A northern Utah lawmaker's campaign to decriminalize rain barrels will continue when the Legislature convenes next month.

To Sen. Scott Jenkins, it's simple common sense to allow people to collect and store rain that falls on their property, which is why he's sponsoring a bill for the second straight year to allow rainwater harvesting.

"If you have a piece of property, you should have a right to put a bucket out under your rain gutter," Jenkins said Wednesday. "There's still one problem: water law."

That, and Rep. Ben Ferry, who Jenkins credits for a near-single-handed defeat by bottling up the bill in the House Rules committee until the House Speaker released it at the very end of the this year's legislative session.

After Ferry, R-Corinne, cast the lone no vote during a recent state Water Development Commission hearing on Jenkins' new proposal, SB32, the senator dug in his heels. As Majority Whip, Jenkins wields power over which House bills reach the Senate floor.

"I told Ben, 'This year if it comes to blows, I'm a good guy to fight with,' " Jenkins said.

Ferry, a farmer, has a strict-constructionist view of state water law, which since the 1930s has required people to apply to the State Engineer for the right to use water that flows above, below or on the ground in Utah and belongs to everyone here. Under a strict reading of water law, even downspouts that spread water away from building foundations are technically illegal.

Jenkins' SB32 is virtually identical to the defeated 2009 bill, SB128. The difference is anyone who captures and stores up to 2,500 gallons has to use it beneficially on the same property it was collected.

But even with that relatively small amount, questions remain: Historically, where has that water gone? And who already has the right to use it?

"Water seems so simple," Ferry said. But it's not, he added, and that's why water attorneys make so much money.

"The issue is not to have a standoff with Senator Jenkins. No one wins with that," Ferry said. "I think there's a way to handle it."

The bill could pass this year as long as supporters are willing to work within the system, said Ferry. He likes the idea of an online registry of which property owners are collecting water in barrels or tanks. In times of water scarcity, water managers could shut them down.

The 2010 General Session begins Jan. 25 and closes March 10.