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Bill aimed at settling San Jacinto Valley Indian water rights dispute headed to president

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on July 26, 2008 at 7:30 am

From Riverside’s Press-Enterprise:

A bill to resolve a decades-old San Jacinto Valley Indian water rights dispute is headed for President Bush’s signature with passage of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians Settlement Act late Thursday in the U.S. Senate.

The bill, introduced by Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Palm Springs, passed the House of Representatives in May. The legislation implements a 1991 federal government settlement and another settlement with San Jacinto Valley water suppliers that took about eight years to resolve.

“I am thrilled an agreement has been reached that will benefit the many individuals and families impacted by this ongoing water dispute,” Bono Mack said in a news release. “We would not be at this point without the many years of hard work and cooperation by the tribe, our local water districts and local leaders.”

The legislation provides “a secure and reliable water supply not only for the tribe, but the community,” Loretta Tuell, Washington, D.C.-based legal counsel for the tribe on the water issue, said by phone. In Indian water rights cases, negotiations, rather than litigation, are “the best means to come to resolution,” she said.

The settlement awards the tribe $18 million from local water districts, $11 million from the federal government and the right to 2 billion gallons of water a year from the aquifer. The tribe agreed to use no more than half the water allotment for the first 50 years. What isn’t used will be available to other local water providers.

Read the full text of this story from Riverside’s Press-Enterprise by clicking here.

July 26, 2008 · Filed Under Indian Water Rights

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