This bill addresses provisions related to a prescriptive easement for water conveyance.
This bill:
AI-generated summary, not yet reviewed by Better Utah staff. Please consult the bill text.
Water conveyance easements, such as those used for canals, ditches, or pipelines, currently become extinguished if the holder files a notice of intent to abandon them and completes a public notice process, allowing the affected landowner to reclaim the land. This bill would change that process by giving municipalities first priority to claim control of an abandoned easement within their boundaries, while also allowing other local governments (such as counties, special districts, or conservation districts) located in Utah's most populous counties—those classified as first or second class, including Salt Lake, Utah, and Davis counties—to step in and take over an abandoned easement by filing a claim with the county recorder before the abandonment is finalized. A political subdivision that takes control of an easement this way must record its intended use and location and notify affected landowners, and it could later change how the easement is used only after mailing notice of the new use, filing that notice with the county recorder, waiting 120 days, and receiving no written objection from an affected landowner. Any such change in use could not place a greater burden on the landowner, interfere with other existing easement holders, or expand the size of the easement, and landowners who object within the 120-day window would retain the right to block the change, negotiate a purchase, or have the matter resolved through legal action.
Current version: HB0363S02 (Substitute)
Introduction
Jan 26
House Rules
House Committee
Feb 25
House Floor Vote
Feb 27
Senate Rules
Senate Committee
Senate 2nd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading
Governor
IntroductionJan 26
House Rules
House CommitteeFeb 25
House Floor VoteFeb 27
Senate Rules
Senate Committee
Senate 2nd Reading
Senate 3rd Reading
Governor
This bill addresses provisions related to a prescriptive easement for water conveyance.
This bill:
AI-generated summary, not yet reviewed by Better Utah staff. Please consult the bill text.
Water conveyance easements, such as those used for canals, ditches, or pipelines, currently become extinguished if the holder files a notice of intent to abandon them and completes a public notice process, allowing the affected landowner to reclaim the land. This bill would change that process by giving municipalities first priority to claim control of an abandoned easement within their boundaries, while also allowing other local governments (such as counties, special districts, or conservation districts) located in Utah's most populous counties—those classified as first or second class, including Salt Lake, Utah, and Davis counties—to step in and take over an abandoned easement by filing a claim with the county recorder before the abandonment is finalized. A political subdivision that takes control of an easement this way must record its intended use and location and notify affected landowners, and it could later change how the easement is used only after mailing notice of the new use, filing that notice with the county recorder, waiting 120 days, and receiving no written objection from an affected landowner. Any such change in use could not place a greater burden on the landowner, interfere with other existing easement holders, or expand the size of the easement, and landowners who object within the 120-day window would retain the right to block the change, negotiate a purchase, or have the matter resolved through legal action.
Motion: Favorable Recommendation
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Last updated Aug 29, 2026, 5:26 PM