Governor Laura Kelly this week signed a bipartisan bill that increases funding for the State Water Plan, including two funds for grants for water-related infrastructure projects.
Kelly fully funded the State Water Plan in 2022 for the first time since 2008. This bill increases funding for water, adding $18 million to the annual $8 million for the State Water Plan and $17 million for the two grant funds. In total, the bill designates an additional $35 million in funding to protect essential water resources. The bill includes that it is legislative intent to continue this funding through 2027.
“We must protect the water that has powered our booming farming economy for generations,” Kelly said. “I’m proud that Republicans and Democrats were able to come together to make progress on this pressing crisis, investing a historic level of resources into major water storage projects.”
The bill also appropriates $52 million to pay off debt for the Milford and Perry Reservoirs, funding that was included in the Governor’s budget released in January, saving Kansas taxpayers money in long-term interest payments.
Governor Kelly also signed a bipartisan bill that requires Kansas’ five Groundwater Management Districts to submit annual reports to the Kansas Legislature with updated water conservation and stabilization plans to the Kansas Department of Agriculture.
The reports to the Legislature will outline expenditures for water conservation efforts and stabilization of agricultural consumption. A Groundwater Management District oversees the management of groundwater resources, conservation, and use in five regions of the state with significant aquifer storage and use.
