Western Water Law & Policy Reporter
February 2014
Volume 18, Number 4
February 2014
FEATURE ARTICLE
Compliance with California’s Proposition 218—Reviewing Water Cost of Service and Rate Studies by Kelly J. Salt, Esq., Best, Best 99
WESTERN WATER NEWS
California Governor Brown Declares State of Emergency—Drought Declaration Can Provide Tools, Funds for Dealing With Dry Conditions—But Not Rain106
REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS
California Bay Delta Conservation Plan Draft and Draft Environmental Impact Report/Statement Released for Public Review108
Washington State Department of Ecology Launches Rulemaking for Spokane River Instream Flow110
JUDICIAL DEVELOPMENTS
Federal:
Federal Circuit Affirms $5.8 Million Judgment for Temporary Taking of Property by Flooding112
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission v. U.S., ___F.3d___, Case No. 9-5121 (Fed. Cir. Dec. 3, 2013).
Ninth Circuit Upholds Grant of Summary Judgment to Army Corps under the Clean Water Act and National Environmental Policy Act113
Jones III v. National Marine Fisheries Service, ___F.3d___, Case No. 11–35954 (9th Cir. Dec. 20, 2013).
Federal Claims Court Holds that the U.S. Army Corps’ Failure to Adjust Wetlands Credit Composition Exposes It to Contractual Liability and Presumed Monetary Damages115
Davis Wetlands Bank, LLC. v. U.S., ___F.Supp.2d___, Case No. 13-268 C (Fed. Ct. Cl. Dec. 16, 2013).
District Court Dismisses as Premature Plaintiffs’ Challenge to Potential Chesapeake Bay Clean Water Act TMDL Water Pollution Trading Program117
Food and Water Watch and Friends of the Earth v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, et al., ___F.Supp.2d___, Case No. 12-1639 (D. D.C. Dec. 13, 2013).
District Court in Washington Allows Clean Water Act Case to Proceed Based on Allegations of Widespread Discharges from Coal Trains120
Sierra Club v. BNSF Railway Co., Case No. 13-cv-00272 (E.D. Wash. 2013).
State:
Colorado Supreme Court Clarifies that Holdover Provision of Water Conservancy Act allows District Directors to Authorize Water Court Filing after Their Term Expired122
Yellow Jacket Water Conservancy District v. Livingston, Case No. 11SA306 (Colo. Dec. 23, 2013).
Oregon Court of Appeals Holds that a Permit Extension Should Have Contained Certain Conditions Before the Permit Holder Perfected Its Water
Right123
WaterWatch of Oregon, Inc. v. Oregon Water Resources Department, Case No. A147071 (Or.App. Dec. 2013).
Las Vegas’ Quest for Intra-State Water Blocked Again—District Court Grant’s Petition to Review State Engineer’s Decision to Allow State’s Largest Inter-Basin Water Transfer125
White Pine County et al., v. King, Case No. CV1204049 (7th Judicial Dist. Ct. Dec. 10, 2013).
