Katie Hobbs to Federal Officials: Unreasonable Cuts to Arizona's Water Are Unacceptable

Governor Katie Hobbs (D-AZ) is sending a clear message to federal officials and fellow western governors: Arizona will not shoulder an unfair share of cuts to Colorado River water allocations, and the Upper Basin states need to step up.

Hobbs shared her stance after a call with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and other Colorado River governors, making clear that Arizona's economic contributions to the country give it significant standing in these negotiations.

"Arizona produces the critical minerals, weapons defense systems and semiconductors that keep America safe and prosperous," she wrote, noting that "unreasonable cuts to our Colorado River water allocation are unacceptable."

The negotiations are happening at a critical moment, with the federal guidelines that have governed Colorado River operations since 2007 expiring at the end of this year, and new rules now being finalized that will shape how the river is managed for the next decade.

State's Condition

Arizona is critical to the conversation with Lake Mead and Lake Powell, the river's two largest reservoirs, remaining at historically low levels after more than two decades of drought and increasing demand from cities, farms, tribes, and ecosystems across seven western states.

The three Lower Basin states have put forward their own plan for managing the river in 2027 and 2028. Under the proposal, the three states would collectively reduce their water use by 1.25 million acre-feet annually, with Arizona taking the largest share at 760,000 acre-feet, California at 440,000, and Nevada at 50,000.

Hobbs acknowledged that the Lower Basin has offered reasonable compromises but pushed back against a framework that places the entire burden on those states.

"The Lower Basin has put commonsense, compromise solutions on the table," she wrote, "but we will not accept a plan that puts all of the burden on our states."

Her message to Upper Basin states, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, and New Mexico, was direct: they need to join the conservation effort too.

The federal government is expected to finalize its decision on the new operating guidelines in late July, with annual operating plans to follow in August.

For Arizona and its neighbors, what gets decided in the coming weeks will have consequences felt for years.