From the purchase of the first water company in 2007, Queen Creek has pursued opportunities to manage the level of service and costs for residents and businesses, with the goal of becoming a Designated Water Provider certified by the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR), a designation almost every municipal water provider in the Valley holds.

In late summer, a significant water opportunity was made available through approval by ADWR of a water supply from the Harquahala Groundwater Basin, and also approval to transport that water. Queen Creek purchased an initial 5,000 acre-feet per year and is in the process of purchasing 12,000 acre-feet of additional water. This additional supply will fill the final gap Queen Creek has to prove a 100-year assured water supply, without relying on additional local groundwater, opening the door to become a Designated Water Provider. As the Valley’s water providers are all seeking additional water supplies, Queen Creek worked quickly to identify and lock-in an allocation to be able to purchase this water supply from the Harquahala Groundwater Basin.

Moving Away From Local Groundwater

Queen Creek has ample groundwater - replenishing it is expensive. Groundwater removed from the aquifer must be replenished in accordance with the 1980 Arizona Groundwater Management Act. To comply with this mandate, most of Queen Creek’s water customers are members of and pay fees to the Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District (CAGRD), which is included in their property tax bill (properties developed prior to 1996 are exempt).

Town's Policy to Offset CAGRD Fees for Customers

Queen Creek water customers who are CAGRD members may not be aware of the full cost of these fees, as the Town of Queen Creek has been utilizing water credits to offset these costs for its customers since 2018. This was a result of Council resolutions to reduce costs to customers as an interim measure, with the ultimate goal of water self-sufficiency to manage costs locally and not depend on local groundwater pumping. Depending on the year the subdivision was developed, these costs were reduced anywhere from 33% to 100% - saving Queen Creek water customers approximately $58 million since 2018. This was an interim measure until the Town became a designated water provider; the Town cannot continue to offset CAGRD for water customers indefinitely.

Funding the Water Purchase

When the Town becomes a designated water provider, any remaining replenishment fee will be paid directly by the Town. And with the additional water sources, there will be significantly less local groundwater pumping, meaning less replenishment requirements. The Town will pay for the water sources by creating a water resource fee that will replace the existing CAGRD replenishment fee that 88% of water customers are currently assessed.

The Town will not implement the water resource fee until CAGRD assessments are eliminated for water customers, anticipated for early 2027. When the Town becomes designated and implements a resource fee (in place of CAGRD), any current exemptions would be eliminated. While the structure of the Town’s resource fee is still being evaluated, it will apply to all customers as designation benefits the system as a whole. The resource fee will go through the Town’s public fee setting process.

Becoming a designated water provider is the next step in the Town’s development, like establishing a fire department in 2008, establishing a police department in 2022 and now securing QC’s water future, by becoming a designated water provider. The Town of Queen Creek is committed to securing a more reliable & locally controlled water future.

How does Queen Creek achieve its Water Resource Goals?

This is a multi-year, multi-phased process with the Water Resource Fee estimated to be implemented sometime in 2027.

• At the Nov. 19 meeting, Council approved funding a second agreement for Harquahala Water, a stable 100-year reliable resource to provide an assured water supply
• Become a Designated Water Provider
• Become a CAGRD Member Service Area
• Ensure the CAGRD fee is removed from Queen Creek water customer properties
• Implement a Water Resource Fee that applies to all customers to cover Queen Creek’s replenishment obligation and pay for securing this water supply
• Continue to seek renewable water resources to reduce/remove dependence on CAGRD completely