Western Water Law & Policy Reporter

FEATURE ARTICLE

Southwestern Idaho Irrigation Districts Respond to FEMA Public Comment Solicitation Regarding National Flood Insurance Program Regulations by Andrew J. Waldera, Esq., Sawtooth Law Offices PLLC, Boise, Idaho121

WESTERN WATER NEWS

Water Rights Implications of New Mexico’s Pending Implementation of Cannabis Regulation Act124

LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS

California’s Legislative Analyst’s Office Recommends Governor’s Water and Drought Response Proposal Include More Funding for Groundwater Recharge126

REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and NOAA Enter into Joint Memorandum Regarding ESA Consultations for Existing Structures128

California Department of Water Resources Deems Groundwater Sustainability Plans for 12 Critically Overdrafted Basins Incomplete130

Nevada State Engineer Amends Procedures for Managing Groundwater Appropriations to Protect Endangered Devils Hole Pupfish131

Washington State Regulatory Update: Department of Ecology continues to Wrestle with Water Banking133

LAWSUITS FILED OR PENDING

U.S. Supreme Court Grants Certiorari to Revisit the Proper Test for Determining which Wetlands Qualify as ‘Waters of the United States’ under the Clean Water Act135

JUDICIAL DEVELOPMENTS

Federal:

Fourth Circuit Vacates U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2020 Biological Opinion for Natural Gas Pipeline138

Appalachian Voices, et. al. v. U.S. Department of the Interior, ___F.4th___, Case No. 20-2159 (4th Cir. Feb. 3, 2022).

Federal Claims Court Determines Federal Government Is Not Required to Pay Local Fees to Abate Water Pollution140

City of Wilmington v. United States, ___F.Supp.4th___, Case No. 16-1619C (Fed. Cl. Jan. 26, 2022).