BOARD01106

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

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MR. DOUGLAS:

FROM THE FLOOR:

MR. DOUGLAS:

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actually someone was being injured by
these pumping wells. If it's somebody
who isn't particularly -- I don't mean
to say that anybody in the Bureau wouldn't
be interested in the welfare of Colorado,
but if you look at the Federal Government,
they look at these things from a different
point of view. They have got 50 states
to worry about and they have all of these
interstate problems; when we look at our
problems, we look at 63 counties and
various other areas that we have to operate
with but I was just wondering would it be
possible and could this legislation be so
drafted that we would sit in judgment of
whether or not we ought to shut these wells
off or turn them on or whether we want to
go on with this pilot project?

To answer your question, Governor,
I think Mr. Sparks touched on it a minute
ago. We are only a branch of the govern-
ment. Any job that we do of this nature
has to be authorized by Congress. Any
legislation or any ground rules that are
applicable to that job, if th~y are spelled
out in the legislation, we are certainly
bound by them. If those controls are in
the legislation, there would be no question
but what we would have to observe them.

Talk into the mike.

What I was saying was that a job such
as this has to be authorized specifically
by Congress and any special provisions
should be spiled out in that authorization.
If they are so spelled out, the Bureau has
no prerogative except to obey them. We
have to follow any requirements set out
in th~ legislation. We try to turn over
the operation of the maintenance to local
people. In some cases, we have not been
able to but that is our objective to try
to get out of the business of operation
and maintenance and try to have them
operated by local people.