The Texas Water Plan and its Institutional Problems

An expansion of tile supply of water and greater efficiency in its use are necessary for the future economic development of the state of Texas. Imported water, supplemental to that available in the state, is an important part of development plans as outlined in the Texas Water Plan, a proposal of the Texas Water Development Board. Implementing the Board's plan to reallocate water supplies and improve the efficiency of land and water use will raise many serious problems. Solutions will be required in a wide array of institutional problems that will extend to such areas as the interstate diversion and interbasin transfers of water, doctrines or water rights and legislated water use-priorities, acreage restrictions established in federal reclamation law, comingling public and private water, construction financing, revenue production through a system of taxation and water sales, and the organizing of IICW institutions for governing the entire System. As the need for master or other special districts is faced, decisions will be required as -to whether to organize for centralized control from the state level or with emphasis on control by the local area. Reorganizing institutions, or their formalized cooperation, will be necessary to permit local control, yet be able to induce the desired efficiency in resource use that will make the Texas Water System succeed. Failure to achieve efficiencv in the functioning of institutions may result in an institutional overhead so high as to prohibit realization of the anticipated System benefits