reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.255 - Submission of findings made before March 25, 1915.

In all cases where the State Engineer has issued findings prior to March 25, 1915, declaring the relative rights of appropriators in and to the waters of any stream system, the same may be submitted to the court under the provisions of NRS 533.165 to 533.235, inclusive.
[88b:140:1913; added 1915, 378; 1919 RL p. 3249; NCL § 7976]
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.260 - Regulations of State Engineer requiring blueprints from claimants to be attached to proofs.

The State Engineer shall have power to make and enforce such reasonable rules and regulations for the furnishing by claimants of blueprints of particular parcels of land shown on the map prepared by the State Engineer, and for such supplementary surveys and examinations or such inspection by the State Engineer as may be required, to the end that observations and surveys of the State Engineer may be made, insofar as practicable, available to the claimants for attachment to the proofs to be filed by them.
[50:140:1913; 1919 RL p. 3235; NCL § 7935]
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.265 - State Engineer to issue certificates upon final determination of relative rights; contents of certificates; exceptions.

1. Upon the final determination of the relative rights in and to the waters of any stream system, the State Engineer shall issue to each person represented in such determination a certificate to be signed by the State Engineer, and bearing the seal of the Office of the State Engineer.
2. The certificate shall set forth:
(a) The name and post office address of the owner of the right.
(b) The date of priority.
(c) Extent and purpose of such right.
(d) If such water is for irrigation purposes, a description of the land, by legal subdivisions when possible, to which the water is appurtenant.
3. Such certificate shall be transmitted by the State Engineer in person or by registered or certified mail to the owner.
4. No certificate need be issued by the State Engineer when printed copies of any decree of final determination of relative rights contain a listing of the individual rights so determined.
[51:140:1913; 1919 RL p. 3235; NCL § 7936]—(NRS A 1957, 530; 1967, 191; 1975, 713)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.270 - Water commissioners: Appointment; duties and salaries; exemption from state human resources system; district supervisors.

1. The State Engineer shall appoint, subject to confirmation by any court having jurisdiction, one or more water commissioners for any stream system or water district subject to regulation and control by the State Engineer. The duties and salaries of the water commissioners must be fixed by the State Engineer and their salaries must be paid by the State of Nevada out of the water distribution accounts. The water commissioners are exempt from the provisions of chapter 284 of NRS.
2. The State Engineer shall appoint a district supervisor of water commissioners and fix the district supervisor’s duties. The district supervisor is in the unclassified service of the State.
[Part 52:140:1913; A 1915, 378; 1919, 384; 1921, 171; 1931, 357; 1945, 87; 1947, 518; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1957, 530; 1961, 490; 1967, 1501; 1971, 1440; 1979, 666, 1112; 1981, 1283)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.275 - Engineer for supervision of distribution: Appointment; salary and expenses; additional work.

1. The State Engineer may appoint an engineer, who is qualified in hydrographic and water distribution experience, to work in a supervisory capacity on water distribution and regulation service upon all adjudicated stream systems within the State.
2. While engaged in that work, the salary and expenses of the engineer must be charged to the particular adjudicated stream system receiving the service upon the basis of time occupied and expenses incurred in the work, and payment must be made out of the water distribution account provided for the adjudicated stream system.
3. When the engineer is not engaged in water distribution, additional work may be allotted to the engineer by the State Engineer, and payment therefor must be from other money available to the Office of the State Engineer.
[Part 52:140:1913; A 1915, 378; 1919, 384; 1921, 171; 1931, 357; 1945, 87; 1947, 518; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1979, 666)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.280 - Annual budget for stream system or water district: Preparation; contents; limitation on assessment.

1. The State Engineer shall, between the first Monday of October and the first Monday of December of each year, prepare a budget of the amount of money estimated to be necessary to pay the expenses of administering the stream system or each water district for the then current year.
2. The budget must show the following detail:
(a) The aggregate amount estimated to be necessary to pay the expenses of administering the stream system or water district.
(b) The aggregate water rights in the stream system or water district as determined by the State Engineer or the court.
(c) The unit charge necessary to provide the money required.
(d) The charge against each water user, which must be based upon the proportion which the water right of that water user bears to the aggregate water rights in the stream system, but the minimum charge is $1.
3. When the stream system lies in more than one county, a separate budget must be prepared for each county showing only the claimants and charges assessable within the county.
4. When the stream system irrigates more than 200,000 acres of land, the assessment for water distribution expenses must not exceed $1 per acre-foot of water decreed.
[Part 52:140:1913; A 1915, 378; 1919, 384; 1921, 171; 1931, 357; 1945, 87; 1947, 518; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1957, 531; 1959, 139; 1971, 661; 1979, 227; 1989, 535; 1993, 2081; 2003, 352; 2017, 713, 1111)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.285 - Entry on assessment roll of charges in budget; collection of special assessment.

