{"id":184356,"date":"2025-08-04T15:03:22","date_gmt":"2025-08-04T20:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/?p=184356"},"modified":"2025-08-04T19:31:30","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T00:31:30","slug":"source-new-mexico-funding-for-navajo-nation-water-project-in-doubt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/08\/04\/source-new-mexico-funding-for-navajo-nation-water-project-in-doubt\/","title":{"rendered":"Source New Mexico: Funding for Navajo Nation water project in doubt"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9\">\r\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/q_80EkGzcpM?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">Indianz.Com Video: <a href=https:\/\/youtu.be\/q_80EkGzcpM>&#8216;For too long, America has ignored its trust responsibilities&#8217;: Sen. Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n (D-NM)<\/a>\r\n<\/figcaption>\r\n<div class=\"h3-responsive font-weight-bold\">Luj\u00e1n calls on Trump to fund Navajo-Gallup water pipeline, as Gallup warns it\u2019s running dry<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"date\">Monday, August 4, 2025<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"byline\">By Patrick Lohmann, <a href=\"https:\/\/sourcenm.com\">Source New Mexico<\/a> <\/div>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\n<p>New Mexico Democratic U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n is calling on President Donald Trump to fund the next phase of a massive water pipeline in northwest New Mexico, saying failing to do so would violate Navajo water rights and could cause the project to fail completely.<\/p><p>Failure to complete the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project also threatens to leave the City of Gallup with a dwindling groundwater supply, city leaders told state lawmakers recently.<\/p><p>Trump\u2019s budget proposal contains no money for the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, an omission for which Luj\u00e1n sharply criticized a federal Interior official earlier this month. He noted that 250,000 Navajo people are relying on the project\u2019s completion. On Tuesday, Luj\u00e1n\u2019s office told Source New Mexico that the president needs to provide $175 million for the project this fiscal year to keep the project on track.<\/p><p>\u201cUnfortunately, this Administration has failed to prioritize the project, and without the necessary funding, it risks becoming the first Indian Water Rights Settlement to fail. I\u2019m doing everything in my power to ensure that does not happen,\u201d Luj\u00e1n said in an emailed statement.<\/p>\r\n <a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/07\/21\/were-frustrated-lawmakers-press-indian-affairs-nominee-on-key-issues\/billykirklandbenraylujan\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-170198\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1536\" data-attachment-id=\"170198\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/07\/21\/were-frustrated-lawmakers-press-indian-affairs-nominee-on-key-issues\/billykirklandbenraylujan\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/21\/billykirklandbenraylujan.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"2048,1536\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"William \u201cBilly\u201d Kirkland and Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;William \u201cBilly\u201d Kirkland and Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;William \u201cBilly\u201d Kirkland, left, chats with Sen. Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n (D-New Mexico) following Kirkland&amp;#8217;s confirmation hearing to be Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C., on July 17, 2025. Photo by Indianz.Com &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/&quot;&gt;(CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/21\/billykirklandbenraylujan.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/21\/billykirklandbenraylujan.jpg\" alt=\"William \u201cBilly\u201d Kirkland and Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n\"  class=\"size-full wp-image-170198\" \/><\/a> <figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">William \u201cBilly\u201d Kirkland, left, chats with Sen. Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n (D-New Mexico) following Kirkland&#8217;s confirmation hearing to be Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C., on July 17, 2025. Photo by Indianz.Com <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">(CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)<\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\n<p>A multi-agency effort to divert water from the San Juan River to the Navajo Nation and areas nearby has been in the works since the 1970s; the state, Navajo Nation and federal Interior Department in 2010 finalized the Nation\u2019s water rights settlement, a key component of which was the 300-mile pipeline.<\/p><p>The 2009 law that authorized the pipeline\u2019s construction required that all components be completed by December 2024. But in September, then-Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland approved an extension of the completion deadline until December 2029, an extension the state, tribe and federal agency agreed to.\u00a0<\/p><p>They justified the deadline extension to allow time to investigate the feasibility of incorporating the water storage and intake features once used at the recently demolished San Juan Generating Station.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u201cFederal agency provides $120 million for Navajo-Gallup Water supply project\u201d \u2014 Source New Mexico\" src=\"https:\/\/sourcenm.com\/2025\/01\/13\/federal-agency-provides-120-million-for-navajo-gallup-water-supply-project\/embed\/#?secret=poiohhU1Vj#?secret=KCq59d7bmq\" width=\"95%\" height=\"300\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p><p>In the 15 years since the federal government authorized the pipeline, Gallup\u2019s annual groundwater production has dropped from about 3,900 acre-feet to about 2,900 acre-feet, due to declining water levels. Over the last decade, its groundwater levels have dropped about 200 feet, requiring deeper and deeper wells, according to city and federal officials.\u00a0<\/p><p>On the Navajo Nation, more than 40% of households haul water to meet their daily needs.\u00a0<\/p><p>The funding still hangs in the balance. Bart Deming, a construction engineer with the Department of Reclamation, told state lawmakers July 17 that an estimated funding gap of roughly $600 million remains.\u00a0<\/p><p>Current legislation authorizes up to $1.6 billion for the project, but recent estimates suggest $2.2 billion is needed, Deming told the interim Indian Affairs Committee of the Legislature at a meeting at the Pinedale Chapter of the Navajo Nation.\u00a0<\/p><p>\u201cSo there\u2019s still a challenge there,\u201d he told lawmakers.\u00a0<\/p><p>The delays and costs have put Gallup city officials in a precarious position, officials told lawmakers at the meeting. The new pipeline promises a way for the city to no longer rely on 15 water wells that need to be drilled increasingly deep into the aquifer.