By Paul Hammel
WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

LINCOLN -- Kansas appears to have grabbed the momentum in its long-running legal dispute with Nebraska over flows in the depleted Republican River.

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to reopen Kansas' lawsuit with Nebraska, and allow lawyers from the Jayhawk State to present arguments that Nebraska used more water than allowed during the years 2005 and 2006.

The ruling opens the way for Kansas to seek millions of dollars in damages from Nebraska taxpayers and to seek tougher restrictions on irrigators in the Republican River.

It comes after the two states, as well as Colorado, had reached a settlement of most of their water issues in 2003. It also follows an arbitrator's non-binding ruling two years ago that concluded that Kansas had proven only nominal monetary damages -- not the $70 million in losses its experts were claiming.

Monday's ruling by the nation's highest court is not good news for Nebraska, said Mike Jess, a former Nebraska state water czar and now a private consultant.

“It's clearly saying that there's a live issue here,” Jess said. “Unlike Nebraska would like, (this dispute) is just not going to go away. It says, in all likelihood that Nebraska needs to do more.”

Use of the Republican River's water is governed by a 1943 compact between Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska. In the 1990s, Kansas officials began to complain that Nebraska was taking too much water.

Nebraska was in compliance with the settlement from 2007 through 2009.

This report includes material from the Associated Press