1. Upon receipt of such budget by the board of county commissioners, the board of county commissioners shall certify the respective charges contained therein to the county assessor. The county assessor shall enter the amount of the charge or charges on the assessment roll against the claimants and the property or acreage served.
2. The proper officers of the county shall collect the special assessment as other special assessments are levied and collected, and the assessment is a lien upon the property so served and must be collected in the same manner as other assessments are collected.
[Part 52:140:1913; A 1915, 378; 1919, 384; 1921, 171; 1931, 357; 1945, 87; 1947, 518; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1995, 221)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.290 - Water District Account: Creation; deposit and use of money; accounting.

1. The assessments and charges provided for in NRS 533.285, when collected, must be deposited with the State Controller in the same manner as other special assessments, for credit to the Water District Account which is hereby created in the State General Fund.
2. All bills against the Water District Account must be certified by the State Engineer or an assistant thereof and, when certified and approved by the State Board of Examiners, the State Controller may draw his or her warrant therefor against the Account.
3. An advance must not be made from a stream system account that has been depleted until the advance is reimbursable from the proceeds of any assessments levied against the particular stream system or water district for which any claims are presented.
4. Any money remaining in the Water District Account at the end of the current year must remain in the Account and be available for use in the following year.
5. The State Controller shall keep separate accounts of the money for each stream system or water district received from the various counties within which the stream system or water district is located, and shall not draw warrants against an account until the State Controller has been notified by the State Engineer that assessments have been filed with the board of county commissioners, as required by NRS 533.285, that will return to the State of Nevada money advanced by the State out of the Water Distribution Revolving Account provided for in NRS 532.210.
[Part 52:140:1913; A 1915, 378; 1919, 384; 1921, 171; 1931, 357; 1945, 87; 1947, 518; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1979, 667; 1991, 1783; 1995, 221; 2001, 2927)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.295 - Limitation on use of Water District Account; "expenses" defined.

1. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 534.040, money in the Water District Account must be used exclusively for expenses incurred in the administration, operation and maintenance of the particular stream system from which the money is budgeted and collected.
2. The term "expenses" referred to in NRS 533.270 to 533.290, inclusive, includes salaries, hydrographic surveys, per diem expenses, car rental, equipment, including necessary automobiles, supplies and materials incidental to the proper administration and distribution of water.
[Part 52:140:1913; A 1915, 378; 1919, 384; 1921, 171; 1931, 357; 1945, 87; 1947, 518; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1979, 667; 1991, 1784; 1993, 2348)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.300 - State to be divided into water districts; appointment of advisory boards by State Engineer; meetings.

1. The State Engineer shall divide the State into water districts, to be so constituted as to insure the best protection for the water users, and the most economical water supervision on the part of the State. The water districts must not be created until a necessity therefor arises and must be created from time to time as the priorities and claims to the streams of the State are determined.
2. Upon the creation of a water district the State Engineer may appoint an advisory board of representative citizens within the district to assist the State Engineer in formulating plans and projects for the conservation of the water resources and the use thereof in the district. The per diem and necessary travel and subsistence expenses of the appointive members of the board must be paid from the account provided for the district in NRS 533.290; but the total annual per diem, travel and subsistence expenses of the members for each district must not exceed $800. The State Engineer may call such meetings of the board as in the opinion of the State Engineer may be necessary and expedient.
[53:140:1913; A 1947, 518; 1943 NCL § 7938]—(NRS A 1979, 667)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.305 - Division of water among ditches and reservoirs; regulation of distribution among users; notice of regulation by water commissioner; duties of district attorney.

