, age 18. Joe Martindale, age 18, kitty Chamberlain, age 17. Autumn Featherstone, age 20 and Whitley O'Neill, age 17. Um, there was a question earlier about why the commissioner didn't request these funds. And while of course I can't speak on behalf of the commissioner, I would like to point out that his office received, um, just a fraction of the funds that they requested last session. Um, and so we are severely behind in terms of funding to solve this problem on time. And this bill gives us a chance to catch up. Um, I'd also like to add that it's just mathematically impossible to divert 220,000 acre feet of water from the Bear River and save the Great Salt Lake. So if we're serious about saving the Great Salt Lake, uh, at all, much less by 2034, um, we need to put these funds to use today, uh, to save that lake. Thank you.

29. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:29:17

    Thank you. Great welcome.

30. Norma Wills, resident, Salt Lake City1:29:21

    Thank you. Um, thank you Mr. Chair and members of the committee. My, uh, for taking my comments today. Please

31. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:29:26

    Pull the mic right up closer. Sorry.

32. Norma Wills, resident, Salt Lake City1:29:29

    Um, my name is Norma Wills and I live in Salt Lake City. Um, I'm here speaking in favor of SB two 50. Uh, great Salt Lake is in a precarious state. Its elevation today is 41 91 0.8 feet, a little over the three feet above the historic low elevation of 41 88 0.5 in 2022. This is despite two very good snow years. Between now and then, the drawing at the lake is exposed over 800 square miles of lake bed whose toxic toxic dust threatens the air quality, increases health risks of surrounding communities. The legislature has addressed the problem in recent years, enacted to get more water to the lake through changes in water law, removing thousands of acres of, uh, mite dedicating over 250 million to agricultural water optimization projects and funding the Great Salt Lake Trust and Commissioner's Office. Last year or last fall, the state received a commitment of 200 million from private interests as part of the Great Salt Lake 30, 20, 34 charter at a press conference. It's in the story.

33. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:30:34

    Sorry to cut you off. Well, I have

34. Norma Wills, resident, Salt Lake City1:30:36

    to stay on, um, page here. Okay, Go ahead. Alright. Anyway, I support the bill.

35. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:30:39

    Thank you, ma'am. Okay. And it looks like we have this one and then there's still a few more. So please keep coming up. Somebody in The next chair. Alright, go ahead sir.

36. Nathan Hole, resident, Davis County1:30:49

    Chair members of the committee. My name is Nathan Hu and I live in Davis County, Utah. A focal point of the arsenic and lead lace to toxic dust storms off the lake bed. If we are serious about restoring the lake in time for the Olympics in 2034, then this is a common sense Bill, that we no longer have the luxury, um, of time to, to do a much else. About 30 years of the stalled Bear River development would divert over 220,000 acre feet from the Great Salt Lake, and we have spent 10 years paying nearly $300 million into an account that we have yet to utilize it all. The common sense for me is to use that money to save the lake. We have to work with the agricultural comm community to save the lake, and we also cannot risk sacrificing billions of economic activity. These funds will be better used, helping to support our ag community and save the lake. This is the best solution for both sides. We're entering a time of difficult decisions and this likely presents one of the easiest of those to come. So I urge you to support this bill. Thank you.

37. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:31:53

    Thank you. Okay, go ahead and then we'll have one more. Take the last seat there. Go ahead.

38. Amy Jessee, resident, Salt Lake City1:32:01

    Hi, my name is Amy Jesse. I am a lifelong resident of Salt Lake Fifth Generation, Utah. Um, this is home for me. I have a 5-year-old, so this is something that's really close to home. Um, I feel like every morning I wake up and am thinking about the Great Salt Lake. One of the things I love about the Utah values is that we know how to be conservative. We know how to, um, appropriate funds. We are really careful about our money, but, um, where I'm not seeing the same, um, conservative values is within our water use. I would love to see, um, because we have these funds, our rainy day funds, or lack of rain, I suppose in this year, I hope that we can be able to use the funds that we do have, um, that we've done so well with, to use it for our water use, and to be able to get water to the great Salt Lake. Thank you so much. Thank you.

39. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:32:55

    Okay. Our final public comment. Um,

40. Herbert Ley, resident, Millcreek1:32:58

    Go ahead, Mr. Chair. My name's Herbert Lay. I'm here speaking on behalf of myself in support of SB two 50. I'm a resident of Millcreek. I've owned my home for 23 years. I mentioned this at a previous testimony for the last two or three years. Every time it rains, there's mud on my windshield. That was true this morning. Coming here today, I don't know what's in that mud, but I am concerned and I'm concerned about my property values and I'm also getting to the point of retiring and I'd like to maximize the host property values, but more importantly, turn it over to the next generation. And I am grateful for the comments and I couldn't have said it better. So I support two 50. Thank You. Thank you.

41. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:33:40

    You gave us 18 seconds back, so perfect. Oh, I love the young people. Okay. Alright. I am going to make an exception to what I said earlier. We're gonna take a comment because, uh, she's the Commissioner of Great Salt Lake. No, she's with the Great Salt Lake Commissioner's Office With the, uh, great Salt Lake Commission's office. So, Senator, you are asking Hannah Freeze. Um, we, we would like to hear a comment. Um, would you, uh, unmute and turn your camera on?

