DENVER \u2013 A dispute between Colorado ski areas and the Forest Service has caught the attention of the White House, which threatens to veto a water rights bill that U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, plans to present on the House floor Thursday.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile in Denver, state senators delayed a vote on a related bill by Sen. Ellen Roberts, R-Durango, out of concerns that it improperly singles out the Forest Service.<\/p>\n
The bills in Washington and Denver address an effort by the Forest Service to gain title to water rights used by ski resorts that lease federal land.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is important to the West. We hope the president won\u2019t politicize this, because this isn\u2019t a Republican or Democrat issue,\u201d Tipton said in a phone interview.<\/p>\n
Rep. Jared Polis, D-Boulder, is a co-sponsor of Tipton\u2019s bill, and a few other Western Democrats also support it.<\/p>\n
The Forest Service has sought greater control of ski water rights since the 1980s. A federal judge in Denver overturned a previous agency policy that required ski areas to assign their water rights to the government in return for lease extensions. The agency plans to release a new policy for public review soon.<\/p>\n
But lawmakers aren\u2019t waiting, because they see a broader threat to federal control of Colorado\u2019s water.<\/p>\n
\u201cBasically, it comes down to, does Colorado decide its water rights system, or does the federal government?\u201d Roberts said at a meeting of the Senate State Affairs Committee on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Forest Service officials say their only interest is in protecting water that Colorado\u2019s ski economy needs to stay healthy, and their new policy will be more palatable.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want you to know we\u2019ve listened. We\u2019ve heard your concerns loud and clear. Our intent remains to make sure the forest service can continue to provide sustainable recreational activities,\u201d said Maribeth Gustafson, deputy forester for the Rocky Mountain region, at the Denver hearing.<\/p>\n
But critics of the Forest Service were not satisfied. Kristin Moseley, a lawyer for Vail Resorts and several mountain water districts, said ski water rights might originate on public land, but they were developed by private companies at considerable expense. She compared the Forest Service\u2019s claiming of water rights to confiscating ski lifts and hotels belonging to resorts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not their water. It was private water all the time,\u201d Moseley said.<\/p>\n
Cities that have reservoirs on federal land worry that if the Forest Service can take ski water rights, nothing would stop them from claiming reservoirs, too, Moseley said.<\/p>\n
However, Sen. Matt Jones, D-Louisville, defended the Forest Service and said most Coloradans would support the principle of keeping ski water rights reserved for skiing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis isn\u2019t the mean old federal government telling people what to do. This is the steward of our lands,\u201d Jones said.<\/p>\n
Sen. Jessie Ulibarri, the committee\u2019s chairman, delayed a vote on Roberts\u2019 bill, saying he thinks it\u2019s an important topic but that the bill might illegally single out one entity, the Forest Service.<\/p>\n
As the hearing was happening in Denver, the Obama Administration lowered the boom on Tipton\u2019s bill in Washington by releasing a \u201cstatement of administration policy\u201d \u2013 essentially, a veto threat.<\/p>\n
The U.S. House is scheduled to vote on Tipton\u2019s bill Thursday. It would forbid federal land management agencies from claiming water rights as a condition of a land use permit.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe bill threatens the Federal government\u2019s longstanding authority to manage property and claim proprietary rights for the benefit of Indian tribes and reserved Federal lands, and the broader public that depends on the proper management of public lands and resources,\u201d the unsigned statement said.<\/p>\n
Tipton said the statement was based on \u201cfallacious concerns,\u201d and he plans to continue efforts to pass the bill because it protects property rights.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see a pattern out of this president. Before process is allowed to work, he issues a veto threat,\u201d Tipton said.<\/p>\n
Tipton has allies, as well. The influential U.S. Chamber of Commerce has come out in support of his bill, and it is expected to pass the House on Thursday afternoon.<\/p>\n
However, the version of Tipton\u2019s bill in the Democratic-controlled Senate has stalled and has not received a hearing, and Obama\u2019s veto threat could seal its fate.<\/p>\n