State Response to Kansas Republican River Letter

(Lincoln, NE) Governor Dave Heineman and Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning today responded to a letter sent to Ann Bleed, Nebraska Department of Natural Resources Director and Nebraska Republican River Compact Commissioner, by David Barfield, Kansas Republican River Compact Commissioner. The letter makes several demands of Nebraska regarding Nebraskan’s water usage on the Republican River.

“The State of Nebraska agreed to a process with Kansas that will resolve compact accountability,” said Gov. Heineman. “We intend to continue in good faith with that effort. The integrated management plans under consideration by the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources and the Natural Resources Districts, plus the tools provided in LB 701 signed into law this year, will allow us to achieve compact compliance going forward.
These are important steps that deserve recognition. We will review the letter from Kansas carefully.”

Attorney General Bruning stated, “We appreciate Mr. Barfield’s letter and recognize that this is another step in the process of resolving this dispute. We are hopeful that this dispute can be resolved without involving litigation. However, if Kansas decides to pursue litigation, we are prepared to vigorously defend the interests of Nebraska and our citizens. We are confident that the steps in the proposed integrated management plans will get us where we need to be without the need for the drastic actions suggested by Kansas.”