Pillen plan to merge two agencies hits rough waters at legislative hearing
LINCOLN — The Nebraska Association of Resources Districts and key ag leaders were among those who threw cold water this week, at least for now, on an idea from Gov. Jim Pillen to merge two state agencies.
Legislative Bill 317, by State Sen. Tom Brandt of Plymouth and introduced at the request of Gov. Jim Pillen, would fold the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources into the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy. Pillen has said his goal is to enhance the state's focus on water.
The combined agency would be the Nebraska Department of Water, Energy and Environment, effective July 1, if adopted by the Legislature this spring.
Pillen has also set his sights on creating a Water Quality and Quantity Task Force, eyeing 15-18 members likely to be appointed by the governor, which he said would seek proactive solutions and possible policy help to proactively protect the state's water resources.
Jasper Fanning, general manager of the Upper Republican Natural Resources District, testifying on behalf of the association for the state's 23 NRDs, argued against the merger for now.
Fanning described the Department of Natural Resources as very collaborative and problem-solving, urging a more surgical and refined approach to merger conversations. He said carving out only water-related structures, if that's the goal, could be a focus.
The task force could help frame those conversations, Fanning said.
'This is probably a terrible analogy, but you don't arrange for and conduct a shotgun wedding and then make the first step after that wedding looking at what the [pregnancy] test result is,' Fanning said.
He continued: 'We need to take a scalpel and a very refined approach as opposed to just kind of a broad, sweeping approach to [the] discussion.'
The merger would replace the director of the Natural Resources Department with a 'chief water officer' as a division leader below the new merged agency's director.
The water position would require legislative approval and, at a minimum, require at least five years' experience in a position of responsibility in irrigation work. Multiple testifiers said the chief water officer should be required to be a licensed professional engineer, as currently required.
Brandt and others said that requirement would return in a future amendment.
Fanning said Jesse Bradley, interim director of both of the agencies proposed to merge, needs to continue to be focused on the 'most important water issue and project governance in the history of the State of Nebraska.'
For the NRD general manager, that is the Perkins County Canal, a 100-year interstate compact that former Gov. Pete Ricketts, now U.S. senator, unearthed and passed on to Pillen.
The canal would capture water in Keith County in western Nebraska from Colorado. Lawmakers have already appropriated funds for such construction, which Colorado officials have criticized as a 'canal to nowhere.'
'Some might disagree with that, but I think the Perkins County Canal, and the South Platte [River] Compact, is the most important thing in Nebraska's water future,' Fanning said.
Fanning said Environment and Energy focuses on federal mandates, pass-through funding and 'a lot of check-the-box things, not really asking the question every day, 'How do we best serve Nebraskans and what can we do to help Nebraska grow?'' He said that would take up necessary staff time.
'Anything that takes Mr. Bradley's efforts and his staff's efforts away from focusing on ensuring Nebraska's water future, which has significant impacts on Lincoln and Omaha's water supply, it's a big deal,' Fanning said.
Bradley has been interim director of Natural Resources since August 2024, and he assumed the top role at Environment and Energy on Wednesday, as Pillen eyed the merger.
The interim director said the merger would improve focus on long-term issues, such as nitrogen management, water utilization and soil health. He said it would also help streamline the process for planning and permitting.
He said he supports the merger and told the committee he believes staff are excited to work together and break through existing silos. Both agencies are already co-located at the same office building in northwest Lincoln.
Natural Resources has a budget of more than $104 million, largely in cash funds, and has about 112 employees. Environment and Energy has a budget of nearly $99 million, split in half roughly between cash and federal funds, and has 252 employees.
Pillen told the Natural Resources Committee, which Brandt chairs, that water is the 'lifeblood' of Nebraska and that future innovations will lead to an 'economic boom' in the state.
He noted new hydrogen plants, companies based around biofuels and biobased products, animal processing plants and data centers are looking to locate in the state and will need water.
'Moving forward, we need to double down on our efforts to protect and enhance this valuable resource,' Pillen testified. 'Combining DEE and DNR sets the foundation for water quantity and quality under the same leadership.'
Pillen, who is 69 years old, grew up on a farm in Platte County where he raised pigs with his father. In 1993, he started Pillen Family Farms and later added DNA genetics, which has grown into a massive hog operation.
Much of the state has high nitrate levels, which has landed criticism at Pillen and his family operation in recent years as he ascended to the governor's office.
