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<br />FEDERAL WATER RIGHTS LEGISLATION
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<br />FEDERAL WATER RIGHTS LEGISLATION
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<br />43
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<br />Under the supremacy clause of the Federal Const.itut.ion,' all treaties
<br />are declared to be the supreme law of the bnd, Thereby the Federal
<br />Govel'llment has t.he reHponsibilit.y and power to agree by tre"t,y with
<br />foreign nations on n divis.ion of the water of interna.tional rivers.
<br />Both of t.he foregoing pon'ers supersede and override tIle rights of
<br />States to determine for themselves what. llSll and diHposition shall be
<br />made of tho water Hawing- within t.heir respective boundaries, illl~l
<br />necessarily so. I ment.ion tJll~m lJ1c,oely to demonst.ratu t.lmt t.here are
<br />areas of conflict bet.ween Federal rig-hts 'and I'Psponsihilities and
<br />StateR~ right.s wherein t.110 rig-Ilts of t.he Federal GO\'Cl'lllll.cnt are neces-
<br />sarily paramount., for most, cert.ainly the Federal Government, must
<br />have the power to settle disputes between States ""d to en tel' into
<br />t.reaties on behalf of the Nat.ion which are binding on all of the States,
<br />The only alternative is anarchy and chaos,
<br />I.R.t, n1f>. now tnrn to another area. of conflict between the ri:;hts of the
<br />Fedcl"Ul Govorn1l1(>,nt. and Stutes' rights. I refer to the so-cn.lIed "nav-
<br />igation ~cl'vjtlld(>:."
<br />'l'h~ commcrce cla woe of the Federal Constit.ution' states: "The
<br />Con;rress shall ha.ve. ]lower'" .. * to regulate commerce * $: . among'
<br />the several St"tes . · · ."
<br />By virtne of this }lower as eonstl'ued by t.h~ U.S. Supreme Court.,
<br />ther13 can be no unqualificd ycsted I.ights under St.ntclaw in the appro-
<br />priation and use of watt'\" of u. n:l\"iga.blc, stream. Such rights nre nl~
<br />wa.ys subject to the oyerritling- power of t.he Federa.l Government uncleI'
<br />the commerce clause to impair or de,'5troy tho.se rights for nay ig'fLtionn I
<br />purposes and without any eompensat.ioll for such damage 01' dest.rue-
<br />tion. 'l'
<br />This is a. \'a~t po\\'el., the extent, of whie,h can only he realized hy rE'.
<br />memberilllr that the U.S. Supreme Court has applied the naviga.tiol\
<br />servit.ude, not onl.\" to those strenms presently nsed for navi~ation, but
<br />also to a stream which might be made n"vig"hle,' and a tributary non-
<br />navigable in itself which flows into a navigable stream and which
<br />milrht. a.tfeet th~ navigation t.hereof,'
<br />Fortllllately for the water users of th~ Nation, the exercise of the
<br />nll,.ig-a.tion ~erl'it.utle is )Jot IlW.JHlatol''y but. is discr-etiollary-t.he dis-
<br />ere-tion residin,g in the Con.::rress. Thm; Cong'l'css mayor mfly not.
<br />exercise thi~ rig-ht or may exerr.iso it only in pa.rt.. III addit.ion, and
<br />this is most important., the Congress in exercising t.he navigation sel"Vi-
<br />t.ude may 0" may Hot pro"ide for compensation for rights damaged
<br />or destroyed, ,.
<br />And so aga.in we have an area of Federalresponsihilit.y and right
<br />which contlicts with the St"tes' rights and which, if improperly exer-
<br />cised, could have ,g'l'llye and far-l"(~nching consequencc...;;.
<br />We in the "'est have been cOlJnizant. of t.his sword of n"mocles
<br />which haR 'hlln,g OVer the heads of water users who have established
<br />their rights under State law, and it was t.he western Con~essmen and
<br />Senat.ors who led the fight which resulted in a dec.1a.rat.Jon of policy
<br />by the Congress in the 1944 Flood Control Act," as follows:
<br />
<br />. Art. VI. sec. 2, Federtll COD~tll\ltlon.
<br />. Art. I, !lec. 8, !'ubsec. 3, FE'deral Con..Ututloo.
<br />t' U.B. v. Twits CU" POMtff" (]o.. :1M U.oS. 222.
<br />. U.S. v. ApPalachian 1';lectn~ Power Co., 311 U.S. 877.
<br />. F'rllt Iowa HI/llro El..ctric Oooperative v. F.P.G., 328 U.8. tft2.
<br />~ U.8. v. Twin Oll1l Power 00., .tlpra; U.8. v. Appalachian BleotN POtIJtr 00., ,upro:.
<br />1.1 ~8 Stat. Ra7. .
