While Arizona hasn’t said it would meet that deadline, a committee meeting on the issue announced Thursday it is making progress.
There’s lots of work to do on detail.” Arizona — long seen as the holdout among the river’s lower basin states — has been at a stalemate as it wrestled with how to compensate water users that are expected to face the deepest cuts when Lake Mead falls to a certain level or find water to replace those cuts.
Mexico also has agreed to cutbacks.
The proposal would help lessen the blow for Pinal County farmers, cities and tribes.
The Gila River Indian Community, which is entitled to a fourth of the Colorado River water that flows through the Central Arizona Project canals, said it won’t support any plan that undermines a water settlement it reached with the federal government in 2004.
The cost to fund the proposal is expected to top $100 million.
Funding an issue Gov.
Other drought proposals have been criticized for wanting to take water stored from Lake Mead to soften the blow of losing water around the state.
Funding also is available from the federal government.
Cooke and Tom Buschatzke, director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources, said the committee will meet until members reach consensus.