<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"><head><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml><o:OfficeDocumentSettings><o:AllowPNG/><o:PixelsPerInch>96</o:PixelsPerInch></o:OfficeDocumentSettings></xml><![endif]--></head><body><div class="ydp6dee5da7yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:garamond, new york, times, serif;font-size:16px;"><div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/feds-defend-permanent-water-contracts-to-benefit-agriculture/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.courthousenews.com/feds-defend-permanent-water-contracts-to-benefit-agriculture/</a></div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><div>
<h1 class="ydpab5304e2entry-title">
Feds Defend Permanent Water Contracts to Benefit Agriculture </h1>
<div class="ydpab5304e2below-entry-meta">
<span class="ydpab5304e2posted-on"><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/feds-defend-permanent-water-contracts-to-benefit-agriculture/" title="6:08 pm" data-wpel-link="internal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" class=""> December 10, 2020</a></span><div><br></div>
<span class="ydpab5304e2byline"><span class="ydpab5304e2author ydpab5304e2vcard"> <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/author/nick-iovino/" title="Posts by NICHOLAS IOVINO" class="ydpab5304e2author ydpab5304e2url ydpab5304e2fn" data-wpel-link="internal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">NICHOLAS IOVINO</a> </span></span>
<div class="ydpab5304e2a2a_kit ydpab5304e2a2a_kit_size_24 ydpab5304e2addtoany_list" data-a2a-url="https://www.courthousenews.com/feds-defend-permanent-water-contracts-to-benefit-agriculture/" data-a2a-title="Feds Defend Permanent Water Contracts to Benefit Agriculture" style="line-height: 24px;"><a class="ydpab5304e2a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/#facebook" title="Facebook" data-wpel-link="external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span class="ydpab5304e2a2a_svg ydpab5304e2a2a_s__default ydpab5304e2a2a_s_facebook" style="background-color: rgb(59, 70, 70); width: 24px; line-height: 24px; background-size: 24px; border-radius: 3px; min-height: 24px;"></span></a></div></div><a class="ydpab5304e2a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/#facebook" title="Facebook" data-wpel-link="external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span class="ydpab5304e2a2a_label">Facebook</span></a><a class="ydpab5304e2a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/#twitter" title="Twitter" data-wpel-link="external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span class="ydpab5304e2a2a_svg ydpab5304e2a2a_s__default ydpab5304e2a2a_s_twitter" style="background-color: rgb(59, 70, 70); width: 24px; line-height: 24px; background-size: 24px; border-radius: 3px; min-height: 24px;"></span></a><a class="ydpab5304e2a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/#twitter" title="Twitter" data-wpel-link="external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span class="ydpab5304e2a2a_label">Twitter</span></a><a class="ydpab5304e2a2a_button_email" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/#email" title="Email" data-wpel-link="external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span class="ydpab5304e2a2a_svg ydpab5304e2a2a_s__default ydpab5304e2a2a_s_email" style="background-color: rgb(59, 70, 70); width: 24px; line-height: 24px; background-size: 24px; border-radius: 3px; min-height: 24px;"></span></a><div id="ydpab5304e2main" class="ydpab5304e2clearfix"><div class="ydpab5304e2inner-wrap ydpab5304e2clearfix"><div id="ydpab5304e2primary"><div id="ydpab5304e2content" class="ydpab5304e2clearfix"><div class="ydpab5304e2article-content ydpab5304e2clearfix"><div class="ydpab5304e2below-entry-meta"><div class="ydpab5304e2a2a_kit ydpab5304e2a2a_kit_size_24 ydpab5304e2addtoany_list" data-a2a-url="https://www.courthousenews.com/feds-defend-permanent-water-contracts-to-benefit-agriculture/" data-a2a-title="Feds Defend Permanent Water Contracts to Benefit Agriculture" style="line-height: 24px;"><a class="ydpab5304e2a2a_button_email" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/#email" title="Email" data-wpel-link="external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span class="ydpab5304e2a2a_label">Email</span></a></div>
</div>
<div class="ydpab5304e2entry-content ydpab5304e2clearfix">
