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Show E. LEGISLATION Bills to Authorize a Colorado River Basin Project or a Central Arizona Project H.R. 4671, a Bill to authorize the construction of a Colorado River Basin Project (including a Central Arizona unit) failed to obtain clearance by the Rules Committee of the House of Representatives during the waning days of the 89th Congress. Reasons for its demise are recorded in the Eighteenth Annual Report of the Commission. During the 1967 water year and the First Session of the 90th Congress the most important legislation, so far as the seven States of the Colorado River Basin were concerned, continued to be proposals to construct a Colorado River Basin Project or a Central Arizona Project and interrelated legislation to authorize the creation and operation of a National Water Commission. Pending bills to authorize construction of either a Colorado River Basin Project or a Central Arizona Project would, if enacted, also give the Secretary of the Interior authority to investigate and plan certain other projects and functions and construct five additional participating irrigation projects of the Colorado River Storage Project in the Upper Colorado River Basin. On January 23, 1967 Congressman Aspinall (Colorado) introduced H, R. 3300, a Bill, the title of which was "To authorize the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Colorado River Basin project, and for other purposes." This Bill contained most of the essential features of H. R. 4671, of the 89th Congress. It was oriented to a comprehensive, southwest, seven Colorado River Basin States resolution of water resource problems related to the water deficiencies of the Colorado River. On February 16, 1967 Senators Hayden and Fannin (Arizona), Cannon (Nevada), and Jackson (Washington) introduced S. 1004. On February 17, 1967 Senator Jackson (Washington), by request, introduced S. 1013 on behalf of the Johnson administration. S. 1004 and S. 1013 were closely similar. The title of each was "To authorize the construction, operation, and maintenance of the central Arizona project, Arizona-New Mexico, and for other purposes." The title is self-explanatory. These Bills abandoned the basin-wide concept for a resolution of the water problems of the seven Pacific southwest Colorado River Basin States in favor of a more limited and narrower approach directed primarily toward supplying water to central Arizona. 41 |