Whatcom County asks Superior Court to extend water adjudication deadline
Superior Court judge to consider extending deadline to June 1, 2027 from May 1, 2026.
Citing uncertainty surrounding court filing deadlines, Whatcom County is asking the Superior Court to extend the deadline for a process that will sort out water rights in most of Whatcom County.
Water Resource Inventory Area 1, which comprises most of Whatcom County and small parts of northern Skagit County is undergoing a process of adjudication and water users have a May 1, 2026 deadline to file a court claim outlining their water use.
Whatcom County filed a motion in Superior Court to extend and consolidate the filing deadline to June 1, 2027.
“The county believes there exists uncertainty regarding the current claim filing deadline,” the motion states. The material summons sent to water users provided a deadline to file a claim as May 1, 2026 or one year from the date of service, whichever is later. Because of this, a rolling deadline exists based on the way people have been served. Some claimants didn’t retrieve their certified mailing until after May 1, 2025, and thousands of claimants didn’t receive their summons.
