The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a lawsuit from Nebraska accusing Colorado of overusing its share of flows from a river the two states share.
The nation’s highest court granted Nebraska’s request to sue Colorado over allegations it is violating a 1923 compact that governs the South Platte River.
Nebraska officials announced their intent to sue last summer when they accused Colorado of hindering efforts to build a canal that would funnel more flows across state lines as well as overusing its share of the river.
The Trump administration endorsed the court’s review of the matter in May, stating a special master should be assigned to the case.
Under the compact, Nebraska is allowed to build, maintain and operate canals in Colorado to obtain its share of the river. State officials kicked off a campaign in 2022 to ensure Nebraska was getting its full share of the waterway, including the approval of more than $600 million in state funds to build the Perkins County Canal.
That effort was spurred in part by population growth in Colorado, where about 70 percent of the population lives in the South Platte River Basin.
