River Water Dispute
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network in Government
United States Supreme Court Is Scheduled to Hear Oral Arguments in a Longstanding Dispute Between Kansas and Nebraska Over Water Use in the Republican River
Foremost among the issues is the 2013 recommendation of a special master — a judge appointed by the Supreme Court to oversee the dispute over the amount of water Nebraska was taking from the river it shares with Kansas and Colorado — who said Nebraska owes Kansas a combined $5.5 million for overusing water in 2005 and 2006.
The special master, William Kayatta Jr., recommended to the Supreme Court that Nebraska pay $3.7 million to compensate Kansas for economic losses caused by overuse of Republican River water, and an additional $1.8 million in disgorgement, defined as the repayment of ill-gotten economic gain.
But in his recommendation, Kayatta rejected Kansas' demand for $80 million. He also rejected Kansas' request for an order that would permanently shut off irrigation pumps that service about 300,000 acres in Nebraska.
A 1943 compact has long divided the use of Republican River water among the three states. Colorado was given 11 percent of the resources, Kansas 40 percent and Nebraska 49 percent. Kansas farmers and officials have long contended that Nebraska took more than its share — an estimated 25.7 billion more in 2005 and 2006, Kansas officials charged in 2009.
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