Laserfiche WebLink
<br />9/28/84 <br /> <br />~ <br />~ <br />en <br />-J <br /> <br />THE 1984 COLORADO RIVER BASIN <br />SALINITY CONTROL ACT <br /> <br />October,1984 <br /> <br />Comments by Congressman Ray Kogovsek: <br /> <br />In 1974, after a decade of discussion between the federal government, <br />the Republic of Nexico, and the seven Colorado River Basin states, Congress <br />enacted the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act (P.L. 93-320). Title I <br />of the Act established a program to reduce the concentration of salts in the <br />Colorado River below Imperial Dam so the United States could honor the <br />conmitments it made to Mexico. In Title II, the Act also established a <br />program which allowed the states and the federal government to work together <br />to prevent salinity increases in the Colorado River above Imperial Dam. <br /> <br />Title II provided mechanisms for the state and federal government to cost <br />share in this effort. It gave the Secretary of the Interior a lead federal <br />role. The Bureau of Reclamation was authorized to construct four salinity <br />control units and to study the cost effectiveness of several others. It gave <br />the Secretary of Agriculture responsibility to assist in this effort. <br /> <br />The states, in keeping with federal water quality legislation organized <br />themselves into the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum so they could <br />effectively work together. They established standards for water quality on <br />the river that they would collectively work to achieve. The standards <br />pravided that the salinity of the river would nat increase above the 1972 <br />concentratians. Progress reports are published annually to report their <br />accomplishments and future programs. The 1974 Act provided an Advisory <br />Council so the states could annually advise federal administrators as to <br />adjustments that they perceive need to be made to the salinity control effort. <br /> <br />Now, with ten years of experience, the states and the federal agencies <br />have agreed that amendments are needed to the Act and all have agreed to the <br />needed amendments. The seven basin states took the lead in drafting <br />legislation. The state-supported legislation was introduced into the Senate <br />(S. 752) in this Congress and was cosponsored by all fourteen basin senators. <br />It was also introduced into the House (H.R. 2790) and cosponsored by many <br />basin congressmen. When hearings were held by the Senate in the last session <br />of this Congress, Interior and Agriculture witnesses appeared and gave general <br />support for the state-drafted legislation but did ask for some specific <br />modifications. The states have met on several occasions to consider the <br />Administration's requests. On December 23, 1983, the states forwarded revised <br />legislative language to Congress which has the suppart of all seven basin <br />states and is responsive to all of the Administration's requests. <br /> <br />The proposed amendments to P.L. 93-320 will increase the amount of state <br />cost sharing for future authorized Department of the Interior salinity control <br />units and for similar cost sharing on the Department of Agriculture efforts. <br />Future cost sharing provisions call for payback to the Federal Treasury from <br />the two basin power accaunts of 25% of the federal expenditures by both <br />Interior and Agriculture shortly after the expenditure of the funds or for <br />