Colorado Water Congress 2011 Annual Convention: Legislative Breakfast recap
January 29, 2011
Here’s a report from Chris Woodka writing for The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:
“I don’t see a great deal of movement on water issues this year,” Colorado House Speaker Frank McNulty told the group at its annual convention. “Take the year off.”
His comments were reinforced by other lawmakers, who traditionally open the two-day convention with a wake up call at breakfast. “This year, it’s all about the budget,” said Senate President Brandon Shaffer. “To the extent we can keep water projects whole, we all agree, but with a deficit of $1.1 billion, we’re not making promises to anyone.”
Lawmakers are resistant to more raids on water project funds, which occurred during the past two years, limiting the ability of the Colorado Water Conservation Board to make loans. “When we think we can dip in and take $120 million previously allocated for water projects, we cannot believe that this will become a regular occurrence,” said Sen. Gail Schwartz, D-Snowmass Village, and the chair of the Senate Ag Committee. “We need to keep working toward a statewide solution.”