1. The State Engineer shall divide or cause to be divided the waters of the natural streams or other sources of supply in the State among the several ditches and reservoirs taking water therefrom, according to the rights of each, respectively, in whole or in part, and shall shut or fasten, or cause to be shut or fastened, the headgates or ditches, and shall regulate, or cause to be regulated, the controlling works of reservoirs, as may be necessary to insure a proper distribution of the waters thereof.
2. The State Engineer shall have authority to regulate the distribution of water among the various users under any ditch or reservoir, whose rights have been adjudicated, or whose rights are listed with the clerk of any district court of this state pursuant to the terms of this chapter, the actual cost of such regulation being paid by the ditch or reservoir receiving such service.
3. Whenever, in pursuance of his or her duties, the water commissioner regulates a headgate to a ditch or the controlling works of reservoirs, the water commissioner shall attach to such headgate or controlling works a written notice properly dated and signed, setting forth the fact that such headgate or controlling works has been properly regulated and is wholly under the water commissioner’s control. Such notice shall be a legal notice to all parties interested in the diversion and distribution of the water of such ditch or reservoir. Such water commissioner shall have the right of ingress and egress across and upon public, private or corporate lands at all times in the exercise of his or her duties.
4. The district attorney shall appear for or in behalf of the State Engineer, or the duly authorized assistants of the State Engineer, in any case which may arise in the pursuance of the official duties of any such officer within the jurisdiction of the district attorney.
[54:140:1913; A 1929, 298; 1951, 132]
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.315 - Payment of certain costs in proceeding under NRS 533.310.

The cost of the hydrographic survey of the stream system and the preparation of the reports and maps by the State Engineer necessary to advise the court in proceedings under NRS 533.310 shall be paid by the water users of the stream upon approval and order of the district court of an itemized statement therefor submitted by the State Engineer.
[Part 46 1/2:140:1913; added 1947, 518; A 1949, 102; 1951, 158]—(NRS A 1975, 72)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.320 - Payment of cost of administration of final decree and distribution of water; approval of budget; submission to board of county commissioners; provisions applicable.

The estimated cost of the administration of the final decree and the distribution of the waters of the stream system must be budgeted by the State Engineer in like manner and at the time as provided in NRS 533.280. The budget must be first submitted to the district court for approval. Upon approval thereof by the district court the budget must be submitted by the district court to the board of county commissioners of the proper county and thereupon all of the provisions of NRS 533.280 to 533.295, inclusive, govern with respect to the assessment and collection of the costs, the deposits thereof in the Water District Account in the State General Fund, and the payment of claims for the costs of administration of the final decree and the distribution of water thereunder.
[Part 46 1/2:140:1913; added 1947, 518; A 1949, 102; 1951, 158]—(NRS A 1991, 1784)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.324 - "Water already appropriated" defined.

As used in NRS 533.325, 533.345 and 533.425, "water already appropriated" includes water for whose appropriation the State Engineer has issued a permit but which has not been applied to the intended use before an application to change the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use is made.
(Added to NRS by 1993, 321)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.325 - Application to State Engineer for permit.

Except as otherwise provided in NRS 533.027, 533.028 and 534.065, any person who wishes to appropriate any of the public waters, or to change the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use of water already appropriated, shall, before performing any work in connection with such appropriation, change in place of diversion or change in manner or place of use, apply to the State Engineer for a permit to do so.
[Part 59:140:1913; A 1919, 71; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1991, 859; 2017, 1433; 2019, 2525; 2021, 1444)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.330 - Application limited to water of one source for one purpose; individual domestic use may be included.

No application shall be for the water of more than one source to be used for more than one purpose; but individual domestic use may be included in any application with the other use named.
[Part 59:140:1913; A 1919, 71; 1951, 132]
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.335 - Application for permit to appropriate water: Contents.

Each application for a permit to appropriate water shall contain the following information:
1. The name and post office address of the applicant and, if the applicant is a corporation, the date and place of incorporation.
2. The name of the source from which the appropriation is to be made.
3. The amount of water which it is desired to appropriate, expressed in terms of cubic feet per second and acre-feet per year, except in:
(a) An application for a permit to store water, where the amount shall be expressed in acre-feet; and
(b) An application for generating hydroelectric power or a diversion rate only application, where the amount shall be expressed in cubic feet per second.
4. The purpose for which the application is to be made.
5. A substantially accurate description of the location of the place at which the water is to be diverted from its source and, if any of such water is to be returned to the source, a description of the location of the place of return.
6. A description of the proposed works.
7. The estimated cost of such works.
8. The estimated time required to construct the works, and the estimated time required to complete the application of the water to beneficial use.
9. The signature of the applicant or a properly authorized agent thereof.
[Part 59:140:1913; A 1919, 71; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 2017, 3498)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.340 - Additional requirements for contents of applications to appropriate water for certain specific uses.