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9\">\r\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/mjLzSnWjHN0?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">Senate Committee on Indian Affairs: \r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/07\/21\/video-confirmation-hearing-for-william-billy-kirkland-to-be-assistant-secretary-for-indian-affairs\/\">Nomination Hearing to consider Mr. William Kirkland to be Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs within the Department of the Interior<\/a>\r\n<\/figcaption><P><\/P>\r\n<p>So far, the city has paid more than $58 million into the project and \u201cnot received a single drop of water,\u201d according to the city\u2019s presentation. The original contract put the city on the hook for $57 million. Now, amid the extension and the delays, it\u2019s facing down $10 million bills annually until the project\u2019s completion, money that it could be using instead to maintain its wells or drill new ones.\u00a0<\/p><p>\u201cThe City of Gallup cannot afford to pay this amount of money and maintain its water and wastewater systems,\u201d according to the city\u2019s presentation.\u00a0<\/p><p>City Manager Frank Chiapetti told lawmakers that the city initially faces several options ranging from \u201cbest\u201d to \u201cunthinkable.\u201d The \u201cbest\u201d option entails all debt for future costs forgiven. A \u201clivable\u201d option is to cap the city\u2019s share of the project\u2019s cost at $76 million.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<div class=\" content_cards_card content_cards_domain_indianz-com\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"content_cards_image\">\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_image_link\" href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/07\/21\/were-frustrated-lawmakers-press-indian-affairs-nominee-on-key-issues\/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/11\/billykirkland-17.jpe\" alt=\"\u2018We\u2019re frustrated\u2019: Lawmakers press Indian affairs nominee on key issues\">\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_title\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_title_link\" href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/07\/21\/were-frustrated-lawmakers-press-indian-affairs-nominee-on-key-issues\/\">\n\t\t\t\u2018We\u2019re frustrated\u2019: Lawmakers press Indian affairs nominee on key issues\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_description\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_description_link\" href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2025\/07\/21\/were-frustrated-lawmakers-press-indian-affairs-nominee-on-key-issues\/\">\n\t\t\t<p>Long-simmering tensions in the nation\u2019s capital burst into the open at a confirmation hearing for one of Indian Country\u2019s most crucial government positions.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_site_name\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.indianz.com\/favicon.ico\" alt=\"Indianz.Com\" class=\"content_cards_favicon\"\/>\t\tIndianz.Com\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\r\n<p>But other scenarios include \u201cnuclear,\u201d which would mean the city would pull out of the project; \u201clegal,\u201d wherein the city sues for alleged breach of contract; and \u201cunthinkable,\u201d in which the city can\u2019t pay for any new capital projects at least 10 years and is driven \u201cinto bankruptcy.\u201d<\/p><p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/119th-congress\/senate-bill\/637\">bill<\/a> Luj\u00e1n introduced this year would, among other provisions, cap the city of Gallup\u2019s share of the cost at $76 million.\u00a0<\/p><p>The Project Construction Committee, which reviews contracts and other matters related to the pipeline, is scheduled to meet Thursday, July 31, for the third time this year.\u00a0<\/p><style> figure, .tipContainer, .socContainer, .subscribeShortcodeContainer, .donateContainer {display:none !important;} .youtubeContainer { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; padding-top: 30px; height: 0; overflow: hidden; margin-bottom:12px; } .youtubeContainer iframe, .video-container object, .video-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100% !important; height: 100%; margin: 12px 0px !important; } .newsroomSidebar {width:35%;max-width:35%;padding:10px;border-top:solid 2px black;background-color:#d3d3d3;float:right;margin-left:50px;} .snrsInfoboxSubContainer {padding:10px;border-top:solid 2px black;background-color:#d3d3d3;} .halfwidth {float:right;width:50%;max-width:50%;} .indent2Container {margin-left: 1em;margin-bottom:1em; border-left: solid 1px black;padding-left: 2em;} @media only screen and (max-width: 600px) {.newsroomSidebar {max-width:95%;width:95%;margin-left:4%} .halfwidth {float:none;width:100%;max-width:100%;} }<\/style> \r\n<HR>\r\n<P><strong>This story originally appeared on <a href=\"https:\/\/sourcenm.com\/2025\/07\/29\/lujan-calls-on-trump-to-fund-navajo-gallup-water-pipeline-as-gallup-warns-its-running-dry\/\">Source New Mexico on July 29, 2025<\/a>. It is published under a Creative Commons license (<a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nd\/4.0\/\">CC BY-ND 4.0<\/a>).<\/strong><\/P>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/sourcenm.com\">Source New Mexico<\/a> is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Source New Mexico maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Goldberg for questions: <a href=\"mailto:info@sourcenm.com\">info@sourcenm.com<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n<HR>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sen. Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n (D-New Mexico) is calling on President Donald Trump to fund the next phase of a massive water pipeline, saying failing to do so would violate Navajo water rights and could cause the project to fail completely.","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":170198,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,20,13,1,14],"tags":[214,370,94,118,75,24,167,85,91,2005,154,153],"class_list":["post-184356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-environment","category-indian-trust","category-law","category-national","category-politics","tag-appropriations","tag-ben-ray-lujan","tag-democrats","tag-doi","tag-donald-trump","tag-navajo","tag-new-mexico","tag-republicans","tag-senate","tag-source-new-mexico","tag-treaties","tag-water","no-wpautop"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/21\/billykirklandbenraylujan.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcoJ7g-LXu","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184356","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=184356"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184356\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":184592,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184356\/revisions\/184592"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/170198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=184356"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=184356"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=184356"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}