42. Hannah Freeze, Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Great Salt Lake Commissioner1:34:26

    Yes. Can you hear me? We can. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Uh, my name is Hannah Freeze. I serve as the de Deputy Commissioner on the Great Salt Lake Commissioner's Office. Um, I appreciate the opportunity to comment on this bill. Um, no one in our office, in the office of the Great Salt Lake Commissioner has worked with a good senator on this bill. Um, we are happy to do so if, uh, Senator Blouin is interested in working with our office and having some dialogue regarding this bill, uh, so that we can, uh, all work, move and move things forward, um, in the interest of Great Salt Lake. Thank you.

43. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:34:59

    Thank you. Um, thank you for, um, joining the committee and commenting. Okay. Senator, you want to go back to the chair? We're gonna close public comment and we'll bring it back to this committee for further discussion and or action. Senator Stratton,

44. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:35:18

    I have a motion and then I'd like to explain the motion, if that's okay. Chair. Okay. My motion is to table this, this, this bill at this time. I'd like to speak to that. You wanna speak to that? Yes. This is a really good bill, a good concept. I love the, uh, the innovation and the comments. Uh, I don't think there's any disagreement in, in what we're trying to do, but from my perspective, what I see here is a really good idea that needs to mature a little bit, potentially. As the bill that you presented last week and presented at the beginning of this meeting, the process that goes through as the Chair of the Legislative Water Development Commission. I'm concerned that we haven't had the opportunity to that and improve and build upon this great idea. Let me give you an example. We, of, of the a hundred percent of the water that falls here in our state, these are approximate numbers, but just round numbers, about 90% of it evaporates or goes into the ground, goes to the ground or evaporates. We have 10% left of that. And of that 10%, 80% of the water is generally up to 80% is generally used for agriculture. And then the rest is for our homes and, and residents businesses. One way to really improve this bill, for example, would be to designate an earmark that 200 million towards agriculture water optimization that would pay for improved arian uh, processes in, in, in, in agriculture, and send the saved water down to the Great Salt Lake. That's just one of many examples. This needs a little bit, this needs more time to bring with the great mindset of the, the good sponsor, the brain trust that we have to have this improve and be its very best version. So with that, that is my motion.

45. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:37:30

    Okay. Thank you, Senator. Um, their discussion from the committee to the motion. You don't see any one? Okay. I don't see anyone, we don't see anyone speaking up online.

46. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:37:45

    I, I will comment to that. Um, uh, yes, Senator, thank you for the motion. Uh, another factor here, uh, for all of us is Mother Nature. It's, it's been rough. Um, so, uh, that we could certainly all, um, urge some changes there. The picture I showed in the last on my bill was, uh, you could see that stream flowing should have 10 to 15 feet of snow on it. Right now, it's not there. And, um, I I, I see the urgency, Senator, and your idea is great. Um, um, I I probably tend to lean to that motion. Um, we, we had a, they always discussed 90 years trying to help people get their water. Um, and I, I understand trying to work with this. If, if we divert these waters now part, you know, and, and commit that money, then how do you also ever restore that if those, those waters again too. And when I got home this weekend, I got, uh, this go, go with the flow framework of support over the river wetlands ecosystem functioned in the Great Salt Lake Basin. Super, really, really good, uh, article out of the university, out of Utah State University. Uh, talking about even you have to be super careful changing the flow of the water. We need it to come up and Mother Nature needs to help with that. Or we lose our fish who are used to spawning at a certain flow and all that to take into account that, that's I think why we helped set up the commission. So just my comments to the motion. Okay.

47. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:39:28

    Um, let me see if there's anyone else like to speak to the motion. Okay. I'm not seeing any, let me place the motion to table. Oh, sorry. Back to you. Senator Vickers.

48. Sen. Nate Blouin1:39:39

    Um, you can me. Thank You. I, I would speak against the motion. I think, uh, a motion to table is, is probably too drastic and potentially a motion to hold would be more friendly. And then we could workshop this with the, the commissioner if they are in, in, uh, interested in that. Uh, I think the issues that were raised by, by Senator Stratton are, are addressing this bill. You could certainly use this funding for AG water optimization, by my understanding of how we wrote the bill. Um, you know, we have heard that, uh, people are, are tired of, of waiting for these government agencies to take action. I'm normally one of the more cautious ones in emerging us to slow down and, and make sure that we are listening to our regulators. But we, we just don't have time for that. You certainly mentioned the concerns over, uh, the, the, the water, uh, problems that we are seeing right now. And, and this is not, you know, diverting new, this is the opposite of diverting new waters. This is, uh, making sure that we're hopefully letting mother nature do, do our best when we actually have, uh, something coming out of the sky. So, um, I I think this is, this is something we need to keep considering and, and to, to table the bill would, um, would be to, to kill the bill. So I, I would, I would speak against that.

49. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:40:44

    Okay. Thank you, uh, Senator, so you no further discussion.

50. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:40:48

    Point, point of order. Oh, sorry, you just to, just to the chair's point And staff's point tabling the bill would still allow you to bring the, put the bill on the agenda again, correct? Correct. Future agenda. Future agenda. So that I, I guess I,

51. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:41:06

    So clarification, Senator, if it's tabled, then it would be on the next agenda.

52. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:41:11

    Okay. Let me, I'd like to amend the motion to hold the bill. Okay. If that's my understanding was because we may need more time between now and the next agenda to work on it. But, but let me just give, let me just show something else out there. Two or three things I'd like to say. I, I don't, I don't think it's a fair indictment to the legislature to say we're not serious about trying to save this lake and, and have it in, in 2034 that I have, there is no evidence in my discussions and work that, that I, I can point to that would verify that there is certainly a tremendous need and a, a and a critical need to give this attention. But we need to do it in the very best way we can. And it takes a little bit of time to bring, bring the best legislation forward. I, this is a wonderful idea, but the process in that idea, we have a whole commission that we've set up to deal with this, and they haven't been consulted. We have a tremendous amount of resources in, in Great Brain Trust have been working and toiling and, and, and wrestling with this. There's, there's ideas and, and notions of, of, you know, we have a aquifer, aquifer several miles down with rich minerals. Let's drill down and tap that and harvest the minerals and feed the lake. A small fraction, honestly, of this 200 million, potentially 10 million could do much more than what this bill contemplates. So there's a leveraging impact. This needs, this needs the best minds looking at that. Just not. And, and I've gotta tell you, some of the best minds we have are these 17 eight year olds, 78 year olds that brought this forth. My goodness. What a tremendous compliment to the rising generation to see the professionalism and the articulation in witness and to the good sponsor who has a wonderful mind and very does a great, but let's add to it and bring forth the best version. That's the reason for the motion.

53. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:43:45

    Okay. Thank you, Senator. The motion, it would be then to hold the bill and keep in committee would be in, uh, committee chair possession. Senator, I, I had you speak to the motion at the table, but I wasn't gonna let you, um, respond, um, on the motion to hold where we've amended that. I think it's adequate to go ahead.

54. Sen. Nate Blouin1:44:04

    Thank you. Yeah, I guess I would look at this as empowering us and empowering our, uh, great minds in the room to make those decisions. We heard, uh, very clearly that the great Salt Lake Commissioner's office has been, I think, underfunded from the very beginning. And, and I, I don't, I don't know of anyone in that space that would dispute that we need a lot more than the 200 million in this bill or the 400 million in total as, uh, between this bill and the, the other initiative, the private sector initiative, uh, to find the, you know, 800,000 or so acre feet that we need every year. Uh, so this is, this is a bill that is in and of itself, a drop in the bucket and, and I don't think goes far enough. Um, so I'm, I'm happy to continue working on it. I, I'll, I'll be voting against a motion to hold it 'cause I think we should pass it. Um, but I, I do think this is just a small step in the right direction in and of itself. And that, uh, it, it should unlock, uh, many more benefits if we're to allow the great Salt Lake Commissioner and, and other folks to work in this space.

55. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:44:59

    Thank you, Senator. So back to you, Senator Stratton. Now summation, if you have further summations,

56. Sen. Keven J. Stratton1:45:08

    The good sponsor is, is a tremendous, powerful advocate and, and, and is making good points. But, but again, I th this, this is a, is a wonderful idea. Uh, we have this resource, I believe this resource will be used and, and potentially exactly with some, some strengthening language as it's proposed. But I, I also think there's a great le opportunity to leverage and just remind us, we have put hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars to this to date. We actually, it's interesting, it, at its lowest level, you lose 6,500 acres a day in evaporation. There's some science here and data here that needs to weigh in to, to, to what we're talking about. And we, we, it, it made the, made the time may come that would be easier for us to fill it up with dollar bills than water. 'cause we, there's some, some things we can't control, but we need to be wise stewards. This is not, this motion is not against what the sponsor's trying to do. It's just trying to make, help. It be, its very best version. And honestly, I am surprised, surprised that the sponsor didn't think to look drop on the resources at this point. But I'm sure that he's, he has a willingness. The commission has a willingness. We have a willingness. Well, let's work together to see what the best version can be. That's would be what I would say.

57. Sen. Derrin R. Owens (Committee chair)1:46:46

    Thank you, Senator. I'm going to now place the motion. We'll do a roll call vote. Let me get your light on. Hang on. Go ahead. Senator Blouin. No. Senator Grover. Grover? No, This is, uh, to hold the motion is to hold the bill, so, oh, thank You. There's a couple different motions there. So my motion is yes to hold the bill. Okay. Senator Sandall aye. Senator Stratton aye. Senator Chair Owens Aye. Senator Stevenson. Senator Stevenson is on Senator Stevenson. Aye. Six one. Okay, thank you. I'll roll the, the motion to hold the bill passes five to one. So the bill is held. Thank you, Senator. And thanks to everybody for your, uh, participation and your testimony. Let's, uh, work together and make this happen.