In addition to the requirements of NRS 533.335, the application shall contain:
1. If for irrigation purposes, except in case of an application for a permit to store water, the number of acres to be irrigated and a description by legal subdivisions, where possible, of the lands to be irrigated.
2. If for power purposes, the vertical head under which the water will be applied, the location of the proposed powerhouse, and, as near as may be, the use to which the power is to be applied.
3. If for municipal supply or for domestic use, the approximate number of persons to be served, and the approximate future requirement.
4. If for mining purposes, the proposed method of applying and utilizing the water.
5. If for stock-watering purposes, the approximate number and character of animals to be watered.
6. If for any purpose contemplating the storage of waters, in addition to the information required in applications naming the purpose, the dimensions and location of the proposed dam, the capacity of the proposed reservoir, and a description of the land to be submerged by the impounded waters.
7. If for additional rate of diversion where no additional volume of water is granted, sufficient information demonstrating the need for the additional rate of diversion.
[Part 59:140:1913; A 1919, 71; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 2013, 1235)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.345 - Application for permit to change place of diversion, manner of use or place of use: Contents; approval of temporary change; notice of and protest to temporary change; period of temporary change.

1. Every application for a permit to change the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use of water already appropriated must contain such information as may be necessary to a full understanding of the proposed change, as may be required by the State Engineer.
2. If an applicant is seeking a temporary change of place of diversion, manner of use or place of use of water already appropriated, the State Engineer shall approve the application if:
(a) The application is accompanied by the prescribed fees;
(b) The temporary change is in the public interest; and
(c) The temporary change does not impair the water rights held by other persons.
3. The State Engineer shall give notice of the application as provided in NRS 533.360 if:
(a) The State Engineer determines that the temporary change may not be in the public interest, or may impair the water rights held by other persons; or
(b) The temporary change is for a period of more than 1 year pursuant to subsection 5.
4. If the State Engineer gives notice of the application in accordance with subsection 3, any person interested may file a written protest to the application and the State Engineer may hold a hearing before rendering a decision in accordance with the provisions of NRS 533.365.
5. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a temporary change may be granted for any period not to exceed 1 year. The State Engineer may grant a temporary change for a period of more than 1 year, but not to exceed 3 years, if the temporary change is for a renewable energy generation project.
6. As used in this section, "renewable energy generation project" has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 701.080.
[Part 59:140:1913; A 1919, 71; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1989, 318; 2021, 125; 2023, 641)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.350 - Applications to be accompanied by maps, drawings and other data.

All applications for permits shall be accompanied or followed by such maps and drawings and such other data as may be prescribed by the State Engineer, and such accompanying data shall be considered a part of the application.
[Part 59:140:1913; A 1919, 71; 1951, 132]
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.353 - Application to appropriate water for beneficial use: Participation of county in development and implementation of monitoring, management and mitigation plan.

1. For each new application to appropriate water for a beneficial use filed on or after January 1, 2012, if the State Engineer requires a monitoring, management and mitigation plan as a condition of appropriating water for a beneficial use, the State Engineer shall, within 30 days after requiring the plan and if requested by the county where the State Engineer has approved the point of diversion, allow the county to participate in an advisory capacity in the development and implementation of the plan.
2. Before approving any plan developed pursuant to subsection 1 and during the period in which the plan, if approved, is carried out, the State Engineer shall consider any comment, analysis or other information submitted by the participating county. The State Engineer is not required to include any comment, analysis or other information submitted by a participating county in a monitoring, management and mitigation plan required pursuant to this section.
3. A decision by the State Engineer whether or not to include in the plan or to follow any comment, analysis or other information submitted by a participating county pursuant to this section is not subject to judicial review pursuant to NRS 533.450.
(Added to NRS by 2013, 494)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.355 - Receipt of application; return for correction or completion; priority of returned application; rejection; recording.

