State Agency Drought Rules on Water Allocation Invalidated.

In 2012, a chemical company holding a water right dating to 1942 made a call on the water in a river associated with its water right.  The plaintiff issued the priority call due to a shortage of water in the river for all users, thereby cutting off withdrawals of water from the river by water rights holders whose permits were obtained after 1942.  The result was that 845 permit holders had their water rights suspended, including 716 for crop irrigation users.  According with the plaintiff's rules, the plaintiff exempted junior water rights held by cities and power plants based on public health and safety concerns.  The defendant challenged the validity of the rules are being arbitrary.  The trial court agreed, holding that the plaintiff did not have the authority to exclude cities and power plants in time of drought.  The appellate court agreed, holding that state (TX) law strictly applies the prior appropriation doctrine to water withdrawals in the event of water shortages.  Texas Commission on Environmental Quality v. Texas Farm Bureau, et al., No. 13-13-00415-CV, 2015 Tex. App. LEXIS 3160 (Tex. Ct. App. Apr. 2, 2015).