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Water Rights
The attorney general appoints one representative to the nine-member Reserved Water Rights Compact Commission. The commission settles reserved water right claims within the state by negotiating intergovernmental agreements with tribal and federal governments. The commission also includes four members appointed by the governor, two appointed by the president of the Montana Senate and two appointed by the speaker of the Montana House of Representatives.
In some cases, Montana law gives the attorney general authority to take part in proceedings before the Montana Water Court. The attorney general also represents the state before the Water Court in all matters relating to the incorporation of reserved water right compacts – both federal and tribal – into the statewide general adjudication of water rights.
Major Cases
News
- February 19, 2008 – U.S. Supreme Court Accepts Case Against Wyoming
- January 2, 2008 – U.S. Solicitor Recommends Supreme Court Accept Case Against Wyoming
- February 1, 2007 – Montana Sues Wyoming in U.S. Supreme Court
Yellowstone River Compact
In February 2007, the Department of Justice sued the State of Wyoming before the U.S. Supreme Court in an effort to protect the water rights allocated to Montana under the Yellowstone River Compact. Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota entered into the compact in December 1950, each state's legislature ratified it and the U.S. Congress consented to the compact in 1951.
Montana interprets the compact to protect each state's water rights that were in actual use at the time of the compact. Wyoming asserts that "pre-1950" rights are excluded.
In 2004 and 2006, Montana unsuccessfully called for Wyoming to provide water apportioned to Montana water users. Each time, Wyoming failed to curtail consumption for the benefit of Montana.
In January 2008, the U.S. Solicitor General filed a brief concluding that the U.S. Supreme Court should grant Montana's motion to file a bill of complaint in the case.
Related Legal Documents
- Complaint (PDF): Montana asks the U.S. Supreme Court to accept original jurisdiction of the legal dispute, interpret the compact, order Wyoming to deliver water in the Tongue and Powder Rivers according to the compact, and award the State of Montana damages, costs and other relief. It does not specify an amount.
- Montana's Reply Brief (PDF)
- Solicitor General's Brief for the United States (PDF)
- Wyoming's Motion to Dismiss (PDF)
Montana's Water Quality Standards for Coal Bed Methane Development
News
The State of Montana has intervened in several related cases in which a number of oil companies operating in Wyoming are trying to overturn the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) approval of Montana water quality standards for the Tongue and Powder Rivers and their tributaries, and mandate EPA's disapproval of Montana's 2006 nondegradation regulations.
In 2003, the Montana Board of Environmental Review (BER) adopted numeric standards to regulate water quality in the Powder River Basin. The EPA approved those standards, making them enforceable under the federal Clean Water Act. Under EPA regulations, point source discharge permits issued or authorized by Wyoming must assure achievement of downstream water quality standards. If the standards are not met, discharges of tainted water from Wyoming may make the water flowing into the Tongue and Powder Rivers unusable for farmers and ranchers in southeastern Montana.
In April 2006, several oil companies – Pennaco Energy, Inc., Marathon Oil Company and Devon Energy Corporation – filed suit in federal district court in Cheyenne to overturn the EPA's adoption of the standards, and later also sued the EPA to force it to disapprove the 2006 nondegradation regulations. The state of Wyoming has intervened on the side of the companies.
The Montana Department of Justice is working with the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to defend Montana's water quality standards and the EPA's approval process. DEQ has negotiated a tentative settlement with Wyoming, under guidance from the EPA to ensure that Montana's water quality is protected.
In Montana District Court, the Department of Justice and DEQ successfully defended Montana's 2003 and 2006 water quality standards for electrical conductivity and sodium absorption ratio from challenges by several energy companies.