Pillen and lawmakers commissioned a study in 2023 to recommend viable solutions for nitrate-affected drinking water. They also allocated $500,000 annually for one-time income tax credits, up to $1,000, for reverse osmosis systems to help filter out nitrates and other chemicals from drinking water.
The governor testified that it is 'no secret' that the state has faced elevated nitrate levels for 60 years, which he said the merger and his task force would help combat.
'This has to stop. It cannot continue,' Pillen said of nitrate contamination. 'We need to get aggressive and address these issues.'
He described the merger as 'simply good governance' that would lead to cost savings over time.
Fiscal estimates provided by the Natural Resources and Environment and Energy Departments showed no immediate savings but projected $100,000 in rebranding costs in the next fiscal year.
Jacob Leaver, deputy state budget administrator, said the merger wouldn't impact any current obligations or projects for either agency. He said, if merged, that cost savings might come in the 2027-2029 fiscal years.
State Sen. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln said she was surprised there were no specific savings identified. Pillen and Leaver said that was intentional.
'To be able to go out and say exactly what that is,' Pillen told the committee of potential savings, 'I just don't think it's fair to the public servants who are part of those agencies to do that today.'
Timothy McCoy, director of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, also supported the proposal, limiting his comments to a small section in the 446-page bill that would return authority for determining the boundaries of state game refuges to his commission from Environment and Energy. McCoy, like Fanning, said he anticipated coordination with the sister agencies would continue either way.
Much of the bill is limited to correcting references if the agencies are merged, with roughly only 30 of the 393 sections in the bill offering substantive new or modified legal changes.
Many are limited to eliminating 'obsolete' provisions that haven't been used in years, Bradley explained, such as a specific soil survey fund and repealing the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Act. Nebraska withdrew from a related waste disposal interstate compact in 1999.
LeRoy Sievers, who serves on the board of directors of the Nebraska State Irrigation Association, which has been around since 1893, argued that based on his experience, mergers don't save money.
'Prior mergers did not save money and only created additional bureaucratic barriers,' he said. 'This proposed merger will do the same.'
Sievers said he is a former assistant attorney general and legal counsel for what was previously the Nebraska Department of Water Resources and became Natural Resources in the 2000s.
He said that having a dedicated agency for water is critical in interstate litigation, which could include the Perkins County Canal, for example. Sievers said large bureaucracies hurt other states in those lawsuits while Nebraska had a leg up.
Al Davis, on behalf of the Nebraska chapter of the Sierra Club, opposed the merger, pointing to the environmental disaster in Mead, Nebraska, which he said was exacerbated by a slow response at Environment and Energy.
Davis, a former state senator from the Sandhills, said that the merger of the state's energy functions atrophied potential energy innovations at a time when the state could be strengthening and diversifying its energy grid.
Kurt Bogner, vice chair of the Nebraska Environmental Quality Council, which adopts rules and regulations for Environment and Energy and also vets candidates for the agency director, also opposed the move.
Bogner, testifying in his individual capacity, said the council has received no information or updates on selecting a director since former director Jim Macy resigned in April 2024.
LB 317 would remove the Council's advisory role to vet candidates for the governor, a responsibility that Bogner suggested should be carried over.
Bruce Rieker, for the Nebraska Farm Bureau, and John Hansen, for the Nebraska Farmers Union, also testified in opposition to the change.
Among Brandt's committee members, many appeared open to the merger.
State Sen. Barry DeKay of Niobrara, committee vice chair, noted it's not as if Natural Resources and Environment and Energy are 'oil and water,' because both already work together.
State Sen. Mike Moser of Columbus voiced what he described as the 'elephant in the room' to Brandt: balancing the use of water for agriculture, cities and industry.
Moser told Fanning that, whatever moves forward, he hopes local NRDs will embrace the changes and make it work well.
'That's our goal,' Fanning said. 'We're always working to improve collaboration with both agencies, and that's what we want on a daily basis.'
Brandt said he's open to taking more time to meet with stakeholders and specify how the merger would work. He said he remains committed to getting his bill over the finish line this year.
'Everybody wants better water issues tomorrow than we have today,' Brandt told his committee. 'I think we all share that goal in this room.'
Current: Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy
The Nebraska Department of Environmental Control is established (1971).
The department is renamed the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (1992).
Nebraska Energy Office is folded into the Environmental Quality Department, becoming DEE (2019).
State-delegated environmental health programs from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, housed in the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, are moved over to DEE (2021).
Current: Nebraska Department of Natural Resources
The State Board of Irrigation is established (1895).
The board is renamed the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage (1911).
