Water settlement reached

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Senate today unanimously approved legislation to resolve major water claims in the State of Arizona and provide a reliable source of drinking water to the White Mountain Apache Tribe.

The White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Act, first introduced in 2008 by U.S. Senator Jon Kyl, passed as part of a larger package called the Claims Resolution Act of 2010. Kyl's bill authorizes and confirms the Tribe's water settlement and authorizes funding for a key drinking water project on the Tribe's reservation in Northern Arizona - the Miner Flat Dam and Reservoir.

"It resolves some of the largest Tribal water claims and provides certainty to water users in the State of Arizona regarding their future water supplies," said Kyl. "And, more importantly, it establishes a clean, reliable source of drinking water for members of the White Mountain Apache Tribe."

A significant percentage of the water for the White Mountain Apache settlement has already been set aside in legislation Kyl sponsored -- the Arizona Water Settlements Act. That act, which became law in 2004, settled expensive and lengthy litigation concerning the Gila River Indian Community's rights to Gila River water and other water supplies, and the claims of the Tohono O'odham Nation for damages from groundwater pumping in southern Arizona.

Legislation in the Claims Resolution Act is fully offset and is therefore budget neutral. The bill must still be approved by the U.S. House of Representatives before going to the President for signature into law.