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Honorable Jon Huntsman, Jr. 2 <br />When developing annual operating plans for the Colorado River, including this and future mid- <br />year reviews, the Department retains authority pursuant to applicable law and the Operating <br />Criteria to adjust releases from Glen Canyon Dam to amounts less than 8.23 million acre -feet per <br />year. This authority was recognized at the time the Department established the Operating <br />Criteria in 1970. Specifically, the Department transmitted the following statement to the <br />Governors of each of the Colorado River Basin States on June 9, 1970: "... [T]he Operating <br />Criteria imposes no firm or fixed obligation that 8.23 million acre -feet be released each year <br />from Lake Powell. That quantity is stated as an "objective" of the Operating Criteria." At the <br />time the Department made this statement it had been considering a formal request by the Upper <br />Basin states to reduce the referenced Art. II release volume of 8.23 million acre -feet. The <br />unambiguous statement that the "Operating Criteria imposes no firm or fixed obligation that 8.23 <br />million acre -feet be released each year from Lake Powell" reflects the contemporaneous position <br />of the Secretary of the Interior at the time of the adoption of the Operating Criteria. Like this <br />statement of Departmental position, the relevant provisions of Art. II of the Operating Criteria <br />remain unchanged since 1970. <br />Recent progress in the administration of the Colorado River has been achieved, in large part, due <br />to the close and productive working relationships among the Colorado River Basin states. While <br />we regret that the Basin states were unable to reach a consensus recommendation on operations <br />for the remaining five months of this water year, we appreciate the extensive and productive <br />efforts of the Governor's representatives to review and consider actions to address reduced <br />supplies in the Basin. We believe that these discussions have produced a deeper understanding <br />of the management challenges facing the Colorado River Basin and will facilitate our <br />development of additional tools to improve coordinated management of the reservoirs in the <br />Colorado River system. <br />The Department recognizes that it is preferable to develop strategies to address drought and other <br />water management challenges in processes other than annual operating plan consultation <br />meetings. In order to determine the most appropriate way to address these challenges, I am <br />directing Reclamation to convene a meeting of the Colorado River Management Work Group by <br />May 31, 2005. The purpose of the meeting will be to consult with the Colorado River Basin <br />States and the public on the most appropriate processes and mechanisms to address these <br />management challenges. <br />We do not underestimate the challenges we face in this effort. It has been well understood for <br />decades that there are areas of substantial disagreement between the Upper and Lower Colorado <br />River Basin states on a number of fundamental issues regarding interpretation of the Colorado <br />River Compact of 1922. For example, the opinions of the Upper and Lower Basins differ as to <br />the requirements under the Compact for contribution of water to meet the U.S. - Mexico Treaty of <br />1944. The Department intends to develop operational tools that can continue to assure <br />productive use of the Colorado River into the future, while avoiding unnecessary, protracted or <br />destabilizing litigation. <br />