State Representative Lauren Boebert Proudly Serving the 3rd District of Colorado | Official website
State Representative Lauren Boebert Proudly Serving the 3rd District of Colorado | Official website
A new law aimed at protecting endangered fish species in Colorado has been enacted. Congresswoman Lauren Boebert's Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Endangered Fish Recovery Programs Reauthorization Act was included in the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, which was signed into law this week.
"Ensuring protection for four threatened and endangered species of fish in Colorado while also allowing thousands of water and power users to continue their operations without interruption is common sense," said Congresswoman Boebert. "I am thrilled that we were able to provide long-term certainty for this important program and finally get this legislation signed into law."
The bill, H.R. 4596, extends the authorization of recovery programs for seven years, focusing on four native fish species: the humpback chub, bonytail, Colorado pikeminnow, and razorback sucker. These programs help manage water delivery from major reservoirs as part of the Colorado River Storage Project.
Established in 1988, these recovery programs aim to restore fish populations while allowing continued water and power development. They have involved cooperation among states, tribes, local communities, environmental groups, energy users, and water users.
Non-federal partners contribute $11 million annually along with additional staffing resources. States participating in the program provide $500,000 each year for various recovery actions. The Fish and Wildlife Service contributes $1.56 million per year to base funding while the Bureau of Reclamation supports both base and capital funding projects.
Without these initiatives, about 2,500 water and power users would face extensive consultations for individual projects under Section 7 regulations.
Successes attributed to these programs include the downlisting of the humpback chub from endangered to threatened status and a recommendation for downlisting the razorback sucker.
Rep. Boebert worked with stakeholders including Senator Hickenlooper and the Bureau of Reclamation to secure this reauthorization until 2031. The act received support from numerous organizations such as Aurora Water, Central Utah Water Conservancy District, Denver Water, Southern Ute Tribe among others.
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