Current through August 31, 2023
Section 37.03.08.035 - APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS01.General Provisions. (3-18-22)a. No person shall commence the construction of any project works or commence the diversion of the public water or trust water of the state of Idaho from any source without first having filed an application for permit to appropriate the water or other appropriate form with the department and received approval from the Director, unless exempted by these rules or by statute. (3-18-22)b. Any person proposing to commence a diversion of the public water or the trust water of the state of Idaho from a groundwater source for single family domestic purposes is exempt from the application and permit requirements of Subsection 035.01.a. (3-18-22)c. Any person watering livestock directly from a natural stream or natural lake without the use of a constructed diversion works is exempt from Subsection 035.01.a. (3-18-22)d. All applications for permit to appropriate public water or trust water of the state of Idaho shall be on the form provided by the department entitled "Application for Permit to Appropriate the Public Waters of the State of Idaho" and include all necessary information as described in Subsection 035.03. An application for permit that is not complete as described in Subsection 035.03 will not be accepted for filing and will be returned along with any fees submitted to the person submitting the application. No priority will be established by an incomplete application. Applications meeting the requirements of Subsection 035.03. will be accepted for filing and will be endorsed by the department as to the time and date received. The acceptability of applications requiring clarification or corrections shall be determined by the Director. (3-18-22)e. The department will correspond with the applicant concerning applications which have been accepted for filing by the department which require clarification or correction of the information required by Subsection 035.03. If the additional or corrected information is supplied after thirty (30) days, the priority date of the application will be determined by the date the additional or corrected information is received by the department unless the applicant has requested within the thirty (30) day period additional time to provide the information, has shown good reasons for needing additional time, and the Director has granted additional time. (3-18-22)f. Failure to submit the additional or corrected information is cause for the Director to void the department's records of the application. (3-18-22)02.Effect of an Application. (3-18-22)a. Any application that seeks to appropriate water from a source upon which the state holds trust water shall be considered an application for appropriation of unappropriated water. If the Director determines unappropriated water is not available, the application, if otherwise approvable, will be reviewed for compliance with provisions of Section 42-203C, Idaho Code. (3-18-22)b. The priority of an application for unappropriated or trust water is established as of the time and date the application is received in complete form along with the statutory fee in any official office of the department. The priority of the application remains fixed unless changed by action of the Director in accordance with applicable law. (3-18-22)c. An application for permit to appropriate water is not a water right and does not authorize diversion or use of water until approved by the Director in accordance with statutes in effect at the time the application is approved. (3-18-22)d. An applicant's interest in an application for permit to appropriate water is personal property. An assignment of interest in an application must include evidence satisfactory to the Director that the application was not filed for speculative purposes. (3-18-22)03.Requirements for Applications to Be Acceptable for Filing. (3-18-22) a. The following information shall be shown on an application for permit form and submitted together with the statutory fee to an office of the department before the application for permit may be accepted for filing by the department. (3-18-22) i. The name and post office address of the applicant shall be listed. If the application is in the name of a corporation, the names and addresses of its directors and officers shall be provided. If the application is filed by or on behalf of a partnership or joint venture, the application shall provide the names and addresses of all partners and designate the managing partner, if any. (3-18-22)ii. The name of the water source sought to be appropriated shall be listed. For surface water sources, the source of water shall be identified by the official geographic name listed on the U.S. Geological Survey Quadrangle map. If the source has not been named, it can be described as "unnamed," but the system or river to which it is tributary shall be identified. For groundwater sources, the source shall be listed as "groundwater." Only one source shall be listed on an application unless the application is for a single system which will have more than one source. (3-18-22)iii. The legal description of the point of diversion and place of use shall be listed. The location of the point(s) of diversion and the place of use shall be described to the nearest forty (40) acre subdivision or U.S. Government Lot of the Public Land Survey System. The location of springs shall be described to the nearest ten (10) acre tract. Subdivision names, lot and block numbers and any