1. Upon receipt of an application, the State Engineer shall make an endorsement thereon of the date of its receipt and shall keep a record of the date. The State Engineer shall provide the application forms at no cost to the applicants.
2. Except as provided in subsection 3, if upon examination, the application is found to be defective, it must be returned for correction or completion with advice of the reasons therefor, and the date of the return must be endorsed upon the application and a record made of it in the Office of the State Engineer. An application does not lose its priority of filing on account of defects if the application, properly corrected and accompanied by such maps and drawings as may be required, is filed in the Office of the State Engineer within 60 days after the date of the return to applicant. Any application returned for correction or completion, not refiled in proper form within the 60 days, must be cancelled. For good cause shown, upon application made prior to the expiration of the 60-day period, the State Engineer may, in his or her discretion, grant an extension of time not to exceed 60 days in which to file the instruments.
3. If it appears to the State Engineer that an application, which contains information of sufficient accuracy to determine the manner of use and the location from which the water is to be diverted, must be rejected, the State Engineer may reject it without returning it for correction.
4. All applications which comply with the provisions of this chapter must be recorded in a suitable book kept for that purpose.
[60:140:1913; 1919 RL p. 3239; NCL § 7945]—(NRS A 1971, 179; 1981, 358)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.357 - Priority among applications to appropriate underground water for irrigation purposes from same basin.

When two or more applications are made to appropriate underground water for irrigation purposes from what appears to the State Engineer to be the same basin the State Engineer shall observe the following order of priority in acting upon them, according to the status of the applicant and the intended place of use:
1. An owner of land for use on that land.
2. An owner of land for use on adjacent land for which he or she intends to file an application under the Carey Act or the Desert Land Entry Act, 43 U.S.C. §§ 321 et seq.
3. Any other person whose application is preparatory to proceeding under the Carey Act or the Desert Land Entry Act.
(Added to NRS by 1981, 915)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.360 - Notice of application: Contents; publication; posting on Internet website; mailing required under certain circumstances.

1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, NRS 533.345 and subsection 2 of NRS 533.370, when an application is filed in compliance with this chapter, the State Engineer shall, within 30 days, publish or cause to be published once a week for 4 weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the point of diversion is located, and post on the Internet website of the Division of Water Resources of the State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, a notice of the application which sets forth:
(a) That the application has been filed.
(b) The date of the filing.
(c) The name and address of the applicant.
(d) The name of the source from which the appropriation is to be made.
(e) The location of the place of diversion, described by legal subdivision or metes and bounds and by a physical description of that place of diversion.
(f) The purpose for which the water is to be appropriated.
The publisher shall add thereto the date of the first publication and the date of the last publication.
2. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, proof of publication must be filed within 30 days after the final day of publication. The State Engineer shall pay for the publication from the application fee. If the application is cancelled for any reason before publication, the State Engineer shall return to the applicant that portion of the application fee collected for publication.
3. If the application is for a proposed well:
(a) For municipal, quasi-municipal or industrial use; and
(b) Whose reasonably expected rate of diversion is one-half cubic foot per second or more,
the applicant shall mail a copy of the notice of application to each owner of real property containing a domestic well that is within 2,500 feet of the proposed well, to the owner’s address as shown in the latest records of the county assessor. If there are not more than six such wells, notices must be sent to each owner by certified mail, return receipt requested. If there are more than six such wells, at least six notices must be sent to owners by certified mail, return receipt requested. The return receipts from these notices must be filed with the State Engineer before the State Engineer may consider the application.
4. The provisions of this section do not apply to an environmental permit or a temporary permit issued pursuant to NRS 533.436 or 533.504.
[61:140:1913; A 1925, 121; 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1975, 1397; 1981, 358; 1985, 489; 1989, 319; 1991, 758; 1993, 2641; 1995, 1530; 2001, 551; 2003, 2979; 2005, 2561; 2011, 756, 1564; 2013, 498, 3679; 2017, 3498; 2023, 1036)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.363 - State Engineer to notify county commissioners of application to use water in county other than that in which it is appropriated or currently diverted or used.

