Statement on Post-2026 EIS Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 2, 2026

Today, California submitted comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Post-2026 operations at Lake Powell and Lake Mead. Our comments are focused on strengthening the federal review to ensure the Final EIS is legally sound, analytically complete, and consistent with the Law of the River, including the 1922 Colorado River Compact.

California remains actively engaged with Basin partners and the Department of the Interior to advance a negotiated, long-term framework. The preferred alternative should be one that works for the entire system and for the communities, economies, and ecosystems that depend on it. We will continue working constructively and in good faith to help shape that outcome before the Final EIS is issued.

California has demonstrated meaningful conservation and system contributions, and we remain committed to collaborative, durable solutions that equitably distribute risk and protect the long-term integrity of the Colorado River.

JB Hamby
Colorado River Commissioner, State of California
Chairman, Colorado River Board of California

###

[download Draft Environmental Impact Statement comments here]