OAR 690-085-0010: Governmental Entities to Submit Annual Water-use Reports

(1) By December 31 of each year, any governmental entity holding water rights shall submit to the Department a report detailing monthly water use under the rights for each point of diversion. Reporting shall be for the previous water year (October 1 to September 30). A governmental entity shall not be required to submit a report under this rule for water rights held because of default in repayment of loans or other debts owed to the state. (2) The report shall be submitted on forms supplied by, or in a format acceptable to the Department. It shall include: (a) The name and address of the reporting entity; (b) The monthly volume of water diverted or pumped from natural flow and/or stored water for each major category of use at each point of diversion listed on the water rights, except as noted in subsections (2)(c), (d), and (e) of this rule. The volume of water diverted or pumped shall be determined as prescribed in OAR 690-085-0015; (c) For in-reservoir uses, the volume of water impounded on approximately the same day each month; (d) For instream water rights, the monthly volume of water flowing through the channel for at least one point covered by the water right; (e) For instream uses supplied from storage, the volume of stored water released every month. (3) Except as provided in section (4) of this rule, the reported monthly volumes of water shall be accurate within plus or minus 15 percent by October 1992. (4) The governmental entity may assume the volume of water used each month, if any, is the maximum quantity allowed under the right and report that volume if: (a) The water right is for storage of less than 9.2 acre-feet of water for in-reservoir use or specifies a rate less than 0.1 cfs; or (b) The Director has approved a time extension for compliance with section (3) of this rule or the Commission has waived compliance with any of the requirements of OAR 690-085-0015. (5) The Director may grant a time extension for compliance with section (3) of this rule: (a) To qualify for an extension, the governmental entity shall: (A) Show that compliance with section (3) of this rule would cause an economic hardship; (B) Show that an allowance of additional time would enable it to meet the accuracy standards prescribed in section (3) of this rule; and (C) Submit a compliance schedule detailing the steps, including the implementation time of those steps, it will take to meet section (3) of this rule. (b) Once the time extension is approved, the governmental entity shall submit a progress report on the compliance schedule in conjunction with each annual water use report; (c) The Director may rescind his approval if the governmental entity fails to comply with the compliance schedule; (d) The Director may modify the terms of any compliance schedule under this rule at the request of the governmental entity. (6) The Commission may waive compliance with section (3) of this rule and/or any of the requirements of OAR 690-085-0015. The qualify for a waiver, the governmental entity shall show that: (a) Complying with the rule(s) would cause an economic hardship on the governmental entity; and (b) The information to be collected would not materially aid water management because: (A) The regulation for or of the use is unlikely due to the absence of other water rights; or (B) Use of water is unlikely to materially affect water availability from the source since the quantity of water allowed by the right in relation to the quantity of water available from the source is deminimis; or (C) Another similar situation exists.