Current Topics
Visit IDWR’s News Page to view Department press releases.
Director Weaver issued his Order Declaring Drought Emergency for the state of Idaho on April 13th, following Governor Little’s approval of the order.
The emergency drought declaration allows water users to apply for temporary changes to their water rights for the remainder of 2026 to help mitigate negative impacts to their operations due to drought.
For Idaho, Winter 2025/2026 was the second warmest winter since 1896. The state received a record-low snowpack and warm temperatures accelerated snowmelt in March, a month earlier than normal. Nearly all Idaho’s basins were classified within drought conditions as of April 1st based on the Natural Resources Conservation Service’s (NRCS) SNOTEL SWE indices. Additionally, NRCS forecasts indicate that streamflow in at least 19 Idaho basins will be in some level of drought this year.
For more information, visit IDWR’s Drought Declarations and News Releases webpages.
For more on the Federal Reserved Water Rights Claims in Basin 96 and 97, see the FAQs and Supplemental Information on the Clark Fork-Pend Oreille River Basin Adjudication (CFPRBA) page.
Notice of Moratorium for the South Canyon County Area
Public concern over pending development of groundwater use and future groundwater availability in the south Canyon County area has grown in recent years. On March 20, 2026, the Director issued a temporary, five-year moratorium for the south Canyon County area.
During the temporary moratorium period, IDWR will continue to monitor groundwater levels in the area, gather the data needed to quantify and model south Canyon County’s groundwater resources, and identify potential impacts to the system from regional injection wells and pending groundwater use development.
Visit IDWR’s Moratorium Orders webpage for more information and to view the order.
Visit IDWR’s Treasure Valley Groundwater Flow Model webpage to stay up-to-date on activities regarding the model.
The 2025 Idaho Legislature passed Senate Bill 1083a revising several statutes dealing with domestic uses of water, shared wells, and subdivisions. These statutory changes are effective on July 1, 2025.
The changes to Idaho Code §§ 42-111 and 42-227 modified the requirements for establishing a water right for domestic purposes without applying to IDWR for a permit. This opportunity is sometimes called the “domestic exemption.”
For more information or to learn if your water use qualifies for a domestic exemption, visit IDWR’s Domestic Exemption webpage.
At the end of March, the Director and key IDWR staff held five public meetings in eastern Idaho to notify water users and receive public comment and testimony on the proposed expansion of the Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer Area of Common Ground Water Supply.
The public meetings were held in the Big Lost, Little Lost, American Falls, Portneuf, and Raft River basins.
To learn more and view the meeting materials and public comment for each of the five public meetings, visit IDWR’s Administrative Actions page and click on the links labeled Expansion of the ESPA ACGWS followed by the name of the river basin.
On November 1st and continuing until April 30th, all cloud seeding operations authorized by the Idaho Water Resource Board, and as directed by Idaho Code § 42-4301, have kicked off in several Idaho basins.
Visit the IWRB’s new and improved Cloud Seeding Program webpage for more information on cloud seeding and cloud seeding operations in Idaho.
The Department is reviewing its administrative rules, consistent with the Governor’s Zero Based Regulation, Executive Order 2020-01. For more information visit, IDWR’s Rulemaking page or follow the links below for specific rulemaking activities.
IDWR receives many questions regarding the management of groundwater resources in the state, including domestic wells. To help answer those questions and more, IDWR compiled this Groundwater Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) document.
The Soil and Water Conservation Commission (SWCC) and Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR) conducted a formal evaluation of merging their two agencies that concluded in November. The process included extensive stakeholder engagement and resulted in the publication of a Recommendations and Findings Report outlining the necessary components of a successful merger.
