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States reliant on Colorado River fail to meet the latest deadline to find consensus
Seven Western states missed the federal deadline to agree on water cuts amid worsening drought, risking federal intervention that could affect 40 million people relying on the Colorado River.
- The seven Western states missed a federal deadline for the second time to agree on a post-2026 Colorado River plan, acknowledging Friday they would not meet the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation timeline.
- Existing rules from the 1922 Colorado River Compact, last updated in 2007, expired last year and scientists recently reported one of the driest winters with low snowpack, increasing water cut urgency.
- Negotiators focused in recent weeks on a five-year plan that includes Arizona, California and Nevada offering cuts of 27%, 10% and 17%, while upper-basin states resisted permanent reductions.
- Leaders say they are preparing lawyers and legal strategies as a federal plan, likely to spark litigation and reach the U.S. Supreme Court, risks lives and power supplies.
- Reclamation officials set the deadline to allow time for federal review and an Oct 1 start, and the Trump administration is accepting public comments on alternatives until March 2 while talks continue.
63 Articles
63 Articles
Oil City News
Cap City NewsDesperate in failing Colorado River negotiations, Wyoming water officials pitch conservation bill at home
by Dustin Bleizeffer, WyoFile Wyoming water officials are desperately hoping to avoid a federal intervention into the high-stakes deadlock among Colorado River stakeholders seeking a compromise on shared water appropriation cuts. Wyoming and the six other Colorado River basin states blew through another deadline Saturday to come to an agreement, raising the possibility that the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will dictate a new drought response plan…
Steamboat Pilot & Today
Colorado River states fail to meet federal negotiations deadline
The seven Colorado River states were unable to agree on how to manage the river and its major reservoirs by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s Feb. 14 deadline. This marks the second missed federal deadline...
Colorado River states miss deadline, compromise nowhere in sight
"The seven Colorado River Basin states have failed to reach an agreement to collectively protect our respective communities and economies in the face of almost certain reductions to our use of the river," said John Entsminger, Nevada's lead negotiator and general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)Nevada and six other Colorado River states have failed to resolve a major disagreement on …
Colorado River negotiations crumble as another deadline passes by
The Colorado River is pictured where if flows near Hite, just beyond the upper reaches of Lake Powell, on Friday, Sept. 19, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)Seven states drawing water from the Colorado River for drinking, farming and electricity walked away from the negotiating table Friday without a deal on how to share the dwindling water supply starting next year. Negotiators spent months trying to close an expansive divi…
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