U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum is warning Arizona that its lawsuit challenging the federal government’s Colorado River plan could leave the state worse off if a judge decides how shortages are divided.
Burgum told ABC15 Arizona during a visit to southern Arizona that “the last thing that Arizona should want to do is have a judge decide where the water is going to go.” He predicted the case would be dismissed because the claimed injury is still prospective and pointed to what he described as Arizona’s junior position under the river’s legal framework.
Arizona moved Oct. 16 to join Nevada’s lawsuit, challenging the Interior Department’s final environmental review and operating framework. Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) says the plan fails to require Upper Basin reservoir deliveries to Lake Mead and could allow cuts of up to 3 million acre-feet annually among Arizona, California and Nevada after 2028.
The federal guidelines require the Lower Basin states to reduce deliveries by 1.25 million acre-feet in each of 2027 and 2028. If their proposed sharing agreement is implemented, Arizona would lose 760,000 acre-feet annually, about 27% of its allocation, while California would lose 440,000 and Nevada 50,000.
Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ) defended the legal challenge, saying the state must prevent “cuts upon cuts upon cuts” while the four Upper Basin states face no comparable mandatory reductions. He warned that unreliable water supplies could threaten Arizona’s semiconductor industry.
Burgum said federal officials acted only after 20 months of negotiations failed to produce a seven-state agreement. He maintained that the Interior Department remains willing to broker a compromise.
The case is pending in federal court in Nevada. Arizona officials say they will continue working with California and Nevada on their two-year conservation agreement while protecting the state’s claims in court.
