Lower Republican River Basin Study Act

Floor Speech

LOWER REPUBLICAN RIVER BASIN STUDY ACT -- (House of Representatives - May 07, 2007)

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Mr. MORAN of Kansas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1025, the Lower Republican River Basin Study Act. I would like to thank Chairman Rahall and the Resources Committee for helping to bring this legislation before the House today.

The timing of this legislation is significant, not only for farmers in Kansas who have dealt with successive years of drought and decreased water supplies, but because the respective states have already appropriated funds for the current fiscal year to conduct the feasibility study authorized by this legislation.

H.R. 1025 is a product of the Republican River Compact Settlement. That settlement resulted from litigation filed by the State of Kansas against the States of Nebraska and Colorado in 1998 because required amounts of water were not reaching Kansas under the Republican River Compact terms. In 2003, the Republican River Compact Settlement brought that litigation to an end.

The Settlement was signed not only by the party States, but also administration officials and was subsequently approved by the United States Supreme Court in 2003. As part of that Settlement, the Parties agreed to have the Secretary of the Interior conduct a study to determine the feasibility of implementing water supply and conservation projects in the Republican River Basin below Harlan Reservoir. In accordance with the Settlement Agreement, H.R. 1025 provides that the cost of the study will be shared between the Federal Government and the States of Kansas and Nebraska.

As of today, the States have done their part under the settlement agreement. In fact, my home State of Kansas has already appropriated funds for the current fiscal year. I also understand that Mr. Smith's State of Nebraska has done the same.

Mr. Speaker, all that remains is for the Federal Government to meet its obligation under the settlement agreement. The feasibility study is desperately needed to increase water availability and encourage more efficient water use and delivery systems.

The Lower Republican Basin has a history of periodic droughts and water shortages. The upper third of the Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District, which lies above Lovewell Reservoir, received limited water allocations in 2003 and no water allocations in 2004 and 2005.

Producers in the lower two-thirds of the Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District have also experienced water shortages since 2003. Irrigators in this portion of the District have only received half of the base supply they were supposed to receive. The project facilities in the Lower Republican River Basin are over 50 years old. Changed hydrological conditions and aging facilities require better utilization of limited water supplies.

Mr. Speaker, the feasibility study authorized by H.R. 1025 is not only necessary to ensure the states remain in compliance with an interstate compact, but also to ensure the economic viability of the rural communities that rely on delivery of a consistent supply of water, and I urge Members to approve this legislation.

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