The bill at issue is SB 27 - Lake Powell Pipeline Financing (2006). Section 201 specifies that the Legislature will fund the project - to be paid back by the districts using the water.

However, Section 401 of the bill reads, "The state shall pay the nonreimbursable project costs allocated to recreation and fish and wildlife." That provision, of course, means that the state will pay some costs of the project.

Section 402 specifies that the Washington, Iron and Kane water conservancy districts (the "Districts") must pay back the state within 50 years of the date of the delivery of developed water. The key trigger date for the districts' financial commitment is not the project's completion date; rather, it is when developed water is actually taken by the districts.

I'll explain the financing with an analogy. Let's say Capital Finance covers construction costs for a new five-story building that Company X eventually will own. Company X will repay Capital Finance the actual construction cost for each floor, only when it occupies each floor.

If Company X grows to occupy all five floors within 50 years, and it pays cash for each floor as it occupies that floor, it won't pay any interest on the original construction costs. Capital Finance will cover those costs, thereby contributing significantly to the financing and overall cost of the building.

Likewise, if the districts pay cash for each block of water they take, at the time they actually take each block, the districts won't pay any interest. The state will cover the interest costs of the pipeline project. That, clearly, is "a big chunk."

Wilson and other project opponents tend to significantly exaggerate the financing costs of the project, then they happily trot out those costs as a reason that Washington County cannot afford the pipeline.

Let's hope that those project opponents, when it is pointed out that those same costs actually will be picked up by the state, won't try to say that those costs suddenly constitute something less than "a big chunk."

This is an important project to southern Utah and to the entire state of Utah. As such, local residents will pick up a good portion of the tab and the citizens of Utah also will help - just as we've done, and will do, with water projects and infrastructure items in other parts of the state.

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* STEPHEN URQUHART, a Republican, represents St. George in the Utah House.