Utah Legislature: 2 bills on stream access pass in committee

SALT LAKE CITY — Like that pesky carp that keeps returning to your fishing line, the controversial issue of accessing public streams on private property is presenting lawmakers with a boatload of debate.

Two legislative committees held hearings Friday on competing bills addressing the matter, and it looks like it is far from being put to rest on a trout line.

Both bills survived committee testimony and advanced but mostly out of the spirit of letting them have a thorough airing before the full membership of the Utah Legislature.

"This is one of the most difficult issues in public policy, if not the most difficult issue we've had to deal with," said Rep. Kraig Powell, R-Heber.

Lawmakers on either side of the proverbial stream — those who favor protecting landowners and those who want anglers to have access — are getting filleted by the pressure of varied interest groups that have launched e-mail and phone campaigns.

The issue erupted last session on the heels of a controversial, albeit unanimous decision by the Utah Supreme Court in 2008 that held that a trio of rafters initially cited for trespassing on a segment of the Weber River located on private property were actually entitled to access the "public waterway."

Since then, lawmakers have been trying to "fix" the problem posed by the judicial ruling. A bill on the matter died during last year's session, and this year, three bills are efforts to come up with a solution people can agree is equitable.

Utah Water Guardians has thrown its opposition behind a "fishing" bill being run by Rep. Kay McIff, R-Richfield.

HB141 is yet another piece of legislation that attempts to settle the gnarly dilemma spawned by the court decision. Deemed "hostile" by the water group, McIff's bill essentially would reverse the Supreme Court decision.

It says recreational access is granted to water if it is on public property; a navigable waterway and the activities are not otherwise prohibited by law.

It then goes onto declare that the public has "no right" to recreational use of public waters on private property without permission of the property owner. It passed the Natural Resources Committee on a 12-2 vote.

The catalyst for the most controversy, however, has been HB80, sponsored by Rep. Lorie Fowlke, R-Orem.

Fowlke said she began have meetings on the issue last year after the session to arrive at a solution, drawing in perspectives from all sides of the battle.