WSP10764

• File Number: 8277.200
• Description: California Water Resources Association/California Salinity Projects
• State: CA
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Date: 1/1/1963
• Title: Colorado River Board of California Annual Report 1969
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Annual Report

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EXISTING RIGHTS

All of the Colorado River Board's func-
tions are generally related to the responsibili-
ty of protecting California's existing rights
and interests in the Colorado River. Howev-
er, some functions are more specifically as-
sociated with the overall tasks of protecting
existing rights; therefore, they have been
grouped hereafter in this section.

Al'izono v. Colifornio
During the year, the Board's staff con-
tinued to furnish technical assistance to the
Attorney General in Arizona v. California
post-decree proceedings. This included an
analysis of supplemental information ex-
changed by the States of Arizona and Cali-
fornia and the United States with regard to
the claims for present perfected rights filed
with the Supreme Court pursuant to Article
VI of the decree, and an analysis of the Secre-
tary of the Interior's proposal to increase di-
versions to Topock Marsh.

Present Perfected Rights. As defined in
Article I(G) and (H) of the decree, present
perfected rights are rights to mainstream wa-
ters acquired under state law and measured
by the extent of water applied to a defined
area of land or to definite municipal or indus-
trial works prior to June 25, 1929. They also
include all mainstream water reserved for
federal establishments (primarily Indian
reservations) prior to that date regardless of
use.
Even though the Colorado River Basin
Project Act, P.L. 90-537, gives existing main-
stream water contractors priority over the
Central Arizona Project, with California's
priority limited to 4,400,000 acre-feet per
year, present perfected rights remain an im-
portant issue for they would affect water
shortage allocations if the supply of the main-
stream should fall below the protection levels
contained in PL. 90-537. Specific rights
under the Supreme Court decree of individu-
al agencies served under existing contracts

with the United States are also recognized in
P.L. 90-537.
The engineering-legal fact finding com-
mittee, formed in late 1968 at the suggestion
of California to compile and analyze data on
present perfected rights, began functioning
in early 1969 under chairmanship of Milton
N. Nathanson, Assistant Regional Solicitor,
Department of the Interior. All parties who
desired to request information on any claims
were requested to do so through the chair-
man. During the period from January 9 to 15,
1969, initial requests for information were
sent by all parties.
The United States, California, and Nevada
responded to the initial requests. However,
Arizona did not respond but requested that
legal counsel for the three Arizona Yuma
Valley irrigation districts respond to the
questions. Due to illness of one of the Arizo-
na representatives, it was late in 1969 before
a response was received. Representatives of
California agencies received a written
proposal for adjustments to present perfect-
ed rights claims of Arizona agencies and as of
the end of 1969, the Colorado River Board
staff was analyzing the revised claims.
The material furnished by the United
States in response to the California request
for factual data on present perfected rights
claims did not provide any information to
justify revising the Board's estimates of
claims for federal projects, nor did it add any
significant data to information already avail-
able in the Board's files. There was however,
some concern about certain omissions by the
Department of the Interior with regard to
return flows.
The Board staff completed an analysis of
possible effects in any future water shortage
situation of various alternatives for settling
present perfected rights issues. Findings of
significant guidelines were transmitted to
the Attorney General's office and to agency
representatives,

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