BOARD02086

• Board Meeting Date: 3/10/1998
• Description: OWC Section - Federal Energy Policy Act
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

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Attachment agenda Item 12b

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Chuck Lile, Director
Colorado Water Conservation Board
FAX: [phone]

RECEIVED
FEe 03 1998
COlorado W
Conservation ea...
Oard

Dear Chuck:

I hope you and your family are well. Attached in a draft agenda for the Water Resources
Committee meeting in Washington, D. C. next month. Are you going to be able ,to come?
Today is the cut off day for our block of hotel rooms. We've only hcard from Hal.

As you know, the meeting will be held in conjunction with our Water Policy Seminar,
cosponsored by the Interstate Council on Water Policy. ,The latter will include a number of
roundtable discussions, including one covering the draft (and final?) report released by the
Western Water Policy Review Commission.

This discussion will take place just before the Water Resources Committee meeting, and
might rull over into our committee time. We only have one room, so we'll have to be flexible.
We have scheduled about all hour and will have to prioritize topics. We may only be able to
cover three or four.

With respect to the potential topic~, nur feed hack from members on the legislation that
has been introduced to repeal federal plumbing efficiency standards suggests that if we take a
position, we should o!*fse the bill. However, no hearing on the bill has yet been scheduled, and
there is some general p losophical reluctance to support federal regulations over tailored state
standards. On the other hand, we have consistently supported water conservation.

Many states enacted standards before the federal legislation was passed. California's are
more ~tringcnt than the federal standards. Other sllltcs now rely on the taderal standards and \nay
not wish to have to revisit the issue, and enact their own, should federal standards be repealed.

No state ha<; vet 11rnpn~"d that we take a po~itinn but we may wish to invite someone
from both sides to present their views on the matter. Ed Osann is representing the opposition,
while a legislative aide might speak for Rep. Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), who introduced the bill.

rve tall(ed with Bill McDonald, and h", woulu like u:; to auuress issues surrounding the
Bureau of Reclamation's water transfers policy. We had sent a memo to members asking for
eomment~ regarding their experience with the policy and any recnmmendatinns for changes.,