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<br />I <br /> <br />But what has happened is that one hundred percent of eur prejects are <br />being subjected to these delays ene hundred percent of the time. It's <br />a curieus state of events. At the same time, we are making blackmail <br />payments to. Lower Basin power interests fer the use ef eur own water. <br />In order to. store our own water in our own reserveirs, we must pay a <br />multimillien dellar tribute annually from our basin funds to. Lower Basin <br />power interests. This will amount to. well ever a hundred millien dellars <br />being taken from the Upper Basin Fund in a manner never contemplated ner <br />autherized by ~he United States Cengress. <br /> <br />At the same time, we're being charged with seven hundred fifty theusand <br />acre-feet ef water annually for delivery to. the Republic ef Mexico. in <br />direct vie1atien ef the Co1erade River Cempact. The Bureau says, '~e're <br />not making a decision that yeu really ewe this water, but we're going to. <br />take it anyway." Over three hundred thousand acre-feet of that water <br />be1engs to the state of Celerade, sufficient water to. supply a metre- <br />pelitan area ef ever a millien peeple er to irrigate about a hundred <br />theusand acres ef land. All ef these facters are beginning to. be <br />treubleseme. <br /> <br />Mr. Chairman, I'm going to submit now recemmendations for consideration <br />by the board at a ~uture meeting, as follows: That unless all four ef <br />these prejects are certified to be in a censtructien status by March 31, <br />1977, that we take the fo1lewing actien: <br /> <br />(I) We request the Governor and the Attorney General to. file an action <br />in the federal courts to. enjein the constructien of the Central Arizona <br />preject until the 1968 act of Congress is cemplied with and the Upper <br />Basin projects are constructed. There's no ambiguity in that act. We <br />have a legitimate and valid claim in the federal ceurts to. enferce that <br />previsien ef that act which specifically directs the Secretary ef the <br />Interier to. censtruct the Celorado prejects along with the Central <br />Arizona preject. <br /> <br />(2) That we inveke the original jurisdiction ef the United States <br />Supreme Ceurt as provided fer in the 1968, act to. determine the obligatien <br />of Celerade under the Mexican Treaty. Until that questien is decided, <br />ever three hundred theusand feet ef water will be denied the state of <br />Celerado. It is critical that we determine this issue. <br /> <br />I <br /> <br />(3) That we bring suit in the federal ceurts to enjoin the further <br />illegal diversion ef revenues from the Upper Basin new being paid to <br />Lower Basin power interests; and that the funds already illegally diverted <br />be returned to the Upper Basin states. <br /> <br />(4) That we request the Cemmissioner of Rec1amatien to. replace the <br />director ef the Upper Colerade Region and the preject manager for Western <br />Celerado with people who are competent to accomplish the job which Cen- <br />gress has directeq. <br /> <br />Part of eur problem also eriginates from ether circumstances. <br />the large area ef the Bureau of Reclamatien to. the best ef my <br />the enly regienal effice located outside ef the area which it <br /> <br />In all of <br />knowledge, <br />serves is <br /> <br />-33- <br />