1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, if water for which a permit is requested is to be used in a county other than that county in which it is to be appropriated, or is to be diverted from or used in a different county than that in which it is currently being diverted or used, then the State Engineer shall give notice of the receipt of the request for the permit to:
(a) The board of county commissioners of the county in which the water for which the permit is requested will be appropriated or is currently being diverted or used; and
(b) The board of county commissioners of the county in which the water will be diverted or used.
2. The provisions of subsection 1 do not apply:
(a) To an environmental permit or a temporary permit issued pursuant to NRS 533.436 or 533.504.
(b) If:
(1) The water is to be appropriated and used; or
(2) Both the current and requested place of diversion or use of the water are,
within a single, contiguous parcel of real property.
3. A person who requests a permit to which the provisions of subsection 1 apply shall submit to each appropriate board of county commissioners a copy of the application and any information relevant to the request.
4. Each board of county commissioners which is notified of a request for a permit pursuant to this section shall consider the request at the next regular or special meeting of the board held not earlier than 3 weeks after the notice is received. The board shall provide public notice of the meeting for 3 consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in its county. The notice must state the time, place and purpose of the meeting. At the conclusion of the meeting the board may recommend a course of action to the State Engineer, but the recommendation is not binding on the State Engineer.
(Added to NRS by 1981, 782; A 1991, 758; 2011, 1565; 2013, 498, 3679)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.364 - Certain interbasin transfers of groundwater; inventory required under certain circumstances; limitations; fee; time for completion of inventory.

1. In addition to the requirements of NRS 533.370, before approving an application for an interbasin transfer of more than 250 acre-feet of groundwater from a basin which the State Engineer has not previously inventoried or for which the State Engineer has not conducted, or caused to be conducted, a study pursuant to NRS 532.165 or 533.368, the State Engineer or a person designated by the State Engineer shall conduct an inventory of the basin from which the water is to be exported. The inventory must include:
(a) The total amount of surface water and groundwater appropriated in accordance with a decreed, certified or permitted right;
(b) An estimate of the amount and location of all surface water and groundwater that is available for appropriation in the basin; and
(c) The name of each owner of record set forth in the records of the Office of the State Engineer for each decreed, certified or permitted right in the basin.
2. The provisions of this section do not:
(a) Require the State Engineer to initiate or complete a determination of the surface water or groundwater rights pursuant to NRS 533.087 to 533.320, inclusive, or to otherwise quantify any vested claims of water rights in the basin before approving an application for an interbasin transfer of groundwater from the basin; or
(b) Prohibit the State Engineer from considering information received from or work completed by another person to include in the inventory, if the inventory is otherwise conducted in accordance with the provisions of subsection 1.
3. The State Engineer shall charge the applicant a fee to cover the cost of the inventory. The amount of the fee must not exceed the cost to the State Engineer of conducting the inventory.
4. The State Engineer shall complete any inventory conducted pursuant to subsection 1 within 1 year after commencing the inventory, unless the time limit is waived by the applicant.
(Added to NRS by 2009, 595; A 2017, 3499, 3559)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.367 - Requirement to ensure access of wildlife to water it customarily uses; waiver.

Before a person may obtain a right to the use of water from a spring or water which has seeped to the surface of the ground, the person must ensure that wildlife which customarily uses the water will have access to it. The State Engineer may waive this requirement for a domestic use of water.
(Added to NRS by 1981, 1840)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.368 - Hydrological, environmental or other study: State Engineer to determine need for study; cost of study paid by applicant; regulations.

1. If the State Engineer determines that a hydrological study, an environmental study or any other study is necessary before the State Engineer makes a final determination on an application pursuant to NRS 533.370 and the applicant, a governmental agency or other person has not conducted such a study or the required study is not available, the State Engineer shall advise the applicant of the need for the study and the type of study required.
2. The required study must be conducted by the State Engineer or by a person designated by the State Engineer, the applicant or a consultant approved by the State Engineer, as determined by the State Engineer.
3. The applicant shall bear the cost of a study required pursuant to subsection 1. A study must not be conducted by the State Engineer or by a person designated by the State Engineer until the applicant has paid a cash deposit to the State Engineer which is sufficient to defray the cost of the study.
4. The State Engineer shall:
(a) Consult with the applicant and the governing body of the county or counties in which the point of diversion and the place of use is located concerning the scope and progress of the study.
(b) Send a copy of the completed study to all attorneys of record, to a public library, if any, or other public building located in the county of origin, to the county or counties in which the point of diversion and the place of use is located and to the governing bodies of the county of origin and of the county or counties in which the point of diversion and the place of use is located.
5. The State Engineer may adopt regulations to carry out the provisions of this section.
(Added to NRS by 1991, 1367)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.369 - Special Account for Studies Concerning Water: Deposits; interest and income; limitation on use of money; refund of money to applicant; balance does not revert to State General Fund.

