NM delegation pushes Congress to finish Navajo water deals
WINDOW ROCK
New Mexico’s congressional delegation is pressing House and Senate leaders to pass two measures central to the Navajo Nation’s long-running water claims – the Navajo Nation Rio San José Water Rights Settlement Act and the Navajo–Gallup Water Supply Project Amendments Act – as part of a broader package of tribal water settlements.
Lawmakers are also urging leaders to extend Customs User Fees to cover the cost – an approach Congress has used before.
In a Sept. 4 bipartisan, bicameral letter, Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) led colleagues in urging action this session. The letter was also signed by Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and Reps. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) and Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), along with Montana Republicans Sens. Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy and Reps. Ryan Zinke and Troy Downing.
The lawmakers said finishing the settlements would reduce costs to taxpayers, expand water access for tribal and nontribal users across the West and avoid years of litigation, while honoring the federal trust responsibility to tribes. They also proposed extending Customs User Fees to offset any new spending. The letter notes that without congressional action, outstanding rights would likely be resolved in court over decades at significant public expense.
Extending Customs User Fees, administered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and currently set to expire in 2031, through fiscal 2034 could save about $16.5 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office estimate cited in the delegation’s letter.
Where the bills stand and what’s at stake
Julian Duque, the communications director for Leger Fernández, said the Navajo Nation Rio San José bill moved forward in 2024 when the congresswoman “secured a hearing” and the Interior Department “expressed support,” calling it “a crucial step in its passage.”
He said Republican leaders have not prioritized these measures and have cited price tags as a hurdle. The Sept. 4 letter, he said, is intended to put the package on leadership’s agenda with a clear way to pay for it by extending user fees. “Republican leaders, who decide what bills move forward, now need to make Indian Water Rights a priority so the bills can pass,” he told the Navajo Times.
Caty Payette, the communications director for U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, said Heinrich is pushing to close the deals this Congress.
“Senator Heinrich remains committed to working across the aisle and pushing congressional leadership to get these outstanding tribal water rights settlements across the finish line. Heinrich believes water is a right, not a privilege, and Congress needs to pass these bills urgently,” Payette said.
Seiichiro Nakai, the press secretary for U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján, said the combined New Mexico package, including the Rio San José and Rio Jemez legislation, has cleared a key step. The bill “was reported favorably out of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and awaits full action before the Senate,” Nakai said, adding that Luján “is committed to advancing this legislation in the Senate to fulfill our trust responsibility and promote water security for tribes and Pueblos.”
To read the full article, please see the Sept. 11, 2025, edition of the Navajo Times.
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