Confidential Memorandum on Pacific Southwest Water Plan

Memorandum: From Kenneth Holum, to Stewart Udall, "Pacific Southwest Water Plan," March 31, 1964, page 1UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY WASHINGTON, D.C. 20240 March 31, 1964 Confidential Memorandum To: The Secretary From: Assistant Secretary - Water and Power Development Subject: Pacific Southwest Water Plan Commissioner Dominy and I have discussed questions developed at yesterday's conference with the Bureau of the Budget with Henry Caulfield, Ed Weinberg, and James Goodhue. Questions discussed are as follows: (1) Language has been proposed that will modify the "guarantee" undertaken by the United States to supply 7,500,000 acre feet of water in the Basin. The modification seems reasonable. (2) The Bureau of the Budget, as we knew from our discussions with Director Gordon, continues to be concerned about irrevocable commitments of Central Arizona water to irrigation projects. They appear to be willing to accept provisions requiring that water developed remain in the control of the Secretary of the Interior who at the end of the 50-year period of the date then decide whether or not the water should continue to be used for irrigation or then made available for M & I purposes. This seems reasonable. Doing so does raise the question of Federal-State relationships and the Federal Government's continuing authority over water within a State. I suggested that language be drafted providing that the Secretary's decision at the end of the 50-year period would be made after consultation with appropriate State authorities. (3) Budget continues to be concerned about irrigation water, particularly in the Central Arizona Project, being made available to either expand cotton acreages or increase production on existing allotments. We suggested that our people look for language that would be helpful in limiting the amount of water available for cotton production. I am sure that a final decision to accept such language would not be favorably received in Arizona. On the otherEpson Perfection 4870 Photo, 400 dpi, 24 bit, 2,619,720 byte