BOARD01106

• Board Meeting Date: 2/3/1962
• Description: Minutes
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

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MR. STAPLETON:

MR. WHITTEN:

Thank you, Felix. And now to get
a firsthand viewpoint of the crisis that
is developing between the states of
Colorado and the other states in the Rio
Grande Compact, I call the State Engineer,
Mr. Gene Whitten, who has firsthand
knowledge of this problem as State Engineer
and also as a Rio Grande Compact Commis-
sioner. Mr. Gene Whitten.

I

(Applause)

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Governor
McNichols, Mr. Conour, members of the
Board, other distinguished guests, ladies
and gentlemen. As most of you folks know
that have been talking Rio Grande Compact,
its ups and downs for several years, most
of which time it has been not only my
duty, but my distinction, to have been the
Compact Commissioner for Colorado. I have
been commissioner since 1954 and since 1952,
Colorado has repeatedly incurred indebted-
ness under the terms of the compact and
we have been able to do but little about
it. One year, 1958, we showed a small credit
of some 14,000 acre-feet of water which is
the only year in the past eleven or twelve
that we have been able to show anything
on the credit side of the ledger.

We have continued to go downgrade,
shall we say, in that respect. The deficit
increases year by year and our sister states
signatory to this compact with Colorado are
becoming increasingly alarmed at this
situation and have repeatedly asked Colorado
to do something, if we could, to see if
we could work out a plan whereby our
commitments under the compact might be
met.

I

We have looked about for some means
to alleviate this progressive deficit and
we have been able to find but one solution
which appears at all feasible. We have
alternatives which do not appear to be
enticing.