The name changes again to the Department of Public Works, expanded to include the Bureau of Roads and Bridges; Bureau of Irrigation, Water Power and Drainage; and the Motor Vehicle Records Division (1919).
The department is renamed the Nebraska Department of Roads and Irrigation (1933).
The Nebraska Department of Water Resources is established as the prior department is divided into three separate state agencies, alongside the Department of Roads and the Department of Motor Vehicles (1957).
The Natural Resources Commission merges with the Nebraska Department of Water Resources to become the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (2000).
Nebraska is the only state with separate natural resources districts, which were created in 1972 as multipurpose, locally elected management bodies. There are currently 23 NRDs statewide.
Water management in the state is largely shared by the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Environment and Energy and NRDs, with specific support from the Nebraska Department of Agriculture and the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.
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The Hill
17-07-2025
- The Hill
Nebraska sues Colorado over river water rights, proposed canal construction
Nebraska officials on Wednesday announced a lawsuit against Colorado, alleging that the Centennial State is allowing 'unlawful water diversions' from a transboundary resource. Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) and Attorney General Mike Hilgers accuse Colorado of threatening Nebraska's water supply along the South Platte River in multiple ways. The lawsuit alleges that Colorado has 'deprived' Nebraskans of their water rights during irrigation season, while also 'obstructing' plans to construct a long-disputed conduit called the Perkins County Canal. 'Nebraska must push forward to secure our water for future generations,' Pillen said in a statement, noting that his state had 'made every reasonable effort to resolve our differences with Colorado.' The complaint in large part revolves around the enforcement of the South Platte River Compact, a deal signed by the states in 1923. The agreement limits Colorado's usage of the river and defines how much water Nebraska can receive during the summer irrigation season and the winter non-irrigation season. The headwaters of the South Platte River are located southwest of Denver near South Park, from which it generally heads northeast — through central Denver and the metropolitan region, to Fort Lipton and across the Colorado Eastern Plains, before heading into Nebraska. Because the U.S. Supreme Court has original jurisdiction regarding disputes between the two states, the Nebraska officials argued that the court's input is required to resolve a now irreconcilable dispute. 'Today's action will ensure that Nebraska receives all the water to which it is entitled to under the Compact and that Nebraska's agriculture and economy are protected,' Hilgers said in a statement. 'Water is the essential lifeblood of Nebraska's economy, and it's my goal to protect one of the state's most important assets,' the attorney general added. The lawsuit maintains that the 1923 compact requires Colorado to disconnect certain water users whenever Nebraska is not receiving 120 cubic feet per second of flow during the irrigation season. Currently, the complaint argues, Colorado enables users with 'junior' water rights statuses to take Nebraska's share of summertime water — violating the agreement and Nebraska's 'senior' rights status. The rights in question stem from a historic U.S. West system that adheres to a 'first in time, first in right' approach to water access. This method, rooted in the mid-19th century homesteading and gold rush era, enabled farmers and miners to secure and divert water according to their arrival, rather than their geographical position along the river. The 1923 compact, per the lawsuit, also permits Nebraska to divert 500 cubic feet per second of water flow in the winter, as well as additional water when the Perkins County Canal is constructed. As it stands today, Colorado pumps water in the winter and gradually releases it into the river to compensate for summer overuse, the complaint explains. While this occurs under the theory that the water reaches Nebraska by the following irrigation season, the lawsuit criticizes this method for taking water from the state when farmers are in greatest need. To guarantee that Nebraska can fulfill its rights in the winter and regulate water flow, the state has set out to build the Perkins County Canal, the document explains. The Nebraska state legislature in 2023 approved $574.5 million in funding for the canal's constructions despite pushback from lawmakers who had sought to reduce the cost. While recognizing that Colorado has acknowledged its neighbor's entitlement to build the canal, the Nebraska officials expressed frustrations that negotiations over the project's fine print have persisted for years and ultimately reached a stalemate. 'Despite Nebraska's good faith efforts, Colorado won't agree on such basic things as the location or the size of the Canal, or how much water can flow through it,' a fact sheet issued by the attorney general argued. In response to the lawsuit, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis's (D) office issued a press release that described the complaint as 'meritless.' 'I am disappointed that the states of Colorado and Nebraska will need to waste time and money in court over this meritless challenge,' Polis said. The governor stressed that Colorado has always complied with the South Platte Compact and has met 'in good faith' with Nebraska officials, despite 'attempts to intimidate Colorado landowners.' 'This escalation by Nebraska is needless, and Colorado will take all steps necessary to aggressively defend Colorado water users, landowners, and our rural economy,' Polis added. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser echoed these sentiments in his own statement, slamming neighboring leaders for prioritizing politics over agricultural and likely setting in motion 'decades of litigation.' Describing the Perkins County Canal project as 'wasteful,' he said that the canal's operation would require Colorado to build new water infrastructure to offset the impacts of Nebraska's initiative. 'When the dust finally settles, likely over a billion dollars will have been spent—tens of millions of that on litigation alone — and no one in Nebraska or Colorado will be better off,' Weiser added.
