![]() |
||
![]()
CRIT Proposes Landmark Federal Legislation That Will Help Arizona Drought Relief And Provide Economic Opportnities for Tribal Members (PARKER, AZ.) The Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) Tribal Council is proposing new federal legislation that would enable CRIT to lease a portion of its federal water allocation to bring about more drought relief for Arizona and economic opportunities for tribal members. If passed and signed into law, this proposed
federal legislation would allow CRIT, like numerous other Arizona
tribes, to lease water off its reservation. CRIT is the largest holder
of first priority Colorado River Water in Arizona. In 2019, CRIT tribal
members approved Protect and Prosper: The CRIT Water Ordinance with
nearly two-thirds of the vote, a critical first step towards the
introduction of federal legislation. The CRIT Tribal Council had
unanimously referred the Water Ordinance to the voters. Federal legislation to permit leasing, not
selling, a portion of CRIT’s Colorado River federal entitlement off
reservation could provide Arizona with additional drought relief The
legislation would authorize the CRIT to lease a portion of its Arizona
allocation for off-reservation use within Arizona. The water to be made
available for lease will be measured by previous consumptive use by
CRIT. Prior to a bill being introduced in Congress,
the state of Arizona will be seeking public input Virtual public hearings will be held in early
December so that tribal members as well as water stakeholders in Arizona
can learn more about the proposed legislation to authorize CRIT to lease
its water off the reservation and to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to approve such leases. Last year a tribal referendum gave the Tribal
Council a clear mandate to seek federal legislation to authorize CRIT to
lease part of its entitlement of water for off-reservation use. CRIT
looks forward to having the same rights regarding its federal water
allocation as other tribes in Arizona and throughout the western United
States. CRIT Chairman Dennis Patch said, “CRIT is one
of the few entities that has real water at its disposal, not water that
exists only on paper. We take that role seriously as we consider
agreements that provide drought relief for Arizona, and provide economic
benefits for the people of CRIT while at the same time preserving the
life of the Colorado River.” Vice Chairman Keith Moses said, “This is going
to be a very public process with public meetings and comments in Arizona
before there are hearings in Washington, DC and that’s critical because
the more the public understands this legislation, the more they will
support it.” CRIT is currently making 50,000 acre-feet of
water available a year for three years as system conservation to prop up
the elevations in Lake Mead under an agreement and funding from the
State of Arizona and NGO and corporate funders. In total, by the end of
2022 CRIT will have contributed enough water to Lake Mead to raise the
elevation by almost three feet helping to prevent shortages. CRIT has the first priority decreed water right
to divert 662,402 acre-feet per year to serve lands in Arizona. This
first-priority right is not likely to be cut during shortages and will
be a valuable addition to the water available to the State of Arizona. |