WSP12914

• File Number: 8240.200.10.A
• Description: Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovey Program / San Juan River Basin Recovery Implementation
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Date: 1/1/2004
• Author: USCRBRIP / SJRIP
• Title: 2004 - 2005 Program Highlights, Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program and San Juan River Basin Recovery Implementation Program
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Publication

DAVE FREUDIFNTHAL
GOVERNOR

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THE STATE "'.

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STATE CAPITOL
CHEYENNE, WY 82002

()ffice of the C;overnor

February 25, 2005

The Honorable Pete V. Domenici, Chairman
The Honorable Harry Reid, Ranking Member
Energy and Water Development Subcommittee
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
127 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Chairman Domenici and Senator Reid:

I write to request your support for an appropriation in fiscal year 2006 of $2,529,000 to the
Bureau of Reclamation within the budget line item entitled "Endangered Species Recovery
Implementation Program" for the Upper Colorado Region. The President's recommended budget
for FY 2006 includes this line-item amount. The funding designation we seek is as follows:
$1,401,000 for construction activities for the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery
Program; $572,000 for the San Juan River Basin ReCovery Implementation Program and $556,000
for Fish and Wildlife Management and Development.

These highly successful, cooperative programs are ongoing partnerships among the States of
Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming, Indian tribes, federal agencies and water, power and
environmental interests. The programs' objectives are to recover endangered fish species while
water uSe and development proceeds in compliance with the Endangered Species Act. These
recovery programs have become national models for collaboratively working to recover endangered
species while addressing water needs to support growing western communities in the Upper
Colorado River Basin region of the Intermountain West. Since 1988, these programs have
facilitated ESA Section 7 consultation (without litigation) for over 800 federal, tribal, state and
privately managed water projects depleting approximately 2.5 million acre-feet of water per year.

The requested FY 2006 appropriation will allow the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish
Program to proceed with construction of additional fish passage structures on the Green and
Colorado Rivers to provide access to historic habitat upstream of existing diversion dams. The
requested funding for the San Juan River Recovery Program will be used for contracts for
construction and cooperative agreements with the State of New Mexico to provide and protect
instream flows, fish ladders, flooded bottom land restoration, propagation facilities, stocking efforts,
nonnative and sportfish management activitieS.

TTY: 777-7860

PHONE: [phone]

F-*: [phone]