On Monday, Governor Katie Hobbs signed a bill that provides water to households in the Rio Verde foothills area.
The bill went through several iterations since it was first introduced by Rep. Alex Kolodin and Sen. John Kavanagh back in January of this year.
The bill, SB 1432, directs the City of Scottsdale to work with a newly established standpipe district for a period of up to three years to treat and transport water to homes within this community. Before that three-year period ends, EPCOR will obtain the legal authorization to permanently serve these residents.
“I want to thank the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Wadsack, for being the lion we needed to get this bill through the Senate,” Kolodin told the Arizona Daily Independent. “The era of kicking the can down the road when it comes to Arizona’s water is over. This Legislature is ready to lead.”
“Every single citizen within our state should have access to clean drinking water. This has been an incredibly stressful and heartbreaking ordeal for this community,” said Wadsack. “On average, each Arizona resident uses about 146 gallons of water per day. However, one Rio Verde resident told us she and her husband have been getting by on just 10 gallons per day between the both of them. They’ve struggled with doing the most basic things we take for granted, like washing dishes, laundry, bathing and flushing toilets. Water is life, and it’s a God-given, precious resource. I’m thankful our Legislators could come together in a bipartisan manner to get water flowing again for this community. This is just one of several water issues I know we can tackle as a team at the Legislature to provide security to all Arizona residents. I look forward to advocating for more water related solutions during my time here at the Senate.”
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