Greetings all,

At the TU banquet I asked our crowd to help fight two pieces of recently introduce legislative bills, especially one by Senator Fischer in LB 438.  I said I would send info to our webmaster and others so I hope you can help spread the word far and wide, and vigorously.

Attached is note I received from Dave Sands that quickly notes the legislative bills that directly affect instream flow protection efforts.  If passed LB 438 would prevent filing a water right application to protect fish, wildlife or recreation on the Niobrara River above upstream of Spencer Dam all the way to Wyoming including trout streams like Plum Creek, Fairfield Creek and others.  It would amend current instream flow laws by inserting the following words “(5) The instream appropriation is not in a river basin, subbasin, or reach that has been determined or designated by the department to be fully appropriated or over appropriated;”  LB 438 has several damaging amendments to statutes that authorized creations of a local stakeholders group to oversee, advise and assist the National Park Service administer federal actions on the Niobrara Scenic River near Valentine.  It has been very helpful for Nebraska and local interests.  It has been supportive of instream flow protection under Nebraska’s laws.  Dave Sands in the attachment LB666 - LB 438 Sands message.pdf did a good summary of what these amendments would do.   To help appose these bills please write or call your state senator and ask him to oppose such changes to protect public interests in public resources, and ask the senator what his/her position on them will be.  Don’t be bashful. 

If you want to read the bills that have these proposed amendments you can go to the Unicameral website at http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov/ then type the bill number in the search box at the upper right on that webpage.  When you get to that page, note where it says “Text Copies” and click on “introduced copy.”  That should bring up the entire bill to read but you need to look through it to find where words show strikeouts and or underlines to see the proposed amendments to the existing law.

Larry Hutchinson

 ““Our obligations loom large.  While we need to care about and fight for our favorite stream, we also need to care about and fight for the other fellow’s stream, the other fellow’s river and the other fellow’s offshore reef.”  - From “Pavlov’s Trout” by Paul Quinnett -