RIO VERDE FOOTHILLS, AZ — More legislation is now heading to the governor's desk to bring water back to Rio Verde Foothills residents.
The unincorporated area was cut off from Scottsdale's water supply on January 1.
John Hornewer, the owner of Rio Verde Foothills Potable Water Hauling, was back to work after spending part of the day at the legislature.
"This has been such a battle that seeing the votes come in was finally our first taste of a victory for the community," said Hornewer.
ABC15 learned Tuesday that Representative Alex Kolodin's bill, aimed at restoring water service to Rio Verde Foothills, passed the House and Senate and will head to Governor Katie Hobbs' desk.
"What this piece of legislation means is that it's possible to solve the bigger water challenges our state faces. We've proven that," said State Rep. Kolodin.
The bill would force Scottsdale to temporarily revive its standpipe, with the creation of a water district to oversee it, through an intergovernmental agreement (IGA).
Hornewer says he has been waiting for this and, in the meantime, has been helping neighbors by hauling water in from longer distances.
"With Scottsdale, we can do eight to nine trucks a day; with our outside sources, we're at two, two-and-a-half trucks a day. So, just by the sheer nature of having a local source, we can keep up with the demand," said Hornewer.
So when could the community see water flowing again? This will be a multi-step process.
First, a board will need to be created within 14 days to govern the standpipe district. Then, it all depends on when the IGA is finalized and executed.
"That, I imagine, will take a couple of weeks after the board is appointed. We're pressing them now - the City of Scottsdale, the water providers - and everybody's leaning on them very, very hard to get this done quickly," said Rep. Kolodin.
Not all Rio Verde Foothills residents were initially behind this specific bill for many reasons.
"We don't want to cut corners and sign an agreement that is going to hurt in the long run and not allow certain people, or be such an exorbitant fee or cost that people still can't afford it even though the water is right there in Scottsdale," said Cody Reim, a Rio Verde Foothills resident.
Regardless, they are now just hoping for its success.
"I hope that compassion prevails here, and they see our issue and give us just a little bit of help knowing that we have a long-term solution at play," said Reim.
