DENVER – After two years of wrangling, a bill legalizing the use of rain barrels passed it’s biggest hurdle Wednesday and seems likely to become Colorado law.

House Bill 1005 passed the state Senate Agriculture, Natural Resources and Energy Committee with the support of two Republicans to make it a 6-3 vote. Last year, the bill was effectively killed by the chair of that committee, who postponed a vote until there was not enough time for the bill to pass.

Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, R-Sterling, stood by his promise to not do that again and allowed a vote on the bill after a short delay Wednesday. He voted no.

Sen. Michael Merrifield, D-Colorado Springs, is among the bill’s advocates.

“I think we’re going to actually get it done this year,” Merrifield said. “A lot of people were not aware they were breaking the law. A lot of people were collecting rain water off of their roofs.”

Sonnenberg was concerned about the impact the urban rain barrels might have on the amount of water flowing downstream to farmers and ranchers with water rights dependent on high-flows during large rain storms.

Merrifield said he worked to alleviate those concerns, including amending the bill so the state engineer will investigate and report any potential impacts from the increased use of rain barrels.

“In a state that is so desperate for water as Colorado, I think it’s valuable that people understand water law and the scarcity of water and how water can be used efficiently, how to conserve,” Merrifield said. “The more we know about it, the better I think it is for farmers who really were those who had the biggest objections to this bill.”

The Farm Bureau supports the bill this year.

Single-family units or multi-family structures with four or fewer units would be permitted to collect up to 110 gallons of precipitation from the rooftop of the building. Collected water must be used for outdoor purposes, like watering the lawn or garden.

House Bill 1005 will next be heard on the Senate floor on second reading.

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Contact Megan Schrader: 286-0644

Twitter @CapitolSchrader