By Howard Fischer
Mail | X: @azcapmedia

PHOENIX — Despite a federal deadline of Tuesday, Arizona and six other states that benefit from Colorado River water left their meeting here without reaching a deal about how to divide up the river’s dwindling water supply.

But the Department of the Interior, which set the deadline, has agreed to hold off on its threat to impose its own solution.

In a joint statement, state and federal officials said “collective progress had been made” to develop a solution. They said the work being done — against that federal deadline — “warrants continued efforts to define and approve details for a finalized agreement.”

The comments come just hours after Gov. Katie Hobbs said she doubts there will be a voluntary deal among the Lower Basin states of Arizona, Nevada and California, and the Upper Basin states of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming.

In fact, the governor said federal officials “need to step in and work to broker a deal.”

While efforts were taking place behind closed doors to develop a deal acceptable to all states, Hobbs was lashing out at those Upper Basin states, saying they have so far been stubborn and immovable.

“The Upper Basin, really being led by Colorado, has refused to budge at all and refused to take any cuts,” she said.

“A Colorado River future that puts all the cuts on Arizona, that the Upper Basin doesn’t take any cuts, is not acceptable,” the governor continued. “And we’ve made that clear.”

Hobbs backed that up hours later, as the meeting among states was breaking up, sending a letter late Tuesday to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum accusing those Upper Basin states of “complete refusal to implement water conservation commitments.”

That letter, also signed by leaders of both parties in the House and Senate, urges Burgum to use his power to ensure any solution his agency might impose “contains measurable and enforceable conservation requirements for the Upper Basin to make sure that this critical water resource remains available for Arizona.”

Central to the problem is there is nowhere near the amount of water in the river that was available when it was first allocated among the states in 1922. Even subsequent reductions in allocations among the Lower Basin states have not been able to keep pace with the declining flow due to historic drought conditions.

Now Arizona, Nevada and California are demanding the Upper Basin states also share in future cutbacks, something they have so far refused to do.

With no real progress, that led to the Department of the Interior to set a deadline of Tuesday for the states to work out their differences or live with something the agency would implement. That threat has led to negotiations but, as of the deadline, no actual deal.

Still, the joint statement released after Tuesday’s talks suggested there appears to be a renewed interest in actually working something out — and on a voluntary basis.

“Collective progress had been made that warrants continued efforts to define and improve details for a finalized agreement,” the statement reads. “Through continued cooperation and coordinated action, there is a shared commitment to ensuring the long-term sustainability and resilience of the Colorado River system.”

Hobbs said she believes Arizona already has done its part.

“We have already saved millions of acre-feet of water in Lake Mead leading into this year’s negotiations,” she said. And the governor said Arizona has “put more savings on the table in excess of 500,000 acre-feet,” enough water to supply up to 1.5 million homes each year.

But Hobbs gave no indication who among users — residential, agricultural and industrial — would shoulder that burden.

“We’re working with the users in the state to see what that looks like and how those cuts will be implemented,” she said.

Hobbs, however, also said she recognized what any plan is likely to mean, given how water from the river has previously been divided up and who gets priority rights,

“In any situation, Arizona’s going to take the brunt of the cuts,” she said.

“We can make those sacrifices. We’ve done it before and we’re willing to,” the governor said. “But we need other states to be with us on that and take some cuts, too.”

She expanded on that in the letter top Burgum — the one co-signed by legislative leaders — lashing out at the Upper Basin states, saying they “have repeatedly refused to implement any volume of binding, verifiable water supply reductions,” accusing them of an “extreme negotiating posture.”

At the same time, however, the governor also recognized time is running out for a negotiated deal, with the feds saying they need a new plan in place by the end of the year.

That could lead to a plan crafted by the Department of the Interior. So Hobbs also is trying to convince them that, as they divide up the river and implement any reductions in allocations, they need to recognize the importance of that water beyond Arizona’s own needs.

She said, the river is “fueling the economy of the future, not just for Arizona but for the United States, bringing high-tech manufacturing to Arizona, fueling an agriculture industry that feeds 90% of North America’s leafy greens in the winter months when they can’t grow anywhere else.”

And in hopes of getting federal officials to see it her way, Hobbs also said she will be meeting next week with Burgum to “continue advocating for a common sense Colorado River deal that protects Arizona’s fair share of water.”