NV AB363

County commissioners may request the State Engineer to establish a groundwater board for a designated groundwater basin, with multi-county basins allowing joint or individual county requests; only one groundwater board may exist per basin.

The State Engineer (rather than the Governor) appoints seven board members: four with senior water priority rights, two with junior priority rights, and one holding the greatest quantity of groundwater permits in the basin; county commissioners may also appoint one nonvoting member.

Groundwater boards must be dissolved after 4 years unless the State Engineer approves a county request for continuation; boards may also dissolve themselves by majority vote.

Board members serve without compensation, eliminating previous state-paid per diem, travel allowances, and consultant expenses.

The State Engineer must consider the board's written recommendations on reducing overpumping, but the State Engineer's views prevail in any disagreement, and such decisions are not subject to judicial review.