Under existing federal law, the Federal Government has waived its sovereign immunity and consented to be joined as a defendant in any suit for the general adjudication of water rights in a stream system. (43 U.S.C. § 666) Under existing state law, a claimant of a vested water right must submit proof of the claim to the State Engineer on or before December 31, 2027. If a claimant fails to submit such proof, the claim is deemed to be abandoned. (NRS 533.087) Upon entering an order to adjudicate the vested water rights of a stream system, existing state law requires the State Engineer to provide notice of the pending adjudication to all claimants. As all claimants other than federal agencies, which are not subject to state law but have consented under federal law to a general adjudication of water rights in a stream system, are required to submit proof of such claims on or before December 31, 2027, existing state law requires that, beginning on January 1, 2028, such a notice of pending adjudication must state that federal agencies are required to make proof of claims of a reserved water right. (NRS 533.095) Section 1 of this bill clarifies that a claimant that is a federal agency is not required to submit proof of a claim by December 31, 2027. Section 2 of this bill revises the information that must be included in a notice of pending adjudication beginning on January 1, 2028, to also require any federal agency claiming a vested water right to make proof of such a claim.

Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 533.087, 533.095
BDR: 533.087, 533.095