NRD board asks for lower budget

Thursday, August 15, 2013

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors asked director Dan Smith to rewrite his proposed budget for 2013-14 with a tax levy of $.037597.

That's approximately $30,000 less than the budget Smith proposes for next year, and $240,000 more than last year's budget.

The levy requested by board members is less than the $.0385969 that Smith proposed.

Smith based his proposed budget figures on a district-wide property valuation estimated at $3 billion, which is an increase from $2,606,471,101 in 2012-2013. "Actual taxes will be slightly different than what was proposed for property taxes. Until I get the valuations I won't know what the actual number will be," Smith said.

The occupation tax for irrigators will increase from $9.47 to $10.

The proposed budget requires $1,155,253 in property taxes and $3,032,386 in occupation taxes.

The board set a Sept. 10 date to conduct a budget hearing and set the tax levy for 2013-14. Smith said this proposed budget it not adopted, it is approved for publication for the hearing. Changes could still be made after the hearing, he said.


Before the board approved a lower tax levy, board member Rick McConville said it's a mistake to raise the levy on top of an increase in valuation. McConville wanted to roll back the tax request to what it was last year, $.034141. James Uerling seconded a motion to that effect, but the motion failed.

Uerling said he could not support the budget because it lacks funds to compensate surface water irrigators who lost their water when it was sent down the Republican River to Kansas to ensure compliance with the Republican River Compact. Compensation would cost about $8 million, which would add that amount to the budget.


Board member Joe Anderjaska does not want budget cuts to come from Ground Water Management, whose total budget is $32,814,990 (which includes expenses for the N-CORPE Lincoln County farm water augmentation project). "We need money in Ground Water Management. That's the only way to develop sustainability," he said.

McConville wants ground water depletions ended -- sustainability -- or at least slowed down. Fellow board member Kevin Fornoff defended MRNRD efforts -- allocations and moratoriums -- that are doing just that and have been in effect for several years. Fornoff said the next step could be allocations developed for the specific water depletion history of each township within the MRNRD district.


During the "Public Comments" portion of the meeting, speakers included Cort Kemp, Dick Hasenauer of Dan Estermann.

* Kort Kemp of Curtis asked the board to consider the possibility of a water conservation "draft" or "lottery" in the event that wells closest to the Republican need to be shut down to ensure Republican River Compact compliance. He explained that every well would be assigned a number. "The numbers pulled pump, or the numbers pulled don't pump," however the board wants to write the rules, he said. Those that can't pump are compensated, he said. The lottery would make it fair to all irrigators, Kemp said, rather than making only those closest to the river stop pumping.

* Dick Hasenauer of Dickens warned the board that the N-CORPE farm in Lincoln County could see a million-dollar water bill if it doesn't watch its watering habits on 53 wells. "The water is way excessive on N-CORPE," he told board members.

He continued, "N-CORPE has started poorly, and now it's not conserving water. I encourage the board to put allocations on N-CORPE's water -- or you're gonna have a million-dollar water bill. N-CORPE needs a throttle on water usage."

* Dan Estermann of Wellfleet encouraged the MRNRD board and the board of the N-CORPE project to hire a full-time farm manager for the N-CORPE farm. "It's a huge farm," he said, and needs daily attention.

Estermann is concerned that water pumped off the N-CORPE farm will travel in a closed pipeline, with no opportunity to evaporate or percolate through the soil profile, as it would naturally if it was pumped down the Medicine Creek.

Estermann also warned board members that "lawsuits are a sign that you're doing something wrong," having listened to updates on lawsuits -- Kansas vs. Nebraska regarding compliance with the Republican River Compact, the Frenchman Cambridge Irrigation District vs. (among others) N-CORPE, and Bill Barger and others vs. MRNRD.

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  • Where the most water is pumped and by whom should be a concern. There are haves and have nots in the basin.

    -- Posted by dennis on Thu, Aug 15, 2013, at 12:21 PM
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