# Colorado River Basin System Conservation Extension Act - Plain Language Summary

## What This Bill Does

This bill extends a water conservation program for the Colorado River Basin by two years. Specifically, it amends an existing 2015 law that created a pilot program to help conserve water in the Colorado River system. The bill pushes back two key deadlines: moving the program's authorization deadline from 2024 to 2026, and extending another deadline from 2025 to 2027. In simple terms, this keeps the conservation program running longer than originally planned.

## Who Is Affected

This extension benefits water users across the seven states that depend on the Colorado River (Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming), as well as Mexico, which also has water rights to the river. The program helps manage water supplies during drought conditions and supports efforts to keep Lake Mead and Lake Powell at sustainable levels. Agricultural users, cities, tribes, and hydroelectric power generators all rely on Colorado River water and would benefit from continued conservation efforts.

## Key Changes

The bill makes three straightforward amendments to the original 2015 law:
- **Renames the program** to the "Colorado River Basin System Conservation Extension Act"
- **Extends the authorization deadline** from 2024 to 2026
- **Extends another deadline** from 2025 to 2027

These changes essentially give the conservation pilot program two additional years to operate and demonstrate its effectiveness before Congress would need to reauthorize it again.

Colorado River Basin System Conservation Extension Act

Hickenlooper, John W.

Colorado River Basin System Conservation Extension ActThis bill extends through FY2026 the Bureau of Reclamation's pilot projects&nbsp;to increase water levels in the Upper Colorado River Basin and Lake Mead due to drought conditions.