1. All money collected pursuant to subsection 3 of NRS 533.364 or subsection 3 of NRS 533.368 must be deposited with the State Treasurer for credit to a special Account for Studies Concerning Water.
2. The interest and income earned on the money in the Account for Studies Concerning Water, after deducting any applicable charges, must be credited to the Account.
3. The money received pursuant to subsection 3 of NRS 533.364 or subsection 3 of NRS 533.368 must be used to defray the cost of conducting the studies required pursuant to subsection 1 of NRS 533.368 and the inventories required pursuant to subsection 1 of NRS 533.364. Any money paid by an applicant that exceeds the amount required to conduct a study must be refunded to the applicant.
4. Any balance remaining in the Account does not revert to the State General Fund at the end of the fiscal year.
(Added to NRS by 1991, 1368; A 2009, 596)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.3703 - Consideration of consumptive use of water right and proposed beneficial use of water.

1. The State Engineer may consider the consumptive use of a water right and the consumptive use of a proposed beneficial use of water in determining whether a proposed change in the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use complies with the provisions of subsection 2 of NRS 533.370.
2. The provisions of this section:
(a) Must not be applied by the State Engineer in a manner that is inconsistent with any applicable federal or state decree concerning consumptive use.
(b) Do not apply to any decreed, certified or permitted right to appropriate water which originates in the Virgin River or the Muddy River.
(Added to NRS by 2007, 2015; A 2011, 761)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.3705 - Limitation on initial quantity of water approved for application; additional studies or evidence may be required; action by State Engineer on other applications in same basin.

1. Upon approval of an application to appropriate water, the State Engineer may limit the initial use of water to a quantity that is less than the total amount approved for the application. The use of an additional amount of water that is not more than the total amount approved for the application may be authorized by the State Engineer at a later date if additional evidence demonstrates to the satisfaction of the State Engineer that the additional amount of water is available and may be appropriated in accordance with this chapter and chapter 534 of NRS. In making that determination, the State Engineer may establish a period during which additional studies may be conducted or additional evidence provided to support the application.
2. In any basin in which an application to appropriate water is approved pursuant to subsection 1, the State Engineer may act upon any other pending application to appropriate water in that basin that the State Engineer concludes constitutes the use of a minimal amount of water.
(Added to NRS by 2007, 2015)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.371 - Rejection of application for permit for specified period.

The State Engineer shall reject the application and refuse to issue a permit to appropriate water for a specified period if the State Engineer determines that:
1. The application is incomplete;
2. The prescribed fees have not been paid;
3. The proposed use is not temporary;
4. There is no water available from the proposed source of supply without exceeding the perennial yield or safe yield of that source;
5. The groundwater that has not been committed for use from the proposed source of supply has been reserved pursuant to NRS 533.0241;
6. The proposed use conflicts with existing rights; or
7. The proposed use threatens to prove detrimental to the public interest.
(Added to NRS by 1991, 1368; A 2019, 2518)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.372 - Approval or rejection of application to use water to generate energy for export.

Based upon the public interest and the economic welfare of the State of Nevada, the State Engineer may approve or disapprove any application of water to beneficial use or any application which contemplates a change in the place or beneficial use of water to a use involving the industrial purpose of generating energy to be exported out of this state.
(Added to NRS by 1981, 210; A 1981, 1434; 1991, 296)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.375 - State Engineer may require additional information before approval or rejection of application.

Before either approving or rejecting the application, the State Engineer may require such additional information as will enable the State Engineer to guard the public interest properly, and may, in the case of an application proposing to divert more than 10 cubic feet per second of water, or in the case of multiple applications whose cumulative diversions for a single project total more than 10 cubic feet per second of water, require a statement of the following facts:
1. In the case of an incorporated company the State Engineer may require the submission of the articles of incorporation, and the names and places of residence of directors and officers, and the amount of its authorized and of its paid-up capital.
2. If the applicant is not an incorporated company, the State Engineer may require a statement as to the name of the person proposing to construct the work, and a showing of facts necessary to enable the State Engineer to determine whether the applicant has the financial ability to carry out the proposed work, and whether the application has been made in good faith.
[64:140:1913; 1919 RL p. 3241; NCL § 7949]—(NRS A 1991, 61)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.382 - Form, acknowledgment and recording of conveyance.

