{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.bennet.senate.gov/2024/12/05/bennet-hickenlooper-applaud-lake-nighthorse-agreement-between-bureau-of-reclamation-and-ute-mountain-ute-tribe/", "Bennet, Hickenlooper Applaud Lake Nighthorse Agreement Between Bureau of Reclamation and Ute Mountain Ute Tribe", "2024-12-05", "2024", "2024-12", "Democrat", "Senate", "CO", "Michael F. Bennet", "B001267", "www.bennet.senate.gov", "bennet", "https://www.bennet.senate.gov/news/page/", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2014 Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper applauded the announcement that the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) signed a contract with the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe that will help them benefit from the water they have long held rights to in the Animas-La Plata project\u2019s Lake Nighthorse.\n\n\u201cFor over a decade, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and the Bureau of Reclamation worked hard to come to an agreement for the Animas-La Plata Project that would protect the Tribe\u2019s long term interests and ensure it could benefit from federal drought funding,\u201d said Bennet. \u201cI was grateful to have visited Towoac in October and to have successfully encouraged Commissioner Touton to travel there, as well, so she could hear from Chairman Heart directly. Today\u2019s contract signing represents important progress for the effective management of the Colorado River that the Tribe and Coloradans across our state rely on.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo one has been denied use of their own water more than Tribes have. Today\u2019s agreement is an important step towards the Ute Mountain Ute finally benefitting from their water rights,\u201d said Hickenlooper. \u201cWe\u2019re grateful Reclamation heard us out and worked with the Ute Mountain Ute to reach an agreement.\u201d\n\n\u201cSigning this agreement is an historic moment for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. This agreement is like no other and is the culmination of over a decade of hard work on the part of both the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and the Bureau of Reclamation. With the signing of this agreement, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is one step closer to finally unlocking its A-LP water,\u201d said Manual Heart, Chairman, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.\n\nIn October, Bennet visited the Ute Mountain Ute Farm and Ranch Operation in Towoac with USBR Commissioner Camille Touton. During this visit, Bennet heard about the challenges the Tribe faces due to long-term drought in the Colorado River Basin. The Ute Mountain Ute are currently unable to access or use water from Lake Nighthorse due to a lack of infrastructure, and would face high operations and maintenance charges if they were to enter agreements regarding use \u2013 or forbearance of use \u2013 of their water.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:07:19Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.bennet.senate.gov/2024/12/05/bennet-hickenlooper-applaud-lake-nighthorse-agreement-between-bureau-of-reclamation-and-ute-mountain-ute-tribe/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.579218078404665, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}