City Council Meetings

Moses Lake City Council Dustin Swartz, Mayor | Judy Madewell, Deputy Mayor | Don Myers, Council Member | Mark Fancher, Council Member Deanna Martinez, Council Member | David Skaug, Council Member | Victor Lombardi, Council Member Thursday, November 20, 2025 Moses Lake Civic Center – 401 S. Balsam (no remote options) Special Meeting Call to Order – 4:00 p.m. 1. Water Legislation Strategy – pg 2 Moses Lake Water Supply Needs – pg 5 Lobbyist Briahna Murray, GTH Consulting Adjournment Future Regular Council Meetings November 25 and December 9. NOTICE: Individuals planning to attend the in-person meeting who require an interpreter or special assistance to accommodate physical, hearing, or other impairments, need to contact the City Clerk at (509) 764-3703 or Deputy City Clerk at (509) 764-3713 at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting. All Council Agendas Online: COML Council Packet 11-20-25, Page 1 of 6  City of Moses Lake, Washington 2026 State Advocacy Agenda Top Priorities Urgent Sewer Line Replacement In mid-2025, a main sewer line that runs underwater on the Moses Lake lakebed broke, causing some untreated water to flow into the lake. Over 1.7 million gallons of sewage is pumped through this force main per day. Once aware of the rupture, the city routed wastewater through a backup system and completed an emergency repair on the water line that temporarily addressed the breakage. To replace the pipe and address the leakage more permanently, the City of Moses Lake requests $2.3 million in state partnership to respond to this unexpected and urgent community need. Mae Valley I-90 Interchange at Hansen Road (Exit 174) The Mae Valley Interchange is undersized for current and future growth on the west side of Moses Lake. In addition, the Hansen Road overpass at that interchange is currently load- limited and needs significant maintenance and preservation investments to address public safety concerns. For example, when the City deploys fire trucks to respond to calls in this area of the community, the fire trucks must be sent empty (without water) to pass the load limit on the overpass. The City of Moses Lake requests that the state prioritize reconfiguring this interchange to accommodate growth and address safety issues. Water Availability for a Growing Community The City of Moses Lake asks for the state’s partnership in securing adequate potable water supply to its growing community. Moses Lake has historically relied on water from an ancient basalt aquifer that is declining each year. Despite significant water conservation e orts, during the summer months, several of the City’s current wells begin pumping air. With the State’s help, the City needs to establish new water sources to meet the long-term water needs of a growing community. Moses Lake Crossing Currently, I-90 is the only east-west crossing of Moses Lake. When I-90 is blocked due to an accident, residents must travel long distances to take an alternative route. The City requests state investment in constructing a second crossing over Moses Lake to ensure e icient alternative routes in the event of an emergency, and to facilitate growth and economic development in one of the City’s growth centers - Mae Valley. Additionally, constructing a crossing will take east-west local tra ic o the state system. The City will be identifying the location of a crossing in 2026 and asks for the state’s partnership to construct the crossing. COML Council Packet 11-20-25, Page 2 of 6  City of Moses Lake, Washington Policy Statements Sustainable Energy The City of Moses Lake supports e orts to ensure that the region has sustainable power to support growing industries. Grant County PUD’s power portfolio is largely reliant on the Priest Rapids Project (Wanapum and Priest Rapids Dams) to provide energy for the region. The region’s retail load growth is nearing the maximum energy output of the dams. Given that, to meet the energy needs of the community, the County needs resources to lean into generating power through natural gas with more attainable carbon capture technology, nuclear, hydrogen, and other alternative energy sources. Alongside other partners, the City supports the following e orts: - Establishing policies and mechanisms to increase transmission capacity - Changes and exemptions to the Clean Energy Transformation Act - Allocating Climate Commitment Act funds to energy projects Association Development Organization Funding Associate Development Organizations (ADOs) serve as the local economic development facilitators throughout the state. ADOs coordinate business recruitment, retention, and expansion, provide export assistance and support research, planning, and implementation of local economic development strategies. The City of Moses Lake supports ADOs receiving ongoing stable funding. Sustainable Aviation Fuel Incentives The City of Moses Lake is proud to have Twelve, a sustainable aviation fuel producer, located in its community. The City supports state law changes, including adjustments to the state’s sustainable aviation fuel tax credit, to incentivize Twelve’s continued presence in Washington State and the Moses Lake community. Industrial Land Development The City of Moses Lake has industrial land available for warehousing, distribution, and manufacturing. In 2019, a consultant analyzed the industrial land supply in Moses Lake and found 2,687 acres of vacant, partially used, or under-utilized land. The City supports modifications to regulations, including those around shrub-steppe habitat, and other incentives to facilitate a balanced utilization of this land. PFAS Contamination The City of Moses Lake, like many communities across