State negotiators failed to meet a Tuesday deadline to reach an initial agreement over future operations of the drought-stricken Colorado River, but the Trump administration indicated it will allow states to continue bargaining.
The Trump administration had previously threatened that if the seven states that share the river did not come to a deal, the Interior Department could step in to decide how to impose cuts to water use.
Interior, the Bureau of Reclamation and the states — Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming — issued a joint statement Tuesday evening on the status of negotiations following a two-day meeting in Phoenix.
“While more work needs to be done, collective progress has been made that warrants continued efforts to define and approve details for a finalized agreement,” the statement said. “Through continued cooperation and coordinated action, there is a shared commitment to ensuring the long-term sustainability and resilience of the Colorado River system.”
Neither Interior nor Reclamation responded to questions about how much additional time states will be granted to continue their negotiations, which have spanned nearly two years at this point. Acting Reclamation Commissioner Scott Cameron had initially set a Nov. 11 deadline for states to reach a high-level agreement, with final details due in February 2026.
Decades of persistent drought has shrunk flows in the Colorado River, reducing the available water by as much as 20 percent since 2000. That has prompted a series of short-term deals to reduce water use among the states.
