{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-151.110","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 151.110","heading":"Water resources policy -- Duties of cabinet.","body":"(1) (a) The conservation, development, and proper use of the water resources of the\nCommonwealth of Kentucky have become of vital importance as a result of\npopulation expansion and concentration, industrial growth, technological\nadvances, and an ever increasing de mand for water for varied domestic,\nagricultural, industrial, municipal, and recreational uses. It is recognized by\nthe General Assembly that excessive rainfall during certain seasons of the\nyear causes damage from overflowing streams. However, prolonged d roughts\nat other seasons curtail domestic, industrial, municipal, agricultural, and\nrecreational uses of water and seriously threaten the continued growth and\neconomic well-being of the Commonwealth. The advancement of the safety,\nhappiness, and welfare of  the people and the protection of property require\nthat the power inherent in the people be utilized to promote and to regulate the\nconservation, development, and most beneficial use of the water resources. It\nis hereby declared that the general welfare re quires that the water resources of\nthe Commonwealth be put to the beneficial use to the fullest extent of which\nthey are capable, that the waste or nonbeneficial use of water be prevented,\nand that the conservation and beneficial use of water be exercised in the\ninterest of the people. Therefore, it is declared the policy of the\nCommonwealth to actively encourage and to provide financial, technical, or\nother support for projects that will manage our water resources in order that\nthe continued growth and dev elopment of the Commonwealth might be\nensured. To that end, it is declared to be the purpose of KRS Chapters 146,\n149, 151, 224, 262, and KRS 350.029 and 433.750 to 433.757 for the\nCommonwealth to permit, regulate, and participate in the construction or\nfinancing of facilities to store surplus surface water for future use; to conserve\nand develop the groundwater resources of the Commonwealth; to require local\ncommunities to develop long range water supply plans; to protect the rights of\nall persons equitabl y and reasonably interested in the use and availability of\nwater; to prohibit the pollution of water resources and to maintain the normal\nflow of all streams so that the proper quantity and quality of water will be\navailable at all times to the people of t he Commonwealth; to provide for the\nadequate disposition of water among the people of the Commonwealth\nentitled to its use during severe droughts or times of emergency; to prevent\nharmful overflows and flooding; to regulate the construction, maintenance,\nand operation of all dams and other barriers of streams; to prevent the\nobstruction of streams and floodways by the dumping of substances therein;\nto keep accurate records on the amount of water withdrawal from streams and\nwatercourses and reasonably regula te the amount of withdrawal of public\nwater; and to engage in other activities as may be necessary to conserve and\ndevelop the water resources of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and to ensure\nadequate supply of water for domestic, agricultural, recreational,  and\neconomic development uses.\n(b) The cabinet shall:\n1. Provide leadership in water use efficiency for all water uses;\n2. Promote conservation;\n3. Offer technical assistance and conduct research;\n4. Be the lead agency with other state and local agencies to incorporate\nconservation measures and incentives into their programs;\n5. Sponsor \"technology transfer sessions\" on water conservation to\ncommercial and industrial operations;\n6. Provide leadership to communities looking for information and methods\nfor coping with the issues of growth and water supply;\n7. Provide recommendations and leadership for water resources, on -farm\nand rural community drought and water assessment, monitoring, and\nimprovement for agricultural purposes; and\n8. Have the authority to receive and disperse federal, state, and other funds\nfor the purpose of water resources, on -farm and community drought and\nwater assessment, monitoring, and improvements.\n(c) Paragraph (b) of this subsection shall not be construed as changing the\nrelationship between the cabinet and the Kentucky River Authori ty and their\nrespective responsibilities for oversight of the Kentucky River as set out in\nKRS 151.700 and 151.720.\n(2) It is a finding of the General Assembly that groundwater is an important but\nvulnerable natural resource of this state, that the majorit y of rural Kentuckians rely\nexclusively on groundwater for drinking, and that groundwater is inextricably\nlinked to surface waters which may also serve as a drinking water resource. It is\nalso a finding that groundwater is a resource equally vital for agri cultural,\ncommercial, and industrial purposes and that useable groundwater is critical to the\nfuture development of these industries. Therefore, it shall be the policy of this state\nto manage groundwater for the health, welfare, and economic prosperity of all\ncitizens.","path":["KRS Chapter 151"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=54091","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:50:45Z","sha256":"e3c917e20bf05fe4990ea429abbbfef06b83fd3152205edc4963ba953808653f","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-151.100","next":"us-ky/krs-151.112"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}