Current:Home > InvestDevelopers want water policy changes in response to construction limits on metro Phoenix’s fringes-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Developers want water policy changes in response to construction limits on metro Phoenix’s fringes
View Date:2024-12-23 23:13:26
PHOENIX (AP) — Developers plan to seek changes to Arizona’s decades-old laws restricting construction in areas without adequate water supplies after the state said this summer that it won’t issue permits for new subdivisions in some areas on metro Phoenix’s fringes.
The Arizona Capitol Times reported that the Home Builders Association of Central Arizona wants lawmakers to remove what it calls a “moratorium on home buildings in the most affordable parts” of metro Phoenix, saying the move is leading to escalating home prices.
Spencer Kamps, the group’s executive director, said provisions of the state’s 1980 Groundwater Act and related laws don’t recognize what homebuilders have been doing to ensure their new developments don’t have a net negative effect on the supply of water.
Kamps called for “sensible modifications” to remove hurdles, though he declined to detail what changes his group wants.
Any change in laws would need the approval of Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, whose office disputed that she enacted a moratorium and instead insisted she was following the 1980 law when the state announced the restrictions in June.
The state had concluded areas around Buckeye and Queen Creek don’t have the 100-year assured water supply required under the 1980 law to allow new subdivisions
Hobbs spokesperson Christian Slater said the governor is working with business leaders and “responsible homebuilders” to find a sustainable and long-term solution that protects the water supply while making housing more affordable. But Slater said there are limits.
“She will not sacrifice Arizona’s sustainable future growth,” Slater said.
The issue of what’s required in water supply to build new homes affects only certain areas of the state – those inside “active management areas” where there are limits on groundwater use but outside the service areas of cities that have their own assured supplies.
The Governor’s Water Policy Council is looking at whether new laws should be imposed statewide, especially as some rural areas that currently have no or few restrictions on groundwater pumping, leaving cities and some small farmers concerned their wells will run dry.
Despite the Hobbs administration’s policy change, development in the Phoenix metro area has continued.
That’s because all existing municipal water companies are currently presumed to have their own 100-year supply. So anyone seeking to build homes within that service territory is credited with having the amount of water required and can start construction.
And even Hobbs said that in and around Buckeye and Queen Creek, not served by municipal water companies, nothing in the policy change had affected 80,000 lots where the state already has provided the required certificate of assured water supply.
veryGood! (8)
Related
- Glen Powell Addresses Rumor He’ll Replace Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible Franchise
- Greek authorities conduct search and rescue operation after dinghy carrying migrants capsizes
- Guatemalan prosecutors request that President-elect Bernardo Arévalo be stripped of immunity
- Rio’s iconic Christ statue welcomes Taylor Swift with open arms thanks to Swifties and a priest
- Wisconsin’s high court to hear oral arguments on whether an 1849 abortion ban remains valid
- Flights in 2023 are cheaper than last year. Here's how to get the best deals.
- Dean Phillips' new campaign hire supported dismantling Minneapolis Police Department after death of George Floyd
- Haitian immigrants sue Indiana over law that limits driver’s license access to certain Ukrainians
- Pistons' Tim Hardaway Jr. leaves in wheelchair after banging head on court
- Top UN court orders Azerbaijan to ensure the safety of Nagorno-Karabakh people
Ranking
- Maine dams face an uncertain future
- Thousands march through Athens to mark 50 years since student uprising crushed by dictatorship
- Snoop Dogg says he's 'giving up smoke' after releasing a bag with stash pockets, lighter
- Economic fact in literary fiction
- Martin Scorsese on faith in filmmaking, ‘The Saints’ and what his next movie might be
- NBA MVP power rankings: Luka Doncic makes it look easy with revamped Mavericks offense
- Colorado judge keeps Trump on ballot, rejecting challenge under Constitution’s insurrection clause
- The Best Early Black Friday Toy Deals of 2023 at Amazon, Target, Walmart & More
Recommendation
-
NBA players express concern for ex-player Kyle Singler after social media post
-
Activation breathwork aims to unlock psychedelic state naturally: I felt like I was in a different world
-
Who is Bengals QB Jake Browning? What to know about Joe Burrow's backup in Cincinnati
-
Russian parliament passes record budget, boosting defense spending and shoring up support for Putin
-
California man allegedly shot couple and set their bodies, Teslas on fire in desert
-
Judge rejects plea for Pennsylvania woman charged with killing her 2 young children
-
World's first gene therapy for sickle cell and thalassemia approved in the U.K.
-
America's Most Wanted fugitive who eluded authorities for decades sentenced for killing Florida woman