Associated Press
16-07-2025
- Associated Press
Nebraska sues neighboring Colorado over how much water it's drawing from the South Platte River
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska is suing Colorado over the amount of water it draws from the South Platte River, the latest in a long history of water rights disputes between the states that have been left increasingly dry by climate change. Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and state Attorney General Mike Hilgers held a news conference Wednesday to announce the lawsuit, which was filed with the U.S. Supreme Court. 'It's crystal clear. Colorado has been holding water back from Nebraska for almost 100 years and getting more and more egregious every single day,' Pillen said, pointing to Colorado's rapidly expanding population over the past decade. 'So today it's really, really simple: We're here to put our gloves on,' Pillen said. 'We're going to fight like heck. We're going to get every drop of water.' Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser called the lawsuit 'unfortunate' in a written statement and said Nebraska officials failed 'to look for reasonable solutions.' The lawsuit accuses Colorado of depriving Nebraska of as much as 1.3 million acre-feet (about 160,350 hectare-meters) of water from the river over several years that Nebraska is entitled to under a 1923 compact between the states. The suit also accuses Colorado officials of blocking Nebraska's effort to construct a massive canal — often called the Perkins County Canal — and reservoir project that would see Nebraska seize land in Colorado to divert water into Nebraska, which is also allowed under the compact. Nebraska needs the water not only for agriculture production in its southwestern region — which climate experts predict will grow hotter and drier in the coming decades — but also to feed water supplies in the eastern part of the state, officials said. Nebraska's capital, Lincoln, is expected to get 12% of its water from the proposed canal, Pillen said. The compact entitles Nebraska to 120 cubic feet (3.4 cubic meters) per second from the river during the irrigation season between April 1 and Oct. 15 each year, and 500 cubic feet (about 14 cubic meters) per second during the non-irrigation fall and winter months. Hilgers said Colorado has been shortchanging Nebraska during the irrigation season, allowing only about 75 cubic feet (about 2 cubic meters) per second of water daily into Nebraska this summer. 'I think this may be the most consequential lawsuit that this office will be a part of in my generation,' Hilgers said. 'It is almost impossible to overstate the importance of the South Platte River to the future of the state of Nebraska.' The South Platte, which flows through northeastern Colorado into southwestern Nebraska, has been at the center of a tempest brewing between the two states going back to 2022, when Nebraska announced it would build the canal. Since then, officials from the two states have been haggling over how to carry out both the terms of the compact and land acquisition to build the canal. 'It became clear, despite the very professional and intentional scope of those negotiations, that we were at an impasse,' Hilgers said. Weiser countered that Nebraska officials should have remained at the negotiating table. 'Nebraska's actions will force Colorado water users to build additional new projects to lessen the impact of the proposed Perkins County Canal,' he said. 'When the dust finally settles, likely over a billion dollars will have been spent — tens of millions of that on litigation alone — and no one in Nebraska or Colorado will be better off.' Hilgers said the lawsuit was filed directly with the Supreme Court because it handles disputes between states. The process 'isn't fast,' Hilgers warned. 'We'll probably have a special master appointed within the next 12 months, and under normal litigation timelines, that's maybe 3 to 5 years before we get a result,' he said. That does not mean work on the canal will stop, he said, as he expects work on permitting and design of the canal to continue. Nebraska has been at the center of interstate water disputes for decades. In 2002, Nebraska, Colorado and Kansas reached a settlement over Republican River water allocation after years of legal wrangling. But disputes continued, and new agreements were reached among the states again in 2014. Water disputes could become more common as climate change worsens shortages, said Dr. Carly Phillips, a research scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists — a nonprofit that advocates for climate change solutions. Warmer temperatures affect multiple parts of the hydrological cycle, Phillips said. It is decreasing the snowpack, which is the main way water is stored in the western U.S. Higher temperatures also mean the snow melts earlier each year, changing the availability of stream flow. And states like Nebraska might see increased irrigation demand when it's hotter. 'These patterns are all in the same direction across the board,' Phillips said. 'The trends are really consistent when it comes to snowpack, stream flow, evaporation and irrigation demand.' ____ Associated Press reporter Sarah Raza contributed from Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Washington Post
