OAR 690-100-0025: Criteria and Procedure for Determining Public Benefit

(1) In determining public benefits, the Director, acting for the Commission, shall request data and information from appropriate others. The Director shall recommend to the Water Resources Commission the dollar amount of public benefit based on a comparison of the cost to provide the benefit and the value of the benefit. (2) The amount of public benefit recommended for partial repayment to the project shall not exceed the cost of providing the benefit. (a) Criteria for determining public benefit: (A) The applicant shall submit to the Director a summary report of the water project which shall contain, but not be limited to, a description of the project and its operation, a breakdown of project costs by purpose, the dollar benefits of each project purpose, the source of funds for each project purpose and the dollar amount of the public benefits requested; (B) All public benefits claimed in an application for payment shall be quantified; (C) Public benefits for which payment is requested may be of local or statewide significance; (D)(i) Payment for public benefits that have already occurred in a constructed project may be requested if the application is made within five years of the date of beginning of construction of the project; (ii) Payment for public benefits planned in a proposed project may be requested if the application is made prior to the beginning date of construction of the project; (iii) For projects planned or constructed after the effective date of these rules, public benefits shall be identified and applied for in advance of construction or within one year of the beginning of construction or within one year of the date of issuance of a water right permit required for the project. (E)(i) Public benefits claimed for recreation facilities shall be evaluated taking into consideration the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan of the Department of Transportation; (ii) If the Project providing public benefit requires a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission permit, only those recreation benefits over and above those required in the federal permit or license are eligible as a reimbursable public benefit. (F) Pollution abatement in a stream at a specific treated waste discharge location is the responsibility of the individual discharger and is not eligible to be claimed as a public benefit for payment, even though water to meet the discharge standard is provided by the water project; (G) Water released from a project to abate pollution at a downstream location may provide a public benefit in the stream reach between the project and the downstream location. If quantifiable, the dollar amount of such releases may be requested for payment; (H) Water provided by a project to meet minimum streamflows for aquatic life adopted by the Commission or recommended for adoption by the Director, may be considered a public benefit and the dollar value of such water, if quantifiable, may be requested for payment. (b) Procedure for determining public benefit: (A) The Director shall circulate the applicant’s summary report of the project which describes the project, the costs, benefits, source of funds and amount of payment requested to the following state agencies: (i) Department of Human Resources, Health Division; (ii) Department of Environmental Quality; (iii) Department of Fish and Wildlife; (iv) Department of Land Conservation and Development; (v) Division of State Lands; (vi) Department of Transportation, Parks and Recreation Division; (vii) Department of Forestry; (viii) Department of Geology and Mineral Industries; (ix) Department of Agriculture; (x) Department of Energy; (xi) The planning department of each affected local government. (B) The Director shall hold a meeting of the applicant and state natural resources and local planning departments listed in subsection (b)(A) of this section for the purpose of presenting the project and payment request to the agencies and for the applicant to respond to agency concerns and questions regarding the project; (C) A public hearing shall be held in the vicinity of the water project for the purpose of taking public comments on the payment request; (D) Following the public hearing, the state natural resources agencies shall develop findings, conclusions and recommendations on the payment request. The Director shall invite the planning directors of affected local governments to participate in the development of these findings, conclusions, and recommendation; (E) The Director shall prepare a recommendation based on comments received at the public hearing and the findings, conclusions and recommendations of the state natural resources agencies and affected local governments for presentation to the Water Resources Commission; (F) The Director shall assure that evaluation of the proposal for repayment meets requirements established in OAR 690-060-0045 (Standards for Goal Compliance and Compatibility with Acknowledged Comprehensive Plans); (G) The Commission may accept the Director’s recommendation, modify the recommendation, or prepare a different recommendation for submission to the Governor and Legislative Assembly; (H) The Commission shall submit its recommendation to the Governor for approval.