The U.S. Department of the Interior announced a plan on Friday that will require California, Arizona, and Nevada to reduce their Colorado River water usage by 1.25 million acre-feet annually through 2028. The federal guidelines for the three Lower Basin states align with a proposal previously submitted by those states, opting for these figures over more significant potential reductions.
The decision comes as the federal government prepares for the expiration of 2007 interim water management guidelines at the end of this year. While the seven states that rely on the Colorado River—Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming—have engaged in long-term negotiations, the federal government moved to impose this short-term plan after the states failed to reach a consensus on future management.
Under the new requirements, the three states must cut 1.25 million acre-feet per year in 2027 and 2028, and the Interior Department is encouraging an additional 700,000 acre-feet of total conservation and storage over those two years. The department also stated it is finalizing a separate 10-year framework that could eventually mandate cuts as high as 3 million acre-feet per year depending on river conditions, though Friday's announcement focused on the immediate two-year period.
The scale of the reduction is significant for the region's water infrastructure, which serves seven Western states and manages a river currently facing a major drought. For perspective, the Interior Department’s 10-year framework maintains the possibility of increasing these cuts to 3 million acre-feet per year if water levels continue to decline, though the agency noted the long-term plan is designed to be flexible. This federal intervention establishes how the Lower Basin will operate immediately after the current 2007 guidelines expire, setting a precedent for federal oversight when states cannot agree on shared resource management.
The immediate effect of this plan will be felt starting in 2027, following the expiration of the current rules on December 31, 2026. The Interior Department did not disclose if any modifications were made to the 10-year framework between its initial unveiling last month and the finalization announced on Friday. The next steps involve the formal implementation of these short-term cuts as the states and federal agencies transition to the new management guidelines through 2028.