Show 4 al 1 ah A 11 lA 11 W WE HAVE HAVID OUR FINGERS CROSSED tb the following li Is a guest edificial dUox tal written by br a vernal business masu my r sti tte much can cabbe be tha tae people 10 iv presenta tives meet mea with mutual respect for each others needs and wishes 11 1 in the past the power po AL y batir picture reflected much conniving and selfish grabbling such as the recent attempt t by a nevada senator to throw the quarrel into the courts this would result in an indefinite impasse which present status ano would benei fit two states with doubtful rights and react to the detri mont of the upper basin states recently the house af pf representatives Be clama tion subcommittee approved a bill introduced by depre tentative Benta senta tive frank A barrett of wyoming which now awaits await the action of the house public lands committee cepro senta tives of the four upper basin states utah coloa rado tado wyoming and arizona are supporting the bill which provides that after july 1 1948 the ap annually out of the colorado biver river development fund shall be distributed equally between these four states this money which is obtain obtained ed from power revenues at boulder dam is used for in investigation and construction in the upper colorado basin heretofore the bureau of reclamation allotted these funds to suit its whims with 50 per cent going to colorado 25 per cent to utah and the balance to wyoming and new now mexico Ai another iother in injustice justi which would be corrected by the passage of the bill is the comptroller generals ra ruling that any upper basin state receiving money from the colorado biver river development fund would not be entitled to any allotment out of the larger general reclamation surveys and investigations fund the barred bill nullifies this ruling and permits the upper basin states to share in the distribution of both the general fund and the colorado river development fund by making available to the upper basin states the use of money from the general reclamation fund the preliminary work on the central utah and echo park dam projects could be expanded and hastened thus bringing these projects closer to realization all this is of course contingent upon the barrett barret bill receiving the approval of the public lands committee and its subsequent passage by congress and approval of the president we have our fi fingers crossed i |