16-07-2025
- Washington Post
Nebraska sues neighboring Colorado over how much water it's drawing from the South Platte River
OMAHA, Neb. — Nebraska is suing Colorado over the amount of water it draws from the South Platte River, the latest in a long history of water rights disputes between the states that have been left increasingly dry by climate change. Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and state Attorney General Mike Hilgers held a news conference Wednesday to announce the lawsuit, which was filed with the U.S. Supreme Court. 'It's crystal clear. Colorado has been holding water back from Nebraska for almost 100 years and getting more and more egregious every single day,' Pillen said, pointing to Colorado's rapidly expanding population over the past decade. 'So today it's really, really simple: We're here to put our gloves on,' Pillen said. 'We're going to fight like heck. We're going to get every drop of water.' Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser called the lawsuit 'unfortunate' in a written statement and said Nebraska officials failed 'to look for reasonable solutions.' The lawsuit accuses Colorado of depriving Nebraska of as much as 1.3 million acre-feet (about 160,350 hectare-meters) of water from the river over several years that Nebraska is entitled to under a 1923 compact between the states. The suit also accuses Colorado officials of blocking Nebraska's effort to construct a massive canal — often called the Perkins County Canal — and reservoir project that would see Nebraska seize land in Colorado to divert water into Nebraska, which is also allowed under the compact. Nebraska needs the water not only for agriculture production in its southwestern region — which climate experts predict will grow hotter and drier in the coming decades — but also to feed water supplies in the eastern part of the state, officials said. Nebraska's capital, Lincoln, is expected to get 12% of its water from the proposed canal, Pillen said. The compact entitles Nebraska to 120 cubic feet (3.4 cubic meters) per second from the river during the irrigation season between April 1 and Oct. 15 each year, and 500 cubic feet (about 14 cubic meters) per second during the non-irrigation fall and winter months. Hilgers said Colorado has been shortchanging Nebraska during the irrigation season, allowing only about 75 cubic feet (about 2 cubic meters) per second of water daily into Nebraska this summer. 'I think this may be the most consequential lawsuit that this office will be a part of in my generation,' Hilgers said. 'It is almost impossible to overstate the importance of the South Platte River to the future of the state of Nebraska.' The South Platte, which flows through northeastern Colorado into southwestern Nebraska, has been at the center of a tempest brewing between the two states going back to 2022, when Nebraska announced it would build the canal. Since then, officials from the two states have been haggling over how to carry out both the terms of the compact and land acquisition to build the canal. 'It became clear, despite the very professional and intentional scope of those negotiations, that we were at an impasse,' Hilgers said. Weiser countered that Nebraska officials should have remained at the negotiating table. 'Nebraska's actions will force Colorado water users to build additional new projects to lessen the impact of the proposed Perkins County Canal,' he said. 'When the dust finally settles, likely over a billion dollars will have been spent — tens of millions of that on litigation alone — and no one in Nebraska or Colorado will be better off.' Hilgers said the lawsuit was filed directly with the Supreme Court because it handles disputes between states. The process 'isn't fast,' Hilgers warned. 'We'll probably have a special master appointed within the next 12 months, and under normal litigation timelines, that's maybe 3 to 5 years before we get a result,' he said. That does not mean work on the canal will stop, he said, as he expects work on permitting and design of the canal to continue. Nebraska has been at the center of interstate water disputes for decades. In 2002, Nebraska, Colorado and Kansas reached a settlement over Republican River water allocation after years of legal wrangling. But disputes continued, and new agreements were reached among the states again in 2014. Water disputes could become more common as climate change worsens shortages, said Dr. Carly Phillips, a research scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists — a nonprofit that advocates for climate change solutions. Warmer temperatures affect multiple parts of the hydrological cycle, Phillips said. It is decreasing the snowpack, which is the main way water is stored in the western U.S. Higher temperatures also mean the snow melts earlier each year, changing the availability of stream flow. And states like Nebraska might see increased irrigation demand when it's hotter. 'These patterns are all in the same direction across the board,' Phillips said. 'The trends are really consistent when it comes to snowpack, stream flow, evaporation and irrigation demand.' ____ Associated Press reporter Sarah Raza contributed from Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