the nation, is addressing polyfluoralkyls (PFAS) substances or “forever chemicals” in the City’s water supply. The City encourages the state to align state PFAS regulations with evolving regulations at the COML Council Packet 11-20-25, Page 3 of 6 federal level and supports statewide investments in communities to test for and remove PFAS contamination. Fiscal Sustainability/Unfunded Mandates The City of Moses Lake supports e orts to fund grant programs and funding tools to provide services and infrastructure for a growing community. The City also opposes unfunded mandates, including increased liability and new responsibilities that are not accompanied by adequate funding. Local Control The City of Moses Lake asks that the Legislature honor the local decision-making process to allow policies to be crafted with public input and tailored to the unique needs of a community. The City will oppose e orts that infringe on local control, particularly in the areas of land use, development codes, and management of the right-of-way. The City of Moses Lake supports those agenda items of the Association of Washington Cities’ Legislative Agenda that best serve the Moses Lake Community. COML Council Packet 11-20-25, Page 4 of 6 Moses Lake Water Supply Needs: 12,700-acre-feet Background: The City of Moses Lake has long depended on a deep basalt aquifer (Wanapum/Grande Rhonde) for its municipal water supply, which includes drinking water and residential irrigation uses. The deep basalt aquifer is depleting at an unsustainable rate. In Moses Lake’s water system, there are four deep basalt wells where the water level has dropped by more than 180 feet since the City started using them. At this rate of decline, a number of the City’s existing basalt aquifer wells may not be able to produce water in the next 20 to 30 years. Of the City’s 13,104 acre-feet senior water right for the aquifer, it is currently using approximately 8,000 acre-feet per year. Agricultural users were given temporary access and now consume over 90% of the deep basalt aquifer’s output, calling into question whether the City could feasibly utilize its full water right. The Odessa Groundwater Replacement Project should, with time, reduce withdrawals by agricultural users. Even when that occurs, the aquifer does not replenish and has been depleted – Moses Lake can no longer rely exclusively on the aquifer to provide water to the community. The city needs to diversify its water supply. To secure a sustainable water future, the City aims to acquire an additional 12,700 acre-feet of water rights from sources other than the deep basalt aquifer by 2056. In the near term, to take pressure o of its existing struggling wells, the City needs 5,000 acre feet of new water sources. FAQ: How does a community on a Lake have a shortage of water? The Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District has a 50,000-acre-feet water right for Lake water for irrigation purposes only. The remaining Lake water is controlled by the Bureau of Reclamation as part of the Columbia Basin Irrigation Project. The City does not hold a water right for water in Moses Lake, and no additional lake water rights are available. COML Council Packet 11-20-25, Page 5 of 6 Immediate Action: Moses Lake has or is in the process of taking immediate action to improve water stability and slow the rate of decline in the deep basalt aquifer:  Preserve What’s Left of the Basalt Aquifer: To protect its senior water rights, the City will advocate for the completion of the Columbia Basin Irrigation Project and the Odessa Groundwater Replacement Project to transition agricultural users away from the basalt aquifer, thereby reducing overall deep aquifer depletion.  Water Conservation: The City has aggressively implemented water conservation measures, including tiered pricing and irrigation restrictions, to reduce demand by 500 acre-feet annually, which is 5% of 2025 water usage. STATE REQUEST Long-term Solutions Require State Partnership Shallow Water Rights: The City has 1,800-acre feet in existing shallow water rights and requests the state’s assistance (DOE approval and funding) in accessing additional shallow water rights above the basalt layer within the gravel and sand material closer to the surface, allowing them to more easily replenish. At least 5,000 acre feet of new shallow rights and wells are needed in the near term. Surface water from the Columbia River: Surface water from the Columbia River is a potential source of municipal water. In fact, the Columbia Basin Irrigation project is only using about 65% of the water it has been allocated. To access this water, the City has applied for a 5,200-acre-foot Municipal and Industrial (M&I) contract with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Once legal access is obtained, the City will need state funding to construct a treatment facility, or facilities, and pipes and pumps to convey the surface water from a local canal into the City’s water system (there are several potential configurations). Access Irrigation Water Rights: Unique to Moses Lake and unlike other eastern Washington communities, the city delivers water for both drinking and irrigation through a single municipal water system. The City could access irrigation water rights from Moses Lake through a partnership with Moses Lake Irrigation District, but the Department of Ecology has said that the irrigation water from the Lake cannot be combined with drinking water in the city’s single water system. The City requests an amendment in state law to allow this irrigation water to be used for irrigation and be delivered through the City’s municipal water system. COML Council Packet 11-20-25, Page 6 of 6