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<br />. In COIlIl~dioll with the exercige ot jurisdiction over the rivers or the Nation
<br />through the ('(lllstruction ot works of improvement f.lr llHVif;'<ltion or fiood con-
<br />trol :l~ herr.in :mLhori1.cd. it is rl(>CI:lT('d to he tile policy ot the Con~r('sg to rL'COg~
<br />njzr. the interest~ and riJ:::ht~ or the St.ates in cleterminlng the development of the
<br />wntcrshed.. within th('ir lIorder~ 1111<<1 Iikl!wise their interest.o; Ilnll ri,l::'br~ in water
<br />ntilization :lJLd rolJtrol, liS Ilereill authorized. to PTl'.'i('Tl"e :md protect to the
<br />fllllest j)o:.;sible cxl{>nt established nnd potential uses for all purposes at the
<br />watl~rs or the Nntinn's rivers * * * .
<br />In ,,,Idit.ion, tlhe O'Maholley-Mi]liken amendment to the 1944 Flood
<br />Control Act st.:Ltes:
<br />'fhe uso [(II' Ilavi,l::'ation, in conneciion with the operntlon nnd mnintennnce ot
<br />f>.\ll'h \Vorl,s 11f~rein authorized for ('(Instruction, ot wntt'r nrisin:; in Slate!'! lyin?,'
<br />wJlOJly or p:JJ1ly ",.cst of tIle !:'18th lllf'rillillll ~hnll be ouly sllch use as dof'~ not
<br />conlliet wHh allY beneficial commmptive U!,;C', present c.r futllre, in States lying
<br />wholly or P:lI"t Iy w{'sf. of the 98th nwridi:m of f'l1ch waters for domestic, mImic-
<br />Ilml, stocl.: water, irripltioD, mining, or illdllstI'i:lllnlrt)()S~S * * *.
<br />Until reeellt:Jy the ,baWe of t.he Westel'll SIM"s fol' Ow pl'esen.1tion
<br />of water rights acqUIred ullder State law from the threat of the ll"vi-
<br />I!at.ion sl'nitude hns heen fOlllJht ill tho face of indiffel'ence and often
<br />opposition from ~t.her parts of t.he ~f1tion. lYe are now guining nllics.
<br />As tlhe eonsllmpt.I\"e u""s of ",at.er III the Stntes of the IIIiddle 'Vest,
<br />East., anu SOlIt.h ho\"e incl'e.ased, these Statl's berran to realize the im-
<br />pact of the ll:1Tigntion servitude on tJleir use Mof \Yater for futuro
<br />:-rrouth and development.
<br />Evidence of this int~rest was shown nt cOllg-res.sioT1:l1 hen.rings in
<br />July and Aug-l.lst. Ot this year On w€"-stern water legislat.ion bv the a.p-
<br />p~aya.nc~ at the~e. hca.rin::rs of reprE'$entn.t.ivC's from TenneSsee. Vir-
<br />g-mm., Arkallsa..<;;, 1\1isslssippi, and Florida, n.ll expressinrr intBrcst in
<br />Stat.es' rig-hts legislation nationwido in application and expressing
<br />('~:mcent (lve!' the power. of the Federn.l Government. to usurp and over-
<br />nde wnt.cr ngllt$ e.st.n.bhshcd llllflcr St:lte la wY~
<br />I nSSlune ''Ie shall haye to live with the navigntion servitude, at
<br />~oast for the foreseeable fut.ur~, for I cmmot conceive of any change
<br />III t.l!e commerce c1mlse, 'Ve In the West have in the past and must
<br />coutll\U~ m the fut.ure to look to the Congress for protection of our
<br />wnter rlghts~ tlt;fIull'('(ll1nd.er ~tnte ]:t~, from dam:1g'e or destruction
<br />by the QXC-l"CISe of the. navIgatIon servItude. lIowc\'er, in this cause
<br />I :WI .suro t.h:tt we now have many allies .1mong the States of the ::\Iid-
<br />dIe 'Vest, East, and South.
<br />So far we have diseus~e.d those rights and responsibilities of the
<br />Federal. Govel1lment whIch are, or at least should be of iuterest
<br />nahonwHJe. .
<br />Let us uow turn to t.hose eonfliels whie.h are of particular interest
<br />to the "'est.. These contlicts center around rights chimed by the Fed.
<br />eral G,overr!lllent. by virtue of its ownership of the publie. iands,
<br />. To Illtclllgent.ly discuss these conflicts requires n. review of some
<br />hlSt{)l')' and ha.ckground.
<br />E"rl:y in t.he western water development. the issue arose of whether
<br />(.he. 1.11t.1I1late eont.rol of t.he llSe n.nd disposition of t;'e water resource
<br />~'as III t.he States or the Federal Government., This issue rnised Ques-
<br />t.1Ons, such a&-who owns t.he water-the StMes or the Federal Gov-
<br />ernment, , Are t.he uses by the Federal Government governed by State
<br />u He::l.t'tn!;'9 before 8ubeommlttee aD Irrigation nod ReclnmaUoD of tbe House TnteTtor
<br />.n.nd.'Cnslllnr AWalrs Committee 00 "Federal-State BelatloD& In the FIeld ot Water RI..,","
<br />t on&,., lilt leall.
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