Bill Title: Amends the Rivers, Lakes, and Streams Act. Provides that the public right to access and use navigable waters includes all rights recognized by State or federal law, including the rights set forth in the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 and the federal navigational servitude, and all rights arising under the public trust doctrine, which shall be understood and applied in a manner consistent with the spirit of the Act to maximize the full and free enjoyment of State waters by the public. Provides that any segment of a lake, river, or stream that is capable of supporting use by commercial or recreational watercraft for a substantial part of the year, or that is actually so used, shall be deemed navigable, and shall be open to public access and use, unless the contrary is proven in litigation by a preponderance of the evidence. Provides that no action or inaction by the Department of Natural Resources shall create a presumption, in any civil or criminal litigation, against the navigability of any waterway segment. Provides that the public right to access and use navigable waters shall be subject to specified protections and limitations, and a violation shall be punished as otherwise provided by law and, if likely to continue, enjoined by a court of competent jurisdiction. Provides that nothing in the Act shall limit the right of any person to challenge the legality of alleged interference with the public right to access or use navigable waters in any appropriate civil or criminal litigation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-16 - Added Co-Sponsor Rep. Diane Blair-Sherlock [HB1568 Detail]

Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [HTML]

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Sponsors

Name	Type	Sponsorship	District	Financial	Encyclopedia	Biography
Representative Janet Yang Rohr [D]	Primary	Sponsored Bills	HD-041	FollowTheMoney	Ballotpedia	VoteSmart
Representative Harry Benton [D]	Cosponsor	Sponsored Bills	HD-097	FollowTheMoney	Ballotpedia	VoteSmart
Representative Anne Stava-Murray [D]	Cosponsor	Sponsored Bills	HD-081	FollowTheMoney	Ballotpedia	VoteSmart
Representative Terra Costa Howard [D]	Cosponsor	Sponsored Bills	HD-042	FollowTheMoney	Ballotpedia	VoteSmart
Representative Kambium Buckner [D]	Cosponsor	Sponsored Bills	HD-026	FollowTheMoney	Ballotpedia	VoteSmart
Representative Carol Ammons [D]	Cosponsor	Sponsored Bills	HD-103	FollowTheMoney	Ballotpedia	VoteSmart
Representative Diane Blair-Sherlock [D]	Cosponsor	Sponsored Bills	HD-046	FollowTheMoney	Ballotpedia	VoteSmart

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