WASHINGTON, D.C. – After years of bureaucratic delays, U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee, announced the first Western Water Cooperative Committee (WWCC) meeting will be held in Bismarck on Dec. 3 and 4.

The WWCC will ensure U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) projects in western states are operated consistent with congressional directives and adhere to state water rights and water laws. It also establishes a platform for western states to better coordinate and engage with the Army Corps.

“Holding this meeting is long overdue, but I’m hopeful it will lead to a more productive relationship between western states and the Army Corps,” said Cramer. “States and water users know their unique water issues better than any bureaucrat in Washington and I look forward to collaborative cooperative federalism from the Army Corps.”

“The Western Water Cooperative Committee is a forum to bring those most knowledgeable about western water challenges together to find solutions that balance diverse interests,” said Adam Telle, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works. “This advisory committee is now up and running thanks to the leadership of Senator Cramer, Secretary Driscoll, Secretary Hegseth, and President Trump, and I look forward to continuing to support the committee’s work.”

Cramer introduced legislation creating the WWCC and secured its inclusion and passage in the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2022. His bill was endorsed by the Western Governors’ Association, Western States Water Council, and Conference of Western Attorneys General.

Despite language in WRDA 2022 requiring the committee’s creation 90 days after the law’s establishment, it was not initiated until earlier this year. Cramer repeatedly pressed the Army Corps to follow the law and formally launch the WWCC. This includes questioning the Army Corps leadership about it during an EPW Committee hearing in 2024 and later writing a letter to the agency demanding a timeline for when the WWCC would be established and hold its first meeting. More recently, Cramer raised the issue with Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll about the years-long delay under the Biden administration.