Laserfiche WebLink
<br />. <br /> <br />- <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />e:?:o~~8 <br /> <br />. , ' <br /> <br />In 1984, Congress enacted much-needed amendments to the 1974 <br />Act that were advanced by the Forum. The amendments (Public Law <br />98-569) authorized additional activities for the Departments of the <br />Interior and Agriculture that were needed in order to meet the <br />objectives of the Act, Previously the Congress had required the <br />Basin states to, over a period of time, reimburse the Bureau of <br />Reclamation expenditures in the amount of 25 percent of the total <br />construction costs. The 1984 amendments by Congress required that <br />for newly authorized construction, the Basin states must pay 30 <br />percent of the construction costs upon expenditure, or over a <br />period of time with interest, <br /> <br />Since the enactment of the 1984 amendments, the Basin states <br />and all of the involved agencies of the federal government have <br />worked diligently to formulate a program that would minimize the <br />cost of controlling the salinity of the Colorado River. These <br />cooperative study efforts have shown that the salinity of the River <br />can now be controlled to meet the objectives of the Act as amended, <br />with a funding level significantly less than that initially <br />identified, <br /> <br />The above findings have been published in the 1990 Joint <br />Evaluation of Salinity Control Programs in the Colorado River <br />Basin, This report, prepared jointly by the federal agencies <br />involved in the salinity control effort (in consultation with the <br />states), pro~ides the b~st information available, at this point in . <br />time, to justify our requested level of appropriation. <br />Fortunately, the President's recommended appropriation sa~isfies <br />the funding needs identified in this report, <br /> <br />In summary, we urge that the House Commi ttee on <br />Appropriations, Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, <br />recommend $38,276,000 be appropriated in FY 92, It is important <br />to note that any cuts in these appropriations would delay' <br />implementation of the Salinity Control Program, and could result <br />in exceeding the salinity water quality numeric criteria for the <br />River and significant future damage to the users of the COlorado <br />River in the United States and Mexico. Catch-up funding attempts <br />in future fiscal years will result in a program that will <br />ultimately cost much more. <br /> <br />Jack A. Barnett <br />Executive Director <br /> <br />4 <br />