name in local common usage for the point of diversion, or place of use shall be included in the comments section of the application form. If irrigation is listed as a purpose of use, the number of acres in each forty (40) acre subdivision of the place of use shall be listed. (3-18-22)iv. The quantity of water to be diverted shall be listed as a rate of flow in cubic feet per second and/or as a volume to be stored in acre-feet per year for each purpose of use requested. (3-18-22)v. Impoundment (storage) applications shall show the maximum acre-feet requirement per year which shall not exceed the storage capacity of the impoundment structure unless the application describes a plan of operation for filling the reservoir more than once per year. (3-18-22)vi. Every offstream storage impoundment application shall show a maximum rate of diversion to storage as well as the total storage volume. (3-18-22)vii. The nature of the proposed beneficial use or uses of the water shall be listed. While the purpose may be described in general terms such as irrigation, industrial or municipal, a description sufficient to identify the proposed use or uses of the water shall also be included. (3-18-22)viii. The period of each year during which water will be diverted, stored and beneficially used shall be listed. The period of use for irrigation purposes shall coincide with the annual periods of use shown in Figure 1 in APPENDIX B (located at the end of this chapter), unless it can be shown to the satisfaction of the Director that a different period of use is necessary. (3-18-22)ix. The proposed method of diversion, conveyance system and system for distributing and using the water shall be described. (3-18-22)x. The period of time required for completion of the project works and application of water to the proposed use shall be listed. This period of time shall not exceed the time required to diligently and uninterruptedly apply the water to beneficial use and shall not exceed five (5) years. (3-18-22)xi. A map or plat of sufficient scale (not less than two (2) inches equal to one (1) mile) to show the project proposed shall be included. The map or plat shall agree with the legal descriptions and other information shown on the application. (3-18-22)xii. The application form shall be signed by the applicant listed on the application or evidence must be submitted to show that the signator has authority to sign the application. An application in more than one (1) name shall be signed by each applicant unless the names are joined by "or" or "and/or." (3-18-22)xiii. Applications by corporations, companies or municipalities or other organizations shall be signed by an officer of the corporation or company or an elected official of the municipality or an individual authorized by the organization to sign the application. The signator's title shall be shown with the signature. (3-18-22)xiv. Applications may be signed by a person having a current "power of attorney" authorized by the applicant. A copy of the "power of attorney" shall be included with the application. (3-18-22)xv. Applications to appropriate water in connection with Carey Act or Desert Land Entry proposals shall include evidence that appropriate applications have been filed for the lands involved in the proposed project. (3-18-22)xvi. The application form shall be accompanied with a fee in the amount required by Section 42-221A, Idaho Code. (3-18-22)04.Amended Applications. (3-18-22) a. Applications for permit shall be amended whenever significant changes to the place, period or nature of the intended use, method or location of diversion or proposed use of the water or other substantial changes from that shown on the pending application are intended. An application shall be amended if the proposed change will result in a greater rate of diversion or depletion (see Subsection 035.04.c.), if the point of diversion, place of use, or point of discharge of the return flow are to be altered, if the period of the year that water will be used is to be changed, or if the nature of the use is to be changed. (3-18-22)b. An application can be amended to clarify the name of the source of water but may not be amended to change the source of water. (3-18-22)c. An amendment which increases the rate of diversion, increases the volume of water diverted per year or the volume of water depleted, lengthens the period of use, or adds an additional purpose of use shall result in the priority of the application for permit being changed to the date the amended application is received by the department. (3-18-22)d. An application for permit may be amended by endorsement by the applicant or his agent on the original application for permit form which endorsement shall be initialed and dated. If the changes required to the information on the application are, in the judgment of the Director, substantial enough to cause confusion in interpreting the application form, the amended application shall be submitted on a new application for permit form to be designated as an amended application. (3-18-22)e. An amended application shall be accompanied by the additional fee required by Section 42-221A, Idaho Code, if the total rate of diversion or total volume of storage requested is increased and by the fee required by Section 42-221F, Idaho Code, for readvertising if notice of the original application has been published. (3-18-22)f. If the applicant's name or mailing address changes, the applicant shall in writing notify the department of the change. (3-18-22)Idaho Admin. Code r. 37.03.08.035