Political Quotes

“I would like to be able to address title VII of the Water Rights Protection Act in this bill. Over many decades, Federal attempts to manipulate Federal permit, lease, and land management process to circumvent long-established State water law and hijack privately held water rights have sounded the alarm for all non-Federal water users that rely on these water rights for their livelihood. The Federal Government's overreach and infringement on private property rights that led to the introduction of this original bill in the 113th Congress involved the U.S. Forest Service's attempt to require the transfer of privately held water rights to the Federal Government as a permit condition on National Forest System lands. With this permit condition, there is no compensation for the transfer of these privately held rights. This Forest Service permit condition has already hurt a number of stakeholders in my home State of Colorado, including Powderhorn Ski Area in Grand Junction and the Breckenridge Ski Resort. The same nefarious tactic has been used in Utah, Nevada, and other Western States, where agencies have required the surrender of possession of water rights in exchange for approving the conditional use of grazing allotments. This Federal water grab has broad implications that have begun to extend beyond the recreation and the farming and ranching community and are now threatening municipalities and other businesses.…”