GMD 1

Our Address

Western Kansas Groundwater Management District No.1
P.O. Box 604
Scott City, KS 67871
Line 1: (620) 872-5563
Line 2: (620) 872-7375
Fax: (620) 872-7315
E-mail: gmd1@wbsnet.org

Our staff

Kyle Spencer, Manager
gmd1@wbsnet.org

Valorie Rolfs, Admin Assistant
admin@wbsnet.org

Kyle Spencer, Chief Pilot
hangar@wbsnet.org

Pat Ryan, Field Technician

Board of Directors

Greg Graff, President
Wichita County Representative
 
Danny Welsh, Vice-President
Wallace County Representative
 
Robert Hoeme Jr., Secretary-Treasurer
Scott County Representative
 
Alan James, Member
Lane County Representative
 
Mark Cavenee, Member
Greeley County Representative

Frequently asked questions

1) What is the purpose of the Groundwater Management District?

The legislative declaration states “a need exists for the creation of special districts for the proper management of the groundwater resources of the state; for associated endeavors within the state of Kansas through the stabilization of agriculture; and to secure for Kansas the benefit of its fertile soils and favorable location with respect to national and world markets. It is the policy of this act to preserve basic water use doctrine and to establish the right of local water users to determine their destiny with respect to the use of the groundwater insofar as it does not conflict with the basic laws and policies of the state of Kansas”.

2) How is the board of directors elected?

The board of directors is elected at the annual meeting of the District. The eligible voters in attendance at the meeting elect those members. Eligible voters of the district that are interested in running for the board of directors must file a notice of intent to run for the respective board position at least twenty days prior to the annual meeting. Once elected, the position is for a three-year period.

3) Who are eligible voters?

“Eligible voter means any person who is a landowner or a water user as defined in this act except as hereafter qualified. Every natural person of the age of eighteen (18) years or upward shall be an eligible voter of a district under this act if (1) he or she is a landowner who owns, of record, any land or any interest in land, comprising forty (40) or more contiguous acres located within the boundaries of the district and not within the corporate limits of any municipality, or (2) he or she withdraws or uses groundwater from within the boundaries of the district in an amount of one acre-foot or more per year”.

4) Where does the funding come from?

The funding for the district comes from either a land assessment not to exceed $.05 per acre or a water assessment not to exceed $1.00 per acre-foot for each acre-foot authorized under the water right. If the water user does not utilize the entire right, they may file a verified claim with the district prior to April 1st of each year certifying the actual amount of water used. The district may assess any combination of the land and water assessments.

5) Who needs a water right?

Anyone that withdraws water for any use, other than domestic, is required to have a water right. The priority of the appropriation right to the use of water dates from the time of filing of the application in the office of the chief engineer. The priority of the appropriation right for domestic use dates from either the time of filing in the office of the chief engineer or from the time the user first makes actual use of water for domestic purposes. As between persons with appropriation rights, the first in time is the first in right.

6) What is a vested right?

A vested right means the right of a person under a common law or statutory claim to continue the use of water having actually been applied to any beneficial use, including domestic use, on or before June 28, 1945.

7) Who administers the water laws in Kansas?

The water laws in Kansas are administered by the Division of Water Resources of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture. The chief engineer is the individual that is responsible for the conduct of this law.

8) What about rules and regulations?

The Division of Water Resources and the Groundwater Management Districts have the authority to develop rules and regulations as granted in the respective acts.