<img data-attachment-id="620665" data-permalink="https://www.courthousenews.com/trinity_river_highway_299/" data-orig-file="https://i2.wp.com/www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Trinity_River_Highway_299.jpg?fit=1280%2C960&ssl=1" data-orig-size="1280,960" data-comments-opened="0" data-image-meta="{aperture:5.6,credit:,camera:Canon PowerShot A70,caption:,created_timestamp:1155737397,copyright:,focal_length:7.84375,iso:0,shutter_speed:0.0015625,title:,orientation:1}" data-image-title="Trinity_River_Highway_299" data-image-description="" data-medium-file="https://i2.wp.com/www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Trinity_River_Highway_299.jpg?fit=300%2C225&ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i2.wp.com/www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Trinity_River_Highway_299.jpg?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1" src="https://i2.wp.com/www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Trinity_River_Highway_299.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&ssl=1" alt="" class="ydpab5304e2wp-image-620665 ydpab5304e2jetpack-lazy-image ydpab5304e2jetpack-lazy-image--handled" data-recalc-dims="1" data-lazy-loaded="1" style="width: 100%; max-width: 800px;">By Ken Lund <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51558636" data-wpel-link="external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>
<p>SAN FRANCISCO (CN) — Defending the decision to give farm irrigation
districts permanent access to low-cost, federally pumped water in
California, a Justice Department lawyer urged a federal judge Thursday
to flush a Native American tribe’s lawsuit against the endless
entitlements.</p>
<p>The Hoopa Valley Tribe sued the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in August,
claiming the Trump administration’s conversion of 14 time-limited
contracts for Central Valley Project water into permanent deals violated
a host of federal laws. The contracts were made permanent in February.
Another 26 agreements are in the process of being converted to permanent
deals.</p>
<p>According to the tribe, the unending contracts do not prioritize
water for Trinity River in-basin flows or require contractors to pay for
fish restoration and wildlife preservation programs as mandated by a
1992 law, the Central Valley Project Improvement Act.</p>
<p>Without those protections, the tribe says more water could be
diverted from the Trinity River to the Central Valley and have a
“devastating impact on the fish, water and other environmental
resources.”</p>
<p>Arguing in a virtual courtroom Thursday, Justice Department lawyer
Thomas Scott Jeffrey argued the law that imposes those obligations does
not pertain to permanent contracts because they are neither new deals
nor contract renewals as defined by the law.</p>
<p>“It does not apply to the conversion of an existing contract into a no-term repayment contract,” he said.</p>
<p>Representing the Hoopa Valley Tribe, attorney Thane Somerville called
that position “absurd.” He said Congress wanted the law to apply to all
long-term contracts, which are defined as agreements with a term of 10
years or more.</p>
<p>“It was intended to protect the environment from the effects of long-term contracts,” Somerville said.</p>
<p>Somerville is with the firm Morisset Schlosser Jozwiak & Somerville in Seattle.</p>
<p>Congress passed the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation
Act in 2016. The law directs the Bureau of Reclamation to convert
existing Central Valley Project water contracts into permanent deals if a
contractor requests it.</p>
<p>But the 2016 law also states that it does not alter obligations
imposed by other statutes, including requirements that contractors help
fund environmental restoration and preservation programs for the Trinity
River.</p>
<p>The failure to explicitly include those terms in the permanent water contracts violates the law, Somerville argued.</p>
<p>“The tribe is constantly forced to fight over water deliveries that
they are entitled to under federal law, funding they are entitled to
receive under federal law,” he said. “That’s why it’s so important to
have specific provisions in the contracts that will bind the contractors
to these terms that are required under federal law.”</p>
<p>Assuming the government was obligated to include those terms in its contracts, Jeffrey said the lawsuit should <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/CVP-water-dismiss-motion.pdf" data-wpel-link="internal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">still be dismissed</a>
because the tribe lacks standing to sue. He said the tribe complains
about a purely technical violation of law that has not caused it to
suffer any real-world harm.</p>
<p>Somerville insisted the mere approval of contracts that flout laws
designed to protect the tribe’s natural resources is a concrete injury.</p>
<p>“The Trinity River goes right through their lands,” Somerville said. “It has specifically affected their interests for decades.”</p>
<p>The Bureau of Reclamation also maintains that the lawsuit cannot move
forward unless the water districts, whose contractual rights would be
affected by any court decision, are added to the case. </p>
<p>The tribe argues that because the contracts have not been validated
under California state law, they are not in effect yet. The water
districts are still operating under the terms of interim contracts,
Somerville said.</p>
<p>The tribe further insists that the water districts are not necessary
parties because the U.S. government is well suited to champion their
interests in the lawsuit.</p>
<p>“The parties are adequately represented by the defendant in this case,” Somerville said.</p>
<p>On the bureau’s <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/CVP-water-transfer-motion.pdf" data-wpel-link="internal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">motion to transfer</a>
the case to the Eastern District of California where two similar
lawsuits are pending, U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg said he was
inclined to deny that motion.</p>
<p>Beyond finding that the plaintiff’s choice of forum carries some
weight, Seeborg cited a “judicial emergency” in the Eastern District of
California as a factor that strongly supports keeping the case in San
Francisco.</p>
<p>The Eastern District’s chief judge, Kimberly Mueller, declared a <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/judicial-emergency-doc.pdf" data-wpel-link="internal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">judicial emergency</a> in March as the district faced a growing backlog of cases exacerbated by two judicial vacancies. </p>
<p>In the Fresno division, where the related lawsuits are pending, U.S. District Judge Dale Drozd issued a <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/drodz-standing-order.pdf" data-wpel-link="internal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">standing order</a> in February stating he will not hold any trials or hearings on motions in civil cases until the situation improves.</p>
<p>“All the judicial efficiency arguments evaporate when you’re talking
about the district where the transfer would be going to is in dire
straits,” Seeborg said.</p>
<div id="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts" class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts" style="display: block;">
<div class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-items ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-items-minimal ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-grid"><p class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post0" data-post-id="523402" data-post-format="false"><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-title"><a class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-a" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/major-water-deal-proposed-for-ex-client-of-interior-secretary/" title="Major Water Deal Proposed for Ex-Client of Interior Secretary" data-origin="620655" data-position="0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Major Water Deal Proposed for Ex-Client of Interior Secretary</a></span><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-date">November 8, 2019</span><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-context">In "Interior Department"</span></p><p class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post1" data-post-id="329368" data-post-format="false"><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-title"><a class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-a" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/ninth-circuit-confirms-california-tribes-groundwater-rights/" title="Ninth Circuit Confirms Tribe’s Water Rights" data-origin="620655" data-position="1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ninth Circuit Confirms Tribe’s Water Rights</a></span><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-date">March 8, 2017</span><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-context">In "Appeals"</span></p><p class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post2" data-post-id="523615" data-post-format="false"><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-title"><a class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-a enhancr_card_7853666795" href="https://www.courthousenews.com/water-supplier-backs-out-of-contentious-shasta-dam-deal/" title="Water Supplier Temporarily Backs Out of Contentious Shasta Dam Deal" data-origin="620655" data-position="2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Water Supplier Temporarily Backs Out of Contentious Shasta Dam Deal</a></span></p><div><br></div><div id="ydp4c817482enhancr_card_7853666795" class="ydp4c817482yahoo-link-enhancr-card ydp4c817482ymail-preserve-class ydp4c817482ymail-preserve-style" style="max-width: 400px; font-family: YahooSans, Helvetica Neue, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; position: relative;" data-url="https://www.courthousenews.com/water-supplier-backs-out-of-contentious-shasta-dam-deal/" data-type="YENHANCER" data-size="MEDIUM" contenteditable="false"><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/water-supplier-backs-out-of-contentious-shasta-dam-deal/" style="text-decoration-line: none !important; text-decoration-style: solid !important; text-decoration-color: currentcolor !important; color: rgb(0, 0, 0) !important;" class="ydp4c817482yahoo-enhancr-cardlink" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><table class="ydp4c817482card-wrapper ydp4c817482yahoo-ignore-table" style="max-width:400px" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td width="400"><table class="ydp4c817482card ydp4c817482yahoo-ignore-table" style="max-width:400px;border-width:1px;border-style:solid;border-color:rgb(224, 228, 233);border-radius:2px" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td class="ydp4c817482card-primary-image-cell" style="background-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; position: relative; border-radius: 2px 2px 0px 0px; min-height: 175px;" valign="top" height="175" bgcolor="#000000" background="https://s.yimg.com/lo/api/res/1.2/f8pABgMwPne5Da8CGBZX.g--~A/Zmk9ZmlsbDt3PTQwMDtoPTIwMDthcHBpZD1pZXh0cmFjdA--/http://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/ShastaDam-1024x768.jpg.cf.jpg"><!--[if gte mso 9]><v:rect fill="true" stroke="false" style="width:396px;height:175px;position:absolute;top:0;left:0;"><v:fill type="frame" color="#000000" src="https://s.yimg.com/lo/api/res/1.2/f8pABgMwPne5Da8CGBZX.g--~A/Zmk9ZmlsbDt3PTQwMDtoPTIwMDthcHBpZD1pZXh0cmFjdA--/http://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/ShastaDam-1024x768.jpg.cf.jpg"/></v:rect><![endif]--><table class="ydp4c817482card-overlay-container-table ydp4c817482yahoo-ignore-table" style="width:100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td class="ydp4c817482card-overlay-cell" style="background-color: transparent; border-radius: 2px 2px 0px 0px; min-height: 175px;" valign="top" bgcolor="transparent" background="https://s.yimg.com/cv/ae/nq/storm/assets/enhancrV21/1/enhancr_gradient-400x175.png"><!--[if gte mso 9]><v:rect fill="true" stroke="false" style="width:396px;height:175px;position:absolute;top:-18px;left:0;"><v:fill type="pattern" color="#000000" src="https://s.yimg.com/cv/ae/nq/storm/assets/enhancrV21/1/enhancr_gradient-400x175.png"/><v:textbox inset="0,0,20px,0"><![endif]--><table class="ydp4c817482yahoo-ignore-table" style="width: 100%; min-height: 175px;" height="175" border="0"><tbody><tr><td class="ydp4c817482card-richInfo2" style="text-align:left;padding:15px 0 0 15px;vertical-align:top"></td><td class="ydp4c817482card-actions" style="text-align:right;padding:15px 15px 0 0;vertical-align:top"><div class="ydp4c817482card-share-container"></div></td></tr></tbody></table><!--[if gte mso 9]></v:textbox></v:rect><![endif]--></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr><td><table class="ydp4c817482card-info ydp4c817482yahoo-ignore-table" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); background-repeat: repeat; background-attachment: scroll; background-image: none; background-size: auto; position: relative; z-index: 2; width: 100%; max-width: 400px; border-radius: 0px 0px 2px 2px; border-top: 1px solid rgb(224, 228, 233);" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" align="center"><tbody><tr><td style="background-color:#ffffff;padding:16px 0 16px 12px;vertical-align:top;border-radius:0 0 0 2px"></td><td style="vertical-align:middle;padding:12px 24px 16px 12px;width:99%;font-family:YahooSans, Helvetica Neue, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;border-radius:0 0 2px 0"><h2 class="ydp4c817482card-title" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px 0px 6px; font-family: YahooSans, Helvetica Neue, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(38, 40, 42); max-width: 314px;">Water Supplier Temporarily Backs Out of Contentious Shasta Dam Deal</h2><p class="ydp4c817482card-description" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; color: rgb(151, 155, 167);">The Trump administration’s push to raise one of the country’s tallest and most iconic dams – and flood a protect...</p></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></a><div class="loadingSpinnerContainer" style="position: absolute; top: 0px; width: 100%; height: 100%; display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3);"><div class="D_F F_n gl_C ab_C H_6MGW o_h"><div class="W_6MGW H_6MGW D_X ah_1PEzoz" data-test-id="loading_indicator"><svg class="W_6MGW H_6MGW ah_Zq6hUs" viewBox="0 0 24 24" width="24" height="24"><path class="cdPFi_n cZ13pKbK_Z2aVTcY cZ1XO2Ji_dRA c2abBOT_EY cZ1vNhDV_rd cZV8aCd_pI ah_14s73" d="M12,22C6.477,22,2,17.523,2,12S6.477,2,12,2"></path><path class="cdPFi_n cZ13pKbK_Z2aVTcY cZ1XO2Ji_dRA c2abBOT_EY cZ1vNhDV_rd cZV8aCd_pI ah_14s73" d="M12,2c5.523,0,10,4.477,10,10s-4.477,10-10,10"></path></svg></div></div></div></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-date">November 8, 2019</span><span class="ydpab5304e2jp-relatedposts-post-context">In "Environment"</span><p></p></div></div> </div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="ydpab5304e2footer-socket-wrapper ydpab5304e2clearfix">
</div></div>\</div></div></div></body></html>