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The trust fund will help ensure that the leasing states water burden does not <br />fall to another state should lease prices go up or if leasing is not available in <br />the future. <br />• The program must adopt and adhere to a budget. Current cost estimates for <br />the program indicate potentially significant budget overruns. These means <br />that the program should favor water plan elements that are the least-cost to <br />program participants. <br />• Water provided to the program by Colorado must be considered "new <br />water". Nebraska in particular has suggested that water which Colorado <br />might reregulate (from periods of excess to periods of shortage) is not "new <br />water" to be credited to the program. They have suggested that curtailing of <br />consumptive use is how to provide "new water". This is unacceptable. <br />• Colorado's water contribution to the program needs to be protected to and <br />through Nebraska the critical habitat. <br />The Department of Interior must be proactive in ensuring that federal land <br />managers do not erode baseline flows of the North and South Platte. This is <br />particularly true for the Forest Service who through their forest management <br />plans have not fully considered how their plans might reduce water yields <br />from the forest. <br />While the above summary is only a brief summary of some of our governing principles it <br />provides you with a good sense of the challenges we face. Much of the success of the <br />CA will rest on the negotiations on the Water Action Plan over the next two to three <br />months. There are several key issues that could effect how Colorado administers water. <br />Colorado very much wants the CA and any resulting program to be a success but we will <br />need to be very thoughtful about potential program ramifications. <br />Please do not hesitate to contact me with any concerns or suggestions. <br />Thank you! <br />2