Georgia Code
Article 2 - Control of Water Pollution and Surface-Water Use
§ 12-5-31. Regulated Riparian Rights to Surface Waters for General or Farm Use; Permits for Withdrawal, Diversion, or Impoundment; Coordination With Water Plans; Metering of Farm Use; Interbasin Transfers; Appeal Procedures

(6.1) The director may permanently revoke any permit under this Code section for farm use within the Flint River Basin applied for on or after April 20, 2006, if initial use for the purpose indicated on the permit application, as measured by a flow meter approved by the division, has not commenced within two years of the date of issuance of the permit unless the permittee can reasonably demonstrate that his or her nonuse was due to financial hardship or circumstances beyond his or her control;
In the event of modification, suspension, or revocation of a permit, the director shall serve written notice of such action on the permit holder and shall set forth in such notice the reason for such action.
(4.1) The use of surface water by any permanent facility car wash shall be deemed not to be outdoor water use for purposes of any outdoor watering restrictions if the facility:
(4.2) The use of surface water for any swimming pool shall be deemed not to be outdoor water use for purposes of any outdoor watering restrictions if failure to maintain the swimming pool would create unsafe, unsanitary, or unhealthy conditions affecting the public health or welfare; and
Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this subsection, any demand for such information by the director, which information has already been provided to the director by such person in the context of prior dealings with the division, and which is still correct, may be satisfied by adequate reference to same.
(m.1) (1) The division shall have the duty of implementing a program of measuring farm uses of water in order to obtain clear and accurate information on the patterns and amounts of such use, which information is essential to proper management of water resources by the state and useful to farmers for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of their use of water, meeting the requirements of subsections (b) and (m) of this Code section, and improving water conservation.
(2) The division:
(3) Any person whose permit for agricultural water use was issued before July 1, 2003, and who desires to install a water-measuring device at no cost to the state may do so, provided that the permittee shall have an acceptable type of water-measuring device installed and placed in operation at each point of permitted withdrawal and the permittee shall notify the division in writing once the installation has occurred. The division shall approve or disapprove the installation within 60 days of the date of notification.
(4) Any person who desires to commence a farm use of water for which a permit is issued after July 1, 2003, shall not commence such use prior to receiving approval from the division that such person has installed an acceptable type of water-measuring device installed by the commission at each point of permitted withdrawal. The permittee shall be responsible for all such costs.
History. Ga. L. 1977, p. 368, § 3; Ga. L. 1982, p. 3, § 12; Ga. L. 1982, p. 2304, § 1; Ga. L. 1983, p. 3, § 9; Ga. L. 1984, p. 22, § 12; Ga. L. 1984, p. 404, § 2; Ga. L. 1988, p. 1694, § 1; Ga. L. 1994, p. 863, § 2; Ga. L. 1995, p. 706, § 2; Ga. L. 2000, p. 1589, § 3; Ga. L. 2001, p. 4, § 12; Ga. L. 2003, p. 813, § 2; Ga. L. 2006, p. 237, §§ 2, 3/SB 191; Ga. L. 2007, p. 739, § 3/SB 200; Ga. L. 2008, p. 322, § 1/SB 466; Ga. L. 2008, p. 644, § 4-2/SB 342; Ga. L. 2008, p. 814, § 2/HB 1281; Ga. L. 2010, p. 732, § 5/SB 370; Ga. L. 2012, p. 775, § 12/HB 942; Ga. L. 2018, p. 974, § 2/SB 451; Ga. L. 2019, p. 1056, § 12/SB 52.
The 2019 amendment, effective May 12, 2019, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, revised punctuation and language in subparagraph (m.1)(2)(D).
Cross references.
Ground water withdrawal permits, §§ 12-5-96 , 12-5-105 .
Code Commission notes.
Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1988, “the” was deleted preceding “July 1, 1988” in two places in the second sentence of paragraph (a)(3) (now (b)(3)), “operation” was substituted for “operations” at the end of the first sentence of paragraph (b)(3) (now (a)(3)), and “diversions” was substituted for “divisions” near the beginning of subsection (g).
Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1992, a comma was inserted following “(f)” in paragraph (a)(3) (now (b)(3)).
Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 2006, in paragraph (a)(3) (now (b)(3)), “April 20, 2006,” was substituted for “the effective date of this paragraph” in the fifth sentence, and “April 20, 2006,” was substituted for “the effective date thereof”, in the sixth sentence, and in paragraph (k)(6.1), “April 20, 2006,” was substituted for “the effective date of this paragraph”, and a semicolon was substituted for a colon at the end.
Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 2008, paragraph (l)(4.1), as enacted by Ga. L. 2008, p. 814, § 2, was redesignated as paragraph (l)(4.2).
The enactment of paragraph (l)(4.2) of this Code section by Ga. L. 2008, p. 322, § 1, irreconcilably conflicted with and was treated as superseded by Ga. L. 2008, p. 814, § 2. See County of Butts v. Strahan, 151 Ga. 417 (1921).
Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 2018, a comma was added following “contractors” near the beginning of paragraph (m.1)(5).
Editor’s notes.
Ga. L. 2000, p. 1589, § 16, not codified by the General Assembly, provided that the 2000 amendment is applicable with respect to notices delivered on or after July 1, 2000.
Ga. L. 2007, p. 739, § 5/SB 200, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that the 2007 amendment shall only become effective on January 1, 2009, upon the ratification of a resolution at the November, 2008, state-wide general election that amends the Constitution so as to authorize the General Assembly to provide by general law for the creation and comprehensive regulation of infrastructure development districts. If such resolution is not so ratified, this Act shall not become effective and shall stand repealed in its entirety on January 1, 2009. The constitutional amendment proposed in Ga. L. 2007, p. 775, was defeated in the general election on November 4, 2008.
Ga. L. 2010, p. 732, § 1/SB 370, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “The General Assembly recognizes the imminent need to create a culture of water conservation in the State of Georgia. The General Assembly also recognizes the imminent need to plan for water supply enhancement during future extreme drought conditions and other water emergencies. In order to achieve these goals, the General Assembly directs the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to coordinate with its Environmental Protection Division, the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority [now known as the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority], the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the Georgia Forestry Commission, the Georgia Department of Community Health, including its Division of Public Health, the Georgia Department of Agriculture, and the Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission to work together as appropriate to develop programs for water conservation and water supply.”
Law reviews.
For survey article on environment, natural resources, and land use, see 34 Mercer L. Rev. 145 (1982).
For article, “Hazardous Waste Issues in Real Estate Transactions,” see 38 Mercer L. Rev. 581 (1987).
For note on the 1995 amendment of this Code section, see 12 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 51 (1995).
For article, “Water Rights, Public Resources, and Private Commodities: Examining the Current and Future Law Governing the Allocation of Georgia Water,” see 38 Ga. L. Rev. 1009 (2004).
For article, “Special Challenges to Water Markets in Riparian States,” see 21 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 305 (2004).
For article, “Sharing Water Through Interbasin Transfer and Basis of Origin Protection in Georgia: Issues for Evaluation in Comprehensive State Water Planning for Georgia’s Surface Water Rivers and Groundwater Aquifers,” see 21 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 339 (2004).
For comment, “Who Gets the Hooch?: Georgia, Florida, and Alabama Battle for Water From the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin,” see 55 Mercer L. Rev. 1453 (2004).
For note, “The Problem of Reallocation in a Regulated Riparian System: Examining the Law in Georgia,” see 40 Ga. L. Rev. 207 (2005).
For note on 2007 amendment of this Code section, see 24 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 255 (2007).
For article on 2010 amendment of this Code section, “Conservation and Natural Resources,” see 27 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 185 (2010).

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