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Judge: Colorado owes Kansas $34M I.. .1 ....-;......... lJlJ238;~ _t~~~S1fntii'(~I~n:l"w6i""'.'" SENTINEL . ~,y,w-);, ~. ~ Page I of 2 Search SitelWeb enhanced by COogle Ciatisiiieds I Subscri -~--;I;: ..._- .' op J. Fast pace' distributor repr. ....(m Home: I Ne,"ls I Sports I Features Health I Money I 'vVeather i ivjiirk.eipiace Judge: Colorado owes Kansas $34M Tuesday, April 12, 2005 By MARIJA B. VADER The Daily Sentinel A judge has ruled that Colorado must pay Kansas about $34 million for use of water from the Arkansas River that should have been allowed to go to Kansas. That's far less than Kansas hoped it would get, but for Colorado ofliclals who are struggling with a state budget crisis, it's a big bill. And there's a good chance that some of the financial hits will be taken by Mesa and Garfield counties. Officials in Colorado and Kansas are still finalizing the amount of money Colorado owes Kansas for overusing water on the Eastern Plains. State Engineer Hal Simpson said Monday it should come to around $34 million and it should be paid by June. Gov. Bill Owens has suggested using severance tax money, generated by oil and gas production, much of it from western Colorado, to pay the bill. The state typically collects $50 million to $60 million annually in severance taxes from energy producers, said Jim Evans, executive director of Associated Governments of Northwest Colorado. That money is split between the Colorado Departmenf of Natural Resources and the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, which distributes the money to local governments for impacts created by men and women who work in the energy fields. Last year was a record year, as the state collected around $90 million "because of the oil and gas activity, primarily out of our area," Evans said. Some of the $34 million may come from the overage. Simpson said. Mesa County Commissioner Tillie Bishop said the balance, or up to $4 million, may come from money that would have been diverted to Mesa and Garfield counties. "That is going fo have an impact to local governments," Bishop said. Evans agreed wifh Bishop. "It's just going to decrease the amount of money to the local governments," Evans said. "We're not necessarily happy about that." AlSCOIN applicalion Pro......(mc Earth War Is looking 1 EqUlp......(1 CUSTOMl ORDER D he\plul per LPN sWill Center is h ......~.Q!.~} $9.50 Hou & Co., a Ie provider .. DIETARY working WI hour.... .(m All aroune Good wagl Must ......(1 PART TIM INSPECT< lransporta. Import Au With own Ie experie. . Viewl http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/contentlnews/stories/2005/04/12/4_12_1a_Watecfine.htmI4/ 12/2005