Except as otherwise provided in NRS 533.387, every conveyance of an application or permit to appropriate any of the public waters, a certificate of appropriation, an adjudicated or unadjudicated water right or an application or permit to change the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use of water must be:
1. Made by deed;
2. Acknowledged in the manner provided in NRS 240.161 to 240.168, inclusive; and
3. Recorded in the office of the county recorder of each county in which the water is applied to beneficial use and in each county in which the water is diverted from its natural source.
(Added to NRS by 1995, 434)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.383 - Effect of recording or failing to record deed of conveyance.

1. The recording of a deed pursuant to NRS 533.382 shall be deemed to impart notice of the contents of the deed to all persons at the time the deed is recorded, and a subsequent purchaser or mortgagee shall be deemed to purchase and take with notice of the contents of the deed.
2. The deed of:
(a) An application or permit to appropriate any of the public waters;
(b) A certificate of appropriation;
(c) An adjudicated or unadjudicated water right; or
(d) An application or permit to change the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use of water,
that has not been recorded as required by NRS 533.382 shall be deemed void as against a subsequent purchaser who in good faith and for valuable consideration purchases the same application, right, certificate or permit, or any portion thereof, if the subsequent purchaser first records the deed in compliance with NRS 533.382.
(Added to NRS by 1995, 435)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.384 - Filings required by person to whom conveyance is made.

1. A person to whom is conveyed an application or permit to appropriate any of the public waters, a certificate of appropriation, an adjudicated or unadjudicated water right or an application or permit to change the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use of water, shall:
(a) File with the State Engineer, together with the prescribed fee, a report of conveyance which includes the following information on a form to be provided by the State Engineer:
(1) An abstract of title;
(2) Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, a copy of any deed, written agreement or other document pertaining to the conveyance; and
(3) Any other information requested by the State Engineer.
(b) If the place of use of the water is wholly or partly within the boundaries of an irrigation district, file with the irrigation district:
(1) An abstract of title; and
(2) Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, a copy of any deed, written agreement or other document pertaining to the conveyance.
2. The governing body of any local government of this State and any public utility which is a purveyor of water within the State may submit an affidavit or other document upon oath in lieu of the documents otherwise required by subparagraph (2) of paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection 1, if the State Engineer finds that:
(a) The affidavit clearly indicates that rights for diverting or appropriating water described in the affidavit are owned or controlled by the governing body or utility; and
(b) The affiant is qualified to sign the affidavit.
(Added to NRS by 1995, 434)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.387 - Inapplicability of certain provisions to conveyance of shares of stock in ditch company.

The provisions of NRS 533.382 to 533.386, inclusive, do not apply to the conveyance of shares of stock in a ditch company which owns:
1. An application or permit to appropriate any of the public waters;
2. A certificate of appropriation;
3. An adjudicated or unadjudicated water right; or
4. An application or permit to change the place of diversion, manner of use or place of use of water.
(Added to NRS by 1995, 436)
2023 Nevada Revised Statutes › Chapter 533 - Adjudication of Vested Water Rights; Appropriation of Public Waters › NRS 533.390 - Statement of work actually constructed; verification; penalty for failure to file proof of completion of work.

1. Any person holding a permit from the State Engineer shall, on or before the date set for the completion of the work, file in detail a description of the work as actually constructed. This statement must be verified by the affidavit of the applicant or the applicant’s agent or attorney.
2. Should any person holding a permit from the State Engineer fail to file with the State Engineer the proof of completion of work, as provided in this chapter, the State Engineer shall advise the holder of the permit, by registered or certified mail, that it is held for cancellation, and should the holder, within 30 days after the mailing of such advice, fail to file the required affidavit, the State Engineer shall cancel the permit. For good cause shown, upon application made prior to the expiration of the 30-day period, the State Engineer may, in his or her discretion, grant an extension of time in which to file the instruments.
[67:140:1913; A 1951, 132]—(NRS A 1967, 194; 1981, 113)