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Stenehjem leads state AGs against proposed water rule

Outside Chances Wayne Stenehjem
North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem (left) speaks at a state Pardon Advisory Board meeting at the State Penitentiary in Bismarck on July 10. In the background is Board Chairman H. Patrick Weir and board member Carmelita Lamb. Mike McCleary / Bismarck Tribune

BISMARCK — A bipartisan group of a dozen attorneys general, led by North Dakota's Wayne Stenehjem, has asked the Trump administration to withdraw a proposed water supply rule that they argue will override state authority.

The letter, dated Thursday, Aug. 22, comes in response to an Army Corps of Engineers rule meant to clarify its policies governing the use of reservoir projects. In a news release, Stenehjem's office said the Corps argues it controls water from the Missouri River once it flows into its reservoirs and can require prospective users to sign a water supply contract.

The news release said the Corps also uses some of the policies to "justify its moratorium on allowing water withdrawals from Lake Sakakawea and Lake Oahe, which has been an on-going issue in North Dakota for the last decade."

Stenehjem's office said it appears the Corps is moving forward with finalizing the rule, which was proposed in the final weeks of the Obama administration.

“The notion that the Corps of Engineers can regulate or charge for the use of water that has always belonged to the citizens of North Dakota is unlawful and completely unacceptable,” Stenehjem, a Republican, said in a statement.

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The Corps did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

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