This bill settles a long-standing water rights dispute involving the Yavapai-Apache Nation in Arizona. The Yavapai-Apache Nation has claimed rights to water from the Verde River and Colorado River for decades. This settlement agreement, signed in June 2024, resolves all of those claims once and for all. The bill officially approves and enforces this settlement agreement under federal law.

The settlement gives the Yavapai-Apache Nation access to water through two main projects. First, the Cragin-Verde Pipeline Project will deliver water from C.C. Cragin Dam and Reservoir to the tribe's reservation and other areas in the Verde Valley. Second, the YAN Drinking Water System Project will treat and distribute that water to tribal members. The tribe will also receive water from the Central Arizona Project (CAP), a major federal water delivery system. Additionally, the tribe gets funding through two trust funds—one specifically for the water infrastructure projects and another for general water settlement purposes.

The bill recognizes the deep cultural and spiritual importance of the Verde River to the Yavapai and Apache peoples, who call it 'Hatayakehela' and 'Tu nl[[nichoh' respectively, meaning 'Big River' and 'Big Water flowing.' The settlement protects existing river flows on the tribe's reservation, including flood flows, for current and future generations. This agreement ends all water-related lawsuits and claims between the tribe, the federal government, and the state of Arizona, providing certainty and stability for water management in Arizona.