(1) The cabinet shall develop a comprehensive and systematic planning process for the long-range management and orderly development of the Commonwealth’s water resources. The planning process shall generate over each biennium a plan for the implementation of specific goals and management objectives for the cabinet to achieve in meeting the Commonwealth’s water needs. The biennial plan shall serve as the basis for the cabinet’s budgeting process in allocating resources to the state‘s water resource programs. The planning process shall be developed to:
(a) Protect, conserve, develop, and utilize the water resource in a manner consistent with the Commonwealth’s duties for management of natural resources, the public’s right to clean water, and the preservation of the natural, scenic, cultural, historic, and aesthetic values of the environment;

Terms Used In Kentucky Statutes 151.112

  • Biennium: means the two (2) year period commencing on July 1 in each even- numbered year and ending on June 30 in the ensuing even-numbered year. See Kentucky Statutes 446.010
  • Federal: refers to the United States. See Kentucky Statutes 446.010
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes territories, outlying possessions, and the District of Columbia. See Kentucky Statutes 446.010

(b) Provide a coordinated framework for cooperation among federal, interstate, state, and local government agencies in the planning and management of water resources, in a manner consistent with KRS Chapter 147 and KRS
224.10-100(13);
(c) Be both anticipatory of future needs and reactive to current needs;
(d) Provide for public involvement in the establishment of the comprehensive and systematic planning process, in plan development and implementation, and the allocation and prioritizing of resources for water resource management and development;
(e) Establish a process for the collection and coordination of data regarding surface water and groundwater availability and quality, including the presence of point and nonpoint sources of pollution, instream flow information, withdrawal and use information, an assessment of flood damage and storm water management problems, and an identification and assessment of future data needs; and
(f) Request technical assistance from any agency or organization the cabinet deems necessary to carry out its duties as established in this chapter.
(2) The continuous planning process shall include goals and objectives for groundwater and surface water quantity and quality management in order to assess the effectiveness of current programs in addressing the comprehensive water needs of the Commonwealth and to gauge the need for new or different programs to recommend to the General Assembly for legislation.
Effective: June 29, 2023
History: Amended 2023 Ky. Acts ch. 159, sec. 3, effective June 29, 2023. — Created
1986 Ky. Acts ch. 367, sec